BROWARD COUNTY CRIME LAB SCANDAL

There's an emerging and bourgeoning crime lab scandal in Broward. The JAA Blog has all the details. Since we don't go to Broward, we don't really give a darn. But for those poor souls that must trk from Miami to the netherworld, we provide you the information. 

BEST LAW SCHOOLS: as per US News and World Report:

1. Yale
2. Harvard
3. Stanford (-1; tied for #2 last year with Harvard)
4. Columbia
4. Chicago
6. NYU
7. Penn
8. UVA (-1; tied for #7 last year with Penn)
9. Berkeley
10. Duke (+1; ranked #11 last year)
10. Michigan (-1; tied at #9 last year with Berkeley)
12. Northwestern
13. Cornell
13. GULC (+1; ranked #14 last year)
15. Texas
16. UCLA (+1; ranked #17 last year)
16. Vanderbilt (-1; tied at #15 last year with Texas)
18. Wash U (+1; tied at #19 last year with Minnesota)
19. Emory (+4; tied at #23 last year with Notre Dame)
20. GWU (+1; tied at #21 last year with Alabama)
20. Minnesota (-1; tied at #19 last year with Vanderbilt)
20. USC (-2; ranked #18 last year)

The Knicks have won four straight. The Heat? Don't ask.

If you're keeping track, Russia and Vladimir Putin ( if ever there was a guy who belonged in Broward, it's Putin) made threats against the Vatican City, Monaco, and Nauru. For those of you that care, Nauru is the smallest island nation (8 square miles) in the world. 
Putin and Russia should pick on someone their own size. Some foreign land that has traditionally repelled invaders. A place so unusual, complicated, and mysterious that armies would think twice before invading. Just how do you say "Hialeah" in Russian anyway?

MIAMI BEACH CHIEF QUITS

"The political winds have changed" and with that, City of Miami Beach Chief of Police Ray Martinez notified the City Manager and the City Commission and the Mayor and the guy who hangs out at the Starbucks on Alton that he is leaving the department effective April 4. 

There's this old joke: "How many City of Miami Beach police officers does it take to throw a defendant down a flight of stairs?
None: He fell."

The Miami Beach police department has a well earned reputation for shoddy police work and brutality. As the Herald reported here, Chief Martinez's best achievement over the last two years may well be that none of his officers shot and killed any unarmed citizens during that time. 

Heat lose again....
This is getting redundant and old. but the Miami Heat, after building a double digit lead in the 4th quarter Saturday night saw it all slip away and lost in overtime to the Chicago Bulls. The Heats scored a scintillating two points in overtime.  

It's lonely at the bottom where basketballs echo over empty, cavernous arenas; empty seats bearing quiet witness to glory days long gone. 

Another week in beautiful springtime Miami. Enjoy. 
Russia may be annexing South Beach next, which means we might soon see cassocks patrolling Ocean Drive. Borscht anyone?

See You In Court. 

HEAT CRUSHED LIKE CRIMEA

The losses keep getting worse for the beleaguered Miami Heat. On Friday night they were soundly beaten by the San Antonio Spurs 111-87. It was almost as if with things not going their way, they quit.  Troubling, but not unexpected. 

James, who ditched the protective mask he was wearing early in the first half, was hounded by Leonard into shooting 6 for 18.

"I'm not making any excuses, but I'm not a big fan of the jerseys," James said. "So I have to figure something out next time I have to wear the short-sleeve jerseys. Every time I shoot, it feels like it's just pulling right up underneath my arm. I already don't have much room for error on my jump shot anyways, so it's definitely not a good thing."

One thing we've learned in our career: when people use stock phrases like "I'm not making any excuses..." they are making excuses. 

Joe Klock, a fixture around the REGJB for the last decade or so, after expanding from an exclusively civil practice, had a heart issue at the end of the week. After a scare, it appears he is improving.  

While you were asleep: 
Russia annexed Crimea and a small portion of Western Canada. 

We've pulled out our well read 1939 edition of  "While England Slept" by Winston Churchill for some weekend reading. 

Have a good weekend comrade. 

Dosvedanya. 

CONVICTION UPHELD DESPITE FALSE TESTIMONY

(Good morning...the role of Rumpole will be played by an understudy today. We apologize for any inconvenience. Please turn off your cell phones and mobile devices and enjoy the show.)

What do you do as a judge when presented with evidence stipulated to by both the prosecution and defense that a defendant was convicted based, in part,  on false testimony? 

US District Court Judge Joan Leonard took a scalpel to the testimony, excised the diseased potion, and decided after the surgery that she was satisfied with the result and did not vacate the conviction. 
Jay Weaver and the Herald cover the story here. 

