Rumpole, I leave my diary for the moment to comment on the issues of the day.
Court Appointments. The system seems destined to fail. I was impressed by statistics by JAC that indicated that fraud or over billing was a concern in less than one percent of the bills. It also seems that the second PD office for Dade and Monroe, in which the lawyers will also have to cover juvenile cases, is woefully underfunded.
Forget for the moment the issue of capital cases. You have written in the past about the cases just below the level of death penalty cases: those serious cases which upon conviction merit a long prison sentence, but because they are not death penalty cases, they do not get the money or publicity. You are 100% correct about that. That is the area where a tragedy is most likely to occur. Is it really less of a tragedy if we lock an innocent man in prison for the rest of life? For every death penalty case, there are hundreds of cases where people face long or life prison sentences. If we're going to spend money to give people a fair trial, this is where the majority of money should go.
I read Judge Carney's (a judge from Broward) letter to the Herald the other day and it was right on point. I know you do not care for my colleagues "North Of the Border" but they do not have a problem up there. Florida has a great system for educating and training judges, and Broward is just like the client who never speeds and then gets three speeding tickets in three months. It is not indicative of a problem.
Final point. We are thankfully past the swearing in season. All the new Judges have been sworn in. Here is an open secret- many of my colleagues do not attend the ceremony for a new judge who won an election against a sitting judge. It is popular these days to call our seats "the peoples' seat" and yet when some lawyer tests that theory and wins an election, many judges do not attend their swearing in ceremony. I'm not sure exactly how I feel about this. I do know that when a new judge looks out and sees 10-15 open seats where the Judges sit, it hurts them, and this is not good.
Anyway, thanks as always for the space. By the way, I like the moderation. I don't know how you have the time to get the comments up so quick (if you are just one person, and I have my suspicions) but I think moderation adds value to the blog and makes the reading of it more enjoyable. Those stupid and nasty comments have no place in something that you obviously work hard on. And I can tell you that many of my colleagues enjoy your blog as well, although I will not spill any secrets as to whether they read it during voire dire . Keep up the good work.
Rumpole says: Thanks for the kind words and the post. You are our favourite anonymous Judge (if in fact you are a judge) and many lawyers have emailed me to tell me how much they like your posts.
See You In Court Monday.
When you see something that is not right, not fair, find a way to get in the way and cause trouble. Congressman John Lewis
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.
Sunday, May 06, 2007
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Good Morning,
I wish we were all Mad Jurists eight days a week like our most recent one.
No one I feel looked at the sheer math of the three sided wheel. LESS THAN ONE PERCENT according to JAC (Mad Libb's says insert verb here), represented abuse of the system. That "less than one percent" was one case used as a poster child in the media. This isn't just bad math. It is immoral, malicious, and perhaps fraudulent.
The knowing, gross mis-representation of one case, as indicia of the whole coupled with a lie that abuse of the former system was "normal or problematic" to the legislature as hoe to mow the lawn out of the funding for JAC, is Ali's rope a dope to a tee.
That criminal case was in the Herald and used for such purposes. I don't feel like diggin' through their archives at the moment.
As to NHI, I first heard it at the PD's office years ago. I have a different take of its' connotation and I don't know what the right punishent is. That's all I know. Truth is when I have a bunch of $#S holes in a fact pattern, I love the defense. This happens with love triangles gone awry, "Hell hath no fury," cat fights, "he said, she said," and a reasonable doubt super star, "he said, he said, she said, she also said, and the barnyard animal can't say a thing." All idiots in a fact pattern. Reasonable doubt science. So, before beheading a judge, I would want to know a ton of more facts. Basically, the totality of the circumstances, which I don't think is too unreasonable a request. It is true perhaps from a motion to DQ perspective, b/c perception can be a reality, a legal rememdy can be sought. But, what if the perception is wrong? What if he is not a racist? That would be as bad a situtation if not worse. So, I would want to think about it more and read what the judge has done to make ammends, listen to all the players involved, for a good period of time, and not have a "RUSH TO JUDGEMENT."
