THE DEFENSE NEVER RESTS

Some thoughts about the Cruz contretemps in Broweird and the outburst by the judge assigned to her first first degree murder case. 

Perhaps a more experienced judge should have been selected. 

The defense is under no obligation to call any witness and can rest whenever they wish. Whilst former State Attorney Michael Satz reportedly "threw up his hands" in mock disgust when asked if he was ready to proceed with rebuttal after the defense surprised everyone by resting, we have yet to have a trial judge require the prosecution in any case tell us who they are calling, who they are not calling, or even who their next witness is.  The prosecution doesn't want us to know who their next witness is, and the defense doesn't want to let anyone know when they are going to rest. 

It is called trial tactics and those of us who try cases deal with it, and those who sit on benches and haven't ever tried a big case cannot deal with it. 

For those of you who aren't Starbucks swilling 30 something judges, the title of this post is a reference to a magnificent book by one of America's greatest criminal trial lawyers- Lee Bailey. But since he's not on Tik Tok or IG, we don't expect you 30 and 40 somethings to know anything about him. 

Some trial tactic no-nos. These are inviolable rules. 

Never tell the jury in opening your client will testify. You might just as well say "Hey Ms. prosecutor, here's a legal pad and pen, please start preparing to cross my client." You gain nothing, and you box yourself in- what if the case goes so well you don't need to call your client? 

Never not object because you're worried the jury will be upset with you or you do not want to call attention to the evidence. Read some case law on preserving the record for the legal reasons why you have to object (unless you sit on a bench at work. Y'all do not need to read case law as we all know. You know it all.).  No jury during deliberates and says "she's not guilty but that attorney objected so much maybe we should find her guilty."

Try and avoid Friday verdicts. 

Rarely if ever postpone opening until the prosecution rests. It never works out as you think it will. 

Never plead your client into some of the minor crimes during trial while contesting the main charge. It does not buy you good will and it just makes the prosecution's job easier. If your client possessed an undersized Snook while being arrested for murder, the jury can figure it out for themselves. 

In state court, speak to every jury in the venire unless you have a tactical reason not to. Do not let the judge hurry you into finishing voir dire. 

Do not thank the jury. It's a waste of time. If you must thank them, squeeze it in during the middle of closing. Not when you first address them or last address them. That's for amateurs. 

Do not be overly polite or helpful. The best criminal defense attorney you never heard of once told us  "The only thing I waive in court is the American Flag." He did not stipulate to lab reports or business records. He worked out of a storefront in an industrial town in the northeast and went decades trying 6-8 cases a year and losing only one or two. RIP our friend Lenny F. 

Do not be overly polite to the judge. They work for the state. Being nice to them does not get you good rulings. Once, after a win in Broweird a judge told us after the verdict- "I like you. You didn't try and kiss my ass."  Keep your self respect.  If you do not believe us, someday we will post the transcript of our contempt hearing for refusing to stand when the judge entered the courtroom during the trial. The state and the judge were so consumed with our rudeness, the defense slipped right by them.  And we were acquitted on appeal. 

Don't do the appeal if you lost the case. You need a fresh set of eyes. 

Presumption of Innocence and Burden of Proof only work in the movies. Every juror presumes your client guilty and you need, repeat- you need to prove their innocence. Reasonable Doubt only sounds reasonable. The defense wins when they remove all doubt. This isn't the law- but it's life and it's true and if you're tired of losing, stop arguing reasonable doubt in closing. Jurors will always vote for the prosecution in close cases, despite the Florida jury instruction about a having a conviction of guilt that waivers and vacillates.  it sounds nice. But it doesn't work one damn bit. 

Trial tactics come in many forms and flavors. It can be a sharp elbow thrown in the heat of battle, or the unseen knife deftly slipped into the heart of the prosecution's case at an unexpected time through a seemingly unimportant witness. There are no small trials or witnesses. Only small lawyers.

Last rule: Don't get caught up in tactics. Big moments win cases. The witness not being sure of the identification. The inability to prove possession. Threading a needle is the type of thing you talk about late at night at a bar during a CLE conference in Vegas, trying to impress some hot lawyer. Winning lawyers don't thread needles. They bludgeon the other side into submission until there is no doubt left that you have won. 

"Combat Tactics Mr. Ryan."

