Did a judge exceed her authority when she opined on the Biblical roles of husbands and wives, and whether children should have cell phones, in a divorce case in Stearns County? The comments by district court judge Mary Mahler drew criticism from at least one appellate judge -- though the Minnesota Court of Appeals decided late last month that Mahler's child custody decisions in the divorce case were OK. The dispute relates back to testimony in summer 2011 by Sarah Peterson, who was arguing for custody of the three children she had with Adam Peterson, the husband of 13 years she was divorcing. Part of her concern, Sarah explained under questioning from her attorney, Marc Kurzman, was her husband's Biblical interpretation of how wives should obey their husbands. Here is what was said:

Ouch. So the judge essentially "dismissed" a belief of the husband, who relied on her to divide the couple's assets and decide on child custody. Later, as the testimony turned to another key point of contention – whether the Peterson children should be allowed cell phones – Mahler noted that her own 12-year-old had a cell phone. The context is lost in the transcript. You can't tell if Mahler – a 2010 Pawlenty appointee – is joking. There is some humor at work. At one point, Kurzman declares that he "may be the only Jew in the county" but that even he knows the Bible's reference to wives submitting to the leadership of their husbands. The Appellate Court decided that the exchange didn't affect the outcome. It agreed with Mahler's decision to award primary custody of the children to Sarah and to grant Adam visitation. For a variety of reasons, the Appellate Court disagreed with the judge's child support and financial calculations, though. The panel noted that Adam's attorney did not object at the time or ask Mahler to recuse herself based on her expressions about the Bible and cell phones. But in the dissenting opinion, Appellate Court Judge Kevin Ross didn't let Mahler off the hook. In making her statements, Mahler "aligned herself with Sarah against Adam on the two most debated issues in the parties' custody trial," Ross said in his opinion.

The Appellate Court ruling was unpublished, meaning it is not precedent-setting, but can be found on the state court web site. Thanks to the blog of family attorney Christine Callahan for pointing out this intriguing case.