That's how long Judge Hurley has been waiting for Kathy Williams to be confirmed and take over his seat. The Sun-Sentinel covers the story:
"One of the great concerns for the court as an institution is that over time we'll have other vacancies, and if the vacancies aren't filled in a timely manner," legal logjams eventually will prevent people from getting their day in court, he said.
With two of his colleagues - U.S. District Judges Alan Gold in January and Paul Huck in July - joining him on what is known as senior status, his concern is more than academic.
The glacial speed of the U.S. Senate's judicial confirmation process, blamed on partisan politics, has hobbled courts throughout the country.
***
Among local attorneys, the conclusion seems obvious: "It's just partisan politics," Val Rodriguez said.
Miami attorney Neal Sonnett, a former president of the American Judicature Society, which focuses on promoting an independent judiciary, agreed. Last year Republican senators blocked the confirmation process, hoping they would seize control of the Senate in the November elections, he said. Now it appears some are intent on stalling nominations until after the 2012 elections, when they hope to put one of their own back in the White House, he said.
So far, attorneys said they haven't seen lengthy delays in getting cases heard and resolved in South Florida. Chief U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno said the district is lucky because seven senior judges still handle some cases. Further, Hurley said, case filings have slowed, in part, because of the economy.
While he credits the 15 full-time judges with moving cases quickly, attorney Ted Babbitt says eventually something has to give.
"The average person is going to get hurt because they're going to have to wait to have their cases heard," he said.
In other news:
--Maybe trial lawyers should try this on game day.
--The sentencing fight over how much time former Judge Jack Camp should get is probation or a whopping 15 days.
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
Monday, March 07, 2011
Friday, March 04, 2011
"This appeal is about usurping the role of the jury in a criminal trial byrelying upon racial stereotypes."
That's how Judge Pryor started the opinion in United States v. Almanzar. Also on the panel was Judge Carnes and our very own Judge Seitz.
The rest of the opinion's intro:
The key question presented is whether there is sufficient evidence to support a jury verdict that Araceli Almanzar knowingly possessed with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(A). The United States appeals the judgment of acquittal and conditional grant of a new trial entered in favor of Almanzar after a jury found her guilty of the charged offense. During a traffic stop of a truck loaded with 6,665 grams of methamphetamine in a hidden compartment, Almanzar exercised control over the truck and gave both written and verbal consent to its search, lied to a state trooper about the ownership of the truck and her acquisition of it, presented a phony bill of sale, and appeared to be so nervous as to be on the verge of a “panic attack,” with her hands shaking and her mouth dry. Almanzar later admitted that she had lied to the state trooper because her travel by bus from Dallas to Atlanta with her brother to retrieve the truck from two strangers was “suspicious.” She also admitted that she knew the truck contained “something we were not supposed to have.” Before the district court entered a judgment of acquittal, it stated that “life is different for a Hispanic woman in a male dominated culture, . . . the cultural expectations are different and that Hispanic women frequently, basically, do what their male family members ask them to do without asking lots of questions.” The United States argues that the evidence was sufficient to support the jury’s verdict and the district court applied the wrong standard of review, relied on speculation and impermissible stereotypes, considered information not in the record, and substituted its judgment for that of the jury. The United States also argues that the jury’s verdict was not a miscarriage of justice that would support the grant of a new trial. We agree with both arguments of the United States. We vacate in part, reverse in part, and remand with instructions to reinstate the jury’s verdict and conduct further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
Who got this one right -- the district judge or the 11th Circuit?
The rest of the opinion's intro:
The key question presented is whether there is sufficient evidence to support a jury verdict that Araceli Almanzar knowingly possessed with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(A). The United States appeals the judgment of acquittal and conditional grant of a new trial entered in favor of Almanzar after a jury found her guilty of the charged offense. During a traffic stop of a truck loaded with 6,665 grams of methamphetamine in a hidden compartment, Almanzar exercised control over the truck and gave both written and verbal consent to its search, lied to a state trooper about the ownership of the truck and her acquisition of it, presented a phony bill of sale, and appeared to be so nervous as to be on the verge of a “panic attack,” with her hands shaking and her mouth dry. Almanzar later admitted that she had lied to the state trooper because her travel by bus from Dallas to Atlanta with her brother to retrieve the truck from two strangers was “suspicious.” She also admitted that she knew the truck contained “something we were not supposed to have.” Before the district court entered a judgment of acquittal, it stated that “life is different for a Hispanic woman in a male dominated culture, . . . the cultural expectations are different and that Hispanic women frequently, basically, do what their male family members ask them to do without asking lots of questions.” The United States argues that the evidence was sufficient to support the jury’s verdict and the district court applied the wrong standard of review, relied on speculation and impermissible stereotypes, considered information not in the record, and substituted its judgment for that of the jury. The United States also argues that the jury’s verdict was not a miscarriage of justice that would support the grant of a new trial. We agree with both arguments of the United States. We vacate in part, reverse in part, and remand with instructions to reinstate the jury’s verdict and conduct further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
Who got this one right -- the district judge or the 11th Circuit?
