Joe Tacopina is blasting the judge in Wendy Williams' conservatorship case for telling the TV star her career is over ... calling the statements "outrageous" -- and adding Wendy's going to have a massive comeback when the conservator battle is over.
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00:00At the end of the hearing, this judge first basically said Wendy's family was terrible,
00:09and then looks at Wendy and says, you know, you had a great career.
00:16Your career is over. It is never coming back. You're done.
00:21Why would a judge say that?
00:24And what is the relevance to what they're actually there for?
00:28It just seemed mean-spirited the way it was relayed to us because it wasn't really necessary for the conversation that was going on.
00:38And by the way, the judge doesn't know what she's talking about.
00:41Wendy Williams is a hot commodity right now.
00:45I can tell you from our Tubi documentary, it attracted a lot of attention.
00:49She's done interviews with major outlets. People are interested in her.
00:55So the idea that the judge would even say it, she's just wrong.
00:58But the fact that she'd say it is unbelievable.
01:02That's sickening, honestly, just listening to you guys and hearing what you just said.
01:06You know, from the issuance of a gag order, which we'll get to in a second, which is illegal, okay, to the statements, if true, that were made by this judge, you know, in a court proceeding that has nothing to do with Wendy's career.
01:22Moreover, that were made in front of Wendy Williams.
01:25If true, that is outrageous because this judge, one, she's not in the entertainment industry.
01:32So I don't know where she would get off opining about that and why that's even relevant to her role as a judge who's basically a judge of the law and, in this case, judge of the facts.
01:42And why she would – she's not a neurologist either, I mean, clearly, and someone who should be opining on whether Wendy Williams has the capability to get better and become a – but I will tell you, I've spent time with Wendy this week.
01:55And I've spoken to Wendy, Harvey, as you have, you know, I'd say hundreds of hours over the last several months.
02:02And I will tell you, she's as Wendy Williams as she was 10 years ago.
02:07She's as Wendy Williams as she was when she had one of the best shows in television.
02:12She's absolutely capable of hosting a talk show or doing whatever she wants to do.
02:18I mean, she is there.
02:20She's got her wherewithal.
02:21And for someone to say that her career is over when they're a judge, judging her is really a display of a bias.
02:31If I were her lawyer yesterday in that court proceeding and she had said that that judge in front of my client, I would have stood up there with fury.
02:39And I would have said – first of all, I would have objected to that statement because it's totally improper coming from the court, totally improper.
02:47But moreover, it's made without a basis in knowledge, and it's made without a medical background and without education.
02:55And so I would have lost my mind, honestly, if that had been said to my client or in my client's presence if I were there yesterday.
03:02That's disgusting.
03:03This is just crazy.
03:05Why?
03:05What about – and, Joe, help me out on this gag order thing.
03:08It's like, why is there a gag order in a guardianship case?
03:12I've never heard of one, okay?
03:14Harvey, I've never heard of one.
03:15Guys, the issuance of gag orders prohibiting participants in judicial proceedings from speaking to the public or the press about those proceedings is a form of what's known as prior restraint,
03:28presumptively invalid under the First Amendment, and frequently held to be unconstitutional by lower courts, including the Second Circuit, which is the court that is in New York.
03:40It is beyond pale that you can't just issue a broad gag order and just say, you know, that's what we're doing here.
03:49So it's prior restraint on constitutionally protected expression.
03:53And there's been so many cases on this.
03:55And, look, gag orders used – I guess technically were issued and could be deemed valid in cases where, like, witnesses' lives were perhaps at risk in organized crime cases or cartel cases where you had, you know, the name of a witness who maybe was at risk or something of that effect.
04:15Or where you really could hinder, you know, an impartial jury, the right to a fair and impartial jury.
04:25And, again, that's a stretch, too.
04:27And I just had that in the ASAP Rocky trial, okay?
04:29The judge initially issued a gag order in our trial and then rescinded it because he said it is illegal.
04:35It's constitutionally invalid, okay, in that trial.
04:38And that was with the jury.
04:40That was with the jury.
04:42Here there's no jury.
04:43This judge is the fact finder.
04:44So what, is she going to get influenced by a statement made out of court?
04:49Of course not.
04:50It's to punish.
04:51It's to – it's really to intimidate litigants and their lawyers.
04:56And to me it's outrageous.
04:58There should not be a gag order.
04:59If I were – again, if I were in that case, I would be fighting tooth and nail.
05:03And I'd be appealing any issuance of a gag order.
05:05Prior restraint, unconstitutionally protected expression is illegal.
05:10It's illegal and it normally carries a heavy presumption against constitutional validity.
05:16Why do you think the judge and the guardian are going in so hard to keep her in this confined guardianship?
05:26You know, Harvey, it's – I – sometimes, honestly, I lay awake at night thinking, like trying to come up with an answer.
05:33And I don't know if there's a – you know, the guardian has a financial motivation, is financially motivated by this.
05:39I don't know if there's – you know, now there's a line drawn in the sand, so to speak, and we're going to show each other who's the boss type of thing.
05:46I just don't understand it.
05:49But it is just wrong.
05:50It's just wrong.
05:51And I hope and pray I get to get into that guardianship case.
05:55You know, look, I respect the court.
05:57I respect the judges.
05:58And I respect the roles of a judge.
06:00But I do not and will not be bullied by anyone, including a judge who's going to impose gag orders that aren't permissible, who's going to make threats to litigants.
06:11That's not my gig.
06:11I don't really go with that.
06:12And I'm respectful.
06:13And I've never had a disciplinary complaint against me ever.
06:16And so I will – you know, I know where the boundaries are, but also I'm not afraid to break some China if necessary.
06:23And this case is disgusting, just to be honest with you.
06:26I mean, I'm just really disgusted by this case.
06:27This poor woman, and I've spoke to her, and she's handling it as well as anyone could handle it.
06:31I'll be honest with you.
06:32I'd be losing my mind if I were being held – really, it's over a year.
06:38She's in a place where she can't leave.
06:41I mean, it's insane to me.
06:42It really is insane.
06:44And it's sad.
06:45It's sad.
06:46And then something has to be done.
06:48I'm not leaving her side until she's out of there.
06:50I promise you that.