YOUR NEXT COUNTY JUDGE IS HERE

Update: Michael Vick released from prison. We know you really needed to know that. 

UPDATE: Silent Charlie still silent. Day three. While we wonder- where did the money go?

A READER WROTE IN WITH THIS LIST OF ATTORNEYS APPLYING FOR  COUNTY COURT JUDGE.

The reader's comments to the list are in yesterdays comment's section.  We do not pass any judgment except to say we agree with the person who posted the original comment: ASA Bill Altfield would be the perfect selection. We cannot think of another attorney so universally respected who has the experience and temperament to be a great judge.  

Shhhhhs: CARLOS MARTINEZ STILL SILENT: DAY TWO 

Before we get to the candidates, a reader yesterday informed us in the comments section that long time attorney and perennial judicial candidate Albert Zemlock has passed away. Known for campaigning with a large Z, Zemlock was a character and and a self admitted "nut" when it came to running for judge. He once had a plane fly a large Z over Miami on election day. 

William Ira Altfield (Great choice)
Maria T. Armas
Bart Haskell Armstrong 
Tanya J. Brinkley 
Veronica P. Clarke 
Joseph I. Davis, Jr. 
Michael H. Galex 
Ivy R. Ginsberg 
Diana Elizabeth Gonzalez 
Monica Gordo 
Tamara Ilene Gray 
Jose Ricardo Iglesias 
Michael R. Jones 
Bonita Jones-Peabody 
Kristi F. Kassenbaum 
Robert James Kuntz, Jr. 
James E. Leano 
Barry Marc Mankes 
Lynette McGuiness 
Gina Mendez 
Stephen T. Millan 
Barnaby L. Min 
Anita Margot Moss 
Gordon Charles Murray, Sr. 
Alicia M. Otazo-Reyes 
Jeffrey Joseph Pardo 
Michaelle Gonzalez Paulson 
Gladys Perez 
Margaret Ann Rosenbaum 
Michele Samaroo 
Lourdes Simon 
Jeffrey D. Swartz 
Alan Adrian Taylor 
Marie Jo Toussaint 
Angelica D. Zayas 

STRANGELY SILENT

(For a guy that clearly knows how to use a phone, Carlos Martinez is strangely silent these days.)

For a lawyer, for a defender, for an advocate for the poor, the weak, the gullible,  Miami Public Defender Carlos Martinez remains strangely silent over the controversy regarding his office.

His employees are not, judging from the response in the comments section of the last post. 

THE ACCUSATION: That facing times of trouble and crisis, the Miami Dade Public Defenders office used money designated by the Florida legislature for 16 new attorney positions for raises- mostly for upper echelon employees.  Someone from the Dade PDs office signed off on a budget request that included positions for 16 attorneys that they never had any intention of hiring. Who did that? Why?  Is it legal?  Do taxpayers have any rights here to find out what's going on in the Dade PDs office? What about the Florida Legislature? Do they care? How about other SAO and PDs offices who submitted legitimate budgets without straw positions? They played by the rules.  Do they have a right to complain?

There are lots of questions. Unfortunately, the person who knows the answers isn't speaking. 

THE RESPONSE BY CARLOS MARTINEZ:

(this space for rent. Inquire 305-545-1600. Ask for Carlos.)

THE FALLOUT: The 3rd DCA just spanked his office. More than 40 private attorneys have agreed to pitch in and help out the PDs office by taking cases for free. Now those attorneys are learning that they are working for free, not because the PDs office has no funds for new attorneys, but because the PDs office chose to use that  money for raises for  long term employees who mostly are not those in court fighting for clients. 

THE LEGAL COMMUNITY AWAITS THE RESPONSE FROM "SILENT CHARLIE." 

PLEASE RESPOND

OK Carlos Martinez (BHB) here's your forum. 

The criminal legal community is watching. 

The 3rd DCA just spanked you and said that you (BHB) made poor choices in spending money for new attorneys on raises for existing attorneys. Several in-court  PDs have sent us emails saying they haven't received a cost of living increase in a few years.

SO WHERE DID THE MONEY GO?

 

Were the raises given to top echelon attorneys who are not the ones in court trying cases and holding the line against overwhelming odds?  

Is the 3rd DCA wrong?

You have a serious morale problem bubbling beneath the surface and we have the emails to prove it. 

So as we said once before to another PD in another circumstance, PUT DOWN THAT DANISH  and answer the question:

WHERE DID THE MONEY GO?

See you in court. (Well not you Carlos, but we will see those hard working, under paid PDS who haven't had a COLA in a while. ) 

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

BREAKING NEWS ...................

3RD DCA ISSUES THEIR OPINION ON PUBLIC DEFENDER CONFLICT CASE


While I have no doubt that Rumpole will provide you with a more comprehensive review of the very important decisions reached by that august body in Southwest Dade, one opinion today needs to be immediately reported .....


