MIAMI – Miami defense attorney Stephen Gutierrez was back in court Wednesday, just one week after a hole burned through the inside of his dress pants during an arson trial.
The incident left Judge Michael Hanzman feeling skeptical.
"I find it highly implausible that during an arson trial, when your defense is spontaneous combustion, that all of a sudden, within a minute of your closing argument, your pants start on fire," Hanzman told Gutierrez. "Now, it may very well be that this is all a matter of coincidence, but it just seems to me to be a strange coincidence."
Gutierrez, 28, was defending Claudy Charles, 49, Feb. 8, who was on trial for second-degree arson.
Shortly after starting closing arguments, Gutierrez left the room, claiming some e-cigarette batteries he had in his pocket somehow burned a hole right through them.
"This was just a total matter of coincidence, right?" Hanzman asked the attorney. "You told me that in trial. Right?"
"Yes, judge," Gutierrez said.
Gutierrez could be found in criminal contempt of court if an investigation proves he staged the incident -- a claim Gutierrez vehemently denied.
"I have confidence that the truth will come out in the end," he said.