Just a thought, if some bonehead were to sue Rumpole for the blog, considering how most view attorneys sadly, couldn't a crafty lawyer easily convicne a jury why Rumpole would win. A jury would think it is a squabble amongst attorneys. Who cares? Verdict for Rumpole. Why? The jury's perception of the sterotype of lawyers. NHI.
I'm not comfortable with hypotheticals that involve me being sued.
the brummer conflict gravey trian is finally at its end.
she is free take down the link
http://freeshaquandacotton.blogspot.com/
I AM AGAINST THE WAR IN IRAQ, I KNEW SEVERAL PEOPLE KILLED ON 9/11, OUR PRESIDENT HAS ADMITTED IRAQ HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH 9/11 AND THAT HE RETALIATED AGAINST THEM FOR TRYING TO KILL HIS FATHER, FORMER HEAD OF THE CIA, VP AND PRESIDENT. TODAY THE DEATH TOLL OF AMERICANS REACHED 3373. THAT IS 3373 AMERICANS WHO HAVE DIED SO WE CAN COMPLAIN ABOUT TROUBLE LIVING ON 50K A YEAR AND NOT BEING ABLE TO KEEP UP WITH THE JONESES. THE JAC FUNDING DEBATE IS REALLY, AND I INCLUDE MYSELF IN THIS BECAUSE THEY WERE MY INCOME FOR ALMOST 10 YEARS, THE HAVE NOTS COMPLAINING ABOUT THE HAVES. IF YOU REALLY NEED TO BE A HAVE, DO WHAT OTHER HAVES HAVE DONE. STEAL IT, BRIBE IT, FELONIOUSLY ACQUIRE IT. LIVE HIGH ON THE HOG FOR 10 YEARS AND THEN GO TO PRISON. ASK ROBLES, ELSO AND DOZENS OF OTHER LAWYERS: IF YOU HAD TO DO IT AGAIN WAS A MILLION DOLLAR HOME AND PORSCHE WORTH PRISON. I GUESS I'LL STAY A HAVE NOT-OTHER LAWYERS RESPECT ME-JUDGES LITERALLY BEG ME TO TAKE ON IMPOSSIBLE CASES- I MAKE ENOUGH TO LIVE ON BUT NOT GET LAID ON- AND GOD APPRECIATES WHAT I DO.
Here is the blog heirarchy:
H. Scott Fingerhut is at the top- like Doc Oc.
Beneath him are his minons-
Shuminer, the L&L twins, Freedman, Blecher, and I am certain Altschuler. You notice you never see any references to Altschuler? he keeps himself off the blog.
Anyway, Rump- all 8 of you, howz dat for thinking outside of the box?
I am nobody's minion!
5:21, your nickname is all caps, as is ALL CAPS. You are very angry, but a good, honest angry.
An interesting point on the new conflict counsel I heard was this, with in 2-5years they are going to be conflicted out on a regular basis as well. I have a feeling that the implementation of this plan is going to be delayed probably long enough to reach next legislative session where all of it will be addressed again. The reult of this being that the legislature will have scared us enough that for fear of losing the cases we will accept midemeanors for $100 on up to Muder cases for 10g. No over the cap, experts who will work for nothing and kill the depos etc etc.
OTHER RUMPOLE COCONSPIRATORS WHO ARE NEVER ON THE BLOG; FRED MOLDOVAN, ERIC COURTNEY, SYGAER, JOHN LIPINSKI, NAPTALI WACKS, DAVID S. MARCUS, SIMON STECKLE, RICHARD HERSCH, JASON "YOU TALKING TO ME" GREY.
Sorry sir.
Substiute X as an unknown variable and think of how the public wrongly views attorneys. As inhuman. Shakespeare popularized it I believe. Not right, as almost all lawyers have pulses.
How about this old rhyme: "Mary had a little lamb." There are a few ways of looking at that.
1)Mary has a pet that is a lamb.
2)Mary is not a vegetarian.
3)Mary gets more than close with a a little lamb.
An oversimplification... yes. I merely point out that I'd like to wait for all of the evidence, from all involved, before reaching a conclusion. A statement can be interpreted many ways and therefore a punishment cannot be meted out until knowing the judge's mental state. Granting he ought not have said it is a foregone conclusion. He failed to allow his brain to engage his mouth obviously. Should one mistake where his (sorry) mens rea is unknown ruin one's career? I don't know.
