THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES:
The struggle for civil rights, in various forms, continues throughout this country, as backward laws are struck down and oppressive societal norms fade in the face of popular cultural movements. Meet our latest hero: New Yorker Moira Johnson, whose courageous fight to give women the right to walk bare chested through New York continues. Her story (and some pics) are reported here at the Daily Beast. Johnson's brave quest began, like so many of the civil rights struggles, when one day she simply had enough. In January 2012, Johnson was in yoga studio and she was hot. And like some of her Y chromosome counterparts, she took off her shirt. It was in the greatest traditions of civil rights battles of the past: white and black college students sitting together at lunch counters in the south, or Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat and go to the back of the bus.
Bravo! we say. The sharper legal eagles amongst our readers know that the right of women to walk topless in public in the
Sometimes heroes emerge from the unlikeliest of places. Enjoy your day off. See you in court tomorrow, ready to roll.
PS: On a completely "different" subject matter, Tampa's most venerable institutions await the Republican National Convention as per the Miami Herald. Personally, we've found that a nice roll of single dollar bills helps matters when in Tampa. "When in Rome..."
Boutros boutros ghali!!
ReplyDeleteThey're real, and they're not bad at all.
YO YO MA!
ReplyDeletelove the aussie accent as well. she's a handful mate.
Grab a ....fosters, put some shrimp on the barbie and take your shirt off.
Rumpole, your post brought a tear to my eye. After all these years, it was a slap in the face reminder as to the reason why I became a lawyer. The Moira Johnson's of the world (bless em) are the reasons (at least two big ones) why I became an attorney as a young idealistic man out of law school ready to conquer....the world.
ReplyDeleteThank you. Thank you. Thank you.
Please tell us more about Milt Hirsch - what is he up to now??
ReplyDeleteAs the evangelicals might say. " God sent Isaac to Tampa to show his disdain for you"
ReplyDeleteYou Know some idiot right winger would make this statement if a storm hit the DNC
Dear Diary: Two days of storms have left me battered and beaten and tired and just hanging on. But battered and beaten though I may be, I have not given up.
ReplyDeleteLike Job or Jonah, the storm has cleansed my soul. I am emerging from this disaster a different man. The silly things of daily modern life- like who gets to use the fax machine in chambers- now mean nothing to me. And I will bring this new aesthetic way to my steering of the ship of the 11th judicial circuit. And as I wrote in my prior entry to you, dear diary, I pledge to captain the ship of the 11th much like the captain of the Titanic- brave and forthright and always the last man off.
More rain. Always more rain. But I can take it. Bring it on Isaac.
I thought maybe everyone had jumped the gun by closing everything down today. But I just came in from walking my dog and it was just as bad, if not worse, this morning than it was yesterday. Glad I didn't have to drive to the courthouse this morning.
ReplyDeleteHere are two sites to join for equal rights for toplessness.
ReplyDeleteTopfree Equal Rights Association (TERA)
http://www.tera.ca/
read the text dont just look at the pics, lol
http://gotopless.org/
DS
ReplyDeleteWhile we missed International Go-Topless Day Aug. 26th we can still fight for equal rights.
Let Obama know that you support topless rights for all
Please sign our whitehouse.gov petition before Sept. 14
9:55 am: I agree. I thought today would be sunny and nice but the last bits of Isaac make it such that nothing would have got done today in court. Cops would be on alpha/bravo and not available as witnesses, most jurors wouldn't show, lots of lawyers would have child care issues. The correct decision was made. Tomorrow is another day. And may I recommend the movie "A Face In Crowd" by Bud Schulberg staring Andy Griffith? A great way to spend a rainy day.
ReplyDeleteTo 9:00 am
ReplyDeleteMilt spends his time between pontifficating in his courtroom and on this blog and admiring himself in his robe in the mirror. He spends other hours drafting his acceptance speech to the nation when the entire Senate rises up and votes yes upon hearing of his nomination as chief justice of the SCOTUS.
On a lighter note, Milt is still trying to convice Ilene that he really is in charge. She laughs, walks away rasing her hand with the middle finger extended. It is the only time Milt is speechless.
The word is that Milt and Alan Schwartz are preparing a lecture on judcial etiquette to lawyers. Should be a "brief" book and easy reading. They were thinking about selling the movie rights, but it would have only been nominated for an academy award in the "short subject" catagory.
On Aug. 29 HBO will finally broadcast the most underrated movie of last year, and one that did not recieve the Academy Award nominations it deserved. "Anonymous" will be on at 8 pm. Rumpole, if you did not see this one in the theatre, you missed a great one. When I saw it I did not want it to end.
