The Texas district attorney prosecuting exiled Vikings running back Adrian Peterson for child abuse accused the presiding judge Wednesday of bias and colluding with defense attorneys and wants him removed from the case.

Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon said in a court filing that Judge Kelly W. Case “continues to demonstrate an ongoing hostility to the law and the District Attorney’s office.”

The DA chronicled several grievances against Case in petitioning Chief Judge Olen Underwood to remove him from the Peterson trial. He said the presiding judge called Ligon and Peterson defense attorney Rusty Hardin “media whores” in front of court personnel.

Case apologized to Ligon and Hardin when the district attorney raised the issue during Peterson’s arraignment Wednesday morning.

“That was meant as a humorous joke,” Case said from the bench.

Hardin accepted the apology in court, saying, “I’ve been called a lot worse.”

But Ligon was not amused.

He filed affidavits from court worker Vanessa Atkinson and one of his assistant prosecutors, Frank Barnett, who confirmed Case made the comment during an Oct. 2 staff meeting.

Case tentatively set a Dec. 1 trial date for Peterson, who was indicted last month on a felony child abuse charge.

According to the six-page motion filed after Wednesday’s hearing, Ligon accused Case of colluding with Hardin to set a Dec. 1 trial date.

Thirty felony cases are docketed ahead of Peterson in Montgomery County and only seven trial dates were still available in 2014, according to court officials.

Peterson wants a speedy trial in hopes of winning an acquittal before the NFL season concludes Dec. 28.