While a motion to DQ could pass muster I would suspect (under an insidious interpretation of NHI), I honestly do not know enough to call for such a harsh sanction. I would assume the judge has a body of work and it not unreasonable to examine everything. Out of respect to the Judiciary as an institution, I would think at a minimum that is owed.
That being said, I am surprised no one aside from The Mad Jurist can see the bad math from J.A.C. (sorry, Mad Libb's says insert ADVERB HERE).
I see the legislature and governor are drinking one percent. Is that because they think they're fat?
What's in a word? Here, one perecent is misconstrued to mean one hundred percent of lawyers abused the system. There is no misinterpeting a gross exaggeration of the numbers, the use of one case to make a case of abuse for all, and the sad conclusion The Mad Jurist reached: This system will fail and defendants will be harmed in tangible ways.
Not too mention the misconception that lawyers are inhuman, money grubbing, scoundrels. Maybe that's why the bill was passed. The legislature just figured the public won't care about funding for indigent defendants and the lawyers who represent them since no humans are involved. That's why Article V was passed in the first place I suspect. It's wrong to view attorneys that way, but it is what it is. Thank Shakespeare for perpetuating the stereotype (which was there before he wrote about killing laywers).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axlULXeBq4o
spicoli,
check this out...
why is everybody always picking on me?
Now I'm worried. This JAC crap is faschizzle.
Scene this weekend.
A group of high priced lobbyists finish a big dinner at Marks on Las Olas. They are dinning with some of the biggest names in Tallahassee. Earlier in the day, they spent their time on a 125 foot luxury yacht watching the air and sea show. A few fetching young women were in attendance as arm candy. And footing the bill for this extravaganza, all done to save the court appointment system?
The Q.
ENDING THE COURT APPOINTMENT SYSTEM WILL TAKE CASES LIKE THESE OUT OF THE HANDS OF EXPERTS.
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - A gang stripped a South African man before supergluing him to an exercise bicycle while they ransacked his house, according to a report Thursday.
SAPA news agency said the attackers, dressed in suits, hijacked a man in his 50s and forced him at gunpoint to take them to his home in Johannesburg.
"The victim was then forced to strip, after which he was superglued to the seat of an exercise bicycle, his hands were superglued, as were his feet and then his mouth was superglued shut," SAPA quoted Mark Stokoe, a spokesman for emergency services Netcare 911, as saying.
The man was rescued about three hours later when his partner arrived home, SAPA said.
I love Scott Fingerhut as DOC OC. Great idea.
We fear the Q
you bet we do
when we arrest a DUI
we sure hope they don't hire that guy
when the Q is on the case
all we can do is avoid losing face
we run to the state and tell them to plea
because otherwise the veridct is not guilty
A few thing were on my mind:
First off, has the Q ever gone to trial? I for one, do not fear the Q.
Second, lets take this guy Sen. Christ out of office. What a prick.
Q-
For the record, the original Mark's was far better than the fake Las Olas one and the Air and Sea Show is a very tired act.
Picture this, Dade lobbyists lining their pockets with their new funds diverted from the old system. The legislature drank the ONE PERCENT in FSU counry while other lobbyists were cold sucking on an utter of a cash cow knowing they were getting thier wallets fat with a whole milking of the system.
Aloha 7:46!
I watched the YouTube video of keep on going. Brazillian women. Good by me but I hit a wall tonight
I think I know the dude with the white fellow with dreds. Ironically, my wife saw it and said that was an example of no humans involved. Of course I disagreed and now have to TIVO Soprano's on the couch. Thank you for stimulating a fun conversation with her. I liked that band man. She didn't like my penchant for Brazillian women (even when viewed on YouTube).
Hey, I'm just a love machine, and I don't work for no body but you!
Here's a case I found on YouTube. Don't you want to defend these guys!!!! An super SPD case! A throwback clip. If you don't piss your pants laughing, somethings wrong here. Somethings really, really, wrong here (there and everywhere).
Free Scooter Libby. Free Judge Korda. Impeach and Convict Bush. Not the good bush.