This is such a great scene, especially when the torpedo is about to hit and Sean Connery asks Alex Baldwin/Ryan what books he wrote and Ryan mentions a book on Admiral Halsey and naval tactics (which obviously refers to the mistakes Halsey made at the Battle of Leyte Gulf - although it's not mentioned in the movie dialogue) : "Oh I know this book. Your conclusions were all wrong Ryan. Halsey acted stupidly."  Great stuff for a WWII history nerd. 

BROWARD TO GOBACK TO IN PERSON ONLY COURT HEARINGS

 Broward County is going back to in person only court hearings. Of course they are. Zoom makes life too easy for lawyers and clients and Broward Judges CANNOT HAVE THAT. Rule Number 1 of Fight Club is that you don't mention Fight Club. Rule Number 1 in Broward is "No lawyer or litigant shall have an enjoyable experience in Broward Court." The corollary being "We will make you miserable."  The second corollary of Broward being "If it makes your life easier, we will put a stop to that."

There is an admirative order floating around, but it is NOT on the Broward 17th Judicial Circuit Website (found at 666.com).  And since we are in Miami, we can safely have a little fun with the "No Fun Allowed" county of Florida. 

Of course Broward is about do to this when the Miami Herald is reporting a new, more severe, and more contagious form of the Virus that Must Not Be Named in Broward  (VTMNBNIB).

True or False- The Administrative order says masks are voluntary? *

T/F The Administrative order prohibits any and all litigants from mentioning the supposed efficacy of a vaccine? 

T/F The Administrative order has a fine schedule for lawyers who try to appear by Zoom after it goes into effect? 

T/F The Administrative order obliquely references that the last presidential election was stolen? 

T/F The Administrative order calls the pandemic "The China Flu"?

Zoom has made the practice of law so much easier. A lawyer in West Palm can appear in Broward or Dade or Port St Lucie on a motion to compel discovery, or a report re plea, at 9 am, and be on their Peloton by 10 am. 

The Broward Judiciary knows this, and it has driven them crazy for more than two years. 

Broward County- the no fun, make life harder, don't wear a mask and don't mention vaccines - County. 

If the Judges North of the Border have their way, this is what the line to get into their courthouse will be on a daily basis. Nothing will make them happier than seeing this from their chambers in their new swanky courthouse. 

* As if you need the answers, the first one is true. The rest are false as near as we can determine. 

BONDS IN BROWARD

 Long rumored, the issue of a client getting a bond in Broward has been most Miami lawyers' white whale. We hear of the existence of a bond for a client, but we rarely see one. 

It was not that long ago when we appeared before Judge XXX on a bond motion on a marijuana trafficking case. After making us wait until the end of the calendar (naturally) he looked at the motion, heard from the prosecution (who naturally objected) and promptly doubled the bond amount, commenting that "bonds are like elevators- they can go up or down". 

Wise words from a Broward judicial hack.  Postscript to the story is that upon the retaining of a local lawyer as co-counsel, the bond was reduced to the amount we initially requested. And most Miami lawyers have similar Broweird stories. 

Attached is the new Broward Bond schedule. Maybe it's the absence of former State Attorney Satz "(Motto: "NO BOND FOR YOU" (see below) ), but the schedule appears reasonable. 

Bond Broward by Anonymous PbHV4H on Scribd

NO BONDS FOR YOU!!

A BROWARD PLEA?

UPDATE: Nikolas Cruz pled guilty to seventeen counts of first degree murder in the Parkland school shooting case. The case will now proceed to the penalty phase. 

Rumpole says: Never plead guilty. As our old bookie client Pollo Pete used to say "Never admit to nuttin". But every rule has an exception (except our rule that we no longer accept cases in Broward). From the defense standpoint, they wanted to proceed to a penalty phase without a jury having received all the evidence in the guilt phase. Short circuiting the trial appeared their best attempt at that. 

The Broward SAO (no legal geniuses they) will not be deterred and will just put all their guilt evidence on during the penalty phase.

The final analysis: the defense gains a slight edge in proceeding to a penalty phase being able to argue to the jury about having spared the shooting victims and parents a trial. It's a slight gain, but in cases like these, sometimes that's all you can get. 