In a rare move, both defense attorneys and federal prosecutors urged a Miami judge to throw out the 24-year prison sentence of a West Palm Beach man convicted of crack-cocaine dealing based largely on the tainted testimony of a now-disgraced police officer.

But U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard, while vacating a key drug offense in the case, refused on Tuesday to toss out the main conspiracy conviction that sent 47-year-old Elroy Phillips to prison in 2002.

Both sides agreed that fired West Palm Beach police officer Michael Ghent falsely testified that he was working undercover with an informant who allegedly bought crack from Phillips for $50 on April 6, 2001.

While the judge acknowledged that Ghent’s testimony in Phillips’ trail was tainted, she ruled that fact alone wasn’t enough to undermine the government’s entire drug conspiracy case. Lenard cited other co-conspirators accused of dealing who cooperated and testified against Phillips.

Talk about a troubling precedent. 

We get the Judge's logic- there's enough evidence to satisfy her that the defendant is guilty. 

But isn't there more to it? Don't we explicitly agree that the strength of our justice system is that guilty defendants go free when the evidence isn't trustworthy and doesn't provide proof beyond a reasonable doubt? This ensures* that an innocent defendant who appears guilty won't be convicted (like that has never happened in the United States before). 

Shouldn't a new jury have the chance to hear the case in toto without the prejudicial and false testimony?

And while we're at it, shouldn't federal courts be just a wee bit more defendant friendly? 

 Come back soon Rumpole.  This is muy harder than it appears. 


* For a good discussion of the battle between "insure" and "ensure" go here. 

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2014/03/05/3976434/despite-false-trial-testimony.html#morer#storylink=cpy

HEAT LOSE AGAIN

Your Miami Heat lost again last night to the Houston Rockets 106-103.


Just wondering how long until the front running Miami fans abandon the Heat like they  have the Marlins and the Dolphins?


Before you know it there will be a lone Miami Judge sitting all by her lonesome at home games.




DOM has all the inside scoop on the ABA White Collar Conference beginning at the Eden Roc today.


Rumpole's tip: the parties are better than the boring lectures.

THE DEFENSE NEVER RESTS

"The war outside still rages, but you say it ain't ours anymore to win"
Bruce Springsteen, No Retreat, No Surrender. 

Two of the very best lawyers this country has ever known faced off in an REGJB Miami courtroom thirty years ago. A few days ago we read Abe Laeser's recollections and reflections of what went right and wrong for the prosecution. Now the defense attorney, Mr. Roy Black, weighs in on his thoughts about the case, proving that the defense never rests, even after an acquittal:

Rumpole thank you for the invitation to submit a clarifying rebuttal to Abe’s faulty recall. As you know I love to write about trials and trial advocacy; it is a vocation and an avocation. Abe makes a good point about his truncated preparation time. He was the acknowledged master of case preparation. If he had been in the case from day one it would have been a tougher job.

However Abe has forgotten the phony confession testified to by detective and now assistant chief Buhrmaster. I won't address that further except to note it is hard to be taking a confession at the same time you are on the radio directing troops trying to quell the riot. For an in-depth discussion of that impossibility and how it was exposed I refer the interested reader to my book Black's Law (yes this is a shameless plug).

My point of view is somewhat different than Abe for obvious reasons. During the year or so leading up to the trial there was a drumbeat of agitation in the political and black communities. Alvarez was being offered up as the scapegoat for the racial problems that roiled the city for decades. Magically his conviction (like Obama’s election today) would solve Miami’s deep racial hatreds and make us all love each other. The elected politicians and police brass all condemned Alvarez and worked towards his inevitable conviction while many black leaders threatened riots if Alvarez should be acquitted. Today it is hard to imagine the palpable fear of violence in the streets and in the courthouse.

I try to gain some lesson from each trial. In the Alvarez case it was that trial lawyers should work their strong points not their weak ones. I was cross examining a police detective and I decided to make a point by asking him to demonstrate with me his opinion on how the police encounter occurred. He stood up and carefully and slowly took off his glasses and readied himself for combat. Right away I realized I was in trouble. I had no chance against a veteran of the streets who could easily take me apart. So I raised my hands in mock surrender and said whoa let’s not get to serious here. This allowed me to retreat with some dignity.

The lesson is stick to our strong points. In cross examination we are in control. Why give that up for some physical battle I could easily and would have lost? Let’s face it in the courtroom we are smarter than them and we have the weapons. On the street it is not a contest. Words are our weapons not physical combat. At least that day I didn’t have to learn from my mistakes!

Roy Black, Esq. Well, there you have it. The thoughts of two of the very best lawyers around. Interesting that one of Abe Laeser's take aways was a criticism of his own cross examination of the defendant. Roy Black's lesson learned was to stick to the strong points of your case. See You In Court applying the lessons learned.

