1202 ALARM

 We repeat our post on the Apollo 11 Moon landing, 56 years ago today, because our post was so exceptionally well written. 

 The fascinating part of the historic Apollo 11 landing on the moon (50 years ago today) is the handling of the 1202 and 1201 alarms during the decent of the Eagle to the lunar surface.

Some Apollo-nerd stuff that you only get here: 

The Eagle's computer had three programs to run from the time it undocked to landing. The first was P63: which controlled Eagle from undocking while it was still in orbit to powered descent. P63 controlled the attitude (pitch and yaw) of Eagle and ran the burn which took Eagle out of orbit and into a controlled descent to the lunar surface. PDI (powered-descent initiation) occurred about 500 kilometers east of the landing site and 12 minutes to landing. The first go-no-go from Houston after the go-no-go for undocking was for PDI. When the Eagle is three minutes from landing and 7K/M from the site, the computer ran P64. The P64 program pitched the Eagle forward and gave Armstrong a view of the lunar surface so he could check for landmarks. At this point the computer is telling the astronauts and Houston where it intends to land. If you listen to the raw landing tapes, the guidance officer in Houston is indicating that they are headed for a spot longer down-range than anticipated. 

When the Eagle is 600 meters (2000 feet) from the landing site, Armstrong activates P66 in which he and the computer share the throttle while Armstrong alone controls the descent. 
Somewhere along the way a switch was flipped powering on the rendezvous radar that was supposed to be off. The rendezvous radar began feeding more information to the computer than it was designed to handle at exactly the wrong time- during the dangerous descent phase. How Armstrong and NASA handled this critical error is the stuff legends are made of.

35,000 Feet Above The Lunar Surface And The First 1202 Alarm
As PDI begins, Houston immediately loses signal and data from Eagle, prompting a call to Collins in Colombia to tell Aldrin to re-aim an antenna. Meanwhile Neil Armstrong has several issues to contend with, including no communication with the men who are supposed to guide him. 

As the Eagle descended Armstrong began to realize that the guidance computer was taking him farther down range then it was supposed to and was putting the Eagle into a crater. The Eagle has two guidance systems: PGNS (pings) is the main system, and AGS is the back-up. Both Houston and Aldrin  are monitoring both systems and comparing their data to see if it matches as the Eagle descends towards history. 

As  P63 turns the Eagle around so that now it's Engine is facing the lunar surface, the landing radar and other radar (that's supposed to be off) both lock on to the lunar surface. The computer is overloaded with data, and now come the words that almost ended the mission: "1202...1202 alarm."  Eagle is 33,500 feet above the surface of the moon. 

In the simulator, Armstrong and Aldrin had practiced with several different scenarios, including the loss of various functions of the Eagle, including wrong indicators, loss of communication, and the like. But in the thousands of hours of training, they had never encountered a 1202 alarm.

MEANWHILE ON THE GROUND IN HOUSTON

Here is what happened on the ground in Houston, and their success showed why NASA was able to achieve the extraordinary moon landing:

Gene Kranz was the flight director, later responsible for the saying "failure is not an option" in regard to Appolo 13.  Kranz was the one who made the final decision to allow the Eagle to land. 
Jack Garman was an engineer and part of the team working on the computers and the landing guidance system of the Eagle. At a meeting several weeks before the landing, Kranz told Garman to write down every possible alarm and the response to the alarm.
Steve Bales was the guidance officer who was one of the men responsible to answer Kranz during various "Go-No-Go" calls when Houston had to tell Armstrong if he could continue to land.
Astronaut Charlie Duke was "cap-com" the man responsible for speaking directly to Aldrin and Armstrong. 

Several seconds after the 1202 alarm, Armstrong having heard nothing from Houston, asked "give us a reading on that 1202 alarm."  When you listen to Armstrong, there is some uncertainty in his voice. He is about 30,000 feet above the surface of the moon and less than seven and half minutes from landing. He is looking for a place to land, watching his fuel, working on the high-gain antenna issue (the Eagle had been intermittently losing communication with Mission Control), and now an alarm that may scrub the landing is going off and Armstrong does not recognize it.  

Meanwhile in Houston, when the alarm went off, Kranz was looking towards his guidance officer Bales, or anyone else who knew what the alarm was. Nobody knew. There were blank stares all around as Krantz's landing team started scrambling though massive three-ring binders looking for what a 1202 alarm was. Eventually Krantz asked Bales, and Bales called over to a back room where there were dozens of engineers One of them- Jack Garman - knew what the alarm meant.  

Apollo 11's computer's were rudimentary. The landing radars started giving the computer more data than it could handle. When this occurred, the computer had a line of programing to tell it to prioritize its work and to trigger a 1202 alarm to let Houston and the Eagle know what it was doing. Essentially the computer was rebooting without shutting down. If the computer had shut down, Kranz would have ordered an abort. 

Garman reasoned that as long as the alarm didn't continually repeat, which would mean the computer was in a non-recoverable loop, that they were "go" on the alarm. Garman told Bales. Bales told Kranz. Kranz told Duke and Duke told Armstrong. 

There was another 1202 alarm and then a 1201 alarm at 27,000 feet above the surface. Aldrin tells Houston about why he thinks the alarm is occurring. Meanwhile Garman quickly told Bales that the 1201 alarm was the same type of alarm as the 1202 and that they were "go" on that. 

Armstrong never doubted what Duke was telling him. Kranz had faith in Bales, and Bales knew Garman knew the landing computer software better than anyone. 