Item: Anders Brievik shot and killed 69 people at a youth camp in Norway in 2011. Previously he killed 8 people with a car bomb. With conflicting psychiatric opinions about schizophrenia, he  was sentenced to a "commitment" which in Norway meant a minimum of 10 years, with a review at 21 years. His sentence can be indefinite. But Norway allows for the understanding of psychiatric illness and treatment and the possibility (ala John Hinkley which we examined in a prior post) of release. Cruz has no possibility of release other than a certain former President being elected Governor of Florida and commuting his sentence based on conspiracy theories the tragic shooting never occurred. 

 The defense world is buzzing over whether the defendant in the infamous and tragic Broward school shooting is going to plead open to the court today.

The defense strategy from day one was to offer a plea in exchange for a waiver of the death penalty. "No deal" said the Prince Of Darkness (former SA Mike Satz) who somehow remains on the case although he retired. 

The hearing is at 10-10:30 ish in Broweird. We will be monitoring it from our Peloton Bike. 

Topic for the weekend- your favoourite Peloton instructors. Hannah Frankson is ours. Jenn Sherman is second. Some guy named Rad is our favourite for strength classes. 

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

BROWARD = BROWEIRD ....
ANOTHER JUDGE BITES THE DUST .......

You just can’t make this stuff up folks. Broward Judge John Contini resigned on July 6, 2018. Contini became an attorney in 1983 and he joined the Broward State Attorney’s Office where he spent four years. For the next 27 years he ran a criminal defense practice in Broward. He was elected to a six year term and took the bench in January of 2015. Ten months after he took the bench, Contini was already facing his first JQC investigation.

In November of 2015, the JQC filed charges alleging that Contini provided one-sided assistance to defense lawyers by emailing an assistant public defender with tips on writing motions for reduced sentences. They additionally charged that he acted unprofessionally when prosecutors complained about it.

Contini admitted to the allegations and apologized for his actions toward several attorneys, defendants, investigators and victims. In November of 2016, the Florida Supreme Court decided that Contini should receive a public reprimand and they also required him to deliver in person a written apology to the assistant attorney general whose court filing Contini called a "lie from the pit of hell".

Fast forward to 2018, and without warning, Contini resigned two weeks ago. This week, the JQC filed their newest charges against the now former judge. In their 157 page filing, they charge Judge Contini with, among other things:

1. On numerous occasions, you have instructed your JA to create dockets of fictitious cases or hearings on particular days of the week on which you planned to be absent from the courthouse. Your fabrication of these dockets was designed to create the impression that you were present in the Courthouse, when in fact, you were not.

3. On some days when you were absent from the Courthouse during regular business hours, you instructed your JA to email court business to you ... you also instructed her to lie and say you were in trial or unavailable to conduct hearings.

6. You inappropriately require your JA to perform personal tasks for you before, during, and after regular business hours ... including to: pay your personal bills and manage your personal finances; make personal travel arrangements; proofread and edit a manuscript for you; ....

The list goes on for a total of 11 counts. You can read all 157 pages by clicking on the link here:

Take the time to read some of the fascinating emails between the judge and his JA contained in the exhibits.

Best of luck to our colleague David Rothman who is representing the former judge.

FURTHER NORTH OF THE BORDER .....

So, you’re pregnant, and you are scheduled to give birth during the next trial setting. Your previous pregnancy resulted in you delivering a preemie six weeks early. You file a Motion for Continuance of the Trial Date and opposing counsel objects. That hearing played out in the courtroom of civil court Judge Cymonie Rowe, 15^th Judicial Circuit, in Palm Beach County last month.

The contestants: Plaintiff’s attorney Paul Reid of the law firm Shook, Hardy, and Bacon. He apparently represents an injured worker. Defense attorney Christen Luikart of the law firm Murphy Anderson represents defendant Genie Industries.

It was recently in the news that the Florida Supreme Court was considering a proposed rule that, if passed, would require judges to grant motions for continuance for parental leave, barring exceptional circumstances. This hearing may accelerate those plans to decide whether a formal rule is actually needed.

The entire transcript is attached and can be read by going here:

The relevant portion of the arguments for and against the MTC are contained on pages 58-70 of the transcript.

NOTE: After Reid repeatedly objected and argued the same point over and over again, the judge had had enough, and she Granted the Motion.

