The South Florida lawyer who made national headlines when his pants caught on fire while he was speaking to a jury was back in court Wednesday for the first time since the flames sparked.
During the hearing for the client he represents, a Miami-Dade judge talked about the incident when 28-year-old Stephen Gutierrez's pants caught fire.
"I think this is being blown, you know, to monumental proportions," Gutierrez said during the hearing.
The judge wants Gutierrez to step aside from the case so that another attorney can take over.
Gutierrez had previously said that the battery to an e-cigarette in his pocket sparked, causing the incident. He was defending a client accused of arson at the time.
"It just happened so fast that you know, it's one of those things that just happened, unfortunately," he said.
"I find it highly implausible that during an arson trial when your defense is spontaneous combustion then that all of a sudden within a minute of your closing arguments, your pants start on fire," Judge Michael Hanzman said.
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If prosecutors succeed in proving Gutierrez planned the whole thing for effect, he could end up in jail.
