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Resident tells commissioners judge ‘insulted’ her, alleges unlawful orders and child removal
Summary
A Hamburg Township resident told the Livingston County Board she was granted a PPO and custody but says Judge Longsworth insulted her, jailed her, and ordered her children removed; another resident echoed the allegations and urged public attention to upcoming hearings.
During the Jan. 26 Livingston County Board meeting, resident Hannah Suds (Hamburg Township) used the public‑comment period to recount her experience with family‑court proceedings and to allege misconduct by a presiding judge she named as Judge Longsworth.
“I was granted a PPO in sole custody of the kids. Then Judge Longsworth appeared. She insulted me and called me dumb and a bad mom, and she threatened to take my kids,” Suds said. Suds said she repeatedly reported abuse to police and that, during one hearing, police took her child to the emergency room. She told the commissioners she begged for an adjournment so she could go to the hospital and that Longsworth refused. “She sent me to jail with no release date,” Suds said, adding that a subsequent judge rescinded the sentence and ordered her release.
Suds told the board the state intervened, her children were taken for medical care and foster placement, and criminal charges were filed against the children’s father; she said no charges or sanction have been brought against Judge Longsworth.
Following Suds, Steve Williams (Marion Township) told commissioners the account matched his family’s experience and criticized the judge’s conduct. Williams described missed enforcement of custody‑related orders and urged the public to attend a forthcoming hearing, providing the date and time for his next court appearance.
Commissioners did not take formal action on the allegations at the meeting. The public comment record contains the speakers’ allegations and statements about subsequent state‑level intervention and criminal charges against the children’s father; the board did not announce a referral or investigation during the session.
The meeting record shows the complaints were presented as personal testimony during the public comment period; they were not part of any agenda item or a formal complaint to the board itself. Any inquiry into judicial conduct or court decisions would involve separate court or judicial conduct processes outside the board’s direct authority.
Next steps: The speakers asked for public attention and noted upcoming court dates; the board took no formal action during the meeting.