Have any of our readers experienced a similar situation where opposing counsel was objecting on similar grounds?  Anyone have an experience where a judge they were before was maybe reluctant to grant a continuance on similar grounds?

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

2075 or 1955

UPDATE: So this is spinning out of control fast. 
The Defendant apparently had a list of priors. He was apparently on probation for a lot of cases. He was stopped for DWLS and at least one email stated there was a gun in the car. 

SO....assuming the worst... should a judge warehouse a defendant for sixty years for a non-violent violation of probation? 

Rumpole says-sixty years is still outrageous. We know that as people age, they age out of violent behavior. So even if this was a dangerous individual in his early twenties, a sentence of twenty or or twenty-five years AT MOST seems more appropriate. 

Now here's a more normal Broward post. 

Broward Judge Matthew Destry violated the probation of a young African America man last week for DWLS (in some reports its an NVDL, but we're giving him the benefit of the doubt.) 

He sentenced the young man to sixty years. 
60 years. 
More than half a century. 

He looked at this young man on probation and decided that for the crime of not having a valid driver's license he should stay in prison until 2075. 
Or look at it this way. If he had sentenced this young man in 1955, and he got out now, he would say- "yeah, that's about the right amount of time for someone to be in jail for not having a valid DL."

It's an outrage. 

There are various petitions floating around the web to seek this Judge's removal, and rightfully so. Anyone with the power to sentence a person who sends them to prison for sixty years for a non-violent offense should be removed from the bench. 

Nothing on the Broward Blog about this by the way. 

See You In Court. 

WHY WE HATE BROWARD

UPDATE: Heat crumple to Pacers on road in Indiana. 

First of all we have never, ever, in over  dozen jury trials in Broward court, heard a clerk read a verdict that said anything other than "NOT guilty." 

But what really gets us is that the court officer just couldn't wait to get the cuffs on the defendant. No motion had been made, the judge hadn't said anything, the words guilty were barely out of the clerk's mouth and BOOM the defendant is cuffed. It's their mentality up there. Maybe it's something in the water. But they thrive on misery there. 

IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST

It takes a lot to turn down a plea offer of probation when facing decades in prison. 
It takes courage and intestinal fortitude of another magnitude to turn down such a plea offer ana go to trial in Broward County, where punishing a defendant for going to trial isn't just a natural result, it's considered a sport  for the judges and prosecutors who work in Broward. They lurk in the shadows up there, like a Lion in the tall grass, just waiting to pounce on the unsuspecting lawyer/client foolish enough to go to trial. 

But credit and congratulations are due to David O Markus and Bill Barzee who defended a client on multiple charges of aggravated battery and on Thursday were rewarded with a Not Guilty on all counts. Two very sweet words. The Sun Sentinel Article is here. 

While David and Bill are superb lawyers, neither of them are old enough to remember the good old days in Broward when your client was rewarded with an acquittal with (we are not making this up) a revocation of their bond, and being remanded to custody, ostensibly to check for open warrants.  It happened to us, more than once. And the dialogue went something like this "The jury sir, having found you not guilty, I will adjudicate you not guilty. Congratulations. Your lawyer did a great job. The sheriff is directed to take the defendant into custody for processing. Have a nice day." 

Eventually, Broward paid a few million dollars in a class action for incarcerating individuals who had just been acquitted (even when you read it, it's hard to believe they actually did it), which just caused a group of judges to revoke your client's bond the day before trial. And on and on it goes. Anyway, a hearty Well Done Mr. Markus and Mr. Barzee. Well Done Indeed!

Sean Taylor Murder Trial: Herald Ace David Ovalle has been tweeting all week the trial of Eric Rivera, the alleged shooter of Sean Taylor. There is no trial today and the rumor is the trial should wrap up next week.  Here's a tweet from this week:

David Ovalle ‏@DavidOvalle3052h

Lawyers getting snippy w/ each other over witness list. "Excuse me, Lee County," prosecutor Reid Rubin sniped. Defense hails from Ft. Myers.

First cold day of the year arrives today. Enjoy a beautiful fall weekend. See You In Court. 

BROWARD WAR!!!

Are you curious about the war? Well, according to Judge Carlos Rodriguez's retort to ASA Jennifer Hilal, "Curiosity is for cats." The title of the post links to the SAO's motion to recuse the judge. One of 450 (!!!!) motions filed.