The State of Florida and Office of Criminal Conflict
and Civil Regional Counsel, Third District Court of Appeal Region
Appellants,
vs.
Public Defender, Eleventh Judicial Circuit,
Appellee.

http://www.3dca.flcourts.org/Opinions/3D08-2272.pdf

The 3rd has reversed the decision of the Honorable Judge Stanford Blake. The panel of Judges, SHEPHERD, CORTIÑAS, and SALTER, JJ. issued a 20 page opinion. They collectively asserted their genuine heartfelt feelings for the Public Defender's Office and their individual assistants for the inadequate level of funding that is provided to them by the legislature. But, they said, this case is not one that belongs in the Courts, instead, the P.D.'s beef is with Tallahassee and that is where they should take it.

They pointed out that any concerns for clients receiving inadequate representation must be decided on a case by case basis, and not by permitting the collective withdrawal by the PD from nearly 12,000 cases. They also pointed out that the legislature amended the laws regarding withdrawal from a case in 2007 and that excessive caseloads in simply not a grounds that would permit withdrawal from a case.

So, Mr. Public Defender Martinez (formerly BHB), in a nutshell, the 3rd is telling you to take a hike, up the Turnpike, then to I-75, make a left turn at I-10 and stop in the town where 120 House members and 40 Senators and 1 Governor decide, in dollars and cents, what constitutes competent representation under the 6th amendment.

...... turning to other 3rd DCA opinions issued today, one can sum up the day as follows: JUDGE BARBARA ARECES -2 : STATE OF FLORIDA - 0

While Judge Areces occasionally gets knocked on this Blog for her lack of experience in the field of criminal law, today, the 3rd DCA spanked the State of Florida and affirmed Areces on two separate cases.

In State v. Trujillo, (http://www.3dca.flcourts.org/Opinions/3D07-1814.pdf), the State tried a "backdoor approach" to something they could not fit through Judge Areces' front courtroom doors. The panel recognized it and said no. The actual issue surrounded the defendant’s motion to compel the identity of the confidential informant. The interesting part of the read, worth quoting in full here, comes from CJ David Gersten:

"Although not germane to this appeal, I harken back to my first reversal as a circuit judge. The reversal involved a similar situation, where I ordered disclosure of a confidential informant. Assistant State Attorney Tom Robertson, the State’s division chief, petitioned for certiorari. This Honorable Court reversed me, holding that the disclosure of the identity and whereabouts of the confidential informant was not necessary to the defense. See State v. Perez, 438 So. 2d 436, 439 (Fla. 3d DCA 1983). This footnote is proof of a trial judge’s elephantine memory. Though many trial judges claim they do not mind reversal, I believe that the sting of reversal never disappears. "

In State v. Suarez, (http://www.3dca.flcourts.org/Opinions/3D07-3342.pdf), the State again lost to Judge Areces. In this case, the Judge granted a Motion to Dismiss based on expired statute of limitations. The defendant was charged by Information with grand theft and burglary. Thereafter, the State issued a warrant for the defendant’s arrest while he was incarcerated in a federal prison located in Florida. The Statute of Limitations ran before he was served with the warrant. The State argued that he was "absent from the state for the purposes of the statute". The defense argued that he was in fact "physically present and not absent from the State of Florida". The Court affirmed the dismissal.

CAPTAIN OUT .........................

LOCAL NEWS

The BBC is on fire today. 

The Vatican denies Pope (Adolf) Benedict's participation in the Hitler Youth, although the Pope himself has admitted it. 

The BBC reports here on the convictions of 5 of 6 defendant's in Miami Federal court after 16 or so trials.

Congrats to Richard Houlihan who is alone among the attorneys in that case who will not be filling out notice of appeal forms. Good work Richard. 

Here's the point with the BBC stuff- if these trends keep up, local news will soon be gone. No one to report on County Commissioners doubling dipping into their expense accounts; no one to wander the hallways of the courthouse at 2PM and write about all the Judges missing.; no one to write about the cops accused of misconduct and no one to write about the injustice of trying defendants over and over until the government gets a conviction. 

We can function without Susannah Nesmith. We cannot function without the Susannah Nesmith's of the world. It's a scary thought that the free press is fading  away not with an assault against the first amendment, but because the morons who made the business decisions for newspapers  didn't see  five years ago Craigslist was about to cripple their classified ad income. 

Al Gore's "lock box" for Social Security will be gone in 2037, 4 years earlier than thought, and bad news for those of us who are aging baby boomers and write blogs in our spare time. The NY Times reports here. 

This what the blog is when we do not have the luxury of the past few weeks of Judges royally screwing up.  Even a broken clock is correct twice a day.

Oh wait. There is some really big courthouse news. The traffic clerk's attorney room, which previously opened at 8:30 to just accept pleadings will now.......ta da!!!!  Do all of the functions the clerks office does during regular hours!!!! Yea!!!!  

Besides accepting pleadings between 8:30 and 9:00 am, the clerk's office will now perform the regular functions of making you wait an interminable period of time while they perform the most mundane tasks. Thanks to Richard Hersch and the traffic guys for really going out on a limb and getting this done. 

If you want our opinion (and since you're reading the blog you must) the way to fix county court, traffic court, and the clerk's office mess  is to rent a really large cruise ship- load the whole lot of them on it- take it out into the ocean- and sink the sucker with a torpedo. And then start over. 

