United States Court of Appeals

for the Fifth Circuit

No. 20-40624

United States of America, 

Plaintiff—Appellee,

versus

Judith L. Brocato; Dick Brocato, Jr., 

Defendants—Appellants.

Appeal from the United States District Court 

for the Eastern Division of Texas

USDC No. 1:19-CR-133

Before King, Dennis, and Ho, Circuit Judges.

Per Curiam:

Judith and Dick Brocato were convicted by a jury of conspiracy to 

commit tax fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371, and filing false returns, in 

violation of 26 U.S.C. § 7206(1), and were sentenced to 33 months

imprisonment on all counts, to run concurrently. Prior to sentencing, they 

moved to recuse the district judge who presided over their trial. The motion 

was denied, and the Brocatos were sentenced. On appeal, they seek recusal 

of the district judge, vacatur of their sentences, and resentencing by a 

different judge. Although we think that certain statements of the district 

court judge were ill-advised and certain actions of her staff were improper, 

United States Court of Appeals

Fifth Circuit

FILED

July 9, 2021

Lyle W. Cayce

Clerk

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we nonetheless AFFIRM because, after a thorough review of the record, we 

conclude that there was no actual bias or reasonable question as to the judge’s 

impartiality in this case that would require recusal. 

I.

The Brocatos, a married couple, owned a lawn care company, 

Superior Lawn Service. Judith was the president and bookkeeper of 

Superior. Over a three-year period, the Brocatos concealed approximately 

$1.7 million of business income. They were charged with conspiracy to 

commit tax fraud and multiple counts of filing false tax returns. After a threeday trial, the jury convicted on all counts. 

On the second day of trial, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) special 

agent Regina Kelley testified for the Government. Kelley testified, among 

other matters, that Judith purchased a Maserati sedan in 2013 and paid part 

of the down payment with $9,000 in cash. Judith also testified on the second 

day of trial. She admitted to routinely shredding business documents, 

including immediately after receiving a records request from the IRS. On 

direct examination, Judith was also asked about the source of the $9,000 in 

cash that she used to cover part of the Maserati down payment:

Q. Where did that $9,000 come from?

A. My mother. She passed away.

Q. Okay. And you got that $9,000 from her estate?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. And that’s what you used?

A. Yes, sir. 

The Government did not attempt to impeach or otherwise contest Judith’s 

testimony about the source of the $9,000.

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The next day, February 5, 2020, before closing arguments, Judith’s 

testimony was discussed in an unrecorded, in-chambers conference. The 

district court later recounted that “the court convened a meeting with 

counsel in chambers to discuss the jury charge, consistent with the court’s 

practice, and merely instructed counsel for the Brocatos not to represent 

during closing argument that the source of the $9,000.00 cash was the estate 

of Mrs. Brocato’s deceased mother.” According to the Brocatos, the judge 

advised that “her staff had conducted an Internet search and found an 

obituary” that suggested “Mrs. Brocato could not have obtained the $9,000 

from her mother’s estate,” leading the judge to conclude “that Mrs. Brocato 

had committed perjury during her testimony.” 

That same day, after the Brocatos were convicted, the district court 

outlined the sentencing process to them and addressed the issue of their

release pending sentencing. The Government stated it had no objections to 

the Brocatos “remaining out on bond” and defense counsel proposed 

“continu[ing] on the same conditions of release,” but the court said that it 

“d[id]n’t feel comfortable” with that and would require each defendant to 

post a $100,000 bond. It gave the following explanation:

The Court is very troubled about testimony about shredding 

documents, discarding evidence, and the perjury that occurred 

in this courtroom about the source of the $9,000 cash where 

Mrs. Brocato said that it was from her mother’s estate. But the 

transaction with the Maserati occurred in 2013 and it appears 

from the obituary of her mother that she died in 2015; so, I 

don’t think she would have gotten money in 2013 from her 

mother’s estate. The Court takes a very dim view of perjury in 

proceedings; so, you need to keep that in mind.

The presentence report (PSR) for each defendant identified a 

guidelines range of 33 to 41 months in prison based on a criminal history 

category of I and a total offense level of 20. Although Judith’s PSR referred 

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to her testimony about the $9,000 as potential grounds for an obstruction-ofjustice enhancement, it deemed the enhancement unwarranted because “the 

misinformation does not appear purposeful.” The probation officer noted 

that Judith had explained that she received money from her mother before 

the latter died and that “she was nervous while testifying and any statement 

suggesting she received the [$9,000] from her mother after her mother’s 

death was simply a mistake.” The final PSRs were filed on August 10. 

