JUSTICE BUILDING BLOG

WELCOME TO THE OFFICIAL RICHARD E GERSTEIN JUSTICE BUILDING BLOG. THIS BLOG IS DEDICATED TO JUSTICE BUILDING RUMOR, HUMOR, AND A DISCUSSION ABOUT AND BETWEEN THE JUDGES, LAWYERS AND THE DEDICATED SUPPORT STAFF, CLERKS, COURT REPORTERS, AND CORRECTIONAL OFFICERS WHO LABOR IN THE WORLD OF MIAMI'S CRIMINAL JUSTICE. POST YOUR COMMENTS, OR SEND RUMPOLE A PRIVATE EMAIL AT HOWARDROARK21@GMAIL.COM. Winner of the prestigious Cushing Left Anterior Descending Artery Award.

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

JUDGE GERALD KLEIN

He’s been sitting as a Judge since before some of the attorneys practicing before him were born.

He is affectionately called “Fast Gerry” because of his well regarded efficiency in handling his calendar when he was assigned to a regular division. In retirement, he has kept on working a full schedule, handling the morning and afternoon bond hearing calendars at least four days a week. Is there a REGJB attorney among us who has not had the pleasure of going to bond hearings, and after being quickly called out of turn, had Judge Gerald Klein say to our client and family that they have hired a good attorney?

After a life time of service to Miami, isn’t it time we said thanks?

That is why we were disappointed to hear that the Miami Chapter of the FACDL passed up the opportunity to honor Judge Klein at their upcoming yearly shindig. We had the opportunity to pass on some emails from concerned readers to certain FACDL big-wigs about a month ago, and were promised that the matter would be considered.

The answer is apparently NO.

The Miami Chapter of the FACDL is about the only group of organized lawyers who practice in the REGJB and regularly meet (outside of some “friends of Bill” but that’s another matter entirely) and they had the opportunity to honor a Judge who has given to our community a lot more than we could ever payback.

We now turn to the League of Prosecutors and publicly call on that august organization to do the right thing, spend a few bucks, get a plaque made up, and publicly thank Judge Gerald Klein for his years of service.

While we’re not going to resign from the FACDL, we’re pretty disappointed.

See You In Court.

38 comments:

Anonymous said...

I recall a channel 7 expose a number of years ago where his honor was excoriated for being a little too fast with his calendar and showing up for an 11 am tee time during working hours. Anyone have a recollection of this?

Anonymous said...

His tee times have always been at 2:30. No reason to lie about it. He did not get that tan at the REG-MJB.

Anonymous said...

That's pretty dumb on the FACDL's part. That little comment Gerry makes at the end of the bond hearing has earned defense attorneys thousands of dollars and has helped secure the good attorneys' retainers when the client's family is considering hiring one of the cheap hacks.

Anonymous said...

rump, your comments about gerry telling family that they have a good lawyer is right on. however in the old days when gerry was sitting he refused to appt a pd and would not send the def to jail. this assured he could maintan his tan and make his tee time at normandy. he should be honored for being married to ex judge rhea grossman and putting up with her. we should reserve our honors for truly outstanding judges and gerry is not among them.

Anonymous said...

Batman says:

Gerry Klein may not have been the brightest or the best judge this county has seen, but I agree that he deserves to be honored for a lifetime of service to this community. He actually did a job nobody else wanted to do and did it well. Since his retirement from "active service" he provided full time service to that job for less than half the pay elected judges received for less work than he did. He loves his work and the people around him, as they love him.

Time for FACDL and the League of Prosecutors to both ante up.

Anonymous said...

Gerry married to Rhea Grossman! Oh my god he deserves a Purple Heart not recognition by FACDL!

Anonymous said...

Fast Gerry is a gem. Without him, other judges would have to cancel calendars.

Retired judges can make decisions that would be dangerous for judges to make who have to run for reelection. That is why he is perfect for what he does.

He had a car accident last week and if you look at him now, he has a black eye.

Stop by his court and wish him a fast recovery.

He may be too fast for some but, he is always nice and makes both sides look good.

I love fast Gerry.

Mike Catalano

Anonymous said...

Some of the newer Judges could use a lesson in "Fast Gerriness" which includes commending lawyers in front of their clients. Is it so hard to call lawyers out of turn and just be pleasant? Don't they learn this in Judge school?

Rumpole said...

Without debating the merits of what kind of Judge he is, just a thank you from a group of lawyers for what is probably 40+ years of service would be nice. No need to bemoan the fact he wasn't appointed to the supreme court, just a simple thank you was all I was looking for.

Maybe I'm getting soft in my old age.

Anonymous said...

actually,gerry got robbed while he was playing golf at normandy isle while he should have been on the bench.....

Anonymous said...

Did FACDL pass Klein up for the honor and decide to recognize someone else instead? Or are they just not 'honoring' anyone? Is this some type of yearly service award that they regularly give out and just decided not to do it this year? Or would they be giving him recognition just because they all happen to be getting together for dinner?

Anonymous said...