See You In Court. 

SCALIA UNLEASHED.

The most engaging, interesting and perhaps (just perhaps) the brightest of the Supreme Court Justices  recently let loose in a talk at the American University's College of Law. 

The title links to the Time's article. 

Here's something even our favourite federal blogger will like: Scalia on Hahvad:

“By and large,” he said, “I’m going to be picking from the law schools that basically are the hardest to get into. They admit the best and the brightest, and they may not teach very well (Rumpole wails: "say it an't so Mr. Markus") , but you can’t make a sow’s ear out of a silk purse. If they come in the best and the brightest, they’re probably going to leave the best and the brightest, O.K.?”

So which is it David: Silk purse or sow's ear? (ps. we know we're  a "know nothing peon"  who did not go to a "best and brightest" law school. But, uh, isn't the phrase "make a silk  purse out of a sow's ear" and not the reverse ? Just wonderin...)

In response to another question, Justice Scalia made a point about how he interprets statutes. He used an opinion by Justice Stevens in an important administrative law case, Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council, to explain why he believed that comments from legislators were irrelevant in figuring out what statutes meant.

“Do I have to defer to John Paul Stevens because he’s the author?” Justice Scalia asked. “ ‘Oh, John, you wrote Chevron. You must know what it means.’ Of course not! John doesn’t know what it means! Once you let loose the judicial opinion, John, it has a life of its own, and it means what it says.”

“Now why should legislation be any different?” Justice Scalia added. “Once Congress floats that text out there, it has its own life. It means what it means. It means what it says.

Hmm...the authors of a law don't know what they wrote. "It means what it means" says Nino.

 Hmm...what those who wrote it think it means - that means nothing.

Hmmm....sort of puts a dent in "original interpretation" huh? 

But what do we know? We didn't pahk our cah in the Havahd yahd. *

We also don't run $700 million dollar ponzi schemes after going to Yale and Havahd law school as Havahd law school alumnus Mark Drier just pled guilty to on Monday. 

NOT GUILTY IN BROWARD CAPITAL MURDER CASE

North of the Border, which leads the state in acquittals at trial, just took a torpedo beneath the waterline last Thursday as as defendant accused of the murder, sexual battery, and strangulation of a young woman was acquitted of all charges. 

Yes you read that correct. A capital death penalty murder case. And the defendant was acquitted. Of everything.  Not guilty.  

Only North of the Border. 

The title of the post links to the Sun Sentinel article. 

ASA Shari Tate was the trial prosecutor of this ship as it went down. 

Defense attorneys were Jim Lewis (guilt phase) and Kevin Kulik (penalty phase). 

Perhaps it's time for Mr. Satz to take a look into the budget and find money to hire 

someone who knows what the hell he's doing in investigating and prosecuting death cases. Can you think of anyone we know who might be available for such a job for the next few years? Hint: his name is often misspelled as "Laser".

See you in court. 

HARD AT WORK

Here was the scene (sent to us by an alert reader) last week at approximately 10:00 AM. With at least three escalators out, denizens of the REGJB took bets on the 45 minute period the escalator technicians would actually stop their breaks and do some work. The winner was apparently a bailiff who correctly guessed 2:00-2:45 pm. 

And speaking of hard at work, we received an invitation from Judge Deborah White-Labora regarding the 20th Anniversary of Drug Court.  

As many of you know the first  Drug Court in the nation  started right here, in our building, with Judge Stanley Goldstein.  Drug Courts now number in the hundreds across the nation. And they all look to Miami Dade as the one who started it all. 

Judge White-Labora extended an invitation to all of us to attend the celebrations on May 20, 2009 at the steps of the Civil Courthouse (naturally. Why hold the celebration at the actual building where Drug Court is? That would be way too logical.) 

The festivities start at 8:00 AM (!!!!) at 73 West Flagler street, and despite our cheap shot about the location, it's a worthy event that should be attended. 

The people at drug court work very hard. The fourth floor courtroom is not one that you will see empty at 1 or 2 pm. The hard work of the lawyers and staff goes well on into the afternoon and evening. 

And the lives they save....well just imagine the downward spiral of drug abuse and crime. Calculate the costs to our society for every addict that we end up sending to prison for years because they snatched a purse or sold some drugs to support their habit. And now realize that thousands of those potential inmates are hardworking and productive citizens all because of an idea a few people had 20 years ago that worked. 

The next time the SAO asks your client to make a donation....think about Friends of Drug court.  (If it's good enough for Rush Limbaugh, it should be good enough for your client.) 

More details to follow on the 20th anniversary  as soon as someone tells us what else is going on. 

A CHILLING EFFECT

Before we begin, we continue our story that broke late yesterday that Circuit Judge Tam Wilson will be retiring this coming October, 2009. 

A CHILLING EFFECT:

The Justice Department has announced  that the former Justice Department lawyers who authored legal memos justifying the use of coercive (read, torture) tactics against Al Queda prisoners, will not be subject to legal prosecution.  The title of the post links to the article. 

Huh?

Lets, break it down to its simplest elements. 