On August 14, the court requested a certified copy of Judith’s

mother’s death certificate from defense counsel. A week later, the Brocatos 

filed a motion to recuse the district judge. Invoking 28 U.S.C. §§ 144 and 

455(a) as well as the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause, they argued 

that the district court’s “sua sponte, ex parteinvestigation into Mrs. Brocato’s 

credibility,” its accusation of perjury, and its decision to increase both 

defendants’ bond obligations evinced actual or apparent bias warranting 

recusal. The motion included a certificate of good faith signed by counsel 

and sworn affirmations by Dick and Judith that “everything contained herein 

is true and correct.” Four exhibits were attached, including the court’s

request for a certified death certificate; a letter from Judith disclaiming any

intent to testify falsely and stating that her mother made gifts of money in the 

years before she died; and affidavits from Judith’s daughter-in-law Amy 

Brocato and from Lauren Moore, a longtime hairdresser for Judith and her 

mother, offering support for Judith’s statement. In addition, Moore averred 

that she was present when the district court spoke of Judith committing 

perjury and that the judge was clearly “angry and upset.” 

The district court denied the recusal motion on September 2. It 

acknowledged that “[c]ourt staff discovered that Mrs. Brocato’s mother, 

Verna Jo Carter (‘Mrs. Carter’), died in 2015, at least two years after the 

[Maserati sedan] was purchased.” However, the court wrote, “staff was not 

instructed to investigate any of the parties and did not bring this information 

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to the judge’s attention until after Mrs. Brocato finished testifying and the 

Government had not cross-examined her on the issue.” The district court 

first determined that the Brocatos’ reliance on § 144 was unavailing because 

the affidavits from Lauren Moore and Amy Brocato failed to show bias. It 

then concluded that § 455 and the Due Process Clause did not require recusal 

either. 

At sentencing hearings on September 9, the district court adopted 

both PSRs in full, denied defense requests for an adjustment for acceptance 

of responsibility or for a downward variance, and sentenced both Judith and 

Dick at the low-end of the guidelines range to 33-months imprisonment to be 

followed by one year of supervised release. The district court also imposed 

$617,762 in restitution. This appeal followed.

II.

On appeal, the Brocatos do not challenge their convictions or

sentences. Rather, they argue that the district court abused its discretion in 

denying their motion to recuse, and they seek resentencing by a different 

district judge. In response, the Government asserts that the judge was not 

required to recuse herself, and that even if it were an abuse of discretion 

under statutory law not to recuse, any such error was harmless.

We review the denial of recusal motions under 28 U.S.C. § 144 and 

§ 455 for abuse of discretion, with errors subject to harmless-error review. 

Patterson v. Mobil Oil Corp., 335 F.3d 476, 483–85 (5th Cir. 2003). When

assessing harmlessness in this particular context, we consider three factors: 

“(1) the risk of injustice to the parties in the particular case; (2) the risk that 

denial of relief will produce injustice in other cases; and (3) the risk of 

undermining the public’s confidence in the judicial process.” United States 

v. Monroe, 178 F.3d 304, 309 (5th Cir. 1999); see also Liljeberg v. Health Servs. 

Acquisition Corp., 486 U.S. 847, 864 (1988). However, we review alleged due 

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process violations de novo. See, e.g., United States v. Burns, 526 F.3d 852, 859 

(5th Cir. 2008). If a failure to recuse constitutes a due process violation, such 

error is not subject to harmless-error review. See Williams v. Pennsylvania, 

136 S. Ct. 1899, 1909 (2016).

III.

Two federal statutes govern recusal of district court judges for bias: 

28 U.S.C. §§ 144 and 455. See United States v. Scroggins, 485 F.3d 824, 829 

& n.19 (5th Cir. 2007). 

