A man who went to court Tuesday for jury duty wound up in custody for comments heard outside the courtroom that were attributed to him.

The man was among 45 prospective jurors who showed up at state Circuit Court for the trial of a defendant charged with misdemeanor assault.

According to Circuit Judge Edward Kubo’s order declaring a mistrial and charging the man with contempt, the court was about to begin jury selection when attorneys for the state Office of the Public Defender reported that a potential juror, who was seated outside the courtroom and waiting to be called, was creating a disturbance.

The attorneys said the potential juror had loudly declared, “He is guilty, he is guilty,” in the presence of other prospective jurors.

Kubo said in his orders that he immediately sent the prosecuting and defense lawyers for the case outside to identify the prospective juror. He said the man did not respond when asked why he made prejudicial comments out loud about the case.

Kubo concluded, according to his orders, that the court could no longer proceed with jury selection because the man’s blatant and willful disturbance infected the 44 other prospective jurors.

Kubo ordered state sheriff deputies to take the man into custody for contempt, set the man’s bail at $10,000, cash only, and scheduled a contempt hearing for this morning. The man will be represented by a court-appointed lawyer. Kubo also rescheduled the trial for April.

By the time the state courthouse closed at the end of the day, the man had not posted bail, and state sheriff deputies had transported him to Oahu Community Correctional Center.

According to state law, one of the ways a person commits criminal contempt of court is by creating a disturbance with the intent to interrupt a court’s proceedings. The crime is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine.

The court can treat the contempt as a petty misdemeanor, punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a $1,000 fine, and order summary conviction if it is committed in the immediate view or presence of the court or the court has knowledge of all of the facts. Otherwise, the court needs to conduct a trial and find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.