The Feds and Broward are back open (whoo hoo!) and Miami - the city that never sleeps- never closed.
We now return you to our regularly scheduled programming:
AS THE STATE ATTORNEYS OFFICE TURNS
In previous episodes, the SAO was rocked first by a scandal of epic proportions involving amongst other things, the coordination of witness testimony.
That topic has not been spoken about enough. Is it ethical for prosecutors to coordinate the testimony of their witnesses?
We think not. Not even close. Trials are supposed to be a search for the truth. And if two witnesses see and recall things differently, coordinating their testimony is a perversion of the trial process.
But then, pretty much everything we are learning about MVZ was a perversion of the trial and justice process.
When is Ms. Rundle going to form an outside committee of former judges, prosecutors and defense attorneys to review every conviction MVZ had his dirty mitts on?
This is step one to restoring confidence in her office, which is deeply and darkly broken.
Someone in the comments section had it right- Alex Michaels was right all along about Von Zamft.
50 comments:
FREE ALEX MICHAELS !!!!
NO OUTSIDE COMMITTEE NO PEACE
RUNDLE MUST RESIGN
INNOCENT PEOPLE HAVE BEEN PROSECUTED BECUASE THE MIAMI SAO BELIVES DISCOVERY IS A GAME
RUNDLE MUST GO
CLEAN HOUSE
JUSTICE IS NOT A CHESS MATCH
THE TRUTH MATTERS
RESIGN KATHY RESIGN
RESTORE FAITH IN THE MIAMI SAO- REMOVE RUNDLE NOW
WILLFUL BLINDNESS IS NOT A DEFENSE
KICK KATHY OUT
PROSECUTE VON ZAMFT FOR OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE - WE HAVE THE TAPES
ok that should get y'all going
call the shumie while you're at it
We move for a 45 day extension to be able to have enough time to move for another extension….get our drift?
VINDICATE ALEX MICHAELS! DAMN ROMANIAN WAS RIGHT ALL ALONG. “THIS IS BULL SHEET”
Phil she has used her name, repeatedly.
Saw Alex Michaels on the A1A Broadwalk in Hollywood Beach one night, with a girl on each arm, as he smiled and nodded to me when I passed him by.
He was living his best Romanian life while he was alive. Respect.
Woody Clermont
Fire all prosecutors at SAO. That will fix the problem.
The SAO trainings are on FACDL website. It’s true. They train to do joint meetings and coordinate witness testimony. What a shame.
Dear All:
Please calm the F down. It seems clear now that MVZ was a loose cannon that KFR: (1) did not realize was out of control (most likely) (2) did not chose to regulate (unlikely) or (3) she was trying to get him under control upon learning of malfeasance but he promised piety while going back to his bad behavior. Whichever it was, that is on her. And he is gone as a result of his actions. But running a large prosecutor’s office is an impossible job that requires the ability to know everything about everyone and about every case all the time, an impossibility.
For those of you who care, I suggest that you go to the FACDL-MIAMI’s website and review the pubic records received of the SAO’s training materials. After reading this blog for the last few months, I expected scandalous materials calling defense lawyers devils and suggesting that discovery be hidden. What I read were the same things I was taught when I started as one of “Reno’s Raiders”in the 1980’s: “discretion is everything”, “disclosure, disclose, disclose”. “If you are not sure, disclose”. “You have a continuing obligation to disclose.” “You have incredible powers as a prosecutor; do not bring charges if you are not sure of guilt.” And more. The training contained multiple articles about how individuals were wrongfully convicted due to prosecutorial misconduct in an effort to teach the ASA’s how important it is to get it right. All things that we were taught in the 80’s [with colorful PowerPoint presentations that we didn’t have back then].
Unless the SAO are hiding other training materials , I did not see a single instance of improper training, and I spent over an hour reviewing each training session.
For what it is worth, I concluded that this was the case of a bad ASA who led a few people he was supervising down an unethical path. Those ASAs either did not feel comfortable telling him that he was wrong, or they did not understand what he was doing was wrong. But institutional malfeasance? It is just not there. You know, the evidence.