5200 FEET ABOVE THE LUNAR SURFACE

At about 9 minutes into the landing, and 5200 feet about the lunar surface, the computer switches to P64 and the program pitches Eagle over so that the attitude of the Eagle is more upright, and it begins to descend in the same attitude that it will have upon landing. Armstrong is now looking at the surface so he can find a place to land.  Kranz quickly runs through a "go-no-go" for landing, and Retro (the controller monitoring the engines) FIDO (flight dynamics),  ECOM (electrical, environmental and consumables), Guidance, and the flight surgeon, all give Kranz an enthusiastic "GO!" for landing, which Charlie Duke as Cap-Com relays to Aldrin and Armstrong. 

 3000 FEET ABOVE THE LUNAR SURFACE

At 3,000 feet they get another 1201 alarm, but they are quickly told they are "go on that alarm" and the descent continues. In another minute, at 1300 feet, they get another 1202 alarm, but they are still go to land. 

 At 600 feet the P64 program is steering the Eagle toward a sea of boulders and craters. Armstrong decides to switch to the P66 program and manually take control of Eagle.  Perhaps the greatest pilot in the world in 1969 is piloting the Eagle in our quest to land on the Moon.  Armstrong begins to use thrusters to navigate the Eagle past a large crater while looking for a flat area to set the Eagle down, all while monitoring an ever-dwindling fuel supply and a host of other issues. 

 300 FEET ABOVE THE LUNAR SURFACE

The Eagle is 300 feet from the surface when Aldrin tells Armstrong that he is "pegged at horizontal velocity",  meaning they are going forward at the top speed on the indicator. At 250 feet Armstrong is now slowing the forward velocity. He sees a landmark he recognizes: "Little West Crater", and he pilots Eagle just past it where he sees a relatively smooth surface to land. The forward velocity has slowed from 50 feet/second to 19 feet/second. At 175 feet they have 94 seconds to land, or they will get a "fuel-bingo" call from Houston and will have to abort. 

 The Eagle had one chance to land on the moon. If the landing was aborted, they would activate the ascent engine, fly back to Michael Collins in Colombia, and headed back to earth having failed in their attempt to land. There were no second chances on this flight. 

 At 100 feet they have 75 seconds of fuel left.  Armstrong is now demonstrating why he was chosen for this mission- he is at the top of his game and pulling off the greatest landing in the history of aviation- and one of the most difficult and dangerous to boot. The man has met the moment.  Thousands of hours of training are paying off for the Apollo 11 landing team. 

 60 SECONDS

At 75 feet the Eagle's velocity has slowed to six feet forward/per second. At 60 feet, Charlie Duke in Houston calls out "sixty seconds": they have one minute of fuel left to land. 

 At 20 feet Charlie Duke calls out "thirty seconds". There is almost no fuel left to land. 

With seventeen seconds of fuel remaining Aldrin calls out "contact light": a 1.5-meter probe below Eagle has touched the surface and humans have landed on the moon.  

 The team worked. The system worked, and Armstrong landed the Eagle with 17 seconds of fuel remaining. 

ON THE MOON

The first words spoken by a human being on another celestial body belong to Buzz Aldrin: "Contact light. Ok. Engine stop. ACA out of descent. Mode control both auto descent engine command override off. Engine arm off. 413 is in." 

Hardly memorable or historic words, but before Armstrong tells the world that from Tranquility Base "The Eagle has landed",  Aldrin had a checklist he needed to run through to make sure the descent engines were shut down and the abort-ascent engine couldn't be accidentally triggered. 

Charlie Duke responds "we copy you down Eagle".

Armstrong says "The Eagle has landed" and Duke responds that there were a bunch of guys about to turn blue but were breathing again. This is in response to the fact that with less than 30 seconds of fuel, the Eagle had not landed and everyone in mission control was holding their breath. 

A half a million people worked on some part of the Apollo program. But on July 20, 1969, it was Kranz, Steve Bales, and Jack Garman who gave the go ahead to Armstrong and Aldrin to continue the landing in the face of 1202 and 1201 alarms.

Brave and historic actions indeed.  And it is, in our humble opinion, humanity's finest hour. It reminds us that if we try together, we as a species can do great things. 

Happy Apollo 11 Moon Landing Day.  We are go on that 1202 Alarm. 

 

MIAMI JUDGE RIC MARGOLIUS HAS PASSED AWAY

 

Sad news to report that retired REGJB Judge Ric Margolius a/k/a Ric Zweig has passed away. 

This is a complicated obituary to write. Much like Jimmy Carter, Ric Margolius accomplished a lot when he left the bench. A music career that earned him accolades and in which he donated profits of CDs to charity.  Click here and here. 

When he returned to the REGJB to do some coverage, he was, well, a character. We once saw security stop him in a back hallway, sure the person they were seeing did not belong there. 

Ric Margolius started his career as a prosecutor and then a public defender. Even at the beginning he was a mixture of black and white, odd and even, and perhaps more aptly - hot and cold. He could run that way - changing temps mid-sentence as he praised a lawyer and then berated them. He served on the bench during a time when there was not 24/7 scrutiny and exposure of every little thing a person does. To put it politely he did not suffer fools lightly. His manner in court could be caustic, cantankerous, or just ornery. He would not get high marks on Judicial Temperament. 

But that means he called it as he saw it. He was not afraid to lambast a prosecutor who was stepping over bounds or hiding behind a "victim wants max" mantra. He wanted to see justice done. And he was not beyond giving a defendant a good old-fashioned dressing-down when they pled guilty to a crime. 

But there was obviously another side to him, and his life after the bench, spent making music and working for charities speaks a lot to the heart he had and his desire to make Miami a better place than he found it. 

We are certain we will not see his like again in our courthouse. He spoke his mind freely, and did what he thought was right, regardless of the consequences or who was offended. 

 He was certainly one of a kind.  May he rest in peace. 

CITRA REGISTE JOSEPH HAS PASSED AWAY

UPDATE: This young woman, who passed away way too young leaves a family. We know we just asked, but if you can....

