Texas Judge Sentences Man To Marry Girlfriend Or Go To Jail

A Texas Judge recently sparked controversy for making young Josten Bundy choose between

spending 15 days in jail or marrying his 19-year-old girlfriend Elizabeth Jaynes. He took – what he thought was – the easy way out.  It all started in February, when Bundy got into a fight with Jaynes’s ex-boyfriend. “[He] had been saying disrespectful things about Elizabeth, so I challenged him to a fight,” Bundy said. “He stepped in and I felt like it was on and I hit him in the jaw twice.” The ex, according to Bundy, did not require medical attention, but he pressed charges anyway.  “I took matters into my own hands and I know that’s wrong,” he later admitted. “I know I was raised better, but it happened.” Oddity Central has more:

At one point during the hearing, Judge Randall Rogers asked Bundy if his girlfriend was worth it, to which he replied: “Well, to be honest sir, I was raised with four sisters and any man was talking to a woman like that I’d probably do the same thing.” And that’s when the judge threw Bundy a curveball. He’d have to marry Jaynes within 30 days, or spend 15 days in jail.

“He offered me 15 days in jail and that would have been fine and I asked if I could call my job,” Bundy said. “The judge told me, ‘nope, that’s now how this works.’” That would have probably meant losing his job, and since they lived paycheck to paycheck, it was a risk they couldn’t afford.

Jayne, who was in the courtroom at the time, said that she felt embarrassed when the judge announced the verdict. “My face was so red, people behind me were laughing. [The judge] made me stand up in court.” But she had to agree, because she was worried that Bundy would lose his job after two weeks in jail. So the couple ended up applying for a marriage license and picked a date.