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Thursday, July 02, 2015

OH MY GOODNESS

From NBC 6, video of Judge Mindy Glazer and a defendant who was her junior high school classmate. The two classmates bumped into each other at bond hearing. One was on the bench, one was wearing orange, the new black.

The defendant was overcome with emotion, repeating "oh my goodness, oh my goodness" before breaking down sobbing.  
Rumors that the two broke into the old Nautilus Beach fight song are incorrect.
Oh those hazy lazy days of summer.

You never know who you're going to meet in our humble little courthouse. 
We're pretty sure we once met Xavier Cougat  coming out of the old Pickle Barrell.



 Not sure if we can embed the video of the reunion, , so here is the link.

Long weekend coming up.  


28 comments:

Anonymous said...

A video like that makes me glad that we have Mindy Glazer doing the bond hearings here in Miami and not that buffoon up in Broward.

Anonymous said...

Sad, very sad. While I'm guessing that some people will criticize Mindy and suggest that she should not have reminded the defendant who she was or that they went to school together, I have no doubt that she was trying to "get to him" in the most constructive way possible. I thought she handled the hearing beautifully and compassionately.

BTDT

Anonymous said...

mindy is a very nice lady.

Anonymous said...

When Mindy Glazer ran into trouble for breaking tax law, I reckon she wanted as much privacy as possible. Maybe she was embarrassed, maybe she felt she was innocent, maybe she felt vulnerable. I doubt she'd want anyone involved to point out they were classmates.

She seems to have a good heart -- but this isnt the first episode where she could benefit from some humility and the ability to imagine herself on the other side of the bench.

Anonymous said...

Mindy is a very kind and loving person and a great Judge.

Anonymous said...

Mindy is one of the kindest people I have ever seen on the bench. Anyone who says she needs humility just does not know her.

Anonymous said...

Mindy....

Anonymous said...

I don't think Mindy did anything inappropriate here. Hopefully, this guy has an "oh shit" moment and realizes where his life has gone. That his middle school classmate is now the judge presiding over his felony bond hearing. If that's not "rock bottom," then I don't know what is.

Hopefully this is the event that changes the course of his life from this point forward.

Anonymous said...

In never liked her when she was an inexperienced twerp who ran against Martin Khan and won for reasons that had nothing to do with ability or experience. And I still don't like her.

Rumpole said...

Who's voting in Greece today ?

The Professor said...

Early in her career, before finally getting elected to the bench, Mindy threatened to run against numerous sitting judges. She finally settled upon Marty Kahn, a truly good judge. Many people were disturbed, including many of her colleagues.

Feeling insecure in her first re-eelction campaign, Mindy decided to counsel potential opponents on who to run against and how. She used her husband's money to intimidate those potential opponents and handed up many of her brothers and sisters on the bench as being vulnerable. That made her even more unpopular. Behind that "sweet" demeanor is a mean streak that surfaces in subtle ways.

She does not seem to care, since she is still not liked by most of her colleagues. She comes to work, goes home and takes care of her kids, goes to very few events, but still fends off opposition by deflecting them to other sitting judges.

The Professor said...

The answer to your question Rump is EVERYONE. It is illegal not to vote in Greece.

I missed my flight last night, so I will not be voting today.

Anonymous said...

When I got to Juvies, I was told that there were two judges there from whom you stood no chance of learning anything about the law. One of them was Judge Glazer. I had one trial in front of her and found the admonition to be correct as far as my limited experience was concerned.
I had no other dealings with her until she came to bond hears over a decade later, I haven't found her problematic in that role. She sometimes seems a bit obtuse, but it's a tricky and often overwhelming job that no one could be correct on one hundred percent of the time.
But this viral video is still problematic in ways that I have not seem commented upon.
No kne could not know two things evident in her question: first, that it would be recorde and is easily accessed; second, that it would be replete with simple and simplistic ironies that the simple and simplistic among is would derive easy lessons from.
No doubt the defendant took wrong turns, but can there be any doubt as well that he did not have the opportunities available today the sitting judge. If you watched how resolutely the scene ended with the defendant led away with a high bond, you knew that the sensitivity of the judge was either lacking or non-existing.
The lesson I took was of a judge saying, "I made it; why didn't you. Now please leave my sight."

Fake George Cholakis said...

Wtf homies ??? You're voting no??? We're sunk.

Anonymous said...

12:04, what opportunities do you think the judge had that the defendant didn't? The opportunity to study hard and get good grades and the opportunity to make smart choices in his life? If he was at the same jr high, he probably did have the opportunity to do something with his life instead of ending up where he is.

Anonymous said...

martin kahn was one of the very best judges of that era and it is a shame that she chose to take him on when there were legions of others more deserving of a challenge

Anonymous said...

Professor: your above comment at 10:55 evidences your lack of knowledge and thus the big chip on your shoulder. And who made you the anonymous spokesperson for the brothers and sisters of the judiciary? With incorrect comments like those, you should appear on Fox News.

The questions we should be asking, but aren't: With the Florida Supreme Court certifying the need for more judges in our county, why did our chief judge assign a full-time salaried judge to preside over bond hearings when a senior judge could do it for a fraction of the yearly salary? And why did our chief judge assign a judge with limited experience in criminal law and no judicial experience in criminal court to preside over bond hearings?

The Professor said...

7:43 - Mindy is a judge with over 15 years experience with time spent in the Criminal Division. The Chief Judge can not use a senior judge because there is not enough money in the budget for her to do so, as there was in the past. I don't consider being assigned to bond hearings as being any kind of honor. It is more because it is hard to make a mistake in bond hearings with all those people around to protect you. No chip on my shoulder. Happy as clam and living the good life.

Anonymous said...

4:25-- you're fucking kidding me, right? You really think the defendant had the same opportunities as a judge who did a private undergrad, whose good choices earned her the grades to get into a private law school--St Thomas. And I'm guessing her great life choices and good grades allowed for her to immediately enter private practice because good choices and never opportunities allow you to shit the money necessary to do that. At the age of thirty three she had the money to get elected judge. Yeah, she did all that on her own and that defendant is just a guy who went to the same junior high, like forty years ago, and is a cautionary tale to behold.
Or maybe some trust fund baby talking out her ass is playing some look at me game at the expense of some guy in a serious bind.
Do the math, my friend.

Anonymous said...

7:43 - You are a moron. Please refrain from all commentary unless you have studied up on the subject and actually know what you are talking about.

Anonymous said...

Her demeanor and the defendant's reaction says it all. He realized that he grew up in the same neighborhood and went to school with someone who made something of themselves, and found himself before that very person. Who knows who had the most opportunity between the two of them? We all know now that he did not make the most of his opportunities regardless of who bears the fault (him or society). Her comment that he was the nicest person you could want to meet says a lot. 1) It says that he had some type of parental support system. At the time when most kids drop out of school, hit puberty and try to "find themselves", start hanging with the wrong crowds, or make other mistakes he was still a very nice kid. 2) He was someone that she remembered for a good reason. 3) "I (and you classmate) know that you can do better than this." His reaction of crying and repeating oh my God, lets you know that he got what she was saying. How far apart two people who were once on the same path have gone. Her last comment that I hope things get better was a gentle reminder that its not too late for you. Many times people try to find fault in someone when there is none, or bring up ones past in an attempt to find fault. I don't know Judge Glazer personally, but looking at the big picture I think the two extra minutes she took will do more for this defendant than a simple "Your bond is set at $XXXX.XX, next"

Anonymous said...

Prof. You sound more like Gilligan than the Professor.

Anonymous said...

I spent a good deal of time in front of Judge Glazer when I was a young PD (and she was a young judge). She was very unpleasant to me (and my clients) for reasons that I still don't understand. I think she is confused about that as well, and has always been very nice to me whenever I've run into her since over the years. Still, first impressions are pretty hard to unmake, and I have the feeling that there is something just plain wrong lurking behind her robe and smiling face.

The Professor said...

12:51 - Some people do say I seem to live on an island and my mate does look a lot like Tina Louise did.

The trialmaster said...

I had Mindy at a bond hearing for an armed trafficking matter. I found her very polite to all, got to the point and did the right thing in setting a reasonable bond. My motto is " a reasonable fee for a reasonably bond.

Anonymous said...

9:19--I think 7:43 has a valid point. There is a budget for senior judges in civil and in juvenile courts. There is a budget for general magistrates in family, civil and juvenile courts though perhaps paid for by the county, not the state. Not sure about that. It just would seem that it would make good financial sense to find a way in the budget to utilize a senior judge instead of a salaried judge to work about 5 hours a day presiding over bond hearings.

And tell me about Glazer's criminal prosecution or defense experience. Oh, and while you are at it, tell me about the times you appeared before her in criminal court. When did she preside there? I think she was assigned to juvenile, civil and family courts. Again, I could be wrong. But remember that juvenile delinquency court doesn't equal criminal court.

Perhaps the saying about "the pot calling the kettle black" applies to you, 9:19.

The Professor said...

Okay 5:10 - you rank right up there with 7:43 (oops you should rank up there, since you are one in the same). Don't you think if there was money available for a senior judge to do bond hearings the Chief Judge would do that. (The truth is, there is Senior Judge money, but it is mostly used for coverage for judges on vacation or otherwise unavailable.) And, if there were enough money for a senior judge to sit in bond hearings on a daily basis, and the Chief assigned Mindy anyway, this would seem to be an editorial on Mindy as a judge. As you put it, why would Judge Soto take a 15 year judge and place her in such a menial task as bond hearings, unless: (1) she does not like her (very likely, but not necessarily determinative), or (2) she knows just how dangerous Mindy has been, and remains, to the system, and is minimizing the damage she can cause now and in the future.

As far as her judicial experience, if I recall correctly, Mindy, if not assigned to criminal on a rotation, had done some temporary duty there. I also have a vague recollection she had done some defense work in her short practice career, as short and undistinguished as that practice career may have been.

But, what started all this is Mindy's need to interject her personal knowledge of a defendant into a proceeding. Knowing this defendant would make a good story for around the dinner table with her husband, or with what friends they may have, but not for public consumption. Also her statements would seem to indicate a belief that this defendant is, in fact, guilty, which is not her job.

Many judges have knowledge of, or may even know, a defendant or other party to a lawsuit. Unless it is a basis to disqualify, then you keep your mouth shut. There was a lack of discretion and professionalism in what she did. But that is is Mindy. Unable to keep her mouth shut and always trying to put in her 2 cents, which usually is the worth of what Mindy has to say.

What she did in this instance was mean spirited. It was not meant in a kind way, and her attitude shows that. As I stated before, Mindy has a mean streak. She likes to display her displeasure, and her belief in, what she believes is, her superior intellect.

Although I usually save my name calling for idiot politicians, I must say that as far as 9:19 is concerned, I agree, you are a moron.

Anonymous said...

5:10 pm - you are also a moron. Or perhaps you are the same moron as 7:43. The budget for senior judge coverage is utilized to do just that - provide COVERAGE. Why do you think there is difficulty in finding coverage for the judges who are out sick with cancer or have some other emergency. There isn't an unlimited supply.

But, by all means, YOU must know best!!