Yes, it's war in Broweird County, and the difference here is that it's the SAO going to war against Judge Carlos Rodriguez.

The date: September 20, 2010.

The Judge: Carlos Rodriguez.

The ASA: Jennifer Hilal.

Case 1: State v. Benjamin Elmore.

Status: Open plea to the court.

Charge: DWLS and Possession of Cocaine.

Priors: Mr. Elmore had 4 prior possession of cocaine cases.

First Proposed Court Sentence: Adj, and CTS. Upon learning that Mr. Elmore had obtained a hardship license, the court decided to change the sentence to a withhold so Mr. Elmore would not lose his license. The State pointed out that it was an illegal sentence because of the number of withholds Mr. Elmore had for the same offense. The court then accepted the plea on the DWLS and set the possession charge for trial.

Objection: ASA Hilal, having heard the court say that he did not want to see Mr. Elmore lose his license after he just got one, moved to recuse the court because she felt the court had already prejudged the case.

Best Quote: "THERE IS NO CURIOSITY IN COURT. CURIOSITY ARE FOR CATS" (sic)

Case 2. State v. Pelfrey.

Charge: Grand Theft.

Plea: State and defense worked out a plea to a withhold and 12 months probation.

Court: Rejected plea and sentenced defendant to a withhold and one day probation.

Objection: State objected to plea and asked for time to have the victim address the court.

Best Quote: Ms. Hilal: So you don't want to hear from the victim in this case?"

Judge Rodriguez: "Have a seat at counsel table will you?...And stay there."

Motion to recuse: "There was no reason for Judge Carlos Rodriguez to order Assistant State Attorney Jennifer Hilal to be confined to her chair..."

In the third case, Judge Rodriguez rejected a negotiated plea to 18 months probation between the state and defense and imposed a one day probation period, which he promptly terminated. When the prosecutor objected and asked for time for the victim, a law enforcement officer to be present, the court said that the case was set for that day and it was the prosecutor's problem as to why her witnesses were not in court. When the prosecutor rightly stated that she had a deal with the defense and thus had no reason to suspect the plea would change, Judge Rodriguez stated that she was now on notice that any time a case was set, even for an agreed upon plea, the court reserved the right to reject the plea and impose a plea of its own.

CONGRATULATIONS JUDGE CARLOS RODRIGUEZ. We have been practicing law in Florida courts for more than a quarter of a century and you are the first judge to make us feel sorry for a prosecutor.

The fact is that when a Judge does what this transcript shows, it demeans the court and the entire judicial process. There were law enforcement officers who were victims who had been told the defendant would be getting 18 months probation. They had no reason to suspect a judge would act crazy and start rejecting pleas and giving away the courthouse.

The transcript shows a Judge who was demeaning to a prosecutor, who did not treat her with the respect all lawyers are entitled to be treated to, and who had a blatant disregard for the legal process. For the first and perhaps only time in our career, we are on the side of the Broward State Attorneys Office. And prior to today we would have bet a million bucks we would never write that sentence.

BROWEIRD JUDGES/CANDIDATES

Broward: Can't tell the Judges and Candidates without a scorecard.

The Juice Blog has one here:

Pick a judge...any judge....

County Court Judge Lee Seidman? Has four challengers, including Judge Dale Cohen's wife- Mardi Lee Cohen. (Judge Dale Cohen himself has a JQC complaint for forcing a Public Defender to cross examine his wife in a recusal motion before him, which he denied. Confused? Join the club.)

So what is Judge Seidman planing to do? Challenge Circuit Judge Susan Leebow, who already has one challenger.

And just to make sure you're really confused, Judge Lee Seidman's wife-Laura Seidman- is running against Judge Lisa Porter.

So there you have it, As The Courthouse Spins, staring the Cohens (Dale and Mardi) the Seidmans (Lee and Laura) along with Susan Leebow, and a cast of characters running for Lee Seidman's seat.

You know, it occurs to us that in Dade- the Scolas (Judges Jackie and Bob) and Schwartzs (Judges Larry and Caryn ) all managed to run or get appointed without challenging any of their fellow judges and causing the type of madcap disarray North Of The Border is famous for.