The United States Justice Department will NOT prosecute attorneys who rendered a legal opinion that we now believe to be both wrong, and odious to the principles upon which this country was founded. 

Since when was it a crime to author a legal opinion?

Many of us are called from time to time to interpret statutes and case law for our clients. Those who have a modicum of talent for it command a high fee for their abilities. (The others are mostly likely to don a black robe at some point, but that's another subject for another day.)  

Many times the legal opinion is correct. Sometimes it is not.  Under what theory can having the wrong view of a law render the attorney subject to criminal prosecution?

Can you imagine the chilling effect prosecuting lawyers for having the wrong opinion about a law would create?   

Lawyers who have been "house counsel" for criminal organizations have been subject to prosecution. But in those cases the prosecution was able to prove that the attorneys entered into a conspiracy to assist their clients in breaking the law. 

In the "torture memo" case, the issue is whether  Justice Department attorneys committed  a crime by giving  a legal opinion endorsing as legal  the methods the CIA wanted to use to extract information?

In our opinion the authors of the "torture memos" were dead wrong.  Their view of the Constitution was antithetical to all that we believe the Constitution stands for.  However, the operative phrases there are "in our opinion" and "we believe." 

Can you prosecute attorneys for having the "wrong" opinion? Who decides what is right and what is wrong? 

In the 1950s the government  prosecuted  attorneys for being communists. Do we want to go back to those days? 

According to the NY Times article, the Justice Department is not ruling out seeking action against the attorneys by their respective state bar associations. This is just as bad. "We may not throw you in prison for having the wrong views, but we might just take away your ability to practice law." 

Nothing about this is good. 

The issue of torture has fallen before the crucible of American opinion, American elections, and the debate among Americans. Hopefully future presidents and future generations will learn from Bush's folly.  But we gain nothing, and we lose our ideals and our identity when we prosecute thought and opinion, no matter how wrong, no matter how "Anti-American" the opinions are. 

See you in court, wearing a coat, because it's getting a bit chilly out there. 

THE FRED STRIKES BACK

BREAKING BLOG NEWS: From reporter Bill Shields via the South Florida Lawyers Blog: Circuit Court Judge Tam Wilson is .....outta here. Come October 2009 Judge Wilson will retire to golf, pina coladas, late lunches, early dinners...which if you think about it, sort of begs the question as to why retire when the State of Florida will pay you more than 150K a year to do that and all you have to do is wear that dopy robe? 

 But lets not rain on Judge Tam Wilson's parade. He was a good, fair, hard working judge. And we echo the sentiment of the Civil Blog guy- we may never have always gotten what we wanted from Judge Wilson,  but we never left his courtroom without believing that our client  got a full and fair hearing on the issues. Tam Wilson was one of the really good guys and his departure leaves a hole on the Dade Bench that will be hard to fill. *

Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. 

Albert Einstein. 

After last week's dustup over Judge Fred Seraphin's putative refusal to call attorneys out of turn during the busy Wednesday sounding calendar in County Court, we sent our spy to Judge Serpahin's courtroom Wednesday morning for a report. The result- a favorable, if somewhat over enthusiastic,  report for Judge Seraphin. 

Rumpole,  I'm here outside courtroom 4-9 at 9:10 and something amazing is going on: the courtroom is quiet and empty. There is a sign announcing Judge Seraphin's new policy- attorneys will be called out of turn between 8:30 and 9:30 am. 

Not since Judge Fred Nesbitt prowled the hallways of County Court in his bright blue robe, terrifying prosecutors and generally snarling at everyone, have I seen a more contentious problem then what was brewing between defense attorneys and Judge Seraphin these past few weeks.  And then,  just like that, PRESTO!!!  A little good old fashion common sense has everybody singing a different tune.  The Judge seems happier. The attorneys are happier. Even the pro se defendants are happier. .... As Bob Dylan sang, "the times" old rumpy, "they are a changing..."  This is county court agent 99 signing out.

Rumpole says: Well done Judge Seraphin. Well done indeed. 

Coming up next on the blog-  Can they really consider prosecuting lawyers for their written legal opinions? Only on your humble little Justice Building Blog. 

See You in Court,  with a new and fuller appreciation for the fact that there really is no cure for drinking too much Tequila. 

*there is absolutely, positively no hidden connection whatsoever between our phrase 

"...leaves a hole...." and the phrase associated with those last two words, and Judge Wilson. Would but we could say that for the rest of his brethren. 

CINCO DE MAYO

UPDATE: WEDNESDAY. uhhhhhgggghh. No more Tequila. Ever. Going back to sleep. 

HAPPY CINCO DE MAYO 

Unfortunately this Cinco De Mayo is turning out like most other Cinco De Mayos, meaning we might not make court tomorrow. Ole!

WHAT HAVE WE WROUGHT?

Before we address the article, the Broward Blog reports the bill to do away with depos on 3rd degree felonies has died. This year. Like a vampire, most bills bad for criminal defense will rise once again to walk the earth (or Tallahassee) searching for sponsors ready to feed it on the blood of public opinion. 