ReplyDeleteDidn't see it. But will take your recommendation. But will watch it on an Amazon download.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteDS will never speak out in public against SC. SC would do him like he did Marla Levenstien. Marla was an old school style pd. Carlos was her Friend and in the her same hiring class. Amazingly, when he came to power, he fired her for doing what she had always done. She was a trial lawyer and she had balls. She never kissed ass. Perhaps some of you remember her. Rumpole must.. What makes it worse is that she needed the job. Do you remember her Rory? Of course you do.
Only in NYC can a woman walk around topless and nobody pays even the slightest attention.
ReplyDeleteI remember Marla. What's the rest of the story?
ReplyDeleteHere goes the story on Marla Levenstein, Carlos Martinez & Rory Stein.
ReplyDeleteMarla was an old school PD who tried cases. She also had a problem with getting to court on time and not taking depositions. Those were part of the reasons from what she told me why she got fired. She also didn't buy into Carlos' mantra that everything is about the numbers. She valued winning cases and trying cases. She came back to the PDs and worked the way she always did. Carlos and Rory pulled her numbers, put her on probation and then fired her.
But here is the interesting story about Marla and Carlos which explains why Carlos doesn't get trial lawyers and keeps implementing social work projects and messing around with support staff. Carlos tried his first case with Marla and Marla will tell you herself that he was so bad she told him to sit down, shut up and not say another word to the judge or jury. From then Carlos never liked Marla and Marla never respected Carlos. But Marla's take on Carlos is similar to that of many of the old school PDs. He was a horrible lawyer who Bennett hand picked to be his successor. Marla will tell you that as well as Al Williams, Bobby Aaron and Pete Ferrero. All recently retired APDs who have disdain for Carlos and are now free to speak their mind.
Rory was put in place to make sure the ship doesn't sink. But Rory turns off so many people that he is having the opposite effect.
At least that is what the older APDs tell me Rump.
Sad story.
ReplyDeleteNice knockers. I give em about a 7 out of ten. Seen better, but not in public, so she gets extra credit for that.
ReplyDeleteIn Broward and the wind and rain are crazy today. Definitely worse than yesterday. Glad that I did not have to drive to and from Dade in this. Thank you to the powers that be for looking out for the safety of those of us who commute.
ReplyDeletePlease.
ReplyDeleteI was in division with Marla. She was nice and I liked her but she was one of the laziest lawyers I ever met. She never stayed past 2 pm. She rarely tried cases.
If you don't like Rory, it's because he probably knows you're lazy too and called you out on it. Rory, like me, calls it like he sees it and a lot of people don't like that.
I've always said, if you don't like the job, leave. Go work at a firm if they will have you. There, you will see that no one gives a shit about what you think you're entitled to. They will treat you like dirt and you'll have to put up with it or leave there too. Your other choice is to go out on your own and earn money. Some can, some can't.
Either way, stop whining.
These are the days we all miss Uncle Neil. Nothing better than staying home on a hurricane day and listening to Neil Rogers. Rest in peace Uncle Neil. We miss you.
ReplyDeleteEveryone knows Carlos is not a trial attorney. He could not handle half a C case load . When he had to try a case he would stay up all night worrying , with Yery holding his hands.
ReplyDeleteHe jumped to Drug Court when Hugh Rodham left to help his brother in law` become President. Carlos excelled to his zenith in Drug Court.
He has never tried a Murder, a Robbery nor Sexual Battery. Rory exists to be his Hatchet man .
Do you have to be a great trial lawyer to be the PD?
ReplyDeleteI heard that Marla is doing fine at United Auto , working w/ Rashad & Nick - 2 ex PDs.
ReplyDeleteBut her problem was She came in late and left early.
That style of working at the PDs is from last millennia.
If you dont see my car at
4:25 pm , it is because I took leave time ( ie vacation hours).
We have been working full days for a dozen years; even since the Gabe revolt.
Today, the philosophy and management of the office is more in line with other State agencies.
Carlos Martinez IS THE Public Defender. HE gets to set the management style and make the rules.
If you can not live within the current management style, you can always leave.
c'est le vie
DS
1:39 has it right about Marla. But missed why she really got fired. The secretaries who were tired of covering for her never getting to court or to work on time all ratted her out.
ReplyDeleteBut it all ended well. She makes way more money where she is now.
DS, who are you to tell me if I don't like it I can leave?
ReplyDeleteThe Gabe revolt as DS calls it was just under 8 years ago, And what does D.S. know about working an eight hour day, I mean really working?