Go Fund me     for Citra Registe Joseph. 

Erian White shared the sad news of the passing of Attorney Citra Registe Joseph. We did not know  her. She has passed much too young.   

Good Morning All,

I wanted to share with you that Citra Registe Joseph (former ASA) has passed away from T-Cell Lymphoma.

I'm not sure if any of you ever got the opportunity to work with her but Citra was easily the most honest and well meaning prosecutor I have ever come across. She was also my Sorority sister and friend. 

She will be missed dearly. If anyone is interested or wishes to support her family during this time, the details for her arrangements are below.

THE START OF OUR FINEST HOUR

UPDATE. We asked and you delivered.  As of Wednesday morning the Go Fund me account for Greg Gonzalez raised over $50,000.00  Thank you.  We criticize a lot,  but the people who work in the REGJB and the Miami criminal law community are the best in the nation. Thank you for caring about a great man who needed our support.  

July 16, 1969 was the culmination of a decade of work that would result in America's finest hour four days later.  The 1960's, and 1969, and Apollo was a time when petty people didn't cancel government programs because some other president started the process. Kennedy started the quest for the moon, Johnson continued it, and Nixon made sure NASA had the funds to carry the ball over the goal line. 

It was a time when science mattered and was respected. When the laws of physics governed whether a rocket carrying Americans could get into space, leave earth orbit, transit space, enter lunar orbit, land on the moon, and then do it all in reverse and return safely. Prayer didn't get Aldrin and Armstrong to the Moon, science and hard work did, along with tens of thousands of government workers who did not have to fear being fired for doing their jobs. 

The moon landing is the ultimate intersection of government support and capitalism. Only the United States of America had the entrepreneurial spirit to produce men and women who could design a plan to land two people on the moon and return them safely.  Fifty-six years later, we are still the only nation on earth to do so. It was a time when competence, science, and intelligence mattered. How times have changed. Sadly. 

But enjoy the liftoff. And you can best expect our nerdy 1202 Alarm post on July 20. 

MONDAY FUNDAY

 Good Monday morning. Let us help you denizens of the REGJB who are making that long, slow slog from the parking lot to the courthouse in 90+ degree heat with 101% humidity - and for those of you whose pronouns are him/he- wearing a jacket and tie (which is lunacy if you think about it) start the week on a good note.

Monday is National Mac and Cheese Day! 

Homemade is best, but when you're not feeling well, Kraft Mac from a box works fine. We like ours simple and plain. Make mac and cheese great again. MMACGA! We will tolerate some breadcrumbs toasted on top, especially at Thanksgiving. What we do not like is lobster mac and cheese. It is too rich. What we do love, which is rapidly disappearing, is a homemade mac and cheese served as a side at a southern eatery. 

We used to have one of those in Miami. The S&S cafe, which was a historic "meat and two sides" classic southern diner.  Wednesdays (we think?) was Turkey Day. In the doldrums of August you could go and get a roast turkey plate with stuffing, mac and cheese, and collard greens and dream of a cooler November. We went for decades on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. It was like a warm-up for the big day- and the tureky was often better. It was a great place to fuel up in the mornings before court. Our favourite? The creamed asparagus on toast. It may have been the last place in the US serving that dish.  The waitresses worked there 30 and 40 years and knew all the judges and lawyers and the latest courthouse gossip. We would leave a large tip for the staff every December. It was like a family, and we miss the S&S, but alas, as we often say, change is the price of survival. 

And finally, take our strong recommendation on this.  We are a well-known bibliophile. Audio Books are a distant second, reserved for those long drives we used to take to try cases in Deland, Florida (practice tip- avoid taking cases in Deland). 

But you MUST get and listen to Project Hail Mary, by our friend Andy Weir. Weir wrote the surprise best seller novella The Martian more than a decade ago (and the movie isn't bad either). His subsequent projects were mostly a miss. Then this- Project Hail Mary. And here is the thing, the audio book is the way to go for reasons we cannot explain without spoiling the plot. It is a great story and one of the very unique ones that is better being told than read- and the narrator Ray Porter is absolutely perfect for the story- inflecting humor, panic, sadness- feelings that are more powerful when you hear them. 

Do yourself a favor. Find some cool shade, get a tall glass of iced tea, stretch out, close your eyes and prepare to be taken on a wonderful journey. You can thank us later. 

I BEFORE E EXCEPT AFTER T(RUMP)

 The president sent out letters earlier this week to various heads of state informing them of pending tariffs. Unfortunately, grammar matters. 

GATORS

 

(This is the way some judges look to us on a rough Monday morning.) 

Florida’s newly infamous Alligator Alcatraz is open. Channel Six here has a report on conditions. 

Leamsy Izquierdo, also known as Leamsy La Figura, a self-described Cuban urban artist, was arrested for a violent incident and has been at the detention center out in the Everglades since Friday. “There is no water here to bathe,” he told Telemundo 51, adding it’s been four days since he showered. He believes there are about 400 people inside the facility. “They give you food only once a day, food that even has worms in it,” Izquierdo said.

This is wonderful. No great nation wants to be known for humanely treating its prisoners. Be like North Korea and Iran!” Should be our motto. 

If you scan social media, there’s dozens of interviews popping up with immigrants who voted for the president only to now find out that the government is now seeking to deport them and/or a family member.

Which leads us to this Rumpole maxim 

Be careful what you ask for in life; you may get it. 

HAPPY FOURTH

 This is actually from the Declaration of Independence. We did not make this up. 

But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

…

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

…

   He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

…

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:                

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:                 

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us… (Iike all if these, this really is in the Declaration of Independence. The more things change, the more a despotic president reverts to trying to be a king. ) 

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.Ω and payment of their salaries.            