Section 144 requires recusal when a judge “has a personal bias or 

prejudice” against or in favor of a party. The statute includes a procedure by 

which a party asserting that a judge is biased shall “make[ ] and file[ ] a timely 

and sufficient affidavit” that “shall state the facts and the reasons for the 

belief that bias or prejudice exists[.]” 28 U.S.C. § 144. “A party may file 

only one such affidavit in any case. It shall be accompanied by a certificate of 

counsel of record stating that it is made in good faith.” Id. The terms of 

§ 144 at first glance appear to make recusal automatic upon filing of an 

affidavit. Id. (“Whenever a party . . . makes and files a timely and sufficient 

affidavit . . . such judge shall proceed no further therein, but another judge 

shall be assigned to hear such proceeding.”). However, the statute says that 

an affidavit must be “sufficient.” In reviewing a recusal motion, our caselaw 

holds that the district judge “must pass on the sufficiency of the affidavit, but 

may not pass on the truth of the affidavit’s allegations.” Patterson, 335 F.3d 

at 483. “A legally sufficient affidavit must: (1) state material facts with 

particularity; (2) state facts that, if true, would convince a reasonable person 

that a bias exists; and (3) state facts that show the bias is personal, as opposed 

to judicial, in nature.” Id.

Section 455(a) sweeps broader than § 144: “Any justice, judge, or 

magistrate judge of the United States shall disqualify himself in any 

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proceeding in which his impartiality might reasonably be questioned.” 

Under § 455(a), “what matters is not the reality of bias or prejudice but its 

appearance,” Liteky v. United States, 510 U.S. 540, 548 (1994), because

“justice must satisfy the appearance of justice,” In re Murchison, 349 U.S. 

133, 136 (1955). In applying the statute, a court considers “whether a 

reasonable and objective person, knowing all of the facts, would harbor 

doubts concerning the judge’s impartiality.” United States v. Jordan, 49 F.3d 

152, 155 (5th Cir. 1995) (citing Liljeberg, 486 U.S. at 860–61). The objective 

standard relies on the “well-informed, thoughtful and objective observer, 

rather than the hypersensitive, cynical, and suspicious person.” Andrade v. 

Chojnacki, 338 F.3d 448, 455 (5th Cir. 2003) (quoting Jordan, 49 F.3d at 156). 

Justice Kennedy, concurring in Liteky, wrote that “§ 455(a) is triggered by 

an attitude or state of mind so resistant to fair and dispassionate inquiry as to 

cause a party, the public, or a reviewing court to have reasonable grounds to 

question the neutral and objective character of a judge’s rulings or findings,” 

such that recusal was required “if it appears that [the judge] harbors an 

aversion, hostility or disposition of a kind that a fair-minded person could not 

set aside when judging the dispute.” Liteky, 510 U.S. at 557–58 (Kennedy, 

J., concurring).

Of course, not all favorable or unfavorable opinions can be described 

as bias or partiality within the meaning of §§ 144 and 455(a). Rather, the 

concept of bias “connote[s] a favorable or unfavorable disposition or opinion 

that is somehow wrongful or inappropriate, either because it is undeserved, or 

because it rests upon knowledge that the subject ought not to possess . . . or 

because it is excessive in degree.” Liteky, 510 U.S. at 550; see also id. at 552 

(same regarding the concept of “partiality”). Accordingly, a judge is not 

generally required to recuse for bias, even if the judge is “exceedingly ill 

disposed towards the defendant,” when the judge’s “knowledge and the 

opinion it produced were properly and necessarily acquired in the course of 

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the proceedings[.]” Id. at 550–51. Thus, under either statute, adverse 

rulings or comments by a judge “will support a claim of bias only if they reveal 

an opinion based on an extrajudicial source or if they demonstrate such a high 

degree of antagonism as to make fair judgment impossible.” Scroggins, 485 

F.3d at 830 (citing Liteky, 510 U.S. at 555). The existence of an “extrajudicial 

source” is “a significant (and often determinative) . . . factor” in deciding 

recusal matters. Liteky, 510 U.S. at 555. At the same time, “the presence of 

extrajudicial facts, without something more, does not suffice to show bias.” 

Tejero v. Portfolio Recovery Assocs, L.L.C., 955 F.3d 453, 463 (5th Cir. 2020).

A.

