Canadian judge who wore 'Make America Great Again' hat to court is suspended without pay

Matthew Diebel | USA TODAY

Well, maybe that wasn’t such a “Great” idea after all.

A Canadian judge who donned a red “Make America Great Again” hat in court the day after President Trump was elected has been suspended without pay and given a formal reprimand.

Bernd Zabel, a judge in Hamilton, a city about 40 miles southwest of Toronto, had told a four-member disciplinary panel that wearing the hat on November 9, 2016, was meant as a joke and had apologized a few days later, according to the Toronto Star. However, in December he was put on paid suspension after a firestorm of protest, particularly from immigrant-rights groups.

According to the paper, the Ontario Judicial Council said they saw a “stark contrast” between the perception of Zabel caused by his wearing of the hat, and the man described by judges, lawyers and court staff, who said Zabel is fair and unbiased jurist. During testimony, Zabel said he is not a Trump supporter.

The suspension, which will last for 30 days, is the most serious sanction that the council can impose short of dismissal, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported.

A representative for immigrant groups, however, maintained their opposition to Zabel. “Notwithstanding the hearing panel’s finding to the contrary, the public in Hamilton cannot have confidence that Justice Zabel will be impartial,” said Ranjan Agarwal, a board director of the South Asian Bar Association of Toronto in a statement.

“Muslim and South Asian lawyers and litigants, in particular, will always wonder if Justice Zabel’s rulings are informed by his appreciation for a president who believes they should be barred from Western society.”

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Zabel told the panel that he bought six “Make American Great Again” hats last June as “historical memorabilia.”

According to the National Post, Zabel said he meant to lighten the mood by wearing a baseball cap with the Trump slogan while walking into court the day after the U.S. election.

Zabel said at the time that he wore the hat as a “celebration of a historic night in the United States,” according to an agreed statement of facts, the Post reported. He then took it off and placed it on his bench until a break.

The judge, the paper said, told the hearing that wearing the hat was a form of “gloating” at having predicted the outcome of the election better than his colleagues.

Zabel later apologized publicly for his behavior, calling it a “lapse in judgment.”