We couldn’t make this up if we tried. Really. 

Happy Fourth Of July. 

Two dogs, mustard and k etchup, relish, a pickle and some fries please along with a cold one. And some fireworks. 

          

HALFWAY DONE

 July 2 marks the half-way point of 2025. We are somewhat hesitant to report this, lest we cause a dozen or more DeSantis Judicial Drones to reflect on their year and how many defendants they have sentenced to the max after losing at trial- mindful of course that there is no such thing as a judicial tax for losing at trial. 

But putting aside the misplaced aspirations of robe wearers to be known as Maximum, how has your year gone? What are your goals for the second half of 2025? 

Rumpole’s Thoughts 

Fight The Power

Rebalance - more resistance training, less cardio. 

Stop work by 7pm on weekdays, 3pm weekends. 

Max of 4 Trulys per week (down from 6)

Finish up those 2023 cases. Time to try those suckers. 

Let go of that Assistant AG who objected to a first extension, and then got hammered by the DCA. We keep wanting to send them a copy of the opinion. “When starting off on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.” 

Listen to all seven of Bruce Springsteen’s new albums - released as Tracks II The Lost Albums. 

And catch Bruce and the E Street In Europe for the third summer in a row. Time is running out. We just missed the shows in Germany and Milan due to a tricky issue in the EDNY. 

Bite the bullet, wait in line and get a cheesesteak at Danny and Coop’s- Bradley Cooper’s joint that is causing such a ruckus in the City food scene. 

And while we are there, catch a few Mets games and make arrangements for playoff tickets. #LFGM

We start so many books, but finish so few. They just aren’t that good. 

Rumpole’s Fourth Of July reading list:

The Admirals. Four men achieved the rank of Admiral of the Fleet- King, Halsey, Leahy, and Nimitz. This is their stories. 

The Fate Of The Day. Second installment of Rick Atkinson’s series on the Revolutionary War. Rumor is everyone in DC is reading this, 

Final, scary thought. We are now, officially and mathematically closer to 2050 than 2000.  

“We’ll have another tequila shot please … actually make it a double.” 

COMBS VERDICT WATCH

 The jury in the Sean Combs case has been deliberating since Monday. Around 5pm on Tuesday they informed the Judge that they had a verdict in every count but the RICO count. 

What does that mean?

In our opinion, and we hate reading jury tea-leaves, it is not great for the defense. An acquittal is an acquittal. And the RICO count was the most far-reaching count, meaning that if the jury was acquitting Combs it would be the easiest count to reach a NG on. The fact that they are hung on this count, indicates to us that they have convicted him on at least some of the counts, but cannot get unanimity on the far-reaching RICO count. 

All is not lost however. The verdict on the RICO count has significant consequences, including a 15 year min man, (and you know how much we hate min mans), and an exposure to a life sentence. 

Our view on the evidence?  It's complicated. 

This was NOT a RICO case. 

But Combs did a lot of things wrong, mostly using his power and wealth to manipulate vulnerable women. But these women entered into a consensual relationship, and remained despite being manipulated into very unpleasant sexual encounters. But where do we draw the line between culpability and complicity in a complicated relationship? It is a very hard line to draw. 

If we were the judge and had unfettered power to sentence Combs, we would send him to prison. But for how long? Two years? Sure. Four? Yeah....Over five? That is a hard call. Combs used his power. But that is what powerful people do. And having wealth and power is not a crime. Using it to satisfy your prurient sexual interests is also not a crime until a line is crossed. And that line is consent, the age-old question in many sexual crimes. 

This case is a tough one to unravel. 

Your thoughts? 

 

JUST HANG ON HONEY

 Of all the mistakes we could make whilst arguing a case this, most assuredly, is NOT one of them. 

“Listen, you’re not understanding the issue. Try reading the briefs and not your clerk’s notes….” Yeah, that could happen.  

And 

“I understand your confusion, having not read any of the cases I have cited …” Sure, that might slip out.  

But this mistake? NEVER ever ever. 

FUN WEEK

There was some confusion about courts being open Thursday July 3 with Governor Detain Immigrant Children closing state offices. It appears Courts are open. Ask for a Jury. Don’t waive speedies. 

The big beautiful bill is being debated in the senate on Monday, Of the many many many problems (like paying for tax cuts by reducing health insurance for about 11 million Americans by making it nearly impossible to qualify and stay insured) are not only the canceling of tax cuts for wind and solar energy but the actual tax increases on those industries.  Why is this so important? We are in the midst of a third revolution- AI. And AI runs on vast data centers that consume enormous amounts of power. The centers can be powered by wind and solar energy, but now we are removing that option. 

How much power are we talking about?  By 2030 data centers alone will require more  electricity than what is now consumed in the US for all manufacturing.  So naturally the geniuses  in DC want to cripple  our ability to cleanly and cheaply produce that energy. Smart.

Also, skip those shots. Flu. Covid. Measles. Mumps? Fake news. Cod liver oil cures all. Here’s a heart warming story on why no one needs the measles shot anymore(note that this is sarcasm.)  Measles is now killing Americans. Something that we would have never said or written in 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990, 2000, 2010, and 2020.  But this is 2025 and we are speeding towards the dark ages as fast as many in Washington can take us, Prayer cures all- until your appendix bursts and you need a surgeon but won’t agree to her wearing a mask during surgery (masks don’t work right?)  or giving you anesthesia full of drugs you haven’t researched. 

 Two sad stories.

First, the U of Virginia caved to blackmail and fired their very popular and talented university president to resolve a Justice Department investigation. The crime- U of V did not sufficiently dismantle its DEI programs expanding inclusivity in the college experience, thus violating, in the view of DOJ cretins prosecutors, the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The DOJ demanded the resignation of President Jim Ryan to settle the investigation., Truly Orwellian. The article is here. 