First, addressing the distinction between an opinion that derives from 

an extrajudicial source and an opinion that arises in the context of judicial 

proceedings, see Liteky, 510 U.S. at 554–55, the Brocatos argue that the 

judge’s opinion that Judith committed perjury derived from an extrajudicial 

source: the online obituary of Mrs. Carter discovered by the judge’s staff as 

a result of an Internet search. In denying the Brocatos’ recusal motion, the 

district court disagreed, writing that the court’s notion that Judith committed 

perjury derived from her testimony itself, and further, that Mrs. Carter’s

death certificate was a public record properly subject to judicial notice (and, 

therefore, non-extrajudicial). On appeal, the Government argues likewise

that Judith’s testimony put the date of her mother’s death at issue and led to 

the judge’s opinion that Judith had committed perjury. The Government 

further argues that the district court learned of and verified the date of 

Judith’s mother’s death in a “judicial capacity” and that it was proper for 

the court to consider the information at sentencing because the probation 

office had identified and discussed the possibility that Judith’s testimony had 

obstructed justice in her PSR. 

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The situation presented by this case is not squarely covered by our 

cases, and, in any event, each recusal case “is extremely fact intensive and 

fact bound, and must be judged on its unique facts and circumstances more 

than by comparison to situations considered in prior jurisprudence” Jordan, 

49 F.3d at 157. The Government cites Tejero for the proposition that 

information obtained outside of the courtroom can still be considered nonextrajudicial if a judge learned of the information in his or her “judicial 

capacity.” 955 F.3d at 463–64. In Tejero, the knowledge at issue was a list of 

cases in which certain attorneys had acted as plaintiff’s counsel. Id. Even 

though the judge “looked beyond the record” of the instant case in compiling 

the list, our court held that the knowledge was not “extrajudicial” because 

the list of cases “was simply a record generated by the ECF system” for the 

district court, and the judge’s “method of compiling the list of cases was 

evenhanded and well within the normal day-to-day activities of a judge 

presiding over a similar case” and therefore not “problematic.” Id.

The Brocatos rely on Kennedy v. Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., Inc., 

551 F.2d 593 (5th Cir. 1977). In Kennedy, the law clerk for the district judge 

presiding over a slip-and-fall case decided to visit the scene of the accident. 

Id. at 594. The law clerk then recounted his observations to the judge and 

eventually the visit was disclosed to counsel, which resulted in the clerk being 

called as a witness at the subsequent trial. Id. at 594–95. On appeal, this court 

reversed the denial of defense counsel’s motion to recuse the trial judge and 

prevent the law clerk from testifying. Id. at 598–99. The court in Kennedy

characterized “the intervention of a court official in the accumulation of 

evidence” as “unacceptable” in “our adversary system of justice.” Id. at 

596. We also likened the law clerk’s investigation to a prohibited ex parte

communication and stated that “[i]t was [the law clerk’s] duty as much as 

that of the trial judge to avoid any contacts outside the record that might 

affect the outcome of the litigation.” Id.; see also Hall v. Small Bus. Admin., 

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695 F.2d 175, 179 (5th Cir. 1983) (describing “law clerks” as “sounding 

boards for tentative opinions” who are “privy to the judge’s thoughts in a 

way that neither parties to the lawsuit nor his most intimate family members 

may be” such that “the clerk is forbidden to do all that is prohibited to the 

judge”).

We think the circumstances in this case are clearly distinguishable 

from Tejero. The online search that revealed Mrs. Carter’s obituary, 

presumably undertaken to discover additional facts relating to the case, is not 

“within the normal day-to-day activities of a judge” or her staff. Tejero, 955

F.3d at 464. While we acknowledge that the online search in this case was 

not as disruptive to the proceedings as the law clerk’s activities in Kennedy—

in Kennedy, our court had to reverse the judgment entered upon the jury 

verdict and remand for new proceedings, see 551 F.2d at 598–99, while the 

Brocatos do not challenge their convictions, but only seek resentencing—in 

both cases judicial staff engaged in independent factual research and, in doing 

so, discovered and brought to the attention of the judge factual information

that had not been introduced into evidence by the parties. This type of 

factual research is of a different nature than searching the district court’s 

ECF system. See Tejero, 955 F.3d at 464; see also Sovereign Mil. Hospitaller v. 

Fla. Priory of Knights Hospitallers, 702 F.3d 1279, 1296 (11th Cir. 2012) 

(criticizing district judge’s “extra-record Internet research into similarly 

named organizations” in a trademark case and cautioning the judge to “limit 

its analysis to facts in the record”).