ACHOO? Is the rumor of a Dade SAO and Dade PD "sick out" to protest non-existent pay raises along with the bill in Tallahassee that will require ASAs and PDs to pay for their own health insurance, true? Stay tuned....and take your vitamins.

A NEW LOW

Query- If you have a case in Dade County Court criminal division and you run into a serious enough problem that you need to speak to the Judge in charge of the County Criminal Division, whom do you speak with?

Judge Sam Slom of course!

If you run into a similar problem North of the Border, to whom do you speak with?

NOBODY! That's right, courtesy of the JAA (Broward) Blog, nobody is in charge of the Broward Criminal Courts, county court division.

From the JAA Blog:

Meet Judge Nobody - that's right, "nobody" is officially the head of county court criminal. click here for theAdministrative Order memorializing nobody in charge. What's it all about? Can't Chief Judge Victor Tobin find anyone else qualified, after Judge Stacy/Dale Ross said "thanks, but no thanks"? And is Tobin gun shy about picking a new team member, after Judge Joel Lazarus and Judge Ilona Holmes bailed? And why did Lazarus quit in the first place? Was it just about his impending retirement, or does the courthouse rumor mill have it correct that Lazarus felt slighted when Judge Dale Cohen's docket was given to another judge? Can't we all get along?

RUMPOLE NOTES: Isn't this one of those rare circumstances when "nobody" is better than "somebody"?

More tidbits from the place we love to hate (and hate to go to, but love to watch squirming in agony as their decades of bad karma brings their sordid courthouse down on their heads)

True or false: Judge Ian Richards started a trial Tuesday without the ASA present (answer: true)

And finally, Anthony Caravella is now a free man. 26 years ago, then Broward ASA (and Now Broward Circuit Judge) Robert Carney worked with the police to convict an innocent man who was brutalized and threatened into confessing to a crime he didn't commit. The Sun Sentinel has the coverage here.

File this comment by the current ASA under the title "The More Things Change, The More They Remain The Same": (also from the JAA Blog)

(ASA Carolyn) McCann said the Broward State Attorney's Office did the right thing when it agreed to defense requests for two earlier DNA tests, one done by the Broward Sheriff's Office lab in 2001 that did not implicate or clear him, and a second set of tests by a California lab last year that appeared to clear him. The third set of tests -- by a Virginia lab released Wednesday -- was done over the last six months at the prosecution's request.

"The evidence against him was provided by Anthony Caravella himself but we cannot ignore this DNA evidence," McCann said. "I cannot explain why people confess to police about crimes they did not commit." ...

RUMPOLE ROARS: LET ME EXPLAIN IT TO YOU, YOU STUPID SIMPLETON:

CARAVELLA WAS 15 YEARS OLD WITH AN IQ OF 67 WHEN BSO DETECTIVES BEGAN THEIR CAMPAIGN OF TERROR, BEATINGS, AND THREATS AGAINST HIM AND HIS GIRLFRIEND. THAT IS WHY PEOPLE CONFESS TO CRIMES THEY DIDN'T COMMIT. AND AS LONG AS THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM EMPLOYS, AND LET ME COME UP WITH THE PRECISE LEGAL TERM TO DESCRIBE YOUR COMMENT....IDIOTS LIKE YOU, THERE WILL STILL BE INNOCENT PEOPLE WHO CONFESS TO CRIMES AND PROSECUTORS WHO DON'T HAVE ENOUGH SENSE TO FIGURE IT OUT.

DADE NORTH?

SCOTT ROTHSTEIN UPDATE: Gotta love this nugget from the Daily Pulp:

"I know this is frustrating, but let me assure you, this is the greatest story in the history of South Florida, and it will all come out in due time. Let me just say that I'm hearing incredible stories about Rothstein's use of his associates to impersonate judges, officials, and reporters on the phone to help him in his extortion schemes and scams."

I admit that I am hooked. I'm on that site ten times a day.

Broward is collapsing under its own weight of cronyism, theft, fraud, bad karma, and less than mediocre individuals in position of leadership. Things are so bad that Broward may just dissolve and ask to become "Dade North" (North Dade is already taken and we are sure the fine folks in North Dade want nothing to do with being associated with Broward in any manner), at which point the statute of Florida's 19th Governor- Napoleon Bonaparte Broward - (who notably wanted to drain the Everglades)- which stands ominously in the hallways of the new wing of the Courthouse in Broward, would just spontaneously implode.