Are there things I would do differently if I was the State Attorney? Yes. But I would never take such a thankless and impossible job in the first place. Should we as defense lawyers, and the FACDL as an organization, keep the pressure on the SAO to get things right? Absolutely! But calling for KFR’s head is probably the stupidest thing we could do.
That’s one man’s opinion.
“When is Ms. Rundle going to form an outside committee of former judges, prosecutors and defense attorneys to review every conviction MVZ had his dirty mitts on?” — NEVER!
Its so disheartening reading comments from a 2008 post.. Sad... For everyone saying it is not a culture, I ask you this, how does it persist for decade upon decade with no change if it is not a culture. Read the comments on this post, they may as well have been from this month in 2024... http://justicebuilding.blogspot.com/2008/05/death-of-leonardo-barquin.html
Buddy, MZV retired. He is not gone because of his actions. Corey Smith and Taji Pearson were his last cases. He was already retired and being paid hourly to finish out these cases. He did not resign. That was KFR's bullshit to act like she did something. Lip service as usual. MVZ has been doing this bullshit for 25+ years. Get your head out of the sand.
“Unless the SAO are hiding other training materials” being the operative phrase.
Democrats ….all I have to say.
@ 8:34 Indeed it is.
@ 6:52 Care to expand on your conclusion….say, I don’t know, spitballing here….to include something about culture, pattern, practice…or are these also casualties of a thankless and impossible job?
I m not posting unsubstantiated allegations about sexual harassment. Sorry.
Is it harassment or is it compliments? Depends how desperate the badge bunny is.
10:09. Here’s my response to the question you posed.
1. Back in the 80’s, it was hard to get good people but the SAO had the budget to recruit far and wide, going to law schools in the northeast to recruit there. That is how I ended up down here. That recruiting budget has been slashed and, to my knowledge, they no longer recruit up north.
2. Student debt was only a minor part of my budget. Since law school student loans were capped at $5k per annum, and $2,500 for undergrad, that meant that I owed Uncle Sam $17,500 when I started at the SAO, the same as my starting salary (pre-passing the bar exam). Now, graduates are walking out of law school with $200k+ debt and a starting salary of $57k, around a fourth of the starting salary. Those numbers are unfathonable.
3. My rent in Miami at a nice complex with young people like me cost about 25% of my gross starting salary. Now, the rent for a livable place in Miami is almost 50% of your gross salary.
4. People had more of a “pay your dues” mentality in the ‘80’s than they do now. Want to be a great trial lawyer? Be an ASA in Miami for 3 years, try a ton of cases, and then you can see where that takes you. That mindset is much harder to find now with these recent graduates.
5. Even in the 80’s, when I started in a class of roughly 30, by the time I left 3 years later, there were only 3 people in my class left. Now? Given the factors listed above, I doubt the numbers are even that high. And most people stayed at least 2 years before leaving. Now? Turnover is even faster.
6. Let’s face it. The quality of the new ASA’s is down significantly. You used to get a large number of the ASA’s from top 50 law schools. Now? More are coming from the tier 4 law schools. Smarter people figure things out much quicker. And even for them, there is a learning curve, of course. If someone isn’t very bright to begin with, the quality of their work, and their willingness to take initiative, is greatly compromised. Additionally, there is less trust by those in charge of ASA’s who just don’t get it.
7. Size matters. It is much easier to run an office that is smaller. I don’t know the numbers, but the size of the office has exploded from the 80’s. That means that it is harder to supervise people because there are so many of them.
8. Given everything listed above, keeping an experienced ASA is more difficult. That means that you might look the other way if they have, let’s call them unusual habits, that otherwise might lead you to cut them loose. The SAO spends significant amounts of money on training ASAs. When they leave, that training goes out the door with them.
So, how do you get a large prosecutor’s office to run efficiently and professionally given the issues noted above? I just don’t know. Make your suggestions here. I suspect that KR reads this column, and she is probably nodding her head in agreement with my comments. So, what would you do to make things better? What should she be doing that she is not already doing? Here’s your chance to run the SAO; take it.