Trust me, if you haven't seen this in sometime or ever, I would love these co-defendants as an SPD. Now, some inexperience will have the case.
I wish I could have represented one of the parties in real life. Look for his documetary there as well. Also, listen to the cliche Peter Tosh song.
THE MOTHER OF ALL SPD CASES WE WILL NEVER HAVE THE FUN OF TRYING:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yb7ZFpr5n0o
The way things are going, the Legislature will hire Elortegui, Hidnert and Hanna to come up with a fee scale for conflict cases. Misdemeanors will start at $69 and the highest fee paid on a death penalty case will be $1,500.
memo to all caps; plenty of us make money without bribery, commiting felonies etc. what's wrong with defending drug dealers, all of the great wealthy families in this country were ROBBER BARONS, REMEMBER THAT CAPS.
Hey, when is Judge Patricia Dan Marino Claudpedraza going to get traded to another Branch where she can do tickets again?
fu-Q
from the ONION PEELER; Rumpole please prove it isn't so but the fifth layer of the onion has revealed that one of the culprits in the failure of the jac program and imminent demise of the appoints is the utter greed and big paychecks of the death penalty crowd, particularly all that money wasted on 2nd chair people working for a year or so before the state waives the death penalty. didn't some of these cases results in over 100k in combined fees. no wonder they were always so smug in au bon- laughing all the way to the bank. but no it seems they ruined it for everybody. let's see a listing of the 2nd chair crowd.
rumor has it that Patty Culpepper Marino was terrified of the media story about Judges leaving early. And she knows why.
i'll have a minion bagel, toasted with a schmear, please.
That whole "fake tom risivy" thing captures the essence of the uniqueness of this blog. Outstanding humor if you spend a moment and think about it.
Spicoli,
You posted;
"think of how the public wrongly views attorneys. As inhuman. Shakespeare popularized it I believe."
I think your belief comes from the phrase: "the first thing we do, lets kill all the lawyers"--one of Shakespeare's lines in a play whose name I do not presently recall. Certainly the line shows apparent didain for the legal profession. However, as in all things, it must be read in context.
The phrase, as used in Shakespeare's play, was spoken by a demagogue urging violence to a mob with no purpose but complete anarchy. As such, the phrase is really a compliment to the legal profession as the foremost guardian of an orderly society.
To the Mad Jurist:
Obviously you are one those judges who took a seat from a sitting judge and had your feelings hurt. Sorry, no sympathy here. What did you expect? You are the living embodiment of what your colleagues fear.
In addition you may have taken your seat from someone your colleagues don't believe deserved opposition or defeat. It matters not whether they liked that judge.
Someone else worked very hard to get where they were and you decided to take it away, just because you could. I'm sorry, you just devastated someone else's life and you want accolades from his/her former colleagues. Take your standing ovation from those who show up. Don't ask those who do not condone what you have done to make you feel better about yourself.
Just remember what you have done and realize there is a good chance it is going to happen to you. Don't expect any sympathy then either. Then you can be just like Mike (Samuels). (See we have a long memory)
The more I read your rubbish the more I realize you are a panderer or just someone with an incredibly guitly conscience.
Guess who was not at the FACDL banquet Sat?
Mc Whorter.
I guess she did not have anyone who would not spit on her so, she bowed out.
Rumpole, please let your readers know that there is a meeting on wed, may 9th at the Mahi Lodge (just sw of the Gerstein cthouse) at 5:30 pm. Pat Malloy, a top Tallahasse lobbyist and ex-ASA Michelle Roth's husband, will be there to answer all the questions re the wheel and to let us know how we can stop it from being implemented. We need everyone who wants to save the wheel to attend. Thank you.
lost close close, lost the wheel- you defense hacks are not having a good year.....
those were the days, my friend...
we thought they'd never end....
we'd get appointed and bill 22 hours in a day...
it is the life we chose, we'd collect and never lose...
those were the days....oh, yes those were the days.
la, la, la la, lala.....