ReplyDeleteAnybody see th Shelton opinion which the 11th circuit reversed the opinion. What say you know Justice Hirsch
ReplyDeleteThe current management style hurts clients. The government does not fear mitigation packets. More importantly they don't respect this type of defense. They respect trial lawyers and they do not like to loose. When you try cases the state is kept honest and your clients do not need mitigation because the offers are fair and honest. The problem is that the current administration does not recognize these truths and people like Marla get fucked. She was an old school trial lawyer. And she was cool as hell. DS, lift up your skirt and call it like you know it.
ReplyDeleteDS is starting to sound like the Fred MacMurray character, Lieutenant Tom Keefer, in the The Caine Mutiny.
ReplyDeleteNext he will help Capt. Carlos Queeg find the strawberrys
I don't know Marla so I can't comment.
ReplyDeleteCarlos and Rory both mean well. Problem is Carlos doesn't know what it takes to be a lawyer or run a litigation firm.
Rory turns people off. You can say he calls it like he sees it but the reality is that his message gets lost in his messaging. And as a leader of men your messaging is just as important as your message. The office has people who have tried 8 cases becoming Bs and people who have been practicing for 3 or 4 years becoming As.
When did D.S EVER WORK A FULL DAY? He may be in the office but he hasnt had a full days work since long before Carlos ever took over. but he is right about one thing, don't ever let Carlos find out what he really does all day.
ReplyDeleteThe Gabe revolt was 8 years ago, not 12.
I've run the metrics on this a dozen times. How does Artie Spiegel not run away with the election, 52, 53, 54, 55%?
ReplyDeleteI saw the polling. I saw the demographics and ran the numbers. The Big Ragu polled well with men, catholics, jews, evangelicals, he even broke even with hispanics and was in the high 20' s with women. When you run all those numbers, the man should have been at at the minimum 52%. I just don't get it.
DS is too busy posting on the blog all day to try any cases or work a full day. Give him a break guys. His commentary is an important contribution to the legal community. I mean look at his posts above regarding the topless women. Important stuff.
ReplyDeleteDear Joel Brown,
ReplyDeleteGood call. By closing the courts today you saved me and three clients from a nightmare on Dixie Highway when that last rain band hit about noon.
Good call!
Dear Diary:
ReplyDeleteThis will be my last hurricane post. I have survived the improbable if not the impossible. The sun broke through the clouds this evening and I dropped to my knees and cried. Teacup and Muffy, my miniature schnauzers jumped on me and licked my face and we all rolled around on the floor laughing.
Memo to self: encourage judges to bring their dogs to work. Lets make the 11th Judicial circuit k-9 friendly. To paraphrase George HW Bush, I want to be known as "the dog judge". Yeah, I like the way that looks.
Business as usual tomorrow. The judges will be back in the building and I will be captaining the ship. When I'm sitting in my office denying another Limited Registry challenge (those lawyers are starting to annoy me) I think I will pause a moment, consider the darkest moments of the storm, like when my favorite lawn chair when skittering across the lawn and into the pool, I will thank my good fortune to have survived the savage storm and to be the chief judge of such a great circuit.
Memo to self: make sure to call manuel the gardener and tell him to get the lawn chair out of the pool and place it in the sun so it dries out.
The PDs office is still the best gig around despite Carlos' pet projects and Rory huffing and puffing. Here goes the reality. All they ask you to do is see your clients, take depositions and show up to court on time. Literally that is all the ask. Despite the pay everyone is generally happy these days. Moral has improved since Carlos first took over. He has backed off a little. Rory doesn't bother you unless you give him reason to call you up to his office. If you have one of the cooler senior supervising attorneys, life is very good.
ReplyDeleteBest gig around? Are you smoking crack? Back in the day if you tried one case per month they left you alone. And if you tried one case a month and won 10 times per year you were a bamf. Then the administration became bean counters. This happened about 11years ago..
ReplyDeleteMoral at the PDs sucks.
ReplyDeleteNo Esprit de Corps under Carlos
the vid is outstanding...
ReplyDeleteDS = Disconnected Snob
ReplyDeleteWhat legal job is better than the PDs? Carlos is a bean counter. No doubt. But it sure beats the SAO.
ReplyDeleteso-called "low level" asa here. let me tell you - if you know your cases and ask for help with advance notice, the SAO is there to help you. you don't have to beg and plead for good plea offers and avoid grovelling. the SAO beats the PD's office all day every day. i won't stay here b/c i need to make a living but it's better to be from the sao than the pd's office for sure.
ReplyDeleteMy legal job... Lol.
ReplyDeleteThe SAO beats the PDs everyday? That is laughable I am crying right now. Except for the A case load, the PDs office destroys the SAOs. As long as the cops continue to be such horrible witnesses coupled with the fact the jurors already hate cops, the SAO will continue to get their ass whipped in court.
ReplyDelete