One woman’s harassment is another’s compliment.
Alex Michaels was right. MVZ was a lying creep who didn’t follow the rules.
FREE ALEX MICHAELS
The Bug Easy E elortegui for state attorney
Any Hispanic Male Republican for State Attorney.
Anyone out there have a better stock to buy than NVIDIA or APPLE?
Broadcom. And universal display. OLED
Also chipolte is doing a 50-1 split. Yes you read that correct. 50-1 and what do stocks do after a split ? See apple and Nvidia por favor
Don’t they have the same budget as the PDO? The PDO does a fine time recruiting nationally. People are also drawn to the MD PDO because they actually have good trainers and people. This is what happens when people like MVZ are the trainers. There’s no desire to work there nationally or even statewide. It’s an internal problem. Not budget. Where there’s a will there’s a way.
This is not what I have heard from countless ASAs. They are decent attorneys who came for the right reasons and intended to work through their 3 year commitment. Yet they all complain of insane case loads and terrible higher ups. The chief complaint of every line ASA is how shitty their supervisors are and how they have no autonomy of their cases. It’s too down not bottom up. Blaming the new ASAs for an organizations shortcomings is a great way to encourage them to continue to lack accountability. Wrong approach.
I'm glad to see Alex vindicated. He was the one held in contempt of court when MVZ jumped on that case that originally belonged to Mitchell. But nothing happens to MVZ for everything he has done
I am still not sold on the case against Michael Band. I have lots of unanswered questions. With our current information, it looks like he was the scapegoat for that whole debacle. I also don't understand why the so-called “victim” was allowed to remain at her job when the allegations weren't substantiated. Does anyone care to elaborate?
https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/prosecution-complex-6359572
ALEX WAS RIGHT
ALEX TOLD THE TRUTH
FREE ALEX MICHAELS
Hey hey hey kiss your spouse
It’s fake Stephen Talpins in da house.
Can I get a happy Father’s Day y’all?
Can I get a state certifying jail y'all?
Can I get a discovery is a game y’all?
Can I get a Fake Stephen Talpins is my name y’all?
FAKE ST OUUUUUUT!
Happy Father's Day from all the baby (and not-so-baby) prosecutors that you are corrupting. Now, please go back to running Kangaroo Court, I mean, County Court.
#SAOGate
2008, now 2024. Same corruption, with some added players. Is the FACDL going to do something about this mess? You have KFR now, Arrojo is warming up to become the next SAO, if you think she is bad, you have no idea what’s coming. He is in the same Wolfpack as Mitchell and MVZ. Same mentality. Los tres amigos. My gawd. We need someone to run against Arrojo and pronto!
Enough of playing friendly and cordial. We need the leadership to ignite change. This is not civil court, where the worst case scenario is a bunch of money being paid to the prevailing party. People are going to prison for a long time due to these unethical public servants who are wasting taxpayers money (our money). Seize the moment and don’t let defendants and justice down.
Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
— Martin Luther King
Do you mean you want a DINO (Democrat in Name Only), aka Republican, aka KFR?
Why not a woman from any minority or a woman, period? Melba was fantastic; too bad people didn’t realize at the time that she would have been the best choice. As for Hispanic males, most of the ones that come to mind (who are competent and would do a superb job) are on the defense side, so I highly doubt they want to cross to the other side. Nevertheless, we seriously need to start thinking about KFR’s successor, and believe me, we do not want Arrojo. Nunca, jamas, nunca, fuchi. We can write comments here all day, but action is more important.
Let’s get to work, mi gente!
Spreading uncomfortable truths about the SAO, has the brass shittin’ their pants.
Vindicated
Doubt she does
This is the SAO you don’t kiss your spouse you kiss someone else’s spouse. SAO side hustle.