And here is the sad story of the son of Moroccan immigrants whose parents cannot accept his sexuality.We have a take on the end of the op ed piece which we will share later after you have read the story which is here, 

YOUR MONDAY FUNDAY   Brain teaser. 

Four  men are in a room. 

Barack is reading a book. 

Joe is playing chess. 

Bill is texting on his phone. 

What is the fifth man doing? 

(Donald is absent, playing golf). 

PUT DOWN YOUR PHONE

 This is a plea. Maybe it can be dismissed as a plea made by a grumpy Non-Gen X,Y,Z,A male blogger. But maybe you should pause a moment and consider it. 

First, what we are not asking. Keep your phone on whilst waiting for your case to be called in court. The Judge is playing candy crush on her screen on the bench, so there is no reason why you should not be trying to advance to the next level. 

Keep your phone on during that bad Hinge date because maybe you get a Tinder match and can hook up once you ditch Mr. I’m getting an MBA to work at Goldman Sachs and then in twenty years I’m going to use my Art History Degree to open a Bed and Breakfast in Bend, Oregon and decorate it in post modern 1870’s  Egyptian Street Art,  or Ms. I left my job at an advertising firm and make 40K a month as a food and bar influencer for NYC concentrating on FIDI so please take my IG and Tik Tok… 

We get it. You need your phone. We all do. 

Flash back to last year. Rumpole is blissfully wandering through the Van Gogh exhibit at the Met in NYC on Fifth Avenue. We are a member so we don’t wait in lines. In the galleries there are an overwhelming number of tourists. We can tell by the foreign languages they are speaking. And we can tell because they ALL- EVERY ONE OF THEM - have their phones out and are relentlessly and furiously recording every single picture. A middle aged Asian woman from China, her brow furrowed, darts from Van Gogh to Van Gogh, a ten second video and vroom! She’s elbowing her way to the front of the next one to do the same. It’s like the paintings are the plans to the Atomic Bomb and she’s Ethel Rosenberg. *

Recently, some idiot tourist sat on a crystal chair in the Palazzo Maffei in Verona, Italy, breaking it. Last week a tourist in the Uffizi in Florence backed into a 17th century painting of Fernando de Medici, tying to replicate Medici’s pose for their selfie. 

In the Met, few were contemplating Van Gogh’s masterpieces. The golden wheat fields, the beguiling self portraits, one done months before the artist took his own life. The impact of art on the soul was lost. The experience became one long post card- a picture of the leaning tower of Pisa, or the Eiffel Tower, or Buckingham Palace- I was here- LOOK. LOOK AT ME NEXT TO VAN GOGH’S SUNFLOWERS … I WAS HERE… I DID THIS….DON’T YOU WANT TO BE ME?

No, we don’t. There is not one piece of art that has not been digitized and is not available for free on line. So why lose the experience of art on the desperate desire to prove you saw the painting? 

It makes no sense. 

We can spend an hour looking at one or two Rothkos and get lost in the wonder of how a few stripes of paint on a canvass makes us feel. And then we can repair to a favourite coffee shop in the West Village and debate Rothko’s influence over a dark espresso and crusty croissant. Is there not a better way to spend a day?  How can anyone who races through an exhibition with their phone out recount how the art affected them if they don’t spend time contemplating the picture? 

It makes no sense. 

One last analogy. Imagine watching Tom Seaver in 1969 pitch a two-hit shutout as the Miracle Mets were on their way to an improbable World Series victory. Seaver was one of the great pitchers of all time.  We saw him do this at Shea stadium that year. The sound of the ball popping in the catcher’s glove is indelible. The frustrations on the faces of hitters who could not figure him out remains with us to this day. And we had no phone. No camera. We just sat and watched and were washed over in the experience of being there. 

 That is what our phone generation is losing- the experience of seeing and feeling. They are replacing it with the proof of presence. I WAS THERE.  I DID THIS. 

But can they answer the most important question of all: How did it make you feel? 

* Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were innocent. But that is a post for another time. 

FOURTH OF JULY CLOSURES

 Florida’s Governor (“ I don’t believe in Covid or Global Warming so how did I not get elected president?”) has announced the closure of State Offices on Thursday July 3 as well. So you can enjoy a  long weekend celebrating American exceptionalism (like defunding HIV treatment in Africa!! USA all the way. Let people get AIDS every day!).

  What a guy. Just don’t use the term “global warming” if you’re a state employee or you will find yourself Trumped. 

The Gov is term limited. He has a year left. Perhaps there’s an animal shelter he can defund before he leaves. Or some low income food for the elderly programs he can shutter. Or some children of immigrants he can cuff in front of their class and have their friends loudly mock them for being foreigners before taking them out of kindergarten and to a concentration camp in the Everglades. The  kind of things we now want America to be known for.  Enough of that nonsense of feeding hungry children and innovating health care to end things like Smallpox.  

You know, the kind of stuff it takes to run for the presidency.  

BEARS 

Summer time leads to fall and that’s the best time to tune into the Bear Cams of  Katmai National Park in Alaska and watch Brown bears peacefully feed on the salmon run until the current administration approves of oil drilling at the Katmai falls. 

Check it out here. This is our favorite on line activity (other than betting against the Marlins). 

SCORECARD

 Update : In response to our snarky riff on the Problem Solving Judge, we had THE PROBLEM SOLVER spoon it right back to us, proving that she’s the right judge for the job. 

