POST ELECTION ANALYSIS ........ COVID STYLE

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

SOME POST ELECTION ANALYSIS .......

JUDGE TUNIS

The Blog has rarely received as much negative commentary about one criminal court judge. Peter Adrien comes to mind, but that was for a totally different kind of criticism. No doubt Judge Tunis was not a favorite of many of our readers.

First, Tunis got caught with her pants down. She sat on the County and Circuit Court bench for 20 years and she never once had opposition in an election. She expected the same in 2020. Her opponent, Ms. Aponte, it could also be said, never drew so much commentary compared to any other challenger to an incumbent. That commentary from our readers was certainly ignited by the explosive writings of our Blog's Author, Horace Rumpole.

Aponte filed against Judge Gordon Murray in Group 38 of County Court in September of 2019 and she Qualified for that race. She was in that race through Thursday of Qualifying Week. It was one day before the end of Qualifying when she pulled the switcheroo and jumped into the Circuit Court race against Tunis.

Tunis threw down $150,000 of her own money into her campaign war chest figuring that would scare off any opponents. In fact she did virtually zero campaigning through March of 2020. She had only raised $8,575 when Aponte jumped into the race. Contrary to some comments from yesterday, Tunis did go on to raise a total of $128,000 from 326 contributors for the overall campaign.

Aponte, as I reported earlier, had the least amount of contributors for a winning contested election in the history of Miami-Dade County, ten people gave a total of $6,300 (and two of them were Joe Klock ($750) and his Law Firm Rasco Klock ($500).

Anyone who actually thinks that the 209,895 citizens who cast their vote for Aponte had a clue as to the negative commentary about Tunis - well, you all have been smoking your client’s hydroponic weed.

Aponte lost in 2016 to Oscar "Rodriguez-Fonts"; (Carol Breece was also in that race; Aponte came in third). Aponte lost in 2018 to Kristy "Nunez".

JUDGE REBULL

Another incumbent who drew a last minute challenger. Ms. Martinez-Scanziani also filed on the Thursday of Qualifying Week, one day before the deadline. But, Rebull was prepared for a challenge. He raised more money than we have seen in a contested raise in probably the past two decades. Rebull raised a total of $408,400 and spent over $387,000 as of last week.

Ms. Martinez-Scanziani raised only $55,000 and spent it all. She also was a previous two-time loser having lost to Judge Bernie Shapiro in 2008 and then again in 2016 in a four way race against eventual winner Mark Blumstein, and Luis Perez-Medina, and Renee Gordon; (Martinez came in last).

For those of you who think that the 192,744 voters for Martinez-Scanziani knew anything about the "transcript" or about Rebull and his courtroom demeanor - well you all have been smoking the same weed.

JUDGE MANSFIELD

Joe clearly was not prepared for a campaign. Not sure why as he was an appointed judge facing the voters for the first time. He raised $17,800 while his opponent Miguel Mirabal raised over $68,000. (Does Mirabal’s campaign photo remind you of a 1970's porn star?). (Go here for a look).

A wise commenter pointed out that Anglos have beaten Hispanics in recent judicial contests. But, what they didn’t factor in was the very different kind of campaign we had in 2020. Pre-Covid was the time when every candidate attended a live breakfast in Homestead or Perrine, a lunch in Little Havana or Hialeah and a dinner in Aventura or Miami Gardens, every single day from April until August. Thousands upon thousands of voters had the opportunity to see and hear and speak with the actual candidates. They were much better able to separate the wheat from the chaff. Not so with this election - and that my friends made all the difference in the world. Heck, Rosy Aponte, not only didn’t have to attend those breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, she didn’t even attend the Zoom forums following her "colored people" comment to the Black Lawyers (Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. Bar Association) forum.

NORTH OF THE BORDER

STATE ATTORNEY

A complete shocker in Browierd as heavily favored candidate Sarahnell Murphy, a 24 year veteran of Mike Satz’ office and the candidate Satz endorsed lost in an eight way battle to a black attorney named Harold Fernandez Pryor. Pryor has been an attorney for all of seven years; (he served as an ASA for three of them). In fact Murphy could do no better than third behind Pryor and Joe Kimok (who lost to Pryor by a mere 2,600 votes out of the 206,200 cast).

Expect to see a major shake-up of the policies and procedures in the Broward State Attorney’s Office and they are both welcomed and way overdo.

PUBLIC DEFENDER

No surprise in Broward’s newly elected PD Gordon Weekes, who was Howard Finklestein’s number two for the past decade. What was a shocker is what Finkelstein did the day after the election.

