ELECTION DAY 2014

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:


UPDATE: RESULTS & ANALYSIS ($$$$$) BELOW .....
As of 7 am this morning, more than 3.1 million voters had already cast their ballots in Florida.  Absentee Ballots received by the election departments' total 1.3 million and an additional 1.8 million showed up during early voting.  Broken down by party, it's 1.33 million Republicans; 1.22 million Dems and 560,000 with NPA.

RETURNS (98% reporting):

County Court Judge:
BOCANEGRA - 179,600 - 42%
SCHWARTZ    - 243,470 - 58%

Does the money spent make a difference?  What do our readers think?  Incumbent Judge Jacqueline Schwartz spent $380,884 on her campaign including $315,000 of her own money.  In comparison, Challenger Frank Bocanegra spent $93,124 including $32,000 of his own money.

COURTHOUSE BOND
YES                 - 165,838 - 36%
NO                  - 293,840 - 64%

NORTH OF THE BORDER
In Broweird, there were two races for Judge; one Circuit and one County.  In the Circuit Court race, Dennis Bailey defeated Rhonda Sokoloff 50.6% - 49.4% (4,300 votes); and in County Court, Incumbent Ian Richards has 177,067 votes to Challenger Claudia Robinson's 178,084.  They are separated by a quarter of a percent triggering a recount in that race.

ELECTION DAY SPECIAL .....

Beginning in 1980 and continuing through 2004, over the course of seven consecutive presidential elections, a Bush and/or a Clinton appeared on the national ticket for President/Vice-President in each election.  The string was finally broken in 2008, when Barack Obama beat out Hillary Rodham Clinton in the Democratic primaries and secured the nomination of his party.  Two years from now, the cycle may repeat itself and we could again be talking about both a Bush and a Clinton on the national tickets of their parties ....

But for now, you'll just have to settle for a Schwartz and a Bocanegra.

Many of you have already cast your votes either by way of Absentee Ballot or by Early Voting.  For those procrastinators who waited until today to vote, the important races, besides the County Court race alluded to above, includes the following matchups:

Governor: (SCOTT WINS 48%-47%)

Does the money spent make a difference?  The final numbers are not yet in, but as of two days ago, here is what we know:

1. This was the most expensive race in gubernatorial history.
2. Scott and his PACs spent $96 million dollars.
3. Scott reported $10m in expenditures in his campaign account; meaning $86m was spent by PACs.
4. By comparison, Crist and his PACs spent $49 million.
5. Crist reported $9m in expenditures in his campaign account; meaning $40m was spent by the PACs supporting him.
6. $114m was spent on TV ads alone by the two parties; (2-1 in favor of Scott's camp).


Will you be voting for the candidate who is or the candidate who was?  The choice is Rick Scott, the Incumbent, versus Charlie Crist, the former Governor, and current challenger.  Of course, if you didn't know that, well then, you must not own a television set.

Attorney General: (BONDI WINS 55%-42%)

Will you be voting for the Incumbent who has spent most of her elected time in office, (not to mention the valuable resources of her legal team), doing everything she can to make sure that gays cannot marry in the State of Florida or will you be supporting her opponent?  The choice is Pam Bondi versus George Sheldon.

Constitutional Amendment One: (PASSED WITH 75%)

AKA The Florida Water and Land Conservation Initiative.  It deals with our natural resources.

Constitutional Amendment Two: (FAILED WITH 57.5%)

AKA The Medical Marijuana Amendment.  Backed and financed by multi-millionaire personal injury attorney John Morgan, this Amendment polled at around 85% for most of the Spring and Summer.  That was until millions of dollars of out of state PAC money coming from a few billionaires like the Koch brothers and casino magnate Sheldon Adelson funded the Drug Free America group attempting to defeat the amendment.  The latest numbers show about 61% support for this amendment; it takes 60% for the measure to pass.

For a more comprehensive analysis of Amendments One and Two, I'll throw it over to Mr. Cheeseburger in Paradise, who does a much better job than I could ever do at explaining these two very important Amendments:

Constitutional Amendment Three: (FAILED WITH 48%)

AKA The Lame Duck Court Packing Amendment.  This amendment was addressed by the Tampa Tribune recently.  They described the amendment as one that was supported by " ... Republican legislators as a solution to a pending crisis on the Florida Supreme Court. Three of seven justices are expected to retire simultaneously in January 2019, just as a new governor could be taking office. But the amendment placed on the Nov. 4 ballot by the Legislature that would give outgoing governors carte blanche to pack the court on their way out the door is unacceptable. Amendment 3 is one more legislative attempt to push partisanship into the court system, and Florida voters should reject it." 

Miami-Dade Ballot

Locally, the most talked about race is not about whom to select for County Court Judge; instead, it's whether to support a $393 million Bond measure which would fund a new Civil Courthouse to be built somewhere in downtown Miami.  Chief Judge Soto and a host of attorneys and judges have been hosting speakeasy type get-togethers to drum up support for the Bond as well as to raise money to finance the advertising campaign.  The current courthouse is something like 200 years old (j/k - it was built in 1925) and has 28 stories and three bathrooms.  The bond, if passed, would increase the millage rate by about 0.09, or $18, for a home valued at $200,000.

If you have not already done so, get out there today and exercise your right to V-O-T-E. 

And because this whole damn election season has brought us nothing more than $90 plus million dollars worth of false and negative ads from both state parties and their funded PACs, we decided to leave you with this heartfelt moving story that took place this past weekend in Cincinnati, Ohio .....  

