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.

Thursday, February 14, 2008

JUDGE GARDINER


From the Broward Blog comes this article about the driving habits of North Of the Border Judge Ana Gardiner, who serves as Chief of the Criminal Courts (but not traffic) division.

On Valentine's day, the lesson is love can sometimes hurt (and wreck a Mercedes).

BROWARD NEW TIMES ARTICLE

From the New Times Article and off the Broward Blog:

The collision left a mess on the back end of the Mercedes, with the bumper hanging loose, the left taillight smashed, and the exhaust pipe driven under the body. By the time Warhaftig and her husband, Allan, got there, though, the fleeing driver had returned. She was sitting in her BMW in a driveway next to the damaged Mercedes. It was Judge Ana Gardiner, chief judge of the criminal division of the Broward County Circuit Court...When police arrived — summoned by a resident who had heard the crash and seen Gardiner subsequently "shooting down the street" — a group of people gathered around the damaged car. Among them were prominent Fort Lauderdale lawyer Howard Friedman, who lives on 25th Way, and another lawyer, who was watching the game at Friedman's house. According to the Warhaftigs, Friedman recognized Gardiner, telling neighbors, "I know what this is about."
Gardiner was probably checking up on "an ex-boyfriend" (the lawyer who was visiting Friedman's house), he alleged to neighbors. When someone stepped out of the house, she had apparently stepped on the gas so as not to be seen, Friedman remarked...The Warhaftigs say that Friedman stepped in to assist the judge, and she quickly "lawyered up." Neither Gardiner nor Friedman responded to requests for comment. The Warhaftigs say they're less angry about the accident than about Gardiner's muteness. My Warhaftig said she was also upset about Gardiner's recklessness in a residential neighborhood — "There were 50 kids there, running all over the place," says Warhaftig, the mother of two, "and she could easily have hit one of them" — as well as the suggestion from Friedman that the Warhaftigs themselves may have somehow been culpable."

33 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey I'm first!!!!

SOMEBODY CALL THE Q

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

North Of The Border .....

There lots going on up North:

For you lovers of Judge Barry Goldstein, you will be happy to learn that he has resigned from the bench effective June 30, 2008.

Goldstein, shall we say, is in-famous:

1. In 2001, the Broward Public Defender's Office asked Goldstein, who is considered a harsh sentencer, to stop handling some cases because of comments he made to an online legal news service. Goldstein told lexisone.com: "My feeling is, if I'm going to sentence someone to state prison or county jail, it should always be followed by probation."
(Judge Ross transferred Goldstein out of the criminal division soon afterword).

2. In 1996, an appellate court said Goldstein should have disqualified himself from a case after the judge said he would never consider sentencing a person to time served for a probation violation. That ruling meant other judges had to take over all the alleged probation violations by defendants Goldstein had sentenced. (for the next five years, Goldstein sat in the criminal division without hearing another PVH). (Unfortunately, Ross heard all the cases; can you say bad and badder).

3. In 1994, an appellate court ruled Goldstein should have dropped out of another case where he told a defense attorney he intended to resentence the defendant to the maximum, and he would not hear any mitigating evidence.

Good-bye, Judge Goldstein, don't let the door hit you on the way out!

For you fans of our own Milt Hirsch, you can watch him on Friday morning as he performs his shtick before acting Circuit Court Judge Joel Lazarus. (this man is a County Court Judge who has been sitting in as a Circuit Judge for wayyy too long).

Milt has been representing former Hollywood Commissioner Keith Wasserstrom on corruption charges. The commiss was found guilty in September on two counts of official misconduct and he faces up to 10 years in prison. Milt lost round two last week when he tried to argue for dismissal or retrial of the charges. All Motions were denied. Friday is sentencing day and we wish Milt all the luck in the world.

Finally, ... can you say sensitivity training - sure you can. And so can Chief Judge Vic Tobin. Looks like El Jefe has finally given in and now recognizes the need for more training of the judiciary in his fine county.

The program will be voluntary. Hey Judge, maybe you could also arrange for a course in "Driver's Education".

CAPTAIN OUT .....

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...

Unbelievable but true ......

Miami LB Zach Thomas has been released from the Dolphins today.

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...

Miami City Attorney Jorge Fernandez resigns ...

Congrats to FACDL-Miami Prez Barry Wax for what appears to be an excellent result for his client, the soon to be former City Attorney Jorge Fernandez.

Fernandez will enter a plea next week to two misdemeanor charges, making false official statements, and recieve one year of probation and restitution of just over $3k.

It appears that he will not lose his bar license.

He had been under criminal investigation for misuse of his $10,000-a-year expense account.
Fernandez earns more than $240,000 annually and was Miami's highest-paid employee.

Cap Out ....

Anonymous said...

Anna Gardiner is an efficient and smart judge. She is also sexy and gets a pass. Hot chicks (for a Judge) can do whatever they want!

Anonymous said...

