1. The Court's Holiday Schedule is here.
2. Former NFL player Louis Gachelin sentenced to two plus years. (Via Sun-Sentinel).
3. Lewis/Tein has some good news covered by the DBR and SFL. UPDATED -- And Rumpole!
4. Alan Dershowitz interviews Jeffrey Toobin. Really interesting.
5. Former state prosecutor in Maine cuts his electronic monitor. Apparently, that's very rare.
6. The Washington Times updates the judicial nominees and the waiting time.
The SDFLA Blog is dedicated to providing news and notes regarding federal practice in the Southern District of Florida. The New Times calls the blog "the definitive source on South Florida's federal court system." All tips on court happenings are welcome and will remain anonymous. Please email David Markus at dmarkus@markuslaw.com
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Monday, November 19, 2012
Judge Seitz taking Senior Status
Rumors have been swirling that Judge Seitz would be taking senior status this month, and it appears that she did so as of November 16, 2012, which is 14 years to the day she was appointed by President Clinton). So another opening for President Obama, who is quickly reshaping our District Court.
In other news, the B-Girls trial is still being heard and the testimony of former weatherman John Bolaris was out of a bad movie. From Jay Weaver:
More than two years after his “nightmare on South Beach,” former TV weatherman John Bolaris remains a little foggy about his close encounter with a couple of Latvian “Bar Girls” who swindled him for $43,000 in bogus booze charges billed to his AMEX card.
On Friday, Bolaris testified in Miami federal court that he didn’t have sex with them, though the thought crossed his mind after meeting the duo at the Delano Hotel in late March 2010. Bolaris, 55, was asked whether the B-girls suggested they go to his room at the Fontainebleau Hotel for a “threesome.”
“No, sir,” Bolaris told defense attorney Roderick Vereen. “In my right state of mind, I would not do that.” Vereen shot back: “What about in your intoxicated state of mind?” ***The following night, Bolaris said he went to dinner at the Delano Hotel, eating sushi and drinking a few glasses of his favorite wine, pinot grigio. He then sat down in the hotel’s Rose Bar for a few more glasses of wine. Nearby, a pair of B-girls were acting like tourists as they took pictures of each other. They struck up a conversation with him.
Bolaris described them as “very cutesy, like the girls next door ... the kind of girls you’d like to marry.” He paid for a round of wine, and later invited them to the Delano’s poolside bar, where he slipped a $50 bill to the bouncer to let them in. He bought another round of wine.
One of the B-girls started rubbing his shoulders from behind, while the other approached from the front to offer him a shot of liquor.
“Come on, do the shot,” she teased. Bolaris said, “No, no.”
But eventually he gave in and downed one.
During his testimony, federal prosecutor Richard Gregorie asked Bolaris if at that point he had the impression they were “hookers.” He emphatically said, “No.”
Gregorie further asked if he went to the Delano looking to have sex. He said he went there for sushi, “not for sex.”
Is this guy serious? He believed that two girls just came up to him and started rubbing his shoulders at the Delano pool. And remind me again why this is in federal court. Lots of other details on the net from the 302 reports and other sources.
In other news, the B-Girls trial is still being heard and the testimony of former weatherman John Bolaris was out of a bad movie. From Jay Weaver:
More than two years after his “nightmare on South Beach,” former TV weatherman John Bolaris remains a little foggy about his close encounter with a couple of Latvian “Bar Girls” who swindled him for $43,000 in bogus booze charges billed to his AMEX card.
On Friday, Bolaris testified in Miami federal court that he didn’t have sex with them, though the thought crossed his mind after meeting the duo at the Delano Hotel in late March 2010. Bolaris, 55, was asked whether the B-girls suggested they go to his room at the Fontainebleau Hotel for a “threesome.”
“No, sir,” Bolaris told defense attorney Roderick Vereen. “In my right state of mind, I would not do that.” Vereen shot back: “What about in your intoxicated state of mind?” ***The following night, Bolaris said he went to dinner at the Delano Hotel, eating sushi and drinking a few glasses of his favorite wine, pinot grigio. He then sat down in the hotel’s Rose Bar for a few more glasses of wine. Nearby, a pair of B-girls were acting like tourists as they took pictures of each other. They struck up a conversation with him.
Bolaris described them as “very cutesy, like the girls next door ... the kind of girls you’d like to marry.” He paid for a round of wine, and later invited them to the Delano’s poolside bar, where he slipped a $50 bill to the bouncer to let them in. He bought another round of wine.
One of the B-girls started rubbing his shoulders from behind, while the other approached from the front to offer him a shot of liquor.
“Come on, do the shot,” she teased. Bolaris said, “No, no.”
But eventually he gave in and downed one.
During his testimony, federal prosecutor Richard Gregorie asked Bolaris if at that point he had the impression they were “hookers.” He emphatically said, “No.”
Gregorie further asked if he went to the Delano looking to have sex. He said he went there for sushi, “not for sex.”
Friday, November 16, 2012
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Judge William Thomas officially nominated to District Court
This is great news and fast. Let's hope that this is how it's going to be in the President's second term. Here is President Obama's press release:
***
HT: Glenn Sugameli
President Obama
Nominates Seven to the United States District Courts
WASHINGTON,
DC - Today, President Obama nominated Valerie E. Caproni, Kenneth
John Gonzales, Raymond P. Moore, Judge Beverly
Reid O’Connell, Judge William L. Thomas, Judge
Analisa Torres and Derrick Kahala Watson for
District Court judgeships.