LIGHT MY FIRE

A little Miami REGJB History: Stay tuned and learn what led  a young, ambitious ASA, who was someday to become a two-time disgraced Judge, to sign an arrest warrant for Jim Morrison, lead singer of The Doors.  The prosecutor, Alphonso Sepe, would go on to become a County Court Judge. Sepe resigned from County Court in a scandal, only to return Nixon-like to Circuit Court via an appointment by the Governor. His tenure on the Circuit bench ended in the Court-Broom scandal and a federal prosecution. 

March 1, 1969.  Twenty five thousand young Miamian's (at least two to three times more than expected) woke up planning to attend the Doors concert at the Dinner Key Auditorium. 
In California, Jim Morrison woke up with an intercontinental airplane flight ahead of him.  By the time the flight was scheduled to leave, Morrison was in the middle of another epic fight with his girlfriend Pamela Courson. Morrison missed his flight and started drinking. After a  series of connecting flights, airport lounges, and alcohol, Morrison arrived in Miami drunk and hours late.

Meanwhile, the scene outside of Dinner Key was growing chaotic. The concert promoter was adding seats to the Auditorium.  Bill Siddons, the Doors manager got into a screaming argument with the promoters. The Doors fee was a flat $25,000.00 anticipating a gate of $50,000.00.  With the new seats Siddons wanted more money. The promoters said no. Siddons threatened to have his band walk. The promoters countered that while the band could walk, their equipment would stay. In the midst of all of this Jim Morrison showed up, drunk.  Not just drunk, not even, according to those at the time who knew him best,  Jim Morrison drunk, but epically drunk. 

This is a partial description from the Doors website as to what happened next:

...it wasn't Jim's finest hour. Morrison rapped incoherently into the microphone. He eventually managed to sing a couple of verses but lost interest quickly, returning to his aimless sermon. "I'm not talking about no revolution. And I'm not talking about no demonstration. I'm talking about having a good time. I'm talking about having a good time this summer. Now you all come to L.A. You all get out there. We're going to lie down there in the sand and rub our toes in the ocean and we're going to have a good time. Are you ready? Are you ready?......Are.... you.....ahhhhh!"...You're all a bunch of f**kin' idiots." Let people tell you what you're gonna do. Let people push you around. How long do you think its gonna last? How long are you gonna let it go on? How long are you gonna let them push you around. Maybe you love it. Maybe you like being pushed around. Maybe you love getting your face stuck in the shit.....You're all a bunch of slaves. Bunch of slaves. Letting everybody push you around.

What are you gonna do about it? What are you gonna do about it...What are you gonna do?"

On and on it went . At some point Jim staggered over to Robby and fell to his knees, focusing his attention on Robby's guitar solo (conflicting perceptions would debate his true intentions in the months ahead).

When someone jumped on stage and drenched him with champagne, Jim took his shirt off. "Let's see a little skin, let's get naked." Damp clothing fell to the concrete floor. "I'm not talking about revolution, I'm not talking about guns and riots, I'm talking about love. Love one another. Love your brother, hug him. Man, I'd like to see a little nakedness around here....grab your friend and love him. Take your clothes off and love each other." More clothing carpeted the concrete. When Jim finally got around to talking about what was really on his mind no doubt everyone was ready. "You didn't come here for music did you? You came for something more, didn't you? You didn't come to rock'n'roll, you came for something else didn't you? You came for something else --WHAT IS IT?  You want to see my c*ck, don't you? That's what you came for isn't it? YEAHHHH!"  Morrison waved his shirt in front of his crotch in bullfighter tradition, he took it away for an instant and taunted. "See it? Did you see it?" The audience proceeded to "see" exactly what they wanted to see (reality has never been defined).

Dade County issued the arrest warrant signed by Sepe. Morrison surrendered and returned to Miami. There was a trial beginning August 12, 1970.  Murray Goldman was the Judge. Max Fink was Morrison's lead defense counsel along with Robert Josefsberg and Don Bierman.  ASA Terry McWilliams (one of the best lawyers most of you have never heard of) led the prosecution team along with Alphonso Sepe,  Ellen Morphonios, and Leonard Rivkind. Sepe, Morphonios and Rivkind would all go on to become Judges, Rivkind a chief Judge in Dade County. 
 Morrison and his legal team turned down a pre-trial offer to play a benefit concert in Miami. Morrison was convicted by a jury of two misdemeanors and acquitted of the more serious felony charge. Judge Goldman sentenced Morrison to six months in Jail. Morrison remained free on an appeals bond and was found dead in Paris on July 3, 1971 of a drug overdose before his appeal was completed. 

And there you have a bit of REGB history. 

See You In Court, where sometimes we can be found quietly humming a Doors tune.