Why was a Division III woman's basketball game between Mount St. Joseph's and Hiriam College that would normally put 50 fans in the stands instead moved to Xavier University's 10,000 seat basketball's arena; (PS. they sold out the 10,000 tickets in just one hour)? Read the story and watch the video here.



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

ELECTION CENTRAL 2014 - PRIMARY RESULTS

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

ELECTION CENTRAL 2014  

PRIMARY RESULTS 

With a turnout of just over 14%, Miami-Dade voters elected six new Judges to the bench on Tuesday.  There were a total of eight contested elections, with Incumbent judges facing opposition in four of those contests.
 

The only sitting Judge who was returned to the bench is Circuit Court Judge Rodney Smith.  Smith had no problem defeating challenger Christian Carrazana, a personal injury and insurance lawyer.  The race was controversial because, for the first time in a judicial campaign, an outside corporation, United Auto Insurance Company, set up an ECO and funded it with nearly $346,000, (spending in excess of $313,000), in order to sway the vote in Smith's direction.  It worked.


Incumbent County Court Judge Jacqueline Schwartz, who has been on the bench for twelve years, failed in her bid to win outright in a three way race and must now face challenger Frank Bocanegra in a November runoff.  Bocanegra, a lawyer for the past six years, is a former law enforcement officer with the MDPD and former Miami Lakes Town Manager.
 

Circuit Judge Fleur Lobree lost, again.  She also lost a County Court race in 2012.  Lobree was defeated by criminal defense lawyer Mavel Ruiz.  After eight years on the County Court bench, Judge Nuria Saenz will join Lobree in the private sector as she was defeated by personal injury & PIP attorney Victoria Ferrer.
 

There will be at least six new Judges on the bench come January of 2015.  Stephen Millan, an attorney with experience in the areas of criminal defense, immigration and bankruptcy handily beat Traffic Magistrate and criminal defense lawyer Thomas Cobitz.  Millan had previously lost two judicial contests: in  2006 (County Court) and 2008 (Circuit Court).
 

Alberto Milian, a criminal defense practitioner, who had previously lost two campaigns to State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, (2000 and 2004), easily defeated marital and family practice attorney Mary Gomez.
 

Attorney Martin Zilber battled Oscar Rodriguez-Fonts all night for an open Circuit Court seat.  At seven pm, Fonts, who specializes in criminal defense and immigration matters, held a commanding 12% lead; by eight pm, the lead was down to 4 points.  It dropped to two points by nine pm.  And by ten pm, Zilber had grabbed the lead by a mere 423 votes.  Zilber, a mediator and insurance defense lawyer, held on and defeated Rodriguez Fonts by just over 2,400 votes.
 

In one of the nastiest races in recent memory, Assistant Miami City Attorney Veronica Diaz, better known for getting free Ultra tickets, sending business to her boyfriend's law firm, and having an Ethics complaint filed against her, easily defeated former School Board member and State Legislator Renier Diaz de la Portilla.  Diaz de la Portilla, not to be outdone by Veronica Diaz, had an election complaint filed against him, by Veronica Diaz' campaign.  He has been a member of The Florida Bar for only seven years, and had barely practiced any law during that time, but he has been a mediator for roughly three years.
 

For all of the election results, please take a look at the final numbers below.
 

WE CAN NOW CALL
THE FINAL TWO RACES
ZILBER WINS
SCHWARTZ IN A RUN-OFF

Only two races really worth watching:

With 100% of the precincts counted, Zilber defeats Rodriguez-Fonts by 2,314 votes.  No recount.

Zilber                     76,973  50.8%
Rodriguez Fonts  74,659   49.2%

Judge Schwartz fails in her bid to win outright and must now face attorney Frank Bocanegra in a November runoff.  She fell 893 votes short of the 50% plus one number.

Two incumbent Judges, Lobree and Saenz, getting trounced.  Lobree losing 54%-46%; Saenz losing 64%; - 36%

We can safely call (before the Miami Herald) the other six races.  Come January 2015 you can welcome five new judges (along with Judge Rodney Smith) to the bench:

Stephen Millan
Alberto Milian
Mavel Ruiz
Veronica Diaz
Victoria Ferrer

CIRCUIT COURT

GROUP 16 

Thomas Cobitz - 35%    52,006
Stephen Millan - 65%    98,422

GROUP 26

Judge Rodney Smith  - 63%    96,172
Christian Carrazana  - 37%    56,909

GROUP 27

Mary Gomez         -      42%     66,199
Alberto Milian      -      58%     90,858

GROUP 58 

Oscar Rodriguez-Fonts   -  49.2%    74,659
Martin Zilber                   -  50.8%    76,973

GROUP 67

Judge Fleur Lobree       -    46%    67,573
Mavel Ruiz                     -    54%    80,752

GROUP 70

Veronica Diaz                         -   57%    87,629
Renier Diaz de la Portilla      -   43%    66,973

COUNTY COURT

GROUP 19

Judge Jacqueline Schwartz   -   49.42%    75,615
Frank Bocanegra                    -   31.08%    47,559
Rachel Dooley                         -   19.50%    29,840

GROUP 36

Judge Nuria Saenz                 -   36%     54,050
Victoria Ferrer                       -   64%     94,789


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

ELECTION DAY - VOTE

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

V O T E

For the past two weeks, many of you have participated in our democracy by mailing in your Absentee Ballots or by going to the polls during Early Voting.  Today is your last chance to exercise your right to VOTE.