Is it true that City Attorney Fernandez used his expense account for his son's graduation party?

If true, what in the world was this
college and law school educated guy thinking?

Anonymous said...

Ana Gardner fucked me a few years ago on a plea.

What the hell was she doing leaving the scene. That is felony.

Off with her head!

Anonymous said...

I got me an ethics question for those inclined...

1. Adam and Betty are married.
2. Adam is an antagonistic prick who makes life unbearable for others as he tilts at windmills.
3. Betty minds her business while working at ACME.

The question is this, is it right or wrong to shun ACME for the actions of Betty's husband? Would it matter ACME was effectively bank rolling Adam's self-indulgent attacks on others by employing Betty?

Anonymous said...

Penny,
Your question is precisely why I practice criminal TRIAL law.

You may be on the wrong blog.

Anonymous said...

Jack:

http://election.dos.state.fl.us/Cand/CanList.asp

Take your pick. Five grand and your name is on the ballot. While I think you would fit in at the Broward Court more than the Dade REGJB.

Anonymous said...

Q who? Why is Q relevant?

Anonymous said...

Why the Q is merely the best criminal defense attorney in the land. Famous for winning unwinable cases, the Q achieved near legend like status after he walked a defendant on a third DUI who blew a .28 while giving a closing argument with his hand tucked behind his back- just to prove, he said later on, that he could beat the state with one hand behind his back.

He is a sought after lecturer and advisor and is consulted by lawyers around the world to help solve the unsolveable problems.

And you asked who the Q was.

Anonymous said...

Lest we all lose sight of what is truly important in life, and I know all these comments about judges, the skills of lawyers, who is better than whom, while entertaining, take a back seat to what is truly great in this country. Today we have another reminder of the greatness of the U.S. Constitution and the abundance of liberties we have as American Citizens. Another mass shooting with handguns, and a shotgun this time, 5 dead, 13 others injured, at a small school in Dekalb, Illinois. There is nothing better than to see a bunch of losers in a geology class be murdered and some seriously injured by one of our fellow citizens properly exercising his right to bear arms and sua sponte determine who lives and who dies without any attempt at deterence by the government. Rightfully so our leaders are determining whether a professional athlete cheated by injecting himself with performance enhancing drugs and whether cheating occured in the videotaping of signals in a football game. I have never been prouder of our congressional leaders and I hope they continue along their darwinian paths ensuring that the exalted few in our society, can, without regulation or intervention, determine who amongst us is the weakest and worthy of extinction. Long live the 2nd amendment. /s/ The NRA.

Anonymous said...

Dear old guy:

I don't think you got the question. Perhaps you don't know jack?

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

ELECTION UPDATE .....

Group 34 of the County Court has a new candidate. Her name is Denise Scanziani and she has been a member of The Florida Bar for seven years.

Now what is interesting about this is the fact that Judge George Sarduy is/was the only other candidate in Group 34. As many of you know, he was recently elevated to the Circuit Court by Gov. Crist.

That leaves Group 34 open and the seat is up for election in 2008. BUT ....

The JNC has begun the process of replacing Judge Sarduy with a new judge appointed by Gov. Crist. That appointment will mean that Group 34 will no longer be an open seat and the newly appointed judge will not have to stand for election until 2010.

So this causes me to ask the following questions: Does candidate Scanziani know this? Did the elections clerk make a mistake listing her in Group 34?

We will soon see.

CAPTAIN OUT .....

Anonymous said...

Rump-you were wrong. reveal yourself

Truman did not have a middle name, only a middle initial. In his autobiography, Truman stated, "I was named for . . . Harrison Young. I was given the diminutive Harry and, so that I could have two initials in my given name, the letter S was added. My Grandfather Truman's name was Anderson Shippe Truman and my Grandfather Young's name was Solomon Young, so I received the S for both of them." Anderson's name was also spelled Shipp. He once joked that the S was a name, not an initial, and it should not have a period, but official documents and his presidential library all use a period.[4] Furthermore, the Harry S. Truman Library has numerous examples of the signature written at various times throughout Truman's lifetime where his own use of a period after the S is conspicuous. The Associated Press Stylebook has called for a period after the S since the early 1960s, when Truman indicated he had no preference.[127] However, the use of a period after his middle initial is not universal, and the official White House biography does not use it.[128]

Truman's bare initial caused an unusual slip when he first became president and had to take the oath of office. At a meeting in the Cabinet Room, Chief Justice Harlan Stone began reading the oath by saying "I, Harry Shipp Truman, . . ." Truman responded: "I, Harry S. Truman, . . ."[129]

Anonymous said...

Can somebody please charge Judge Gardiner with Leaving the Scene of an Accident with Property Damage and Reckless Driving? She is such a hypocrite.

Anonymous said...

Penny a/k/a/ Betty is either:

1) Mrs. Rmpole or
2) Mrs. Thompson

despite the seeming improbability that either is married. Perhaps Penny a/k/a Betty met hubby while he was on his meds? Marriage to either would be clearly unethical and possible, illegal, in at least 23 states. Fake Anonymous.