 Margie Verde-Yanez

Thanks for the correction, I’ll let Chief Fajardo know. It’s Problem Solving Courts Administrative Judge. Problem Solving Courts include our Mental Health Courts and Drug Courts and Veteran’s Court, which we have in Circuit Criminal, County Criminal, DV and Dependency. They are all being consolidated into one division. So many of our participants’ lives are transformed through our program. Instead of prison and jail, we offer rehabilitation and recovery. Those of you who do not understand what we do in PSC are welcome to visit our courtroom in 4-4. It might become your favorite division. I look forward to meeting you though I won’t be able to help you with your black bean recipe.

Personally we think she should keep the title as is. Why not have a problem solving judge in an age when we have so many problems that need to be solved? 

Here's your winners and losers, judge-wise. Pretty much all of the administrative judges from the prior administration are O U T out.  So much for competence, as opposed to political payback being the deciding factor. 

Take a look at the new lineup, and if you are a long time and careful reader of the blog, what title immediately would catch Rumpole's eye? The answer is below. 

 

SO....we cannot resist. There is a Chief "Problem Solving" Judge? Really? Because our well known view is that Judges are problems, and cause more than they solve (and this has nothing to do with the current "problem solver").  

How does this work? 

Hmm...I'm having a problem with solving Fermat's Last Theorem.  What to do? Oh, wait! I know, I'll call the Problem Solving Judge. 

Or is it like Dear Abby? 

Dear Problem Solving Judge, I'm having a problem with my mother-in-law. She doesn't like my black beans and rice. But my husband tells me that I make better moros than his mother. My mother-in-law is now coming over every day to watch me make dinner.  I can't think of anything to do other than cook a second dinner once she leaves. Also, I am having problems filing in probate. Can you help? 

Cuban Cook & Probate Lawyer. 

There is just so much here. Sometimes the blog-gods are just too generous to a humble blogger hacking away trying to post decent content. Days of draught and endless re-writes of posts trying to find something to say are rewarded when we learn there is a Chief Problem Solving Judge. 

Look! In The Courtroom. It's Justice Roberts...It's Justice Cardozo, NO It's the PROBLEM SOLVING JUDGE

Yes, it's PROBLEM SOLVING JUDGE, strange visitor from another jurisdiction,  who came to Miami with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal judges. PROBLEM SOLVING JUDGE, who can change the course of mighty rivers  feeding the Everglades with an opinion, stop US steel from being sold with a simple injunction. And who, disguised as Clark Kent, mild-mannered Judge in a great metropolitan courthouse, fights a never-ending battle for truth, justice and no more continuances. 

GONNA FLY NOW

 Ever want to take your favourite Judge, or prosecutor, or if you are a judge or prosecutor, your favourite defense attorney, and just pull the rip cord? 

Now you can! 

I Fly has opened up down the street from the REGJB (across from the new complex just over the bridge).  Our little neighborhood is changing from small houses converted to law offices by defense attorneys in the 1970s (when you could take cash as a fee without risking indictment), into a touristy/shopping mecca. 

This is how we imagine the tour bus script would read: 

"And on your left is the Miami criminal courthouse, the scene of many lurid murder trials and drug trafficking trials straight out of Miami Vice. And as we pass the courthouse, on your left is the Dade County State Attorney's Office, staffed by lawyers who are very good at stating 'victim wants max' and who recently employed an experienced supervisor who withheld evidence in a murder case and then lied about it in court under oath. Their offices are called the Graham building named after Philip Graham, a former publisher of the Washington Post. Most prosecutors would tell you that the building is named after former Florida Senator Bob Graham, but they would be wrong. 

Just down the street past the State Attorney's Office is the Public Defender's Office, and the interesting story about that is that their offices used to be the Miami Dade Police Department's Offices. And across from all of this is the Jackson Hospital Medical Complex where many a lawyer or judge has gone for medical assistance after a rough day in court." 

So now after a hard day in court, you can go across the street, throw down a few at the bougee bar on the river (the Marine Bar it is not), and then go skydiving. 

Have fun!

BDA

 Bomb Damage Assessment. 

Bottom photo shows Fordo site before bombing. In both photos a support building in white remains undamaged. In top photo the two squares show probable bomb entry. To the left you can see a dust cloud from the bombs. 

NB. Rumpole supports the total destruction of Iran’s nuclear sites as well as regime change for the Iranian people. A people we had significant ties and friendships with prior to the religious  revolution in 1979 that plunged this once great and proud nation of amazing, cultured and brilliant people into oppressive darkness at the hands of an oppressive religious minority.  One need only look at the execution Reyhaneh Jabari for stabbing her rapist for how these religious maniacs have ruled and ruined Iran. It’s time for them to go. They have threatened the destruction of Israel and caused countless death and injuries of Americans through their support of terrorist organizations throughout the Mideast. 

Enough is enough. Kill the Ayatollah and his government and free Iran. 

JUST WHEN YOU THOUGHT IT WAS SAFE TO GO BACK INTO THE COURTROOM

Jaws was released 50 years ago today.  It was, in our memory and experience, the first summer blockbuster movie. 

People have their favourite lines, like "you're gonna need a bigger boat" said by Roy Scheider when he first sees the shark. 

But in our humble opinion Robert Shaw as Quint stole the movie.  Many point to Quint's Indianapolis speech as their favorite. "You know the thing about a shark is that he has lifeless eyes, black eyes, like a dolls eyes... I'll never put on a lifejacket again. So eleven hundred men went into water. Three hundred and sixteen come out, the sharks took the rest. June the 29, 1945..." 

 

But this scene and his speech is our favorite. "This shark. Swallow ya whole. A little shakin, a little tenderizin and down you go...I'll find him for three. But I'll catch him and kill him for ten..."

Robert Shaw was just an amazing actor. 