 

SEXUAL PREDATORS LIVE UNDER MIAMI BRIDGE. 

The title of the post links to the compelling Miami Herald article that details the growing population (now 66, up from 22 a year ago) of convicts who are forced to live under the Julia Tuttle Causeway so as to satisfy the requirement that they not live within 2,500 feet where children gather. 

Let us be clear on this: children are our most precious resource and should be carefully protected at almost any cost. The devastating impact of sexual abuse creates a cycle that perpetuates from generation to generation. We are not decrying the law designed to protect children. We are just noting that a certain amount of fundamental decency requires that if we are going to have and enforce this law, the people convicted need a decent place to stay.  

Living under a bridge  doesn't do anything to help this problem. 

Cuba doesn't do this to their citizens. 

North Korea doesn't do this to their citizens. Neither does Iran, or China, or any other country that we berate for not having as civilized a justice system as we have here. 

It's a good thing to keep sexual predators away from children. 

It's an embarrassment to force them to live under a bridge. 

See you in court, still wearing a mask because of the swine flu. 

FACDL BANQUET LAST NIGHT

Rick Freeman wraps up a good year as president. 

Hector Flores   (former hot shot federal PD, and now in private practice, and the husband of blog favourite Judge Mary Barzee to boot) now takes over as President for the next year. 

Awards were given.  Speeches were made.  It's a good organization and if you haven't joined (and aren't a prosecutor) you should. 

We would have been there, except we were drinking some exceptional Kentucky Burbon.

Jack Kemp, Republican luminary, who was notable for his embracing supply side economics and for promoting the Republican Party (as the Party of Lincoln he liked to say) to embrace minorities, has passed away. Sad to note that at this point, both of Mr. Kemp's major causes have not been successful. 

The NY Times Obit is here.

The Republican party is disintegrating. It has imploded upon itself in a orgy of hate and bitterness. Arlen Spector was one of the last gentlemen senators who came from a time when working with politicians across the aisle was not cause or being thrown out of your party. About the only one left is John McCain, and when he goes, the party will be a marginalized group of religious conservatives. 

Plus, right now they are just having a run of extraordinary bad luck. It was the Republicans who screamed and yelled a few weeks ago until Obama removed 850 from the stimulus package that was designated for enhancing the response to a Flu Pandemic. Ouch. 

See you in court tomorrow, and please wash your hands first. 

RUN FOR THE ROSES

Today is the 135 running of the Kentucky Derby. 

Friesan Fire is the favorite, but who wants to bet on chalk? Where's the fun in that? 

Lets look a little deeper.

Papa Clem at 13-1 is the horse everyone is overlooking. He had a blazing workout this week, and he runs well on a sloppy track. We may have a bit of rain here in Kentucky today.  He finished second to Freisan in Louisana, but this is a different race on a different track.  One of the top Jocks- Rafael Bejarano is on board, and we like that. 

The Florida horse is Dunkirk, who ran second in the Florida Derby. However, he has had a five week layoff, and he lacks the real credentials to compete here. 

I Want Revenge (which is not the slogan of Jeff Swartz's new campaign for Judge) is the class of the California horses. He won the Wood Memorial after a bad start, so his ability to come from behind is proven. However, he may be a bit of a stalker, but he has legitimate speed. 

So, if you want to throw out the favorites, here is our tri-fecta:

Papa Clem; I Want Revenge; and now you can take your pick- you can throw in Freisan, or Dunkirk, or a Bob Baffert entry- Pioneer of the Nile. 

Enjoy the race; have fun, and if we bump into Judge Ward and Eddie O'Donnell, who are rumoured to be out here,  at the finish line, we'll let you know. 

UPDATE- I Want Revenge has just been scratched. So we're going to add Baffert's horse- Pioneer of the Nile to our Trifecta. 

JOHNNY K NEW CIRCUIT JUDGE

UPDATE: AU REVOIR SUSANNAH NESMITH - see below.

John Kastrenakis, long known in these parts as an assistant state attorney who, along with ASA Kevin Digregory obtained a hard fought for  murder conviction against Joyce Cohen for plotting to kill her wealthy husband in their Coconut Grove house, has been appointed a Circuit Court Judge in West Palm Beach. 

After leaving the SAO Kastrenakis was an AUSA in Dade, Broward and most recently West Palm. 

The title of the post links to the Palm Beach Post article. 

Johnny K  In, Souter OUT,  beyond the timing there's not much else linking these two stories.

Rumpole and friends,

I've already talked to a bunch of the Justice Building regulars, but I wanted to let everyone know, I have left the Herald as part of the recent "force reduction." The story on Abe was my last.

Thanks for the help so many of you have given me over the years, understanding the courthouse and the law. The Justice Building is a fascinating place to cover.

I'm still in town, looking for work, and even considering going to law school, if I can find a way to pay for it.

I hope many of you will stay in touch. My cell stays the same, 305-772-4380. My personal email is susannahnesmith@yahoo.com

Susannah Nesmith
former Herald scribe

Rumpole ponders.....we never got to meet the lovely and talented Ms. Nesmith. 

