LONDON: A video of a Texas lawyer accidentally appearing with a kitten filter at the onset of a Zoom court hearing went viral on social media on Tuesday.
The video, widely shared on Twitter, shows Rob Ponton struggling to figure out how to deactivate the filter from the setting box during a court hearing with judges Jerry L. Phillips and Roy. B Ferguson.
The latter was trying to give instructions to help Ponton remove the filter.
“I’m here live, I’m not a cat,” says lawyer after Zoom filter mishap
“I can see that,” responds judge pic.twitter.com/HclKlAUwbM
— Lawrence Hurley (@lawrencehurley) February 9, 2021
“Mr. Ponton, I believe you have a filter turned on in your video settings,” Ferguson said
What also caused the video to go viral was Ponton’s response: “I’ve got my assistant here and she’s trying to remove it but … I’m prepared to go forward with it. I’m here live. I’m not a cat.”
Since its publication last night, the video has gained millions of views and thousands of shares on social media.
These fun moments are a by-product of the legal profession's dedication to ensuring that the justice system continues to function in these tough times. Everyone involved handled it with dignity, and the filtered lawyer showed incredible grace. True professionalism all around!
— Judge Roy Ferguson (@JudgeFergusonTX) February 9, 2021
In a statement to Vice, Ponton said the mistake happened after he switched to use his secretary’s computer.
“I was using her computer and for some reason she had that filter on. I took it off and replaced it with my face,” he said.
“It was a case involving a man trying to exit the United States with contraband and contraband cash. All it was was a mistake. It was taken off and we had the hearing as normal.”
