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.

Friday, August 19, 2011

893.13 FALLOUT

The reactions to Judge Hirsch's decision holding Florida's drug possession law unconstitutional have been mostly positive. The decision is thoughtful and extremely well reasoned. And why shouldn't Judge Hirsch have a little fun and enjoyment along the way? If he wants to throw in a Mark Twain quote from time to time, why not? Not be overlooked is Judge Hirsch's gracious recognition of the work the prosecutor did, acknowledging the long hours she put in to quickly produce a worthy memorandum in support of her position.

All in all, we've come a long way from Judges tossing motions aside without scarcely glancing at them and asking the attorney to tell them what they want.

For the record, the argument that we can place our hope in the reason and charity of the State Attorneys Office to require mens rea in possession cases when the law does not require it, is pure folly- even struthious, if we can be so bold. We've all known good prosecutors, and not so good prosecutors. And we for one are not willing to trust our client's freedom in the hope we get an experienced and fair prosecutor assigned to the case. One of the great lies in the modern world (besides "the cheque is in the mail") is "I'm from the government and I'm here to help." Ask everyone's favourite federal blogger, Mr. Markus with a K how fair certain (former) narcotics prosecutors were with his client when they increased charges after he filed a motion to suppress. We can never allow ourselves to be put in a position where we depend upon the good nature of a prosecutor for justice to be done (it's bad enough our robed readers are in the equation).

Don't quote us, but we're hopeful that South Florida Lawyer's Civil blog's Friday "babe" post will be of one of the hotties who entertained the UM Football players.

DRUG FIELD TEST DEFECTIVE?
Norm Kent via the JAA Broward Blog has everything you wanted to know about why a standard narcotics field test is not what it seems to be.

All that glisters is not gold;
often you have heard that told.
The Merchant Of Venice, (Act II, Scene VII) William Shakespeare.


The West Memphis Three:
Imprisoned since 1993, mostly on the confession of a boarder line mentally retarded man interrogated for 12 hours, three men, one on death row and two serving life in prison may be freed by today. The NY Times article is here.


ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?
We are. Football season is upon us and thankfully we have a season now that John Boehner and President Obama agreed to raise the debt ceiling allowing the NFL owners to open their stadiums and charge $14.50 for a beer. Or something like that.

In any event watch these pages as we will soon post the exclusive email address for our Blog Suicide Pool.

THE KING IS DEAD...long live the King! BK sacks it's King mascot.

Finally, this is post 1999. 2k and still going strong after all these years. And you still have no clue...

Enjoy the weekend and drive carefully Monday on your way into court, school's back in session.



21 comments:

Anonymous said...

The civil man is busy windsurfing with his bevy of beauties.

Smoke em if you got em said...

It was a mad mad Macanudo Monday at the 2 Dudes Cigar shoope and the flames have barely died down and there are still long ashes from a bust out event.

PS- Cigar Shop Quarterly just named 2 Dudes the Best new Cigar shop of 2011! Congrats Dudes!

Anonymous said...

The West Memphis 3 result is long overdue.

Anonymous said...

I looked in the west Memphis case today, did some news clip reading from 1993 and 94, I was shocked to learn that 4 days after the murder 2 local men who knew one of the victims darted for the west coast and when the Police issued a warrant for the arrest of these fine citizens the California police conducted a polygraph with which they each showed deception.

As opposed to these 3 guys released after all these years who never took off from Alabama.

So many other holes in this case.

At first I was like why are we releasing convicted child killers?

Also at trial many witnesses came forward mainly teenage kids who testified one of the 3 was at a wrestling match over 50 miles away the night of the murders. Way too many alibi witnesses to create a air tight lie.

After reading more and more leads me to believe that Prosecutors and Police who act in this manner should be jailed under some Federal law.

In 1994, the trial Judge order the execution of one of these men for the month of May 1994, if not for a system in which you get an appeal that innocent man would be dead at the hands of the Government. Disgusting!

South Florida Lawyers said...

Technically it's more a gaggle than a bevy, but point taken.

Anonymous said...

Anyone who really has read the opinion and the Florida and federal cases and actually understands the law will quickly realize as did two other federal district courts (from the same middle district as Shelton) that the argument is legally incorrect, and that the Florida courts have already rejected this argument. Putting your head in the sand and refusing to see the obvious - if a state court cites to the 14th amendment, cites federal cases and says federal due process than that means the state court has ruled on a federal due process claim. Furthermore, why did Judge Hirsch completely ignored the State's argument that the statute at issue is 893.101, the knowledge statute, not 893.13, and that one could be legally severed and the law would go back to it was under Chicone. Instead he has to make a statement and release hundreds of drug defendants regardless of the fact that none of the defendants who cases he dismissed claimed that they did not know the drugs were there or what they were in possession of. It was not a well reasoned opinion and it will not be long before he is reversed.

