Another Justice Building fixture has passed away this past week. Harvey Watnick, who recently retired to California to be with his wife and children who work in Hollywood, passed away from complications of kidney disease.
The comments on the FACDL listserv that were forwarded to us were universally the same: he was a gentleman. Two comments stand out- the first from Attorney Juan Gonzalez:
A friend for close to 40 years. Let me tell you all you need to know about Harvey. A couple of years ago I’m sitting in the Au bon Pain with Harvey, a senior judge doing a once a year week substituting for a vacationing county court judge and a pretty prominent, high paid lawyer. The judge asked how the practice was nowadays and the high priced guy spent 5 minutes complaining about clients and judges and how much he was looking forward to hanging it up and leaving the area. The judge turned to Harvey and asked him, Harvey told all of us that he never enjoyed his work more than now. He said he had a wonderful secretary who loved to help people and that his work on behalf of others was a blessing. That was the way he approached his work and his life. A lot of people who never even met him will find their lives affected by his absence. Rest In Peace my friend.
The second comments come Judge Richard Hersch who had a 50 year friendship with Harvey. Those types of friendship do not come along often and they are to be treasured. The photos are also courtesy of Richard Hersch.
Here's Harvey Watnick when I met him in 1972, teaching Government at Miami Central High School. He was attending UM Law at night. He was just about the coolest teacher you could ever imagine.
By Fall of 1978, Harvey had graduated and opened an office at 3300 Rice, upstairs and across from the fire station in Coconut Grove. He managed a suite of offices, providing receptionist services to several lawyers of the day including, at one time or another Jerry Burford, Barry Siegel, Mort Greenwald, Ted Zelman, and ....the more notorious: Rex Ryland, Jr., H. Lee Bauman, and Raymond J. Takiff. Ryland and Bauman did some prison time, and Takiff should have but, skated due to his work as the main rat in the CourtBroom cases.
Here's Harvey in the Rice office 1980.
When I was unable to find a clerking position after the first year of law school, Harvey tried to sell me to the PD and SAO. They offered an internship but no money. I already had no money, so Harvey hired me as a receptionist. The experience was amazing and the next summer Ryland took me on as a law clerk, which continued long-distance from Gainesville. Harvey gave me space upon graduation in 1980.
Harvey worked on a multitude of drug cases back then as we were in the middle of the Miami Vice drug wars. I vaguely remember that Roy Kahn suffered his only prosecutorial homicide defeat in a case against Harvey. He cared about his clients and he worked hard on their behalf.
Harvey's strength as a lawyer was his honesty, humility, humor, and an understanding that what we were doing was important, both in the larger picture of defending rights and keeping the system honest, and that what we did directly impacted individual's lives.