Does anybody care that in a murder case, two independant witnesses who do not know each other came to court on seperate days and gave similar accoutns of police officers threating them and forcing them to make identifications? And now the state arrests ONE of them, not both, just the black female, and charges her with perjury? It bothers me, and I just read about it and spoke to a few people.

Anonymous said...

No. we just care about silly things.

Anonymous said...

Who was the prosecutor on the murder case?

Anonymous said...

FACDL only cares about federal judges and federal cases.

They have no respect for the MJB.

They kiss ass with the feds all the time.

Anonymous said...

RUMP:

I was at the FACDL-Miami meeting and nobody mentioned Judge Gerri Klein's name when nominations were made. That certainly was an oversight, not surprising since he is "retired" and not on most attorney's radar. I do wish that his name was mentioned (along with other fine judges such as Stan Blake, Leon Firtel, Lenny Glick & Joe Farina) but ultimately I believe the award still would have gone to Joe Farina given his terrific work this year helping to undo the court appointment money mess.

A Director

Anonymous said...

I love the "logic" these criminal defense attorneys use on this blog: Klein makes us look good in front of our clients, so he must be a great judge worthy of recognition. And furthermore, do you think for a moment that he doesn't tell clients who hire illustrious counsel such as the "E" and the "Q" that they've hired an excellent attorney as well?

Judge Klein is a real problem, the way I see it. When is the last time he ever gave any defendant (other than one in a media case) an elevated bond. No, the GORT, PRRP, HVO, HO burglar with three pages of priors still gets the $7500 standard bond. Outrageous. This menace posts his bond, and then invariably picks up more cases while out on bond, creating another victim, and another case to further clog the system. Perhaps if an appropriate bond ($50,000) was set in the beginning, none of this would happen.

Anonymous said...

Trialmaster..........do yourself a favor and call a shrink. You need serious help.

It's pathetic enough that you brag anonymously about your greatness, now you take the opportunity to bash a judge's wife. Sad and classless. Get a life.

Anonymous said...

The FACDL: Sonnet gives award to Wiener; Wiener gives award to Sonnet

Anonymous said...

Judge Gerald Klein has been a courageous judge.When handling Preliminary Hearings,before many of the attorneys who now practice at R.E.G.he would often find no probable cause,when others had no courage to do so.When handling D.U.I.trials he had the courage to find defendants not guilty when the State was unabloe to prove a case.When handling Arthur Hearingshe had the courage to grant bonds over the onjection of the State when appropriate.
He showed up in Court on time,not like many judges.He handled court in a no nonsense fashion,getting all out in a timely fashion.He complimented and continues to compliment attorneys.
Judge Klein deserves recognition for his service to the community and not the bashing from the
cheap seat aptrons writing about him negatively on this blog.

Anonymous said...

Rump
Gerry Klein is one of the old time great judges. Fairness and common sence delivered with curtesy. He's even polite when he holds your client no bond
D. Sisselman

Rumpole said...

To the FACDL Director and 4:32 poster- I don't snitch. But I can assure you that I was assured the idea of a small placque and recognition at the annual dinner would be discussed. I am disappointed the people I spoke with forgot. If that is the case, perhaps it is not too late.

Anonymous said...

Weiner. Was there ever anyone who lived up to his name so well?

Rumpole said...

Can someone who knows whats going on email me on two items: 1) which prosecutor did Judge Ward hold in contempt for not showing up? 2) What's the real story behind that farce in the Herald today about the murder case being dismissed in the middle of the trial and the witness being arrested? Inquiring minds want to know.

Anonymous said...

Good couple of weeks for the defense attorneys at the White
Building.

First, last week Dave Pettus and
Chris Dunham got 2 Not Guilty's on
charges of Abusing a Mental Health
Patient and Tampering with a Witness in State Court before Judge
Thomas.

Second, Richard Moore got a Not Guilty on a Felon in Possession of
a Firearm case against the federales.

Lastly, Jay White and Olivia Griffin got 2 Not Guilty's today on charges of Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Escape.

White Building 3 - Government 0

Nice work.

Anonymous said...

I don't know who was held in contempt, but I believe the prosecutor on the dismissed murder case was Tammy Forrest.

Anonymous said...

Philly R got the dismissal in trial of the murder case and the prosecution arrested their eyewitness. Not bad work either.

Anonymous said...

I heard about the murder case on the podcast the Joffee report.

Anonymous said...

props to the White Building crew and Phil R.

Anonymous said...

Rump- Blame yourself. If you want something done, do it yourself. You should have shown up at the FACDL meeting personally to ensure that your choice was nominated and discussed. The only reason FACDL did not honor the person you wanted honored was because you insist on remaining anonymous. In addition, I checked the membership roster and you are not listed as a member. Pay your dues or you should not criticize those who do for ignoring you.

Anonymous said...

THe league of prosecutors should not honor geral klein.the guy will rarely if ever increase a bond request by a prosecutor. he does whatever eliot wants him to do on every case.

Anonymous said...