BATMAN GIVE ITS A REST ALREADY
Dear Judge Pineiro,
I agree and also forgot the exact play although you got the line right. I think we can both agree the stereotype (granting a noble original intent to save lawyers) has been spun and come to mean the literal now and over the past several centuries. Basically, who cares about lawyers except lawyers and only those who have an imminent need for one.
If one were to poll the world and ask all where lawyers should be in the ranking of humans (perhaps the DUI GUY has a ranking for occupations) lawyers would come in somewhere near last (politicians and dentists are in there). The horrific sterotype (leaving out Good Ol' Bill for a moment) is there, will probably always be there, and will never end. Is that right? Of course not. But, it is was it is sadly.
I would contend 99% of people now understand that line to mean what I imply. Ergot, the end of the wheel even though less than 1% of lawyers were abusive with it. Making the pitch to the Governor that much easier a sell.
The citizens of Florida spoke with passage of Article V. They did so b/c the question on the ballot was phrased in such a way as I recall that was damning to lawyers.
I enjoy the trivia and whatnot. I've read as much as I can of what you've written and enjoy reflecting upon it.
Whomever used the "less than ONE PERCENT" as a means of describing how 99% percent of the lawyers act (ethically and with a vigorous defence for their clients) is not simply wrong or using "bad math," they are malicious and fraudulent. The end result equates to harming the poor and the livelihood of many others aside from barristers.
Those who lobby upstate duped the legislature. The proof is in the numbers J.A.C. provides.
Bringing me back to Shakespeare. He may have been defending the integrity of the system, but was also pointing out some irony when anarchy was abound. The unfortunate but unsderstandable perception of lawyers. People hold lobbyists in a higher regard. Dade ones in particular with regard to the wheel being dismantled.
Thanks for writing here BTW. As an aside, what of the rumour or urban legend that Shakespeare was not really Shakespeare? No one got the anacronym trivia I posted earlier. Uhh... exaltation can save the wheel. O/W the the anacronym I alluded to will happen to the system. Further, I'm getting emails Gov. Crist might veto this.
Not quite dead yet...
Have a good week Your Honour and thanks for taking time to write,
Spicoli
P.S. the anacronym is not suitable for this blog. It can be found on that other lost blog. Just change it to present progressive tense as it relates to what is happening to lawyers, the system, and the poor.
Let get ready to Rumble!!
Oral argument has been set in the www.courthousescandal.com Circuit Court Appeal for June 7 @ 3:30pm. Location: 1351 NW 12 Street, Richard E. Gerstein Justice Bldg, Court Room 7-1
Long time readers of the blog have heard of this case and may want to peak into oral argument to see which Circuit Judges get assigned this case.
www.courthousescandal.com
fuck the wheel. you bottom feeders need to get real paying cliens like mine. the trialmaster
Save the Wheel! Save the Whales!
2:36- long time and careful readers of the blog know that we proudly wear and bear the title of "hack". And tis true we are not having a good year.
The song that follows that comment was great.
Trialmaster- we normally don't condone such coarse language on our blog. But to prove your idiocy, we make exceptions for you. Curse away foul-mouthed fool.
Hey 2:53 (or shall I say MEATHEAD)!
I see you're drinking one percent. Is that because you think you're fat?
Fake Robin Faber-
You have to be a fake. Robin knows how to read and write the English language.
So I ask: "its"!! What is "its"?
Oh, the "North of the Border" Judges so much DO have problems.
batman,
i think you mean "its!!"
To 7:31 a.m.
Not to belabor the point, but look at the post of 2:59 p.m. yesterday. This person used the word "its". I was quoting it (the person); therefore proper form is to quote and then place the exclamation point as punctuation.
TO BATMAN 937. THANK YOU FOR THE CLARIFICATION NOW GET A LIFE. YOUR COMMENT REMINDED ME OF CLINTON SAYING THAT DEPENDS ON WHAT YOUR DEFINITION OF IS IS.
To Monica Lewinski at 1:16a.m.
Blah Blah Blah.
the trialmaster has class. the f word was use only to place emphasis on how sad it is for lawyers to scramble for scraps that is paid by the state to represent these scumbags. i would pay not to be in the same ct rm with that animal who just got convicted before judge stan. but, battle away bottom feeders!!!!
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