FAKE Judge Ellen Venzer said...

You think that Judge Milton Hirsh writes an academic order? Wait till you see what Judge Hanzman is going to do when he gets to criminal!

Anonymous said...

I think the finding of a statute as facially unconstitutional by a trial court allows for appeal directly to the Florida supreme court. Jason Grey

Anonymous said...

irrefragable, not to be denied or disputed. thank you judge hirsch for using a word 99.99% of the population will not know the meaning of without consulting a dictionary, particularly the poor uneducated defendants who benefitted from your wordy opinion. your orders should be written to enlighten, educated, and be easily discernible, not obfuscate the issues in such complexity that only appellate lawyers and law review editors can understand what you are saying. please consider this in your future orders or else go and teach at an ivy league school and spare the citizens of miami your lofty gibberish.

Anonymous said...

10:00 P.M. Let's put some money on your prediction. When Judge Hirsch's opinion is reviewed by a federal court, it will be upheld. Indeed, the SA should be ashamed to prosecute people under that statute, particularly when the PC gleaned from the arrest form comes from a group of infamously and consistently dishonest reporters, cops, who the SA is terrified of and allows to routinely break laws and violate peoples' rights for her own political benefit – a useless gesture since they still hate her.

Rumpole said...

And we heard Jason Grey had stopped reading
the blog.

Anonymous said...

1:29PM, you are dead on. Detective Washington and White of the TNT (aka Jump Out Boyz) of Richmond Heights are the most brazenly deceivingly despicable cops in this county. There entire unit routinely makes up arrest forms to milk the overtime system, they arrest people without p/c, commit unlawful searches, lie under oath and are general scum bags beyond reproach.

The Coconut Grove problem solving team is just as bad/

The SAO knows it. The judges know it, especially the ones who were APDs within the last 5-10 years and they don't hold them accountable.

When I talk to my lawyer friends in other parts of the country, they often wonder how the hell defense attorneys in this county get Not Guilty verdicts so often.

I know we would like to think that it is because our legal skill in our beloved Miami-Dade County is just so excellent. But the truth is, the jury pool in this county, the residents, hates the police force. And the reason why our residents are so hostile to cops is because of the ones previously mentioned.

Anonymous said...

1:29 you obviously do not have any knowledge or understanding of federal habeas corpus law. also jason, under florida appellate law, hirsch's opinion has to go to the 3rd and then to the fsc if they want to take it.

Anonymous said...

I still love ya Rump,I just get sick of all the Shumie, Q, fake this one, or that one, bullshit sometimes.
Jason grey

Anonymous said...

To Friday at 10PM - Perhaps you should be a judge because you seem to be one of the only people actually reading and analyzing Hirsch's opinion. Aside from ignoring florida law and the severnce argument, why does he ignore the two other federal judges from Judge Scriven's district who reject Shelton? If J. Hirsch is bound by Shelton, wny is he not bound by the two other federal cases that reach the opposite conclusion. No one can defend his order. also I saw nothing in his order addressing the state argument that he used he and Judge Scriven are using the wrong habeas standard. Again perhaps he should have looked at the two other learned judges from the middle district for guidance as opposed following an opinion that the analysis is riddled with obvious errors. What happened to we who labor here seek only the truth? At least he should have been intelectually honest enough to address the State's arguments head on.

Anonymous said...

Judge Milton Hirsch should look at himself first. He is in no position to decide bonds. He is being sued by his previous landlord for breech of contract and non-payment of rent. There is also an action in the Third District Court of Appeal in Florida regarding tape recordings of Milton Hirsch and a psychologist hired by Hirsch, Dr. Michael Rappaport, in which a client is told to flee the country and skip bail. The tape recordings show that Michael Rappaport incriminates Hirsch in giving his client that advice. The Third District Court of Appeal has had this action for almost two years.

Anonymous said...

6:19 P.M. One can take a decision from the Third DCA to the U.S. Supreme Court by cert.

Anonymous said...

speaking of White and Washington, rumor has it that they stooped to even more despicable levels last week...supposedly they were caught going through a defense attorney's file on the day of trial...some nerve!

Anonymous said...

worse than or just as bad as bad cops are defense attorneys who defend dopers by bartering or and trading their services for drugs

Anonymous said...

Anonymous, if the two detectives were caught snooping through a defense attorney's file, I'm sure something would of been said. if not that PD knows what to do.

As to your comments about the two detectives or the tnt unit, I'm glad someone is patrolling our Richmond Heights Neighborhood, because the drug dealers and "Harlem Heights" gang/thugs keep on with their business. There is a-lot of good people in this neighborhood, and we are tired of the drugs in our streets. Stop believing all your clients and look at the facts.

Anonymous said...

Speaking of Washington & White I was arrested by them both. They were really honest and gave me alot of respect. When i see them i always speak because they made me realize that selling drugs is not what i wanted.