"Of all the words of song or pen

the saddest are these:

it might have been."

Take care Oh Susannah....you did a great job. 

SOUND OFF

UPDATE: The Herald and our favourite reporter Susannah Nesmith on Abe Laeser retiring. Make sure to watch the video.

THE UTIMATE SMEAR:  In our humble opinion the boys at the Broward Blog have hurled the ultimate insult at Judge Seraphin. In linking to our article, the Broward Blog has this title: "Judge Seraphin has a Broward Moment." Ouch. Being compared to his robed brethren North of the Border says it all. Double ouch. 

UPDATE BELOW. A county court lawyer writes in about the problem. 

(accused of the crime of "not calling lawyers out of turn")

What in the Sam Hill is going on in County Court? 

Our email is going crazy this morning. 

Here's a sample:

I am blogging as I stand on line in Judge Seraphin's courtroom. I have been standing here for 30 minutes but he refuses to call attorneys out of turn (so there is a line of attorneys out the door). He is also rude What is wrong with him? He is up for election on 2010. I'll pledge $500 to whoever runs against him.

Can some county court lawyer write in and give us the low down on what is going on?

UPDATE: a lawyer sent us this email:

Rumpole, please keep my name private. I am in county court every day.  Judge Seraphin is causing a big problem. Today there was a line out of the door of his courtroom. One lawyer missed a deposition because he was kept waiting over an hour. When the bailiff handed the judge a note asking him to call the lawyers out of turn, the Judge made a big show of reading the note out loud and then crumpling it up. It was rude and uncalled for. It made a lot of lawyers very angry. 

The larger issue is that there is a problem in county court on Wednesdays: There are lots of lawyers who stream in and out of courtrooms trying to get their cases called. Meanwhile, unrepresented defendants who are sitting in court waiting for their 9:00 AM case are not getting their case called until 11 or 11:30. 

What is the solution?  It takes some creative thinking that these judges are incapable of doing. For instance:  Everyone gets a continuance if they want one the first time the case is up. Have a sign in sheet for "first time up cases."  Defense attorneys who want a continuance should be able to walk in, sign the sheet, list the case and their bar number, leave a cell phone number in case there is a problem, and then leave. This would take care of 25% of the cases. 

Second solution: About 10% of the cases are resolved with a plea where the defense attorney has a plea of absentia form. Create another sign in sheet. Have the state leave the plea offer. Have the defense attorney sign in, leave the plea of absentia form, and leave the other information, and leave.  That takes care of 35% of the cases, and I've only spent about ten minutes thinking about this. 

Another solution. Create a master list. If the state is ready, and the defense is ready,  and both sides want it set for trial, both sides can sign the list for a particular case, and BAM! the case is set for trial without it ever being called and without the lawyers having to wait in line. This probably takes care of 40% of the cases on any given Wednesday. Now we're up to 75% of the cases in question without anyone ever having to wait in line. 

Anyway Rumpole, Seraphin is overwhelmed and making most of us miss Judge Lindsey terribly.  His response is to be rude and unconcerned with our problems. Seraphin was never a private lawyer who made a living like we do in County Court. He doesn't understand the need of most of us to be in every courtroom on Wednesday, and then back to our office before noon.  One way to handle this is for every lawyer , when they are before the other county court judges to say "I'm sorry I'm late, but I was in Judge Seraphin's courtroom and he doesn't call lawyers out of turn and made me wait an hour to do one case."

This is an issue for the administrative judges to step in an handle, so you know what that means. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

As you like to say Rumpole. "See you in (county) court."

DEFENDER OF THE FAITH?

Lots of Judge Butchko/Rick Freedman discussion in the comments section. 

Vote in our new poll: Judge Butchko: Champion of the 6th Amendment, or trying not to get reversed on appeal?  We have our thoughts on the matter, including the belief that the politics of the representation of indigent defendants sometimes makes for strange bedfellows. 

This much we are sure of: Rick Freedman was representing defendants before most of you louts that have been anonymously criticizing him were out of high school.  All us who practice criminal defense benefit from the hard work by Rick and many others in the FACDL.   These FACDL lawyers who work for us on countless  legal issues donate their time for free. In the course of any year, the FACDL has attorneys filing lawsuits, writing amicus briefs (literally: "lawyers smarter than you telling the appellate courts what to do") , meeting with judges and prosecutors, and working on matters well after the rest us, especially some of us who write blogs, have long since  left the office.  So back off- and the next time you see Rick, buy him a cup of coffee (although he can apparently afford his own Starbucks) . 

The Jury is out in the Liberty City Six re-trial number three. Stay tuned to the Federal Blog for breaking news. (I still owe Marcus a hundred bucks.) 

Flu alert: At any one time there are 500,000 people traveling in airplanes.  Thus, a flu outbreak somewhere, is a flu threat everywhere. This may not be the pandemic that runs wild, but one is brewing out there somewhere. The NY Times article is here. 

Living in Miami, we live in the "cross roads of Central and South America". We are especially vulnerable to epidemics. Spain, which is a main entry point to Europe for Mexico, is taking  serious action to stop the spread of the the virus. Meanwhile, in the US, we have our highly trained airport security people asking travelers if they feel OK.  That is as effective as asking the 9/11 terrorists if anyone gave them anything to take with them on the plane. 

