Contempt of court is what happens when someone disrespects or disobeys a judge, and it can put you in handcuffs on the spot. Comedian Phillip Hudson, known online as Lantbo, found that out over an unpaid traffic ticket. He also walked out with a second chance he says he did not earn.
Hudson told the whole story on Justice Unfiltered with hosts Tug Cowart and Daniel Matalon, CEO of A 2nd Chance Bail Bonds and A 2nd Chance Monitoring. It is funny. It is also a pretty good lesson in how to act when you are standing in front of a judge.
Who is Lantbo?
Lantbo is Phillip Benjamin Hudson, a comedian, musician, and digital creator based in metro Atlanta. He grew up in Mississippi, moved to Georgia in 1998, and settled in Jonesboro.
He launched a YouTube channel in 2009. Three years later, he and his brother Emmanuel Hudson released “Ratchet Girl Anthem.” Emmanuel wrote the song. Phillip handled the ad-libs and the faces. The video pulled in tens of millions of views at a time when, as he put it, “viral wasn’t viral” yet. “We become the OGs of viral videos,” Hudson said. “This is before Vine and Instagram, before all of that. Strictly Facebook and YouTube.”
Today he tours, writes, and creates ads for businesses on social media. He keeps his comedy clean, and he credits his faith for the freedom to do it without shame.
Where does the comedy come from?
Hudson says it comes from questioning everything. He was the youngest of six brothers, and he remembers being the kid who answered “What do you want for Christmas?” with “What’s Christmas?”
He does not love the phrase “think outside the box,” though. “People say think outside the box. I think about, let’s just expand the box,” he said. “I don’t want to be out there by myself in the rain.”
His favorite example is the sketch comedy of Key and Peele, which he described as regular life under a magnifying glass. The situation is ordinary. The comedian just says the part everyone else left out. “It’s the truth that’s missing,” Hudson said. Cowart pointed out that the court jester played the same role in Shakespeare. The fool is usually the one telling the truth.
What is contempt of court, and how did Lantbo end up in handcuffs?
Contempt of court generally means behavior that disrespects the court or ignores what a judge has ordered. Judges have broad authority to respond to it in the moment, and how they use that authority varies by court and by judge.
Hudson’s version started small. He was stopped for a traffic violation, did not pay the ticket, and then forgot his court date. That left him with a failure to appear and a license he was trying to get back.
When he finally got in front of the judge, she was brisk with everyone. No small talk, by the book. Hudson took her tone personally and matched it. She asked for documentation he did not have and reset his court date.
He came back for the new date. Same judge. He still did not have the paperwork, and by his own admission, he had not listened well enough the first time to know what she wanted. He spent the wait coaching himself. “Don’t turn up on the judge,” he remembered thinking. “Which is a crazy, insane conversation.”
It did not work. She challenged his answer, he said something he should not have, and she held him in contempt. A deputy put him in handcuffs. “The first five seconds, I’m like, yeah, I told her,” Hudson said. “But I can’t move my arms.” He had content to shoot that day and a company to run. He could not reach his phone.
Then people in the courtroom started quietly speaking up for him, and word made its way to the bench. The judge called him back up and offered him another chance to think about how he wanted to proceed. His answer was two words. “Yes, ma’am.”
What can you learn from a contempt of court story like this one?
Hudson is hard on himself about it, and that is what makes the story useful. “I do not know nothing about no law, and I’m in here jaw jacking with this judge,” he said. His takeaway: “If you’re ignorant about a situation, you probably shouldn’t be doing too much talking.” A few practical points come out of his experience:
- Put the court date somewhere you cannot miss it. A forgotten date over a traffic ticket can turn into a much bigger problem.
- Know what the court asked you to bring. If you are not sure, ask the clerk or your attorney before the date, not during the hearing.
- A judge’s tone is not personal. She was not being unfair, Hudson said. She was following protocol.
- Say less. The courtroom is not the place to win an argument.
If you already know you have a conflict, read our guide on what to do if you can’t make your court date. And if you are tempted to just not go, here is why skipping court is never worth it.
Why does Lantbo say a second chance is a second choice?
Because the chance only matters if you do something different with it. That was the line of the episode. “You got a second chance, but that also comes with a second choice,” Hudson said.
He admitted he is not someone who asks for one. He tends to run the numbers on himself and decide he does not deserve it. So when grace shows up anyway, it catches him off guard, and he tries to do right by it.
Cowart asked Matalon how often people make the right choice once they get that chance. Matalon’s off-the-cuff estimate was about 80 percent, and he added that the system around a person matters. Support, reminders, and accountability make it easier to get to court and get back to normal life. Cowart compared it to the bumpers at a bowling alley. That idea sits behind both A 2nd Chance companies, from bail bonds to electronic monitoring.
How did a clean comedian end up working with a bail bonds company?
It started as a routine job. A 2nd Chance wanted to do more on social media, Hudson’s name came up, and a team member named Kyle made the introduction.
Then it got strange. Matalon had been a fan of “Ratchet Girl Anthem” since 2012. He met with Hudson three times, including a lunch, without realizing he was sitting across from the guy in the video. Someone finally mentioned the song out loud in the office. There was one more coincidence. Hudson’s first name is Phillip. So was Matalon’s father’s, and it is his son’s middle name.
For Hudson, the bigger question was how to advertise a bail bonds company without making light of people in trouble. Being arrested is not the same as being guilty, he noted, but the public does not always see it that way. He wanted the work to reflect what the business is really about.
What settled it was the grand opening of the company’s new office. Friends who had known Matalon for 20 years told the same story Matalon had told him at lunch. The staff looked like people who planned to stay. “You can’t fake principles,” Hudson said.
Matalon described the partnership as a long-term one. “I’m a relationship guy,” he said, “and anybody who knows me knows that.”
What is school lunch debt, and why did it come up?
School lunch debt is the balance a student’s account builds when a family cannot cover the cost of meals. Matalon raised it with Hudson as one of the community problems they would like to help solve together. Hudson had heard of it but had never really sat with the idea until then. “These are children,” he said. “And they in debt already?”
He found the joke in it, of course. Mostly about how fast he would have stayed home for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. But he was serious about the point, and so was Matalon, who called it one of many ideas the two are working through.
Listen to the full episode
There is a lot more in the full conversation, including Hudson’s take on comedic timing and why laughter shows up when people are uncomfortable. Find the episode on Justice Unfiltered, and follow Hudson at @lantbo.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Nobody plans on a contempt of court charge, and nobody plans on needing a second chance. If someone you love needs help getting home tonight, call A 2nd Chance Bail Bonds at (770) 627-3235 or start the process online.
About A 2nd Chance Bail Bonds
A 2nd Chance Bail Bonds has been reuniting families for nearly 20 years. With multiple offices across Georgia and Alabama, our licensed bail bond agents are available around the clock to provide fast, respectful service to every family we work with. Whether the charge is a misdemeanor or a felony, we are here to help.
The information in this article is provided for general educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article reflects a conversation with a guest, and the stories and opinions shared are his own. Contempt of court, failure to appear, and traffic court procedures depend on the court, the county, and the facts of each case. Laws, procedures, and requirements in Georgia can change, and individual circumstances vary. If you have specific legal questions about your situation, please consult a licensed attorney in Georgia. A 2nd Chance Bail Bonds is a licensed bail bond agency, not a law firm.