He fired Weekes opponent, Ruby Green. Weekes faced retired judge Tom Lynch and Green; (Ruby came in a respectable second place). Green is 33 years old and had spent her entire eight year career working for Finkelstein and under Weekes. Weekes was the anointed successor to Finkelstein but Tom Lynch, and Green, decided to take their best shots.

Green is the current President of BACDL and she told the Sun Sentinel that she had no doubt she would be terminated after the election. From the Sun Sentinel:

"I was told not to run, I was told I couldn’t do it and I was told I was going to get fired," she wrote. "Nevertheless, I persisted because I know I am the change we seek. I know that there are so many things that happen in this office that are just down right WRONG, and I refused to sit back and let it happen ... This is not going to stop me."

Green received the following email from Finkelstein, on Wednesday at 8:34 AM:

"Thank you for your service. Your services are no longer required. Your termination is immediate."


T-74 days until the real Super Tuesday, November 3, 2020

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

FREE SPEECH, NORTH OF THE BORDER

BREAKING: EX MIAMI BEACH POLICE OFFICER "FUNNY FACE" DERICK KUILAN, HAS BEEN SENTENCED TO 18 MONTHS FSP.  MIAMI HERALD STORY IS HERE

BREAKING: KEN KUKEC ARRESTED IN KEYS FOR POSSESSION OF COCAINE. KEY'S NET HAS THE STORY HERE. 

BREAKING MIRANDA RE-SENTENCES ALEX MICHAELS-
In a hearing that appeared to many observers to be more contentious than the outcome, Judge Miranda sentenced Alex Michaels to an adjudication, six months probation, 50 community service hours, and 2 hours of CLE in an ethics course. 

Query: The case was on remand from the 3rd DCA. One of two counts of contempt were vacated, as was the original sentence of two days. Did Miranda have authority to increase the sentence, and was this an increased sentence? Take our new poll. 

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

FREE SPEECH, NORTH OF THE BORDER  .................

My Mother's Day Facebook post:

"Happy Mothers day to all the crack hoes out there.  It's never too late to tie your tubes, clean up your life and make (a) difference to someone out there that deserves a better mother."

My Facebook post after reading about a 19 year old home invasion suspect who was met with brut force by the residents of the home:

"They should have shot him in the head, anyone that invades another home, in a violent manner should be executed on the spot."

My Facebook post made in the midst of the Donald Sterling controversy:

"Join me in supporting free speech and the right to have your own private opinions kept that way (regardless if you agree with them). Join me in changing your FaceBook profile photo to one of DONALD STERLING!!!."

And finally, my "fast food" Facebook post showing a photo of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court Sonya Sotomayor:

"Reason enough why no country should ever engage in the practice of Affirmative Action again.  This could be the result.  Where would she be if she didn't hit the quota lottery?  Here's a hint. "Would you like to supersize that sir?"

Those four posts are not mine.  They are the posts from Assistant State's Attorney Kenneth Lewis, one of the top prosecutor's in the Orange County (Orlando) State Attorney's Office.

Elected State Attorney Jeff Ashton, (Ashton was the lead prosecutor in the 2011 Casey Anthony trial), in response to the backlash that the posts created has stated: "I am not going to punish someone for what is clearly political speech." 

WFTV's coverage can be found here.

Contrast that to what has been going on in Broweird County recently.  No, it's not what you think - there were no citing's of a Broward County Judge getting arrested this week.

Instead, this time the focus is on the Public Defender's Office; specifically on two Assistant Public Defenders' and one elected PD named "Help Me Howard" Finklestein.

In case you missed it last week, three Israeli teenagers were murdered and in the coverage that followed it was reported that Palestinians were celebrating about the kidnapping and murder of the three teen-age boys.  Someone posted on their FB page about the celebrations. 

APD  Gary Sheres and APD Bruce Raticoff both commented on the article about the Palestinian's celebration.  The comments stated that Palestinians are "filthy swine'' and "cockroaches.''

Sheres wrote: "They are filthy swine they don't eat. Their ignorance to the world bewilders the dumbest people I have ever met."

Raticoff added: "That's why the Palestinian people are considered the cockroaches of the world. Reprehensible and despicable with utter disregard for civility and humanity. Burn them to the ground." 

The Sun Sentinel's coverage can be found here.

Today, after meeting with both attorneys, Finklestein's response was swift and strong.  In the words of Donald Trump, "YOU'RE FIRED".

New Times coverage of the firings can be found here.

So, who was right?

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