We need to take these flu outbreaks more seriously, but we don't, and mark our words, we will pay the price. 

See you in court, wearing a surgical mask. 

RICK FREEDMAN ON THE BUTCHKO BLOW-UP

Rick Freedman decided to straighten us out about the Judge Butchko issue. (yawn)

Rump:
Technical foul on you for not getting all the facts before commenting. I was there and it went something like this:

This was Judge Butchko's finest hour on the bench and she deserves nothing but praise for the lengthy hearing held in her courtroom on Friday.

Over the course of 2 1/2 hours, she heard from the State (Penny Brill); the PD (John Morrison); Regional Counsel's Office (Richard Joyce); the Justice Administrative Commission (General Counsel Stephen Presnell); the proposed "wheel" attorney to be assigned the case (Michael Petit); and me as a "Friend of the Court" and on behalf of the FACDL.

The Judge was concerned that the 6th Amendment to the US Constitution was being violated as it related to the particular defendant in this case and it was going to continue to happen in many other cases coming down the pipe. Judge Butchko wanted to do something about it and that is why the hearing took place.

This particular defendant had been charged with a third degree felony and his case was 90 days old.

Judge Butchko was really looking at the bigger picture and not just this one case. This was just the first case of many that the PD has filed a Notice with the Court called a Notice of Inadequate Representation indicating to the client that they have not done anything to prepare their case for trial. They are filing these documents in all of their 3rd degree felony cases where the client is not in custody. They have decided that the priority cases are those that are more serious and those that are in custody cases. The problem with that is, that this case, and others to follow would start to fall through the cracks and Judge Butchko sees this coming and wanted to do something to stop it.

And this particular defendant was concerned that his defense witnesses may leave the jurisdiction before the PD's office ever got the chance to speak with them; hurting his chances for an acquittal.

The Judge held a Nelson Inquiry on Wednesday and as a result of the answers she got from the defendant, she discharged the PD finding that she was providing ineffective assistance of counsel in this case. She by-passed the Regional Counsel and attempted to appoint the next person on the wheel; that person was Michael Petit.

Reg. Counsel objected and at the hearing Mr. Joyce indicated that they could take the case and provide effective assistance of counsel and do it in a timely fashion.

The Judge questioned how this could be possible when her assigned Reg. Counsel Attorney was a part-time attorney that was already handling 65 cases in her court while trying to run a private practice as well. And those 65 cases range from Life felonies to 3rd degree felonies.

The Judge was also told by Mr. Presnell of the JAC that they would not pay Mr. Petit, if she insisted on appointing him, because she did not follow the Statute by appointing RC.

Judge Butchko was adamant about the fact that she saw her upcoming C weeks and that this same scenario would begin to be played out on many of the out of custody C cases. She also stated that common sense dictated that the part-time RC attorney could not possibly take on so many additional cases and provide competent and effective representation in a timely fashion.

She called on me and I told her that she had every right to be concerned about what was happening in her courtroom. The Gideon case from the US Supreme Court, cited to the 6th Amendment to the US Constitution, and provided that the indigent defendant should receive competent counsel and adequate representation. The Florida Supreme Court said that "the problem of excessive caseload in the PD's office should be resolved at the outset of representation, rather than at some later point in a trial proceeding." Other cases I cited tell the court that "when excessive caseload forces the PD to choose between the rights of the various indigent criminal defendants he represents, a conflict of interest is inevitably created".

The Florida Legislature has decided that they can fund “due process on the cheap” and that what is happening in her courtroom today is the result of their legislative wisdom.

I also told her that the Florida Bar's Code Of Professional Responsibility and the Rules Regulating all attorneys of The Florida Bar state "a lawyer shall act with reasonable diligence and promptness in representing a client". And, "a lawyer's workload must be controlled so that each matter can be handled competently. Perhaps no professional shortcoming is more widely resented than procrastination ... Unreasonable delay can cause a client needless anxiety and undermine confidence in the lawyer".

Justice delayed in Justice denied.

Judge Butchko was right on yesterday when she forced the issue to a head in trying to protect the indigent defendant in this case and other to follow – she saw them getting the extremely short end of the stick and she was trying to do something about it.

I hope that gives you a better insight into what happened in Court on Friday.

Rick Freedman
FACDL-MIAMI
President

NFL DRAFT PICKS 21-32

The last 12 picks in the draft. The Fins are at 25. Still lots of great talent available because of strange reaches by San Diego and the Raiders, and because the Bucs took the 3rd QB of the first round. 

(21) The Browns are up (again- 3rd time) and pick at 21 (down from 5) Alex Mack, the big center from California. The Browns needed a big O-lineman, and don't think for a second that this pick also has in mind that the Steelers may have taken Mack, plus the Browns needed a big center to deal with the big Nose Tackles (Casey Hampton) that the Steelers throw at you in their 3-4. Nice pick. Good wheelin and dealin by the Browns and Mangini. 

