As we sip wines in Europe, and quaff an occasional ale, Judges continue to act poorly. Or in this case, former judges.
Just a reminder, even if you're a former judge and now just a lowly lawyer, YOU NEED TO DO YOUR CLE OR YOU WILL BE SUSPENDED ( as you just found out along with the rest of your collegaues via an article in the Florida Keys newspaper. ).
COUNTY COURT CONTRETEMPS
Long time and careful readers of the blog will recall when there was a Komisar of County Court, who tried to rule with an iron fist. Where is she now?
Well, in any event, there is a NEW COUNTY COURT SHERIFF in town (let's call him Sheriff Lenny), lately of felonies, and now, along with a former Chief of County Court who is whispering in his ear, the two of them are forming a cabal and want lawyers to know the FUN TIMES ARE OVER!
Discovery? Think hard about asking for it- bad things may happen.
Want BOT? Better JUMP when they saw now- BOT deadlines are being issued in hours, not days, as in "counsel, failure to respond to this email within the next two hours will result in BOT being withdrawn, and the prosecution seeking jail, not that we ever threaten defendants or punish them for going to trial."
Trial Days: When the state says "ready" they are ready, and they do not need to have their witnesses in court. A ready announcement will result in a jury being brought down.
Put another way, the ways of doing things for the last 50 years have changed in county court now that there is a NEW SHERIFF IN TOWN. The state doesn't need to have their witnesses in court. Think they don't have witnesses? Start voir dire and see who shows up.
Let's see if the County Court Judges have the cojones to put an end to this madness or let's see if SHERIFF LENNY wins the stare down with the state and the defense.
The sad part of this is that new prosecutors are being indoctrinated with the ethics of pushing defendants around. Back when Janet Reno was State Attorney, she called each one of them into her office and said a few simple things like "do the right thing", "go where the evidence takes you and don't pay any attention to politics or pressure", and "the proudest moments you should have as a prosecutor is for the cases you do not prosecute because that is the right thing to do".
If you're a new prosecutor and reading this, just remember one of Rumpole's maxims: "You will spend a career building a reputation, and you can ruin it in a moment" (like if you're a division prosecutor and a judge removes you from their division for acting sleezy, which has been known to occur from time to time....right?")