Trustee Marika Tolz charged with $16 million fraud
The South Florida Business Journal has the story about 64-year-old Hollywood bankruptcy trustee Marika Tolz here. She is charged with misappropriating $16 million in court funds and pocketing $2.4 million of it for herself.
The case is set for first appearance before Judge Garber today at 1:30. Luis Perez is prosecuting and Ben Kuehne is defending. The case is assigned to Judge Lenard. Tolz is charged by way of information so it is evident that a deal already has been struck. In fact the SFBJ is reporting that Ben Kuehne says that Tolz “acknowledges her errors and fully anticipates that all funds will be fully reimburse or restitution made.” More:
Kuehne confirmed that Tolz intends to plead guilty.
“She will be accepting full responsibility for her conduct,” he said.
I asked Kuehne if he could say why Tolz started down the path of corruption. The charges against her suggest she used official funds for person expenses beginning in 2003, but the government’s information in the case doesn’t accuse her of living a “lavish lifestyle,” like other recent fraud cases in South Florida.
“At this point offering any factual description would only be viewed as trying to explain away what happened,” Kuehne said. “She is not attempting to offer excuses.”
The case is set for first appearance before Judge Garber today at 1:30. Luis Perez is prosecuting and Ben Kuehne is defending. The case is assigned to Judge Lenard. Tolz is charged by way of information so it is evident that a deal already has been struck. In fact the SFBJ is reporting that Ben Kuehne says that Tolz “acknowledges her errors and fully anticipates that all funds will be fully reimburse or restitution made.” More:
Kuehne confirmed that Tolz intends to plead guilty.
“She will be accepting full responsibility for her conduct,” he said.
I asked Kuehne if he could say why Tolz started down the path of corruption. The charges against her suggest she used official funds for person expenses beginning in 2003, but the government’s information in the case doesn’t accuse her of living a “lavish lifestyle,” like other recent fraud cases in South Florida.
“At this point offering any factual description would only be viewed as trying to explain away what happened,” Kuehne said. “She is not attempting to offer excuses.”
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
Justice Alito doesn't like the First Amendment
He was the lone dissenter in the crush video case. And now he is the lone dissenter in the funeral protester case:
The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the First Amendment protects fundamentalist church members who mount anti-gay protests outside military funerals, despite the pain they cause grieving families.
The court voted 8-1 in favor of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan. The decision upheld an appeals court ruling that threw out a $5 million judgment to the father of a dead Marine who sued church members after they picketed his son's funeral.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the opinion for the court. Justice Samuel Alito dissented.
Roberts said free speech rights in the First Amendment shield the funeral protesters, noting that they obeyed police directions and were 1,000 feet from the church.
"Speech is powerful. It can stir people to action, move them to tears of both joy and sorrow, and - as it did here - inflict great pain. On the facts before us, we cannot react to that pain by punishing the speaker," Roberts said. "As a nation we have chosen a different course - to protect even hurtful speech on public issues to ensure that we do not stifle public debate."
Alito strongly disagreed. "Our profound national commitment to free and open debate is not a license for the vicious verbal assault that occurred in this case," he said.
Maybe the title to the post is too harsh... Justice Alito did side with corporate First Amendment rights.
In other SCOTUS news, the Court again reiterated that judges weren't tied to the guidelines, even on resentencing cases. In Pepper v. United States, Justice Sotomayor explained that a resentencing court could take into account post-sentencing rehabilitation. Doug Berman has more at his blog, but it is worth pointing out that the Court made sure to reiterate to district courts that there are times that the guidelines are based on "wholly unconvincing policy rationales not reflected in the sentencing statutes Congress enacted."
In other news, give your thoughts on Magistrate Judge Hopkins.
The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the First Amendment protects fundamentalist church members who mount anti-gay protests outