Judge Bryan Hettenbach, one of the “good” St. Louis City circuit judges and notorious bon vivant, was struck by lightening last week as he was leaving a winery in the Finger Lakes region of New York State. A bolt of lightning hit a metal sign next to him and then struck him in the back (a side flash). He was propelled about 10 feet and landed apparently face-down on a paved area. He reported that he has a burn the size of a baseball on his back, and I could see several nasty gashes on his face.
After the strike he was taken to a hospital, where he was treated and released.
Judge Hettenbach before being struck by lightning.
Amazingly, he is back at work this week, though he looks and feels like he went 10 rounds with Canelo Alvarez. That’s a work ethic I admire!