I agree that the supervisors at the SAO over supervise people to the point that they are never allowed to make any decisions. That is bad; if you can’t use your judgment to make any substantive decisions, you are nothing more than a recording secretary. Let them make mistakes in county court and learn from those mistakes. That is how you learn. And that is how you get good, satisfied professionals.
How about a hardcore male Republican that represents Dade County to its best.
Arrojo is a great lawyer and a great guy. He’s a serious trial lawyer and highly ethical. We would be lucky to have him. The whining is embarrassing.
For the money we spent in Ukraine we could have fixed so much in America. Its not our fight.
Remember hearing some of that stuff in the Cocaine Cowboys flick.
That case with Neil Khan against KFR, Howard Pohl, Kathleen Hoague, Erika Isidron, and Don Horn, did also sound terrible. The one referenced in Ranck v Rundle.
The appeals court observing that an attorney is between a rock and a hard place, when their supervisors push them to lie but they must not mislead a court.
So much for the white hat.
I just love when ASAs define discussions of misconduct and lack of ethics as “whining”
@11:41 - are you old enough to remember the Cold War? Are you old enough to have voted for Ronald Reagan? Maybe not. But I can't imagine anyone who voted for Reagan saying anything as short sighted as what you wrote.
I don't know if 1141 is a republican or not, but 1141 is saying what I hear MAGA republicans say all the time. What a crazy turn around. The republican party that I grew up with and registered as a member of no longer exists. Where is my party? Where are the heirs to Reagan, Bush 41, and McCain's legacies? Is Mitt Romney really the last republican? I had hope for Ben Sasse, but Trump chased him away too.
11:41 Should we just allow Putin to size Ukraine? Ever hear of Neville Chamberlain? If not, perhaps you should research who he was. https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/neville-chamberlain
Thanks Jose “Liquid Paper” Arrojo for the lovely comment. Now onto the serious stuff, can you please tell us why you love making stuff disappear?
https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/forgive-and-forget-6363552
And letting bad cops get away with murder (literally), didn't you have a conflict of interest at the time?
“Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, who in 25 years has never charged a police officer for killing someone while on duty, has quietly cleared another cop for killing an unarmed man.
In a previously unreported April 17 close-out memorandum, Rundle's office ruled that undercover Miami-Dade Police Officer Eduardo Pares was justified in fatally shooting 27-year-old Anthony Ford in Liberty City last year. The report confirms Ford was unarmed when he was killed but says Pares had reason to fear for his life in the encounter.
"The investigation determined that it is reasonable to believe that Mr. Ford's actions, flight from police, and refusal to show his hands and obey commands put fear in the mind of Sgt. Pares," Rundle wrote. "To prevent injury to himself and/or others in the immediate area, Sgt. Eduardo Pares was justified in using deadly force by firing his weapon. Therefore, no criminal charges will be filed."
Ford's shooting inspired a small "Justice for Anthony" protest in 2017. The prosecutors' close-out memo confirms what his family maintained after the shooting — that he was not carrying a weapon when he was killed. (Jose Arrojo, one of the assistant state attorneys who signed off on the report, previously worked in the 1990s as the in-house lawyer for the Dade County Police Benevolent Association, MDPD's union.)
Rundle's decision comes just as Liberty City is reeling from a fatal shooting that inspired a school walkout. In response, the City of Miami and Miami-Dade Police Departments have teamed up to push "Operation Blue and Brown," a joint effort they claim will help cut down on crime and gun violence in the area”
https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/five-reasons-miami-dade-police-need-a-civilian-misconduct-panel-11119013
Other types of less questionable questionable questions: https://www.wlrn.org/local-news/2020-07-26/how-the-miami-dade-state-attorneys-office-has-used-a-shadowy-charity-fund-in-criminal-cases
Maybe this will push Milian to run:
https://acis-api.flcourts.gov/courts/68f021c4-6a44-4735-9a76-5360b2e8af13/cms/case/510d467c-d5cc-4e1d-8b1a-4f0d1126bce8/docketentrydocuments/da1b4f11-713e-4c4d-accd-c99a588e544e
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