Let's start with the Sherrif's Department. There are plenty of reports circulating that the top man-Sheriff Al Lamberti- is a major disappointment who is not "a hands on guy" and "can't make a decision without checking with his right hand men." The problem is that one of Lamberti's right hand man- his head of internal affairs no less- was in the pocket of disgraced Broward Attorney/Thief Scott Rothstein. BSO Lt. David Benjamin - who personally drove a frightened and on-the-run Scott Rothstein to the airport in early November so Rothstein could run to Morocco with 20 million in stolen Ponzi funds- is now rumored by the Broward Pulp to be either A) Under Federal Investigation for accepting at least $30,000 from Rothstein; B) A Federal Informant or C) (This being Broweird) BOTH!. (Scott Rothstein tidbit- why did he need police protection to go to the airport? Scotty boy was stealing from some pretty powerful people. The type of people who don't call the police or sue when things go wrong. More on this at another time.)

Lamberti's campaign coffers were literally stuffed with stolen RRA money as Bob Norman details on his blog. Of course so was Governor Crist's campaign, so Lambeti is in good company.

Lets move on to Broweird State Attorney Mikey Satz.

The Broward Blog has this classic quote:

"It is well documented by law enforcement that people using drugs are actively involved in all sorts of criminal activities such as burglaries, robberies, and violent crimes."
-Mike Satz 2009-

...right beneath pictures of Satz circa 1970 at a "pot party".

So much for the personal integrity of the County's top Prosecutor and Law Enforcement Officer.

Item: Mike Satz's Major Crimes division put an innocent man on death row and fought to cover up his obvious innocence. Frank Lee Smith died on death row before the court's could rule on his motions proving innocence.

Item: There is an avowed Federal Informant who works as a Prosecutor at the Broward SAO and is called a snitch around the office behind her back. Because this is Broweird, she is also a City Commissioner and a central figure in a Circuit Judge and a Prosecutor meeting at a restaurant for drinks and laughing at a gay juror who was sickened by the grisly crime scene photos of a death penalty case the prosecutor was trying before the Judge. And because this is Broweird, the defense attorney was not included in that convenient little social.

Leaving prosecutors and cops, lets turn to the judiciary:

Item: The current Chief Judge is fighting with the former Chief Judge. A former circuit judge who cried on national TV during a hearing into the death of Anna Nicole Smith was secretly stealing tens of thousands of dollars from an elderly woman he befriended in his condominium.

The Chief Judge up there likes to fight. Besides being famously (or infamously ) rude to us many times because of where we have our office (Dade), he is also fighting with the Broward Clerk of Courts.

File these under the courts/judiciary:

Item: Fort Lauderale's Police Chief's wife fires his weapon at him (a 20 year minimum mandatory for those of you scoring at home ) and ...this being Broweird....gets 9 months. Meanwhile possession of cocaine, a third degree felony, routinely gets you an 18 month prison sentence, especially if you're....a black male not standing consanguinity to a public official of import. Because if you're say, the son of a certified "Broweird Player" and get arrested for Drug Trafficking in Broweird, you get....

"Johnny, tell out contestant what he has won today on 'I'm related to someone important in Broweird': a Misdemeanor!"

Yup, the former son-in-law of politically connected Broward Lawyer Bill Scherer, who happens to be the lawyer leading the lawsuits against Scott Rothstein with this mammoth 289 page lawsuit that is rife with spelling errors and grammatical gaffes, got a misdemeanor after being arrested on a drug traffcking charge. The cops laughed when the suspect said "you don't know who you're messing with." They're not laughing any more.

And neither are we and nor should you. It's a complete mess up there North of the the Border, and this Scott Rothstein disaster will show all of those Broward sacred cows with their hands deep into the pockets of the man with the money. These same politicians, Judges, lawyers and officers who sneer at "Dade Lawyers" and have mistreated and maligned us for decades as unprincipled and uncouth, have now been unmasked for what they really are- rank hypocrites who fought over each other to jump into bed and be closest to the man with the money. May each and every one of them get what they truly deserve.

We end most posts on Broweird this way: Karma baby.