Anonymous said...

Jeez...another 7-year wonder throws their name into the ring to become judge. This one obviously has so little intelligence that she doesn't realize that a replacement is appointed rather than elected and thus, in turn, the election cycle for that seat is changed. Makes one pause to think just how qualified this one may be. The bigger issue is how any 7-year lawyer has the experience and wisdom to become a judge. Sadly our judicial ranks are filled with lawyers who didn't have that measure of experience and wisdom necessary to 'make the leap' and we read about them and experience their lack of talent daily. I for one would like to see the requirement lifted to require a minimum of 15 years experience as a lawyer to qualify someone for the bench.

Rumpole said...

For someone who researched the issue you spent a lot of time without reading my comment. I never said Truman had a middle name. I merely said I would reveal my identity to the reader who told me his middle name and not his initial. As I pointed out in a later comment it was an unwinnable question as he did not have a middle name.

Anonymous said...

i like julio jiminez. even tempered, not inappropriate, and tried a million cases as a defense atty.

Anonymous said...

I want to run for Judge who is the easiest to win against?

Top 6 and why (County and Circuit). I will be filing by Friday.

Anonymous said...

Shumster?

Anonymous said...

3:53, do your own homework. An anonymous questioner relying on anonymous responses...wow, you must really be qualified.

Anonymous said...

Sardfuy's seat will be filled by Gov. and then removed from the list of those up in 2008. If the Gov. has it filled before the may qualifying date, the new Judge doesn't run until 2010. Until the Gov. fills it, the elections dept. lets people file in it.

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

ELECTION UPDATE .....

I reported earlier on the filing by attorney Denise Scanziani as a candidate for Group 34 of the County Court.

I also mentioned that I had two questions:

Does candidate Scanziani know that the Governor plans on naming a replacement for that seat - who will then not be running for "reelection" until 2010?

and/or Did the elections clerk make a mistake listing her in Group 34?

I can now answer the second question: NO.

I have reviewed the paperwork and Ms. Scanziani has filed for Group 34.

So, I guess we can now answer the first question: NO.

CAPTAIN OUT .....

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...

Unfortunately ....

Utpal Naren Dighe, has been suspended for 90 days effective immediately following a Jan. 17 court order and placed on probation for two years. (Admitted to practice: 2004) In May 2007, Dighe was arrested and charged with purchasing and possessing less than 20 grams of marijuana. Additionally, for seven months Dighe was delinquent in his Bar dues and was delinquent in his Basic Skills Requirement for 21 months. (Case No. SC07-2391)

and

doesn't the Bar have something better to do:

Mark Stephen Gold, (The Ticket Clinic), will receive a public reprimand and is placed on probation for one year, effective immediately pursuant to a Jan. 3 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1983) Gold disseminated a number of advertisements over a period of years that did not comply with advertising rules, including ads that contained information that improperly promised results, were misleading and failed to contain necessary information and disclosures. (Case Nos. SC04-1661, SC06-1232, SC07-189)

Anonymous said...

Patricia Thompson is a partner at Carlton Fields. She enables her husband "Jack" Thompson to act as he does. I will therefore refrain from supporting Carlton Fields and any judge formerly of Carlton Fields.

Anonymous said...

captain, you ask whether the Bar has something better to do, I was wondering the same about you as you scour the herald and other news outlets to print unfortunate and irrelevant information about people, you perfect human being.

Anonymous said...

Free Mary Jane
Free Utpal

Anonymous said...

8:33 PM. Amen.

Anonymous said...

Doesnt the judicial seat always have to run when it is up? Yes, you could have a situation where the appointee is propmptly defeated in an election, but isnt that just the way it is?

What would be the difference from the Reyes/Swartz thing a couple of years ago? Say Reyes got the appellate court appointment and the governor had apponted a replacement. Does that mean Swartz would have not been able to run in that group? And if it were after qualifying, would the candidate have been prevented from moving to another group?
Sounds strange.

Anonymous said...

The Swartz-Reyes thing was different. Reyes qualified to be re-elected and Swartz filed against him. If Reyes had been appointed then Swartz would have been elected without opposition and the Governor could not appoint in the seat. The Governor can not "undo" an election.

In the instance of Sarduy, if the governor appoints prior to the last qualifying date, then the appointee would have a property interest in his seat that could not be extinguished because Article 5 of the Florida Constitution requires that an appointee serve for no less than 1 year before standing for election, therefore the seat is removed from the September primary election and sent to the next general election (2010). If the governor fails to appoint prior to the last day of qualifying, but there is a contested seat, then he could appoint and again the seat would be taken off the September primary. If the seat is uncontested and the winner demands a commission be issued by the secretary of state then the seat can not be appointed, because the the winner has a property interest in the seat and again the governor can not "undo" an election.

You will find all the details in the Appendix to my book.