Some STATS:

There are 1,286,905 registered voters in Miami-Dade County.  Voter turnout is expected to be under 20%.

The latest reported numbers of people that have already cast their vote: 83,787 absentee ballots have been returned to the Elections Department of the 213,202 absentee ballots that were mailed. 

Over a period of 14 days of Early Voting: 29,194 additional voters pulled the lever at the polls. 

That means a total of 112,981 people have already voted.

Compared to 2012's primary election, the absentee ballots and early voting numbers are about the same.  In 2012, the totals were about 105,000.  In 2012, on election day, only 93,000 additional voters showed up to vote. 

By seven pm tonight, or shortly thereafter, we could have eight new Judges in Miami-Dade County.  Seven elections will be decided today; only the County Court race between Incumbent Judge Jacqueline Schwartz and her opponents, Rachel Dooley and Frank Bocanegra, could result in a runoff.  A runoff would take place if none of the three candidates garners a majority of the vote; and the runoff would happen on the November general election ballot.

Stay tuned for our live-blogging of the election results.  We'll leave it to Rumpole to decide whether he wants to take down the screening on the Comments section for the night.

Good luck to all the candidates.


CIRCUIT COURT

GROUP 16 (Leon Firtel retiring)

Thomas Cobitz v. Stephen Millan

GROUP 26

Judge Rodney Smith v. Christian Carrazana


GROUP 27 (Ron Dresnick retiring)

Mary Gomez v. Alberto Milian


GROUP 58 (Marc Schumacher retiring)

Oscar Rodriguez-Fonts v. Martin Zilber


GROUP 67

Judge Fleur Lobree v. Mavel Ruiz


GROUP 70 (Sandy Karlan retiring)

Veronica Diaz v. Renier Diaz de la Portilla


COUNTY COURT

GROUP 19

Judge Jacqueline Schwartz v. Rachel Dooley v. Frank Bocanegra


GROUP 36

Judge Nuria Saenz v. Victoria Ferrer


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


Update: Thank you El Capitan for a great post. Coming soon (after the election results, breakdowns and analysis: "FACDL LISTSERV: A Right to Privacy? Anyone see a penumbra?"

ELECTION CENTRAL 2014

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

WELCOME TO THE MONTH OF AUGUST:  IF THE CALENDAR READS AUGUST, THEN IT'S TIME TO KICK-OFF FOOTBALL SEASON, IT'S ALSO THE PEAK OF HURRICANE SEASON, & MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL, IT'S TIME FOR ELECTION CENTRAL .....

On August 26th, 2014, voters go to the polls to decide on eight contested judicial elections.  But, early voting begins next Monday, August 11th and continues through Sunday August 24th.

This past week, the Dade County Bar Association (DCBA) released the results of it's Judicial Poll.  The numbers below indicate: (Exceptionally Qualified/Qualified/Unqualified).

In the past week, the Miami Herald has also printed their recommendations.  Give the Herald credit for going the extra mile.  They begin with an extensive questionnaire and end with in depth interviews of all candidates before their Editorial Board.  The candidates face off in these interviews side by side.

Also, the State of Florida, Division of Elections, lists the campaign account information for all of the candidates.

CIRCUIT COURT

GROUP 16 (Leon Firtel retiring)

Thomas Cobitz v. Stephen Millan

Cobitz 23%/57%/20%

Fundraising: He has raised $21,790 from 103 contributors.  He has also dug deep into his own pocket and borrowed a whopping $500,000 to win the seat.  Tom, seriously, a half a million dollars?!

Millan 18%/59%/23%

Fundraising: He has raised $34,080 from 117 contributors.  He has also added $50,000 of his own money.

Mr. Millan received the HERALD endorsement.

GROUP 26

Judge Rodney Smith v. Christian Carrazana

Smith 47%/45%/7%

Fundraising: He has raised $133,409 from 529 contributors. He has added a measly $100 of his own money, (to open the campaign account).

Carrazana 8%/29%/64%

Fundraising: He has raised $19,450 from 35 contributors.  He has kicked in $7,000 of his own money to the campaign.

Judge Smith received the HERALD endorsement.

GROUP 27 (Ron Dresnick retiring)

Mary Gomez v. Alberto Milian V. Joseph Perkins

Gomez  13%/51%/36%

Fundraising: She has raised $17,551 from 76 contributors.  She has not added any of her own money to the campaign.

Milian  13%/41%/46%

Fundraising: He has raised $160,789 from 186 contributors. He has contributed another $100,000 out of his own pocket.

Candidate Joseph Perkins has dropped out of the race.  He cited "health issues in my family" in a letter to the DBR.

Ms. Gomez received the HERALD endorsement.

GROUP 58 (Marc Schumacher retiring)

Oscar Rodriguez-Fonts v. Martin Zilber

Fonts  17%/61%/22%

Fundraising: He has raised $76,463 from 277 contributors.  He did not loan himself any money.

Zilber  21%/45%/34%

Fundraising: He has raised $156,123 from 462 contributors. He has kicked in $100,000 of his own money.

Mr. Zilber received the HERALD endorsement.

GROUP 67

Judge Fleur Lobree v. Mavel Ruiz

Lobree  47%/46%/7%

Fundraising: She has raised $55,585 from 246 contributors.  She has added $100,000 of her own money to the campaign.

Ruiz  14%/42%/44%

Fundraising: She has raised $28,026 from 127 contributors. She added no money of her own.

Judge Lobree received the HERALD endorsement.