We think the Brocatos are correct that the judge’s opinion was derived 

from information that came from an extrajudicial source. The online obituary

was discovered through an Internetsearch by the judge’s staff. It seems likely 

that but for the staff’s actions in performing the online search and bringing 

the date of Mrs. Carter’s death to the judge’s attention, the judge would not 

have obtained the information nor formulated an opinion that Judith 

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committed perjury. No evidence was introduced at trial establishing the

precise date of Mrs. Carter’s death, and Judith’s admittedly incorrect 

testimony—regardless of whether it was willful or an innocent mistake—was 

not impeached on cross-examination or otherwise disputed by the 

Government. That Mrs. Carter’s death certificate was a document subject 

to judicial notice does not change the analysis because, even if the 

information (the date of Mrs. Carter’s death) was later verified via a 

“judicial” source, the initial source of the information from which the 

judicial opinion was derived was nonetheless extrajudicial.

B.

Of course, while an extrajudicial source weighs in favor of recusal, it 

alone may not be sufficient to find bias or the appearance of partiality. Liteky, 

510 U.S. at 555; Tejero, 955 F.3d at 463. The ultimate standard remains, 

under § 144, whether the judge has an actual personal bias, and under 

§ 455(a), “whether a reasonable and objective person, knowing all of the 

facts, would harbor doubts concerning the judge’s impartiality.” Jordan, 49 

F.3d at 155 (citing Liljeberg, 486 U.S. at 860–61).

The Brocatos argue that the district judge was biased as evinced by her 

stated opinion that Judith committed perjury and because that opinion was 

based on an extrajudicial source. They assert that the judge’s bias had an 

effect on sentencing, and that they should have been assessed a lower 

restitution amount and granted a downward variance. However, as the 

Government points out, the Brocatos do not challenge their sentences on 

appeal or identify any specific error made by the district court at sentencing. 

Rather, the Brocatos merely recite what they consider “valid reasons” that a 

different judge could rely on to give them a lesser sentence, i.e. one below the 

guidelines range. 

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The Government argues that, even assuming Mrs. Carter’s date of 

death was an extrajudicial fact, there was no appearance of impartiality under 

§ 455(a) based on the judge’s reference to “perjury” when setting 

postconviction bond pending sentencing. For support, the Government cites 

the following circumstances: (1) the judge did not actively direct her staff to 

investigate Judith’s credibility, but instead was a passive recipient of the 

information that staff discovered; (2) when she did learn of the information,

she informed both parties and ensured that the jury was not affected; (3) the 

judge made the remark about “perjury” before receiving either the PSR or

Judith’s attestation that she made an honest mistake in her testimony, and 

later stated that the inconsistent testimony would “have no effect on the 

sentencing of the Brocatos”; (4) consistent with the PSR, the judge did not 

apply an obstruction-of-justice enhancement; and (5) the judge sentenced the 

Brocatos at the bottom-end of the guidelines range and made no reference to 

perjury at sentencing. 

After a careful review of the record, we conclude that a reasonable and 

objective observer, aware of all of the facts and circumstances, would not 

harbor doubts about the judge’s impartiality. To start, we do not in any way 

condone Internet searches concerning a witness’s credibility, or any type of 

similar investigation by court staff into factual matters. This sort of ex parte 

fact-gathering is improper. See Kennedy, 551 F.2d at 596; Sovereign Mil. 

Hospitaller, 702 F.3d at 1296. Such activity has the potential to raise

reasonable questions concerning impartiality, and it should not occur. We 

also find the district judge’s use of the term “perjury” regrettable in light of 

the context in which the inconsistent testimony was identified. With that 

said, however, we think that a review of all of the facts and circumstances in

this case dispels any reasonable doubts created by staff’s improper Internet 

search or the judge’s use of the word “perjury.” See Andrade, 338 F.3d at 

455 (“[R]eview should entail a careful consideration of context, that is, the 

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entire course of judicial proceedings, rather than isolated incidents.” (citing 

Sao Paulo State of Fed. Rep. of Brazil v. Am. Tobacco Co., 535 U.S. 229, 232–33 

(2002) and United States v. Avilez-Reyes, 160 F.3d 258, 259 (5th Cir. 1998)));

see also Liteky, 510 U.S. at 555 (noting that “judicial remarks during the 

course of a trial that are critical or disapproving of, or even hostile to, counsel, 

the parties, or their cases” will not always support a bias or partiality 

challenge even when an extrajudicial source is involved).