Why does it seem that this blog says we should honor any judge who has been doing it a while as long as the do what the defense bar wants? havent heard you mention that we should honor lenny glick for over 30 years of service to the criminal justice system. I guess if you dont let defense attorneys continue c cases for 2 years and give them great plea offers you are by defininition not a good judge and worthy of a plaque.

Anonymous said...

thats right - and if you dont take into custody every single probation violator or increase bond on every defendant where the state decides to up the charges, the according to the state, you are a bad judge.

Next discussion

Anonymous said...

Actually, Judge Glick was one of the nominees for the award. That Judge Farina was chosen in no way belittles his accomplishments.

Anonymous said...

Nice post on the White Building. I've never heard of such an assemblage of hacks. And all in the same building? What are the odds? It almost rivals the Jonathan Schwartz brain trust. My kids are not going to law school.

Anonymous said...

Gerry Klein has balls. The one that deserves a medal though is that Mexican-looking bondsman Luis Lopez that sits at every bond hearing and offers Tom Mote's services equally to the unrepresented and represented. He deserves a medal.

Anonymous said...

The Talmud teaches us that on the very same day that Sodom was destroyed- they finally got themselves an honest judge: Lot. The question is: why would they have to be annihilated just as, for the first time in Sodom’s history, they finally nominated an honest judge (or, rather, what were the ancient Talmudists trying to tell us)?
It has been said that the worst possible system is one where corrupt laws abide and there is an honest judge to uphold them.
Sodom could have survived, despite their corrupt laws, as long as their vicious, dehumanizing and indignant were not enforced blindly and unconditionally by an "honest" judge.
What they needed was an "honest" and good man as a judge (vs. a dishonest man who is an honest judge).
Judge Klein is such a man. Whether he judges for or against their favor: people leave his courtroom with the genuine feeling that justice has been served and that there still is hope for even
Florida’s over-policed under-protected state laws (that daily shackles the most feared criminals with decent folk- often arrested for a seconds delay in following a yelling policeman’s insulting orders).
Having left his courtroom only yesterday, I am happy and proud to live in a state where the Hon. Judge Klein presides.
Long live justice, the pursuit of happiness and Judge Klein!

Anonymous said...

Here it is 2014, and I am going to tell the story of Judge Klein and myself. I had to go to Court for a traffic offense, as a matter of fact a couple traffic offenses I believe the month was April 13, 1966 it was a Wed. I was charged with speeding and driving with no license. On top of that I had another court date on the 14th. So because you know everything when you are that age, I had a plan. I was going to get a continuance and do the same thing on the 14th, then I was going to join the military, Viet Nam was cooking, so I figured I would enlist, and that would take care of my court appearences. When I went to court Judge Klein comes into the court room. I don't remember exactly what all Judge Klein said except, does anyone need a continuance? Up went my hand. He said, what's your name? I told him, and he leafed through the stack of tickets for my name. He said, you are charged with speeding and driving with no license, then he asked me if I did in fact have a drivers license, to which I assured him I did. He said he would grant me the continuance but, when I come back to court, and it turns out I don't have a license, you will regret the day you met me. So I got my continuance and I would come back on the 14th and tell that judge the same story and then I would go and join the Army. On the 14th I came back to court, and on the doors of each court rooms were little glass windows that allowed one to look into the room without opening the door. So I peek through the window, who do you think was the judge? You guessed it. All I could think of was, I am doomed, so doomed. At the time I was married to my first, and she was pregnant, and she went with me on both occasions. I told her , I need to go talk to the judge before we go into court, which I did. I told him that I had lost my license due to points, for 3 mo. I told him I had lied. I should have just set myself on fire right then and there. His exact words, which I shall carry to the grave were, your going into that courtroom and take whatever comes down the pyke. When we got into the courtroom, guess who was first to be called? Right again. He read me the riot act and then gave me 90 days in the Dade Co. Jail. Now when you have more than a 30 day sentence, they offer you the opportunity to be a trustee. When the jailer came into the bullpen area and asked if anybody had more than thirty days, the guy I was talking to said, tell them you wan't to be a trustee. I told him, I don't even know what a trustee is. He said, it will get you out of this bullpen, so I raised my hand. I had four options. Working on the road crew was out of the question, I could work in the laundry, ah no. I could work in the cafeteria washing dishes, the temperature in the kitchen was about 100deg. ah no thanks, or I could work in the linen room. The linen room? hmm. OK. All I had to do was pass out clean clothes to the road crew and other assorted convicts. I was in the linen room for 6 days when one day the phone in the guards room next door rings, and he hollers out, it's for you. Me? Who even knows I'm in here let alone how to get in touch with me? I picked up the phone and said hello, the voice on the other end says, is this ??? I said yes, the voice says this is judge Klein, do you want to go home? I said yes sir, real bad. He said to me, I'm going to let you out but, if you ever come up in front of me again, I will give you two years in Rayford, do you understand? Yes sir. He said besides I'm tired of your pregnant wife calling me all hours of the night crying and moaning about having you locked up. I got to go home and I learned my lesson, I think I have gotten one ticket since then. True story. RIP judge Klein, and thank you for the lesson.