Judge denies witness chance to view eclipse

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — A federal judge in Florida ruled a trial couldn't be postponed just because one of the key witnesses — a federal agent — had travel plans to see the solar eclipse.

In a droll, three-page ruling issued Friday, Judge Steven Merryday denied the motion filed by an assistant U.S. attorney.

Recalling popular dialogue from the TV classic Star Trek, the judge wrote that the prosecutor "boldy moves (where no AUSA has moved before)."

"The solar eclipse is no longer mysterious, supernatural, foreboding or ominous," wrote Merryday. "An eclipse is just another astral event, precisely predictable since the day the Babylonians discovered the governing formula.