GROUP 70 (Sandy Karlan retiring)

Veronica Diaz v. Renier Diaz de la Portilla

Diaz  13%/34%/54%

Fundraising: She has raised $64,697 from 202 contributors.  She has added $40,000 of her own money to the campaign account.

Diaz DLP  8%/29%/62%

Fundraising: He has raised $70,200 from 126 contributors.  He has added only a $200 contribution of his own money, (to open the campaign account).

Mr. Diaz de la Portilla received the HERALD endorsement.

COUNTY COURT

GROUP 19

Judge Jacqueline Schwartz v. Rachel Dooley v. Frank Bocanegra

Schwartz  16%/45%/39%

Fundraising: She has raised $67,786 from 301 contributors.  She has added a huge contribution of $200,000 of her own money to the campaign account.

Dooley  24%/55%/21%

Fundraising: She has raised $36,233 from 151 contributors. She has added only $1,600 of her own money.

Bocanegra  11%/41%/48%

Fundraising: He has raised $24,962 from 112 contributors.  He has contributed $10,000 into the campaign account from his own pocket.

Judge Schwartz received the HERALD endorsement.

GROUP 36

Judge Nuria Saenz v. Victoria Ferrer

Saenz  29%/52%/19%

Fundraising: She has raised $87,674 from 260 contributors. She has added no money of her own to the campaign.

Ferrer  16%/42%/42%

Fundraising: She has raised $84,749 from 183 contributors. She has added only $2,500 from her wallet to the campaign.

Judge Saenz received the HERALD endorsement.

THE DCBA POLL .....

A word about the poll.  To give any real weight to this poll would be a disservice to the voters of our community.  There were a total of 15,061 attorneys eligible to vote in the poll.  A grand total of 1,211 voters returned their ballots; a figure of just over 8%.  But, in reality, the figures are even more dismal. 

You see, not all 1,211 voters voted for every judge/candidate listed on the poll.  Citing three examples, only 220 attorneys voted on candidate Carrazana; only 185 on candidate Bocanegra; and only a ridiculously low 173 voted on candidate Mary Gomez.  These numbers are typical throughout the poll when looking at those that are not on the bench.

Even the judges currently on the bench had low numbers of attorneys weighing in on their qualifications.  Three more examples: Judge Marcia Caballero garnered votes from only 385 attorneys; Judge Cristina Miranda 373; and Judge Maria Sampedro Iglesias had only 326 attorneys who apparently knew who she was.

So, sadly, the DCBA poll, may be, in a word, worthless.  That is not the fault of the DCBA.  That is clearly the fault of attorneys.  We seem to be so opinionated on these legal blogs.  But when it comes time to weigh in on those that get to wear the black robes, and sit for six years in the judgment of others, we have little to contribute to the poll takers.  In a word, sad.

Therefore, this BLOG post's author will not comment on the results of the DCBA poll; if you really want to read the results, go to the DCBA home page at www.dadecountybar.org and read them yourselves.

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

LEAGUE OF PROSECUTORS JUDICIAL ENDORSEMENTS 2014

We now dip our toe into local politics, fully cognizant of the Mark Twain quote: "A lie can make it half way around the world while the truth is still putting its shoes on."

And that was before the internet. 

The League of Prosecutors (motto: "Not a group of superheroes, although we sound like we are")
had a judicial forum the other evening at UM law school. After the forum, the members  of the League voted for judicial endorsements. We don't know the particular rules for the vote, but the results say volumes about the quality of the judiciary: NONE OF THE ABOVE was a popular choice. 

There are eight (ocho) contested judicial races. Four ( roughly half, in our expert estimate) of the races received no endorsement. 

Those receiving the endorsement of the crusading group of current and former Assistant State Attorneys were: 

Rachel Dooley. In a three way race including a judge, this is a coup.

Judge Nuria Saenz. Can't say we have ever heard of the good judge, but that doesn't mean much.

Judge Rodney Smith. If ever there was a Judge who did NOT deserve opposition, it is Judge Smith. More on this race and the good Judge in another post. 

Judge Fleur Lobree.  If ever a Judge was up against the "name game" this is it. Think former Judge Shirloyn McWhorter. Lobree got whopped but good as a county court incumbent candidate last election by a latin female.  Then she was appointed to the circuit bench. Not surprisingly, another latin female has run against her. Politics is a tough game. Lobree needs to defend her seat. Being a good judge is not enough, and any judge who thinks it is will find themselves out of a job. This is the reality of our county and the judiciary. 

Notable candidates who did not get an endorsement: All of these candidates were in groups that got NO endorsement:

Tom Cobitz. Traffic Magistrate. Criminal Defense Attorney. He has our vote. Al Milian. Former Broward prosecutor. Current defense attorney. Lingering resentment from the whopping Milian and Matthewman put on the SAO in a murder case a few years ago? Perhaps.  Martin Zilber. The one endorsement he did  not get so far. Oscar Rodriguez-Fonts: PD, Regional Counsel, experienced. Nice Guy. Diaz De La Portilla de-la-vote -for-my-name-even-though-I-have-zero-experience? Not surprising. At least local politics isn't influencing the LOP. 

See You In Court. 
Vote for Judge Smith and donate to Judge Smith. He richly deserves your support. He should NOT have a challenger. 

Don't forget to vote in our Miami Heat poll; top left on the blog. 

QUALIFYING DAY HAS ARRIVED - ELECTION 2014

RUMPOLE SAYS: 12:01.
THE EAGLE HAS LANDED!
WHO HAS OPPOSITION?

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

QUALIFYING DAY HAS ARRIVED .....