"These individuals have demonstrated the talent,
expertise, and fair-mindedness Americans expect and deserve from their judicial
system," said President Obama. "They also represent my
continued commitment to ensure that the judiciary resembles the nation it
serves. I am grateful for their willingness to serve and confident that
they will apply the law with the utmost impartiality and integrity. Too
many of our courtrooms stand empty. I hope the Senate will promptly
consider all of my nominees and ensure justice for everyday Americans.”
***
Judge William L. Thomas: Nominee for the United States
District Court for the Southern District of Florida
Judge William L. Thomas has served as a Circuit Judge in Florida’s Eleventh Judicial Circuit since 2005, where he has presided over both civil and criminal matters. For seven years, from 1997 to 2005, he served as an Assistant Federal Public Defender in the Southern District of Florida, where he represented indigent clients in federal criminal cases. Judge Thomas began his legal career as an Assistant Public Defender at the Miami-Dade County Public Defender’s Office in 1994. He received his J.D. in 1994 from the Temple University School of Law and his B.A. in 1991 from Washington and Jefferson College in Washington, Pennsylvania.
Judge William L. Thomas has served as a Circuit Judge in Florida’s Eleventh Judicial Circuit since 2005, where he has presided over both civil and criminal matters. For seven years, from 1997 to 2005, he served as an Assistant Federal Public Defender in the Southern District of Florida, where he represented indigent clients in federal criminal cases. Judge Thomas began his legal career as an Assistant Public Defender at the Miami-Dade County Public Defender’s Office in 1994. He received his J.D. in 1994 from the Temple University School of Law and his B.A. in 1991 from Washington and Jefferson College in Washington, Pennsylvania.
HT: Glenn Sugameli
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Anthony Mangione sentenced...
... to 70 months.
You remember him -- the former ICE chief who was caught with child porn on his computer. He then wiped the computer clean with techniques he learned from his time in ICE.
The sentence was more than the minimum mandatory 60 month sentence he requested and less than the 87 months requested by prosecutors. Fair sentence?
You remember him -- the former ICE chief who was caught with child porn on his computer. He then wiped the computer clean with techniques he learned from his time in ICE.
The sentence was more than the minimum mandatory 60 month sentence he requested and less than the 87 months requested by prosecutors. Fair sentence?
Monday, November 12, 2012
Thursday, November 08, 2012
Big win for AFPD Tracy Dreispul
Appellate guru Tracy Dresipul has done it again, this time in United States v. Bellaizac-Hurtado.
Judge Pryor starts off his opinion this way, which summarizes the issue and the holding nicely:
Judge Pryor starts off his opinion this way, which summarizes the issue and the holding nicely:
This appeal presents a novel issue about the scope of congressional power to
proscribe conduct abroad: whether the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act, 46
U.S.C. §§ 70503(a), 70506, exceeds the power of Congress to “define and
punish . . . Offences against the Law of Nations,” U.S. Const. Art. I, § 8, cl. 10, as
applied to the drug-trafficking activities of Yimmi Bellaizac-Hurtado, Pedro Felipe
Angulo-Rodallega, Albeiro Gonzalez-Valois, and Luis Carlos Riascos-Hurtado in
the territorial waters of Panama. Because we conclude that drug trafficking is not
an “Offence[] against the Law of Nations” and that Congress cannot
constitutionally proscribe the defendants’ conduct under the Offences Clause, we
vacate their convictions.
Wednesday, November 07, 2012
Florida Election Lawyers all dressed up and no where to go
President Obama easily wins, but Florida still not called. Right now it's Obama up about 45,000 votes or 0.53 percentage points, out of a total of 8.27 million votes, with about 99 percent of the votes counted. This time though it won't matter how Florida ultimately goes... I wonder how all of the election lawyers who were geared up just for this scenario are feeling right now.
So what does Obama's victory mean for the Southern District of Florida. Some quick thoughts:
1. Will Thomas will likely be your next federal judge, but it probably won't happen till the beginning of the year.
2. President Obama will continue to shape this District with intellectual, moderate judges (like Williams, Scola, & Rosenbaum). Same for the 11th Circuit (like Martin & Jordan). There are a bunch of district openings coming up, so we will see if Obama does any better with getting judges confirmed quickly in his second term.
3. Willy Ferrer will stay on as U.S. Attorney. It will be interesting to see whether he stays for the entire 4 years.
Any other thoughts?
So what does Obama's victory mean for the Southern District of Florida. Some quick thoughts:
1. Will Thomas will likely be your next federal judge, but it probably won't happen till the beginning of the year.
2. President Obama will continue to shape this District with intellectual, moderate judges (like Williams, Scola, & Rosenbaum). Same for the 11th Circuit (like Martin & Jordan). There are a bunch of district openings coming up, so we will see if Obama does any better with getting judges confirmed quickly in his second term.
3. Willy Ferrer will stay on as U.S. Attorney. It will be interesting to see whether he stays for the entire 4 years.
Any other thoughts?
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