(22) The Vikes.  Does Percy go here? Do the Vikes want another set of problems after their stripper cruise a few years ago?  Yup. Percy Harvin. The explosive Florida WR who can score from anywhere on the field when he gets the ball.  He has 4-4 speed and an unbelievable explosive first step.  Good luck to Percy in the land of 10,000 lakes and a billion pounds of snow. 

Rumpole picks for the Fins, D-Lineman Everette Brown, LB Lames Laurinaitis, Ohio State,  Darrius Butler, CB Connecticut, and  CB Vontae Davis, still available. 

(23) The Cheaters. TRADE TO THE RAVENS-  who grab Michael Oher, a big left tackle. Nice pick here.  Needs a bit of help with technique. Needs to be coached up. But a very good and motivated football player.  Again, we see a AFC North team pick up an O-lineman to deal with the Steeler's rush.  Oher has a Horatio Alger story, with an adopted family after he was essentially abandoned by his parents and was in several foster homes into his teens before finding a family. Good for Oher. We wish him well. 

(24) The Falcons select Peria Jerry, D tackle Ole Miss. A reach in our opinion. This guy plays a two and three technique. A big inside guy, but a second rounder in our opinion. 

OK. HERE WE GO DOLPHINS HERE WE GO. 

The AFC East Division Champion Miami Dolphins select at 25 (we have this feeling it will be one of our choices...) ... VONATE DAVIS. DB. ILLINOIS!!!! Perhaps the most talented CB in the draft. Needs coaching. 5'11. 205 pounds. A big physical kid with good speed and a tough hitter. We like the pick as long as he gets good coaching and keeps his head straight.  This guy is a good man shut down corner, which is unusual for his size. He lacks experience in zone coverage. But he is a hitter and can come up and support the run, and he has the size to matchup with Cheater WR Randy Moss. 

(26) Cheaters. Lookin to trade down. Again.  AND THEY DO. TRADE WITH THE PACK!!!

(26) PACKERS. Probably want CB Butler from Connecticut. NO !!!!! CLAY MATTHEWS, LB USC. Bad pick.  Good special teams players. But is that worth trading for a first round pick?  We don't see the value here.  This guy might not be a career starter in the NFL.  The Pack gave up their second, and their two 3rds for this pick. A Very high price and not worth it, and meanwhile the EVIL GENUIS CONTINUES TO STACK PICKS IN THE SECOND AND THRID ROUNDS. THIS IS NOT GOOD FOR THE FINS . HE MUST BE STOPPED. 

Meanwhile LB Ray Maualuga continues to fall like a federal prosecutor caught holding back Brady material. 

(27) Colts. Donald Brown, Connecticut  RB. Nice pick. Rumbled for 2,000 yards this year. 

(28) Bills. Maualuga? OT  Loadholt?  NO. Eric Wood. Center. Louisvile. A really good football player.  Smart. 4 year starter. 6'3 310 pounds. Very nice. 

OT Loadholt is a big guy. 6'7  330. Moving up draft boards fast, from the 3rd round, to the second, to we heard last night, a first round pick. 

(29) Giants.   Need a WR. Will they  trade with the Cardinals for their disgruntled WR? Hakeem Nicks, WR North Carolina.  A big guy like Anquan Boldin, and cheaper at this pick. No trade with the Cardinals now.  Not a value pick. The Giants didn't come close to picking the best player on the board. This was strictly a need pick,  and the best teams usually avoid those. 

(30) Titans.  Could go RB here with Wells from Ohio State. Or WR. Or LB.  Kenny Britt. WR Rutgers. Big guy, 6'2. I like him better then the Giants WR Nicks. Britt is a local Jersey guy. Hard worker. Tall. Won't get beat up by CBs when running routes. Nice pick here, although I would have taken some of the D-lineman or CB's still available. 

(31) Cardinals.  Want Wells if the Titans don't take him.  And the Cards take Beenie Wells.  Nice RB -235 pounds, decent speed, catches the ball very well out of the backfield.  Good pick here. Edgerrin James will no longer be a Cardinal after this pick. 

(32) Steelers.  Need a center, D-lineman, Corner Back, O-lineman and WR. Will draft the best guy they have on the board and will not draft for  need. Drives Steeler fans nuts during the draft, but then they get over it when they are buying super bowl tickets to watch their team. The Fins should follow the Steelers in how they handle the draft.  The Steelers just signed a CB yesterday (Ratliff from the Colts)  so they probably won't pick one here. 

And the Steelers close out the first round by choosing Evander "Ziggy" Hood. DT  Missouri. 6'3, 300 pounds. An inside 2-3 technique. A little small for a nose tackle. Good value here. Rated at about 24-25 on most draft boards. The Steelers shore up an aging d-line. 

FIRST ROUND SUMMARY:  The Cheaters made their mark by stockpiling mid round picks. The Browns got a very solid center and also added a few extra picks.  The Fins got the corner they needed. With good coaching, this guy starts for many years to come.  The Packers move was bad, while the Bills good a good center for their trade to Philly earlier in the month.  The Cardinals got a good back at 30, which is rare.