UPDATE ..... UPDATE ..... UPDATE

Oh, dear, the trials and tribulations of Fleur Lobree. 

Just before the clocked struck golden for all Incumbent judges, attorney Mavel Ruiz, formerly slotted to run in Group 70 (see below), dropped out of that Group and moved into Group 67 against Incumbent Judge Fleur Lobree.

ROLLER COASTER

Can you say roller coaster ride. If you are Fleur Lobree, you need a large dose of dramamine right about now. Our Blog readers have been big supporters of Her Honor. They know that she has been a member of The Florida Bar for nearly 22 years. She spent most of her time in the Appellate Division of the State Attorney's Office where she became a highly respected appellate attorney. Then she decided to throw her hat into the JNC interview process.

By all accounts, it went really well. I say that because she made it to the Governor's desk on her first try, for an open County Court seat, in 2011. In fact, Lobree was Governor Scott’s first judicial appointment in Miami-Dade County. Of course, getting appointed to an open seat means you have to run in the next scheduled election. So, now County Court Judge Lobree needed to win with the voters. She was hoping, of course, to draw no opposition, and earn a full six year term on the County bench. 

No such luck. With a name like Fleur Lobree, she was easy pickin’. Attorney Michele Alvarez Barakat filed against "Incumbent" Judge Lobree and proceeded to trounce her on election day. And we are not just talking trounce. We are talking Jaguars v Dolphins playoff game trounce; (62-7 if my memory serves me correctly). Lobree lost in the most lobsided judicial election (involving an Incumbent that lost) in Miami-Dade County history. The final score: Barakat 71% and Lobree 29%.

The story gets better. The Lobree v. Barakat contest was playing out during the summer election season of 2012. At the same time, there came an open seat on the Circuit Court bench. Lobree is no dummy, and realizing she was in the midst of a hotly contested election to retain her seat, she applied for the open Circuit Court seat.

Another interview with the JNC, and they still loved her. That’s because her name was again chosen and sent to Governor Scott. By the time Scott conducted the interviews of the six finalists, Lobree had already lost the August 2012 election to Barakat. She was scheduled to hand over her gavel on January 2, 2013. Amazingly, Scott again chose Lobree and this time Lobree was to become a Circuit Court Judge. So, in an amazing twist of events, the voters voted her out of a County Court seat whilst at the same time the Governor promoted her to a Circuit Court seat.

So, with her new Circuit Court gavel, she was back in business by March of 2013, after taking an unpaid 60 day vacation. This time, everyone warned Lobree. With that name, she needed to start campaigning early and she needed to start raising money early. Whatever she did, it didn’t work. Since getting reappointed in March of 2013, in a period of one year, she raised only $17,500 from 86 contributors. She did pluck down $100,000 of her own money in November/December of 2013.

Meanwhile, attorney Mavel Ruiz, was clearly playing cat and mouse. Ruiz filed for Circuit Court in Group 27, in September of 2013. In October of 2013, Ruiz jumped out of Group 27 and into Group 58. Ruiz jumped ship again, and on April 18, she switched to Group 70. Finally, at 10:52 AM this morning, she made her final decision. It was the one that Fleur Lobree did not want to hear.

We are not criticizing Ms. Ruiz for what she did. That is part of the strategy of winning elections. No candidate goes into a contested election wanting to lose. Ruiz followed the rules and did what she felt like she needed to do, in order to maximize her chances of winning. But, this is what you get, when you have contested elections instead of an appointment system. 

Now it is left to the voters to decide between someone named Fleur Lobree vs. someone named Mavel Ruiz. 

Predictions ?????

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Attorney Marianne Salazar has withdrawn from the Group 46 race.  As for now, Judge Zabel is safe, and one hour from now, she likely will earn another six year term.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

JUDICIAL ELECTIONS 2014 

The clock is ticking and soon we will know who are the lucky Incumbents.  Lucky that they will not be forced to attend dozens of late afternoon and early evening fundraisers and give the same speech over and over again.  Lucky that they do not have to spend their entire summer trudging from Florida City north to Aventura; and from Miami Beach west to Sweetwater, and all the rest of this very cavernous Miami-Dade County.

At NOON today, as many as 32 Circuit and 7 County Court Judges will thank their lucky stars knowing that they are employed for yet another six year term.

Here is where we are as of close of business Thursday:

GROUP 16

Judge Leon Firtel is retiring.  TWO candidates have Qualified.  They include:

Thomas Cobitz
*24 years Florida Bar; criminal defense practice

Stephen Millan
*22 years FB; criminal defense practice; ran unsuccessfully in the past for Judge; 2006 lost to Karen Mills Francis in a County Court race; 2008 lost in a run-off to Yvonne Colodny in a three way race for a seat on the Circuit Court; (Pat Kopco was eliminated in the primary)

GROUP 26

Incumbent Judge Rodney Smith has drawn ONE opponent.

Judge Rodney Smith
*Judge Smith has been a member of The Florida Bar for 14 years. He was appointed to the Circuit Court by Governor Rick Scott, to an open seat, in July of 2012.   Before that, he was appointed to the County Court by Governor Crist in 2008.  He ran unopposed in 2010 to retain that County Court seat. In 2012, the Scott elevated him to Circuit Court.  This will be his first election at the Circuit level.  Smith previously served as an ASA, and an Assistant City Attorney for the City of Miami Beach before his appointment to the County Court, and then Circuit Court. 