Here, we find it significant that the district court did not apply an

obstruction-of-justice enhancement for perjury, but instead adopted the

PSR’s determination that “misinformation” in Judith’s testimony 

concerning the source of the $9,000 was not “purposeful,” and that the 

district court sentenced both Judith and Dick at the bottom of the guidelines

range. Further, the district judge’s rulings at sentencing were consistent with 

the guidelines rather than indicative of bias, the Brocatos do not challenge 

their sentences on appeal, and we do not think the district judge’s denial of 

the Brocatos’ requests for downward variances creates a reasonable

appearance of bias. Also, regarding the reasons for setting postconviction

bond, the record reflects that the district judge cited “testimony about 

shredding documents” and “discarding evidence,” in addition to “perjury.” 

Finally, we note that the Brocatos waited more than six months after 

the judge’s remarks were made to move for recusal; the in-chambers 

conference and setting of postconviction bond both occurred on February 5, 

but the motion to recuse was not filed until August 21. See Travelers Ins. Co. 

v. Liljeberg Enters., Inc., 38 F.3d 1404, 1410 (5th Cir. 1994) (stating general 

rule that “one seeking disqualification must do so at the earliest moment after 

knowledge of the facts demonstrating the basis for such disqualification”). 

However, we also note that on August 14—a week before the motion was 

filed—the district judge requested a certified copy of Mrs. Carter’s death 

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certificate. Altogether, we do not consider the Brocatos’ delay as a 

dispositive fact, but we note it as a relevant circumstance. 

Considering all of these facts and circumstances, a reasonable and 

objective person would not harbor doubts concerning the judge’s impartiality

or question whether bias affected the Brocatos’ sentences. The Brocatos

have not shown an abuse of discretion under § 455(a). 

Asthere was no abuse of discretion under § 455(a), there was no abuse 

of discretion under § 144 because “section 455 imposes the stricter 

standard.” Phillips v. Joint Legis. Comm. on Performance & Expenditure Rev. 

of State of Miss., 637 F.2d 1014, 1019 n.6 (5th Cir. 1981); see also Liteky, 510 

U.S. at 548 (stating that § 144 “seems to be properly invocable only when 

§ 455(a) can be invoked anyway”).1

1 The Brocatos due process argument also fails. Because a “fair trial in a fair 

tribunal is a basic requirement of due process,” a defendant’s due process rights are 

violated when “the probability of actual bias on the part of the judge or decisionmaker is 

too high to be constitutionally tolerable.” Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal Co., 556 U.S. 868, 

876 (2009) (quoting Murchison, 349 U.S. at 136 and Withrow v. Larkin, 421 U.S. 35, 47 

(1975)). “The Due Process Clause demarks only the outer boundaries of judicial 

disqualifications,” however, and its application is thus “confined to rare instances.” Id. at 

889–90. The pertinent question is “not whether a judge harbors an actual, subjective bias, 

but instead whether, as an objective matter, the average judge in his position is likely to be 

neutral, or whether there is an unconstitutional potential for bias.” Williams, 136 S. Ct. at 

1905. The Supreme Court has emphasized that it requires fairly “extreme facts” to meet 

this standard. Caperton, 556 U.S. at 887. In Caperton, for example, the Supreme Court 

found a due process violation where a state appellate judge did not recuse himself from an 

appeal of a $50 million jury verdict against a coal company. Id. at 872. The “extraordinary 

situation” in that case that warranted recusal, id. at 887, was that the CEO of the coal 

company had spent $3 million to help get the appellate judge elected after the jury verdict 

at issue but before it was reviewed on appeal, and that $3 million had far exceeded the $1 

million spent by the judge’s campaign committee. Id. at 872–74. In Williams, the Supreme 

Court held that an unacceptable risk of bias existed when a judge, in his previous job as 

district attorney, had personally authorized his subordinates to pursue a death sentence 

against the petitioner. 136 S. Ct. at 1907–09. And in Mayberry v. Pennsylvania, the court 

held that the Due Process Clause required criminal contempt proceedings to take place 

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IV.

Because the Brocatos have shown no due process violation or abuse of 

discretion under either 28 U.S.C. §§ 144 or 455(a) in this case, we AFFIRM

the district court’s denial of their motion to recuse.

before a different judge when the trial judge had been subjected to highly personal attacks 

by pro se prisoner-defendants throughout the entirety of a 21-day jury trial for prison breach. 

400 U.S. 455, 455, 465–66 (1971). By comparison, the circumstances in this case simply do 

not include the type of extreme facts that suggest an objective risk of unconstitutional 

potential for bias. 

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