"I saw a leg:" Live bat falls to the ground next to judge's chair during court on Friday the 13th



WILKES-BARRE, Pennsylvania --  Bad things happening on Friday the 13th is just superstition, right? You can't say that to a judge in Pennsylvania, who experienced a strange mishap in the courtroom on Friday, January 13th.

Luzerne County Judge Tina Gartley jokingly called it "the scene of the crime" -- the place where, during a court proceeding on Friday the 13th, a small visitor fell to the floor next to her chair.

"We're doing a regular court session. We have people in the gallery, people at the bench -- and we hear a soft thud," Gartley said.

The judge continued with court, but was soon told that the thud was ALIVE!

"I said 'is it a frog,' because I saw a leg and we realized there was a live bat sitting next to me up on the bench," Gartley said.

People watching this unfold on Friday the 13th were shocked.

"I heard the judge exclaim 'Oh my God, it's a bat,' and then she left the bench. There have never been any mammals falling from the ceiling in any other court proceeding!" Jill Matthews, assistant district attorney said.

A sheriff's deputy scooped the bat into a cup and let it out the window onto a ledge, where it flew away.

The judge was a little shaken, but returned to the bench with staffers watching the ceiling for anymore unwanted guests.

"I was concerned because the apparently not true old wives tale that bats go for your hair flashed through my head very quickly, so I tucked my hair in my robe for the rest of court," Gartley said.

It happened on a day known for being unlucky.

"I said that as soon as a came off the bench. And it's Friday the 13th, so, yes, bats in the courtroom on Friday the 13th!" Gartley said.