 

PANTHERS WIN! TRANSGENDER PEOPLE LOSE

 Your Florida Panthers won the Stanley Cup for the second year in a row. And it was the third year in a row they made the Stanley Cup finals. Quite and achievement. Time to start talking dynasty. 

Here's how it played out in Miami. 

1: The Panthers won the championship. 

2: I thought college football was over. 

1: No. The Panthers. Our hockey team. 

2: Miami doesn't have a hockey team. 

1: Yes we do. They won the Stanley Cup two years in a row now. 

2: Oh. Well, let me know next year when they are in the finals. And you know what else? I'd buy Heat tickets if the NBA moved Wembanyama and Cooper Flagg to the Heat. 

Meanwhile the US Supreme Court upheld a Tennessee law banning medical treatment for Transgender youth. 

From the opinion: 

We hold today what everyone already knows. Transgender people are not entitled to protections under the 14th amendment. American exceptionalism says so and drives this conclusion.  We are never so strong as when we ban those of us who are different. Transgenderism is a new phenomenon which can be traced to Hillary Clinton's lost emails and Hunter Biden's laptop. And don't discount the stealing of the 2020 election. There aren't any Israeli pilots bombing Iran who are transgender and there shouldn't be any transgender people in the US getting any medical care. They should straighten up (pun intended) and fly right if they want to be accepted into American society which was founded on the principle that we are a Christian nation that does not tolerate differences. Differences make us weaker. One race. One People. Two sexes. Thats it. That's what makes America great. The Law is constitutional and we invite other states to ban these democratic inspired attacks on our president and society.  Arbeit  Macht Frei. 

ALMOST TIME

Tuesday Update: Simply because the VIX (the stock market "fear index") shot up nearly three points this afternoon to over 21, we have a sneaking suspicion that the President has ordered the US Airforce to destroy the Iranian Nuclear facility at Fordo buried deep underground. Only the US has aircraft (B1 and B2 bombers) capable of delivering the 30,000 pound "bunker buster" bomb. With the VIX shooting up, we think the order has been given. We shall see. 

Attention Panther fans. It’s almost time.  On Tuesday night your Florida Panthers will be playing at home to win the Stanley Cup. Now is the time to pay an outrageously obscene price for two tickets.  Go to Sammy’s Steakhouse to be seen and then show up midway in the second period loudly proclaiming your undying loyalty to the Panthers. If the Panthers are behind by 3 you can unobtrusively slip out between the second and third periods. 

CIVIL PROTESTS 

What is the appropriate response if you’re stopped at a light in your car and some protestors walk in front of you and try and prevent you from driving away? 

In LA this driver ran over the woman. 

I’m

In Florida our Governors has a more nuanced view. If someone blocks your car you have a right and indeed an obligation to floor it and send them flying. 

 

 What say you?

YOU HAVE QUESTIONS

 We have the answers, in another edition of one of our more popular features. 

Q: Rump what happened Thursday? 

A: Thursday was a normal day in the USA and the world. Israel bombed Iran and President Trump threatened similar actions to Los Angeles. A District Court Judge ruled the President could not usurp the Governor's control of the National Guard Thursday afternoon. By Thursday evening an appellate court temporarily reversed that ruling.  And during the day a Boeing Dreamliner crashed in India shortly after takeoff killing everyone on board except one guy in seat 11A who was able to open the emergency exit and walk out of the crash with a few scratches. 

Q: Is California really that bad? 

A: Yes, it's bad. The Marines were preparing to engage a group of rowdy first graders who were refusing to take nap time. Trump ordered the Airborne to prepare for a "Normandy style drop" into LA to stop protestors from making fun of him, and artillery was brought into to stop the ACLU from criticizing the President. Oh yeah, an impertinent US Senator from California asked a question at a press conference and was wrestled to the ground by law enforcement.  The House then voted along party lines to pass the "No Questions At Press Conferences" bill later in the day.  

Q: What about our Courthouse? 

A: The Dade State Attorney's Office kept their streak of 183 days of asking for a maximum sentence based on the victim's wishes intact. "Just because a bad check was for twenty dollars doesn't mean a lengthy prison sentence to maintain law and order is not called for. Especially when the defendant also smokes marijuana."  There was also still no acknowledgement that the office employed a cabal of prosecutors led by Michael Von Zamft who lied to courts on murder cases.

Q: What exactly did Israel do?

A: This is complicated. In military terms they bombed the crap out of Iran, killing the top ranks of the Iranian Military leadership (motto "Stronger than the French Army was in 1939") and also bombing several airbases, and uranium enrichment sites. 

Q: What does it mean to enrich uranium? 

A: Well, it doesn't mean buying it shares of Nivida. It means refining the purity of uranium so it can be used in a nuclear weapon. For civilian reactor purposes for energy, uranium needs to be enriched to 6%. For a military bomb it needs to be enriched over 60%. 

Q: So can Iran now make a nuclear weapon? 

A: Probably. Israel did not strike the Fordo facility which is where the Iranians have the centrifuges to enrich uranium to weapons grade.  The Fordo facilities are buried deep within a mountain and Israel is not known to have a "bunker buster" type bomb that the US has. Trump wanted to sell them some, but Musk fired the guys who keep track of them and no one can find our bunker buster bombs at the moment. 

Q: What did our President say? 

A: In a clear and concise response to the attack he condemned it and supported it, saying that Israel shouldn't do it, but that Iran brought it on themselves and Israel should do it. Many world leaders said that by now they were not surprised by the President's remarks and expected them.  

Q: So what is Israel going to do? 

A: They have a few options. They can bomb the Fordo facility's entrance and cave in some of the tunnels, essentially blocking access to the facility. They can also bomb the power plants that provide electricity to the facility.  Because Iran's defenses have been so degraded, they could also land a commando strike force to enter the facility, go inside of it, and leave explosives, and then blow it up from the inside. 

Q: Where is the Fordo facility? 

A: Just outside the holy city of Qom. 

Q: Why do they call it the holy city of Qom? 

A: No one really knows. People just started calling it that several years ago and the name sort of stuck. 

Q: How do you feel about things? 

A: Pretty good. The Marines will have their hands full with the first graders who have been preparing water balloons and mocking the Marines on IG daring them to start something and calling their moms ugly.  LA winds and fires will degrade the ability of Airborne to drop on LA. Although the ACLU doesn't have offices designed to withstand artillery. Israel is doing a good job with Iran. And by now everyone expects the Dade SAO to ask for the MAX on every case. So as we said at the start, Thursday was just a normal day in the world in 2025. 

WHAT CANT THEY DO

If they can handcuff a US Senator for asking a question, imagine what they can do to you 

 Item: United States Senator Alex Padilla was thrown to the ground and handcuffed by federal agents for asking a question during DHS Head Kristi Noem’s press conference in LA. 

BRIAN WILSON

 Brian Wilson burst on to the music scene in the 1960s like a  supernova. He wrote about surfing in Surfing USA (1963) although he never surfed. He wrote about the happiness of life in Good Vibrations     (1966) although he spent his childhood being terrorized by his father. 

He wrote God Only Knows in 1966 and Paul McCartney called it the greatest song ever written. 

He wrote Sloop John B and Wouldn’t It Be Nice in 1966 making  1966 his Annus Mirabilis. 

In My Room (1963), Don’t Worry Baby (1964), I Get Around (1964), California Girls (1965) made the 1960s with the Beach Boys album Pet Sounds his miraculous decade. 

Brian Wilson was a true music genius and authentically American- much like Chuck Berry - whose Sweet Sixteen Wilson “borrowed” for the rhythm and tempo of Surfin USA. 

Brian Wilson died Wednesday at age 82. We will not see his genius again.  The Beach Boys and Brian Wilson recall a time of innocence when catching a wave in California was what being a teenager in the USA was about - although he wrote California Girls after his first acid trip and hours of wallowing in his room with his pillow over his face consumed with self doubt about the tune he could not get out of his head. 

Authentically telling the story of wholesome American teenagers while using and abusing drugs.  A musical genius who suffered with drug abuse and mental illness for years. Successful.  Creative. Mad. A genius.  He was all of that and more. 

 He was authentic and unique and a uniquely American musical genius.  

Enjoy the greatest song ever written. 

WE WILL WORK FOR FREE

 Update  Protests have occurred overnight in several other cities including a sit-in at Trump tower in NYC , and peaceful protests in Dallas and San Francisco. If any group wishes to organize  a PEACEFUL protest in Miami to show solidarity with those in Los Angeles being threatened with the US military on US soil ( in violation of the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878) please email us and we will publicize the protest.  This  being Miami,  expect that most people will show up towards the end- taking a few selfies before leaving- so long as they can find parking for their Tesla Truck, and it does not interfere with their dinner reservations at Sunny’s Steakhouse (which is really good btw and a resy is hard to nab ). 

Here's a real leader. This is what we need. Governor Newsome of California. Well done. 

And if he gets arrested, we got his back. Pro bono (words we generally try and not utter). 

The whole interview is worth watching. But is you want to hear Newsome call out the administration and dare them to arrest him, scroll to 7 minutes and enjoy. 

HERE WE GO

 This just got very interesting very fast. 

elonmusk (@Elon Musk) posted: Time to drop the really big bomb:

@realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public.

Have a nice day, DJT! https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1930703865801810022?s=66

Was there any doubt that this bromance was destined to get ugly? 

Update: 

The Empire  Strikes Back: 

ALMOST TIME

 Your Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers are in the Stanley Cup Finals again in a rematch against the Edmonton Oilers. However unlike last year, if there is a game seven it will not be in Miami.  That means as Miami fans it’s almost time to start paying attention to the finals.  

A game six appearance at the start of the third period, loudly proclaiming your undying loyalty to the Panthers is the typical Miami front running fan play.  Until then go about your business.  

Speaking of loyal Miami fans who stick with their teams through good times and bad- a record 137 of you showed up for the Marlins - Rockies game this week.  

137 fans in paid attendance. The Dodgers average nearly 45,000 per game. The Mets average 42,000 fans per game. And 137 people in Miami couldn’t find anything better to do then go to the baseball game earlier this week.  What a great city this is. 

HELMUTH SOLIS HAS PASSED AWAY

Update : from the comments  

I am a County Court Criminal Judge who over the years has worked with Mr. Solis. Solid. Strong. Sincere. Sensible. Social. That's Mr. Solis. The reaper took a trooper. Sad.

 We received word earlier this week that Helmuth Solis was hospitalized and now sadly we report that he passed away. Helmuth was a former ASA who was widely respected and liked and was currently in private practice in a partnership.  We did not know him well but will post some of the comments and remembrances in the comments section on the front of the blog as we receive them. 

He was way too young to lose his life. We are informed this was a tragic accident of some sort and it reminds yet once again of the fragility of life and the importance of understanding the gift of life and repaying it by living in grace and being kind. 

PAUL DONNELLY SERVICES AND REMEMBERANCE

 Hello, my name is Dana and I am Paul Donnelly's partner in life. I hope I'm not overstepping any boundaries or rules by posting on this legal forum.  I just received Paul's phone from the courthouse and wanted to post information regarding his Celebration   of Life this coming Monday,  June 2, 2025 @ 10:00 am. 

The service is at Dignity Memorial's Forest Lawn Funeral home 2401 Davie Road, Davie,  FL 33317.

Please feel free to share this information within the legal community.

Please feel free to share on The Blog. Thank you.