Christian Carrazana
*13 years FB; he is an Associate at the law firm of Panter, Panter, and San Pedro. There, he is a trial and appellate attorney whose practice primarily focuses on first party insurance litigation. He specializes in representing healthcare providers and insureds who have had claims denied by various insurance carriers.

 GROUP 27

Judge Ronald Dresnick is retiring.  THREE candidates have  Qualified.  They include:

Mary Gomez
*18 years FB; marital and family practice

Albert Milian
*26 years FB; criminal defense practice; ran unsuccessfully for State Attorney in the past.  2000 lost to KF Rundle; 2004 lost to KF Rundle after defeating Leslie Rothenberg in the Republican primary; Gary Rosenberg also lost in the general election as he ran as an IND.

Joseph Perkins
*Mr. Perkins has been a member of The Florida Bar for 6 years.  He graduated from Drexel with a degree in International Area Studies and while there interned for a US Senator and performed research for a US Representative.  He went to law school at Boston University and while there acted as a student attorney representing indigent clients in immigration proceedings. He currently works for the law firm of Garbett, Stiphany, Allen and Roza, practicing in the area of complex commercial litigation, with an emphasis on representing small and large businesses, banks and financial institutions, and governmental entities, including the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.  We reached out to Mr. Perkins back in January, (as you may recall) and asked him why he was running for Judge.  To read his unedited response, please go to the Tuesday, January 21, 2014 Blog Post to read Mr. Perkins open letter to our readers on why he feels he is more than qualified to run for Judge.

GROUP 46

Incumbent Judge Sarah Zabel has drawn ONE opponent.

Judge Sarah Zabel:
*Judge Zabel has been a member of The Florida Bar for nearly 21 years and she has been on the bench since 2003. She was first elected in the 2002 Election cycle. She entered a four way race against Alex Akpodiete, Xavier Cortada, and Raul Ordonez.  She beat Ordonez in a run-off.  She was re-elected without opposition in 2008. 

Marianne Salazar (Has not yet paid her Qualifying Fee)
*Ms. Salazar has been a member of The Florida Bar for nearly 17 years. She lists her office in Palmetto Bay, but the address appears to be her home address as well.  She lists her areas of practice as: Business, Child and Family, Civil Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Construction, Contracts, Corporate, Family, Finance and Investments, Health Administration.  As pointed out by several of our loyal readers, she is very active in the Christian Family Coalition of Florida.


GROUP 58

Judge Marc "SHU" Schumacher is retiring.  TWO candidates have Qualified.  They include:

Oscar Rodriguez-Fonts
*13 years FB; criminal defense and immigration practice

Martin Zilber
*25 years FB; Mediator; Councilman in Coconut Grove; Public Health Trust Member; In House Counsel to transportation companies; insurance defense; corporate and real estate

GROUP 70

Judge Sandy Karlan is retiring.  THREE candidates have Qualified.  They include:

Veronica Diaz
*Ms. Diaz had previously filed to run in County Court against Incumbent Judge William Altfield.  On 4/17/14 she filed papers to run in this Circuit Court seat.  Ms. Diaz has been a member of The Florida Bar for 11 years. Prior to working for the City of Miami City Attorney’s Office, she was in private practice with two law firms where she specialized in commercial and real estate litigation. Ms. Diaz joined the Office of the City Attorney in March 2007. Presently, she practices in the Transactional Division where she handles complex commercial transactions for the City, including construction and development, public-private partnerships and other general business matters. She also serves as counsel to various City boards.  We have twice reached out to Ms. Diaz and asked her several questions about her qualifications.  We told her that her response would be posted, unedited.  We have not had the courtesy of a reply email.

Renier Diaz de la Portilla
*6 years FB; Miami-Dade School Board 8 years; Florida House Legislator 2 years, 2000-2002; (ran again in 2012 and lost); Mediator;

Mavel Ruiz
*17 years FB; criminal defense practice


COUNTY COURT

GROUP 19

Incumbent Judge Jacqueline Schwartz has TWO opponents.

Judge Jacqueline Schwartz
*Judge Schwartz has been a member of The Florida Bar for 22 years.  In 2002, after ten years of practicing law, she ran against Eric Hendon and barely won beating him by less than 5,900 votes of the more than 237,000 cast.  She was re-elected without opposition in 2008. 

Rachel Dooley
*Ms. Dooley has been a member of The Florida Bar for 16 years and handles criminal defense and family matters.

Frank Bocanegra
*Mr. Bocanegra has been a member of The Florida Bar for 6 years.  After a career in law enforcement with the MDPD, he became an attorney in 2008.  He quickly closed his law practice.  He then became the Town Manager of Miami Lakes.  And, last year he applied to become the Village Manager in North Bay Village.  Now he wants to be your County Court Judge.

GROUP 36

Incumbent Judge Nuria Saenz has ONE opponent.

Judge Nuria Saenz
*Judge Saenz has been a member of The Florida Bar for almost 17 years.  For at least the past eight (of those 17) years she has been on the bench.  She was elected, unopposed in 2008.  We are checking our records and believe she was appointed to an open seat by the Governor in 2006.

Victoria Ferrer
*Ms. Ferrer has been a member of The Florida Bar for 6 years.  She currently works for the Law Firm of Neil Gonzalez.  She handles PIP cases, PI cases, and real estate matters.



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

JUDICIAL ELECTIONS 2014 - UPDATED

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

JUDICIAL ELECTIONS 2014 
UPDATED REPORT .....

On Tuesday, August 26, 2014, voters will go to the polls for the Primary Election of 2014.  Judges in contested elections will be on the ballot that day.  If a Run-Off is needed, that will take place on Tuesday, November 4, 2014.

This election cycle, 47 judicial groups are up for election; 38 in the Circuit Court and 9 in the County Court.

The deadline to file your papers and run for office is Friday, May 2, 2014.

Currently, of the 38 Circuit Court Groups, there are four contested elections.  Of the other 34 Groups, all 34 Incumbents have filed to run and NONE have OPPOSTION to date.

In the County Court, all nine Incumbents have filed for re-election and TWO of those Incumbents currently face opposition.

CIRCUIT COURT

GROUP 16 (UPDATED)

Judge Leon Firtel is retiring.  TWO candidates have filed.  They include:

Thomas Cobitz
*24 years Florida Bar; criminal defense practice

Stephen Millan
*22 years FB; criminal defense practice; ran unsuccessfully in the past for Judge; 2006 lost to Karen Mills Francis in a County Court race; 2008 lost in a run-off to Yvonne Colodny in a three way race for a seat on the Circuit Court; (Pat Kopco was eliminated in the primary)

Renier Diaz de la Portilla
*6 years FB; Miami-Dade School Board 8 years; Florida House Legislator 2 years, 2000-2002; (ran again in 2012 and lost); Mediator; (HAS MOVED TO DIVISION 70 AS OF 4/21/14).

GROUP 27 (UPDATED)

Judge Ronald Dresnick is retiring.  THREE candidates have NOW filed.  They include:

Mary Gomez
*18 years FB; marital & family practice

Albert Milian
*26 years FB; criminal defense practice; ran unsuccessfully for State Attorney in the past.  2000 lost to KF Rundle; 2004 lost to KF Rundle after defeating Leslie Rothenberg in the Republican primary; Gary Rosenberg also lost in the general election as he ran as an IND.

Joseph Perkins (UPDATED)

*Mr. Perkins has been a member of The Florida Bar for 6 years.  He graduated from Drexel with a degree in International Area Studies and while there interned for a US Senator and performed research for a US Representative.  He went to law school at Boston University and while there acted as a student attorney representing indigent clients in immigration proceedings. He currently works for the law firm of Garbett, Stiphany, Allen & Roza, practicing in the area of complex commercial litigation, with an emphasis on representing small and large businesses, banks and financial institutions, and governmental entities, including the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.  We reached out to Mr. Perkins back in January, (as you may recall) and asked him why he was running for Judge.  To read his unedited response, please go to the Tuesday, January 21, 2014 Blog Post to read Mr. Perkins open letter to our readers on why he feels he is more than qualified to run for Judge.

GROUP 58

Judge Marc "SHU" Schumacher is retiring.  Three candidates have filed.  They include:

Oscar Rodriguez-Fonts
*13 years FB; criminal defense & immigration practice

Mavel Ruiz
*17 years FB; criminal defense practice

Martin Zilber
*25 years FB; Mediator; Councilman in Coconut Grove; Public Health Trust Member; In House Counsel to transportation companies; insurance defense; corporate & real estate

GROUP 70 (UPDATED)

Long time Judge Sandy Karlan has elected to retire.  Two candidates have filed.  They include:

Veronica Diaz (UPDATED)

*Ms. Diaz had previously filed to run in County Court against Incumbent Judge William Altfield.  On 4/17/14 she filed papers to run in this Circuit Court seat.  Four days later, de la Portilla joined her in the race. 

Ms. Diaz has been a member of The Florida Bar for 11 years. Prior to working for the City of Miami City Attorney’s Office, she was in private practice with two law firms where she specialized in commercial and real estate litigation. Ms. Diaz joined the Office of the City Attorney in March 2007. Presently, she practices in the Transactional Division where she handles complex commercial transactions for the City, including construction and development, public-private partnerships and other general business matters. She also serves as counsel to various City boards.  We have twice reached out to Ms. Diaz and asked her several questions about her qualifications.  We told her that her response would be posted, unedited.  We have not had the courtesy of a reply email.

Renier Diaz de la Portilla
*6 years FB; Miami-Dade School Board 8 years; Florida House Legislator 2 years, 2000-2002; (ran again in 2012 and lost); Mediator; (HAS MOVED TO DIVISION 70 AS OF 4/21/14).


*If we have made any errors in the bios, I am sure our fine readers will point them out and correct us.

The following Incumbent Judges have filed and currently have no opposition:

Jerald Bagley
Beatrice Butchko
Marcia Caballero
Jeri Beth Cohen
Yvonne Colodny
Jorge Cueto
Abby Cynamon
Reemberto Diaz
Spencer Eig
Ariana Fajardo
Rosa Figarola
Alan Fine
Stacy Glick
Eric Hendon
Richard Hersch
Jacqueline Hogan Scola
Norma Lindsey
Fleur Lobree
Peter Lopez
Cristina Miranda
Celeste Hardee Muir
Orlando Prescott
Thomas Rebull
Jose Rodriguez
Maria Sampedro-Iglesia
Migna Sanchez-Llorens
Bernard Shapiro
Victoria Sigler
Rodney Smith
Daryl Trawick
Dava Tunis
Diane Ward
Sarah Zabel
Angelica Zayas


COUNTY COURT

GROUP 13 (UPDATED)

William Altfield
*Judge Altfield initially drew opposition from attorney Veronica Diaz when she filed on March 14, 2014.  On April 17th she switched races and she is now running for an open seat on the Circuit Court.

If you drop by Judge Altfield's courtroom right about now, you may catch him humming his best impression of Pharrell's number one hit.

GROUP 19 (UPDATED)

Incumbent Judge Jacqueline Schwartz NOW has TWO opponents.  Attorney Rachel Dooley has filed to run against her.  And now, attorney Frank Bocanegra has also filed to run against her.

*Ms. Dooley has been a member of The Florida Bar for 16 years and handles criminal defense and family matters.

*Mr. Bocanegra has been a member of The Florida Bar for 6 years.  After a career in law enforcement with the MDPD, he became an attorney in 2008.  He quickly closed his law practice, presumably unsuccessfully.  He then became the Town Manager of Miami Lakes.  And, last year he applied to become the Village Manager in North Bay Village.  Now he wants to be your County Court Judge.

GROUP 36 (UPDATED)
Judge Nuria Saenz now has an opponent. On April 21, 2014, attorney Victoria Ferrer filed to run against her. 

Judge Nuria Saenz
*Judge Saenz has been a member of The Florida Bar for almost 17 years.  For at least the past eight (of those 17) years she has been on the bench.  We are checking our records and have been unable to confirm if she took the bench prior to 2006?

Victoria Ferrer
*Ms. Ferrer has been a member of The Florida Bar for 6 years.  She currently works for the Law Firm of Neil Gonzalez.  She handles PIP cases, PI cases, and real estate matters.

The following Incumbent Judges have filed and currently have no opposition:

William Altfield
Donald Cannava
Betty Capote
Jason Dimitris
Carlos Guzman
Spencer Multack
Rodolfo Ruiz II


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

Who's Running For Judge in 2014

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

JUDICIAL ELECTIONS 2014 .....

On Tuesday, August 26, 2014, voters will go to the polls for the Primary Election of 2014.  Judges in contested elections will be on the ballot that day.  If a Run-Off is needed, that will take place on Tuesday, November 4, 2014.

This election cycle, 47 judicial groups are up for election; 38 in the Circuit Court and 9 in the County Court.

The deadline to file your papers and run for office is Friday, May 2, 2014.

Currently, of the 38 Circuit Court Groups, there are three contested elections.  Of the other 35 Groups, 29 Incumbents have filed to run again while six sitting Judges have not yet filed their papers.

In the County Court, all nine Incumbents have filed for re-election and one of those Incumbents currently faces opposition.

CIRCUIT COURT

GROUP 16

Judge Leon Firtel is retiring.  Three candidates have filed.  They include:

Thomas Cobitz
*24 years Florida Bar; criminal defense practice

Renier Diaz de la Portilla
*6 years FB; Miami-Dade School Board 8 years; Florida House Legislator 2 years, 2000-2002; (ran again in 2012 and lost); Mediator;

Stephen Millan
*22 years FB; criminal defense practice; ran unsuccessfully in the past for Judge; 2006 lost to Karen Mills Francis in a County Court race; 2008 lost in a run-off to Yvonne Colodny in a three way race for a seat on the Circuit Court; (Pat Kopco was eliminated in the primary)

GROUP 27

Judge Ronald Dresnick is retiring.  Two candidates have filed.  They include:

Mary Gomez
*18 years FB; marital & family practice

Albert Milian
*26 years FB; criminal defense practice; ran unsuccessfully for State Attorney in the past.  2000 lost to KF Rundle; 2004 lost to KF Rundle after defeating Leslie Rothenberg in the Republican primary; Gary Rosenberg also lost in the general election as he ran as an IND.

GROUP 58

Judge Marc "SHU" Schumacher is retiring.  Three candidates have filed.  They include:

Oscar Rodriguez-Fonts
*13 years FB; criminal defense & immigration practice

Mavel Ruiz
*17 years FB; criminal defense practice

Martin Zilber
*25 years FB; Mediator; Councilman in Coconut Grove; Public Health Trust Member; In House Counsel to transportation companies; insurance defense; corporate & real estate

*If we have made any errors in the bios, I am sure our fine readers will point them out and correct us.

The following Incumbent Judges have not yet filed their papers for re-election:

Rosa Figarola
Eric Hendon
Cristina Miranda
Orlando Prescott
Bernard Shapiro
Dava Tunis

We have spoken with all six judges, and all have indicated that they intend to file their papers to seek re-election in 2014.

The following Incumbent Judges have filed and currently have no opposition:

Jerald Bagley
Beatrice Butchko
Marcia Caballero
Jeri Beth Cohen
Yvonne Colodny
Jorge Cueto
Abby Cynamon
Reemberto Diaz
Spencer Eig
Ariana Fajardo
Alan Fine
Stacy Glick
Richard Hersch
Jacqueline Hogan Scola
Sandy Karlan
Norma Lindsey
Fleur Lobree
Peter Lopez
Celeste Hardee Muir
Thomas Rebull
Jose Rodriguez
Maria Sampedro-Iglesia
Migna Sanchez-Llorens
Victoria Sigler
Rodney Smith
Daryl Trawick
Diane Ward
Sarah Zabel
Angelica Zayas

COUNTY COURT

GROUP 19

Incumbent Judge Jacqueline Schwartz has an opponent.  Attorney Rachel Dooley has filed to run against her. 

*Ms. Dooley has been a member of The Florida Bar for 16 years and handles criminal defense and family matters.

The following Incumbent Judges have filed and currently have no opposition:

William Altfield
Donald Cannava
Betty Capote
Jason Dimitris
Carlos Guzman
Spencer Multack
Rodolfo Ruiz II
Nuria Saenz

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