WINTHROP ROCKERFELLER

 

Winthrop Rocekfeller, brother of NY Governor and 41st Vice President of the United States Nelson Rocekfeller, was the governor of Arkansas from 1967-1971. He was a progressive Democrat. Some of his accomplishments include the integration of Arkansas schools that had been such a political bombshell only a few years before when President Eisenhower had to send in US Airborne troops to enforce federal integration requirements.  (Ike loved the Airborne. When he was Supreme Allied Commander in WWII it was the Airborne he called in to save the day at the Battle of the Bulge).  He established the Council on Human Relations despite opposition from the legislature. Draft boards in the state boasted the highest level of racial integration of any U.S. state by the time that Rockefeller left office. He was also the only governor from a Southern state to hold a public memorial for Dr. Martin King. 

On December 29, 1970, having lost his reelection bid, and with two days left in his term, he drove to the Arkansas prison holding death row inmates, and interviewed each one of them. He reviewed all of their files, and the case facts, and the next day he commuted all of their death sentences, the largest single act of commutation of death sentences until 2003 when then outgoing Illinois Governor George Ryan commuted the death sentences of 167 inmates on death row. 

Politicians were different back then. Some cared and did the right thing. 

FOUR NEW JUDGES IN MIAMI-DADE ... & FIVE MORE STILL TO BE NAMED

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

YOUR FOUR NEWEST MIAMI-DADE COURT JUDGES ARE:

CIRCUIT COURT

Judge Elizabeth Espinosa. A former ASA, she was appointed by DeSantis to the County Court in December 2019. She won election in 2022.

Judge Jorge Perez Santiago. He was appointed by DeSantis to the County Court in May 2023. He won election in 2024.

COUNTY COURT

Michelle Roth. A former ASA, she was in private practice. She has been a member of The Florida Bar since 1995.

Andrew McGinley. A former AAG, he was serving as the General Counsel for the Department of Children & Families. He has been a member of The Florida Bar since December 2018.

All four were appointed to newly created judicial seats under SB 2508.

SO, YOU STILL WANT TO BE A JUDGE .....

There are four more open seats, including two on the Circuit Court by virtue of the retirements of Judge Jose Rodriguez and Judge Marcia Caballero, and two more open seats on the County Court. 

And yes—those County Court openings come with a backstory.

As previously reported, Judges Jason Reding Quinones and Yara Klukas resigned last summer to assume leadership roles with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami. Under the Florida Constitution, that should have triggered the appointment process within 30 days.

It didn’t.

Eight months later—after a few well-placed nudges from Captain Justice to General Counsel David Axelman—the Governor’s Office finally accepted the resignations and directed the JNC to begin the process.

Better late than never… but eight months late is still eight months late.

To read our two previous posts about the fiasco, go here and here.

THE APPLICANT POOL:

CIRCUIT (10)

Judge Miesha Darraugh
Judge Eleana Sosa-Bruzon
Judge Rita Cuervo
Judge Chiaka Ihekwaba
Judge Alicia Garcia Priovolos
Judge Stephanie Silver
Judge Michelle Urbistondo
Judge Christopher Green
Judge Jennifer Trautman Levin
Judge Natalie Moore

CIRCUIT & COUNTY (7)

Annette Strauch
Natalia Costea
Christian Dunham
Alexander Shear
Aaron Feuer
Scott Janowitz
Jose Martinez

COUNTY (9)

Patricia Salman
Kimberly Hillery
Gustavo Losa
Johanna Benedi
Ivette Lavelle
Madeline D’Arce
Jeffrey Pierce
Shawn Abuhoff
Lillian Gonzalez

HAVE A VIEW? SAY IT.

If you have thoughts about any of the applicants, direct them to JNC Chair Eliot Pedrosa at epedrosa@jonesday.com.

Interviews are scheduled for May 19, 2026, after which the JNC will submit three to six nominees per vacancy to the Governor.

THIRD DCA 

Governor DeSantis is expected to name Judge Kevin Emas' replacement sometime in the next week.

CAPTAIN OUT .......
Captain4Justice@gmail.com

MAY THE FOURTH

 

May 4- June 30. - 57 days remaining until we stop blogging. We are not kidding about this. 

Where is the next REGJB Jedi Knight...Tatooine?

OUR STREAK CONTINUES

 It's not Dimaggio's 56 game hitting streak, but still... our streak of NOT attending the Miami FACDL's banquet continues tonight. We are at about 44 or 45 and we do not believe we will ever end this streak until we just fade away. 

But Saturday is the big night where judges running for re-election show up and mingle with criminal defense attorneys and everyone pats each other on the back. Rubber chicken is served (along with the more important open bar- bring fives to tip those bartenders!), and a (supposedly) good time is had by all. 

Our favourite part is the speculation on the awards. It's not as intense as picking the Dolphins sixth round pick in the 2028 draft, but it is still fun during those boring moments when co-counsel is trying to cross the crime scene detective and explain why their client's bloody fingerprint was found on the knife. 

Our favourites....

Nicest Judge; Meanest Prosecutor; Most Helpful Clerk; Most Clueless Lead Detective; Largest Fee For a No-Action; Best New App For Games During Trial; Most Embarrassing Voir Dire Response (never to surpass "I'm pretty sure I can pay attention to the testimony so long as you zip up your fly during trial"); Most Typos in a Judicial Order;  

and the highlight of the night...the awarding of the prestigious

Alex Michaels Award For Congeniality. 

For those of you going, have fun!  

A REAL PROSECUTOR

SECOND POWER OUTAGE UPDATE: Someone ran over to FPL with a credit card and paid the bill and the power in the courthouse has been restored. Let justice flow...

TUESDAY POWER-OUTAGE UPDATE- There is a total power outage at the Lawson family courthouse. Apparently someone forgot to pay the bill. Again. No estimated time for restoration of power as of 2:08 pm. So once again, judges and litigants are left in the dark. Let the puns flow...  

 There is a reason why we relentlessly mock and criticize the Dade state attorney's office for abandoning their discretion and surrendering the ability to do justice when their drones roll up to the court podium and intone "victim wants max". Because tragedies like this occur: 

Jessie Askew was 23, broke, and a new father in 1998, when he and a friend went into a fresh market where he worked, wearing masks, and demanded cash. It was a stupid and botched robbery.  Kelly Burke was a new prosecutor in Georgia, intent on establishing a tough reputation. Angry that Askew had elected to go to trial despite the overwhelming evidence, he won and sought imposition of Georgia's mandatory life without parole sentence. Sound familiar? Young prosecutor trying to make a name. Trial tax. Mandatory sentence with no judicial discretion. Young and immature defendant under intense pressure and making stupid choices. 

So here we are 28 years later. Askew is a grandfather and mentor to young prisoners. Burke is retired, dying of cancer, and has spent over a decade trying to right the most serious wrong of his career. This is what a real prosecutor does, although in Mr. Burke's case, it took a long time and the perspective of age and experience to bring him to the conclusion he was part of grievous wrong.

It all came together, as the NY Times reports here, with Burke testifying and advocating for Askew, while, not surprisingly, the Georgia AG was digging in their heels and trying to finish the destruction of a man's life by arguing that the motions were untimely filed. Nothing like throwing up procedural roadblocks when a man's life is at stake. 

This is a feel-good (sort of) story. The judge granted the motion and Askew was freed. 

The larger lessons here are that 1) young prosecutors often feel the only way for them to make a name for themselves is to be tough on crime because they are no longer taught that the greatest thing they can do in fulfilling their special role in the criminal justice system is to achieve justice; 2) mandatory sentences remove the checks and balances that a (hopefully) fair judiciary can apply when a prosecutor is simply seeking the max; 3) laws need to be reformed to allow these motions to be brought without the untimeliness roadblock prosecutors love to throw. 

Victim wants max? At least one prosecutor in Georgia decided (better late than never) that that is not the way to run a criminal justice system. 

Will this matter in Miami where the Dade SAO has mostly forfeited their obligation to seek justice, as it is layered with chiefs, assistant chiefs, and nameless supervisors who only want to keep their jobs and won't stick their necks out to do the right thing? Probably not with this administration. 

Janet Reno told all prosecutors that their job was to do justice. When was the last time Ms. Rundle said that and meant something other than "victim wants max?" We invite her to respond, but don't hold your breath. 

 Former Prosecutor Kelly Burke, with Mr. Askew's mother, in court, trying to do the right thing. 

ZOOM ZAPPED FOR BOND HEARINGS

Sunday Update:

Other than that Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?

 Long gone are the days when we worried about bond hearings / first appearance in the REGJB. But we know that having Zoom was a boon for our colleagues, especially on the weekends. 

But that has apparently all ended because of one bad apple. All that we know was sent in an email from a certain criminal defense organization we are enjoined from mentioning by name. But that email was forwarded to us by several alert readers, and despite risking civil sanctions, we summarize its contents so as to fulfill our altruistic duties to our faithful readers who want to know WTF is going on and why do they have to trek down to REGJB for a bond hearing on Sunday  when a bunch of unscrupulous bond companies are going to try and steal the client  by calling the client's family members and telling them to come to meet them to get their loved one out of jail. The judicial high council can stop zoom hearings, but they won't do a damn thing about bond companies hustling cases. Shame. Shame!

From the ----- email: 

Good evening ----- Miami,

As forwarded below, our Circuit leadership has decided to remove Zoom for Felony First Appearance Hearings. 

We have spoken with multiple members of Circuit leadership, and they indicated that this change was precipitated by recent threats against the Felony First Appearance Judge.

We clearly and explicitly condemn threats against our local judges, the judiciary, and judicial independence. A judge should be able to rule on a case and not receive threats against her life, home, and place of worship. Period. Full stop.

...

In speaking with Circuit leadership, we learned that this change had been contemplated for months. Circuit leadership has been continually concerned that Zoom makes bond hearings are streamed via YouTube by a member of the public.  This livestream has a comment section where members of the public often express distasteful views on parties to the case—victims, the accused, judges, etc. This YouTube channel and its comment section were being monitored by Circuit leadership.

So now you know why there is no more Zoom for bond hearings. In essence the Circuit Court high council let One Bad Apple spoil the whole bunch. And that's a shame. 

 It's 66 degrees in the City with a high today of 72. Traffic on the FDR is building around the Brooklyn Bridge. And now coming at ya now it's the Osmands and One Bad Apple on 66, W...NBC!

 

To paraphrase Donny Osmond, how about if the Circuit High Council gives it one more try before giving up on love Zoom? 

JUDICIAL ELECTIONS 2026 ..... QUALIFYING WEEK .....

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

ELECTION CENTRAL 2026 ... QUALIFYING WEEK

UPDATED AT 2:00 PM TODAY:

No surprises to report other than perennial candidate Renier Diaz de la Portilla did not pay the $7,590.20 qualifying fee in Group 38 of the County Court. Therefore, we extend our congratulations to incumbent Judge Gordon Murray on his re-election. 

We have six remaining contested judicial elections to look forward to this August.

Qualifying for Circuit and County Court closes at Noon today. We will update this post once all final paperwork is reviewed and confirmed. As of midnight, here is where things stand:

CIRCUIT COURT

First, the contested races:

GROUP 5 (Judge Angelica Zayas retiring)

Alexander Annunziato (In-house counsel, Ascendant Commercial Insurance; attorney for 11 years)

Arthur McNeil (Assistant Public Defender; attorney for 19 years)*** (HAS NOW QUALIFIED)

Monica Segura (Senior Managing Associate General Counsel for Universal Property & Casualty;  attorney for 20 years).

GROUP 35 (Judge Orlando Prescott retiring)

Renee Gordon (Assistant Public Defender; attorney for 30 years)

Cristobal Padron (Private practice, family law; attorney for 14 years)*** (HAS NOW QUALIFIED)

GROUP 67

Incumbent Judge Mavel Ruiz

Destiny Goede "Alvarez" (Insurance defense; attorney for five years)

We previously posted about the shenanigans that Ms. Goede "Alvarez" pulled with her multiple name changes, twice in two months, under the title "The Name Game," and we encourage you to read it again. You can find it here. (scroll down to Group 67).

GROUP 69 (Judge Richard Hersch retiring)

Rita Baez (Private practice, personal injury; attorney for 30 years)

Yaneth Del Carmen Baez (Assistant State Attorney; attorney for 9 years)

Bonita Jones-Peabody (Private Practice, former APD; attorney for 35 years)

GROUP 76 

Incumbent Judge Spencer Eig

Yenly Dominguez (Private practice, real estate & estate planning; attorney for 7 years)

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE FOLLOWING JUDGES

Twenty-seven incumbent judges were automatically re-elected after drawing no opposition:

Michelle Alvarez Barakat 
Tanya Brinkley 
Beatrice Butchko 
Carmen Cabarga 
Yvonne Colodny 
Ivonne Cuesta 
Jorge Cueto 
Abby Cynamon 
Michelle Delancy 
Dawn Denaro 
Reemberto Diaz 
Veronica Diaz 
Carlos Gamez 
Stacy Glick 
Laura Gonzalez-Marques 
Carlos Guzman 
Christine Hernandez 
Peter Lopez 
Denis Martinez-Scanziani 
Alberto Milian 
Cristina Miranda
Spencer Multack 
Joseph Perkins 
Migna Sanchez-Llorens 
Laura Stuzin 
Daryl Trawick 
Andrea Wolfson 

COUNTY COURT

Again, we begin with the contested races:

GROUP 25

Incumbent Judge Luis Perez-Medina

Maribel Diaz (Miami-Dade Tax Collector’s Office; attorney for 17 years)

GROUP 38

Incumbent Judge Gordon Murray

Renier Diaz de la Portilla (Private Practice; attorney for 18 years)***

***Indicates that the candidate has not yet paid their qualifying fee.

Nine incumbent County Court judges were automatically re-elected:

Donald Cannava
Betty Capote-Erben
Raul Cuervo
Ritamaria Cuervo
Victoria Ferrer
Kevin Hellman
Joanne Marie Hernandez
Natalie Moore 
Stephanie Silver

Best of luck to all of the candidates. Voters go to the polls on August 18, 2026.

CAPTAIN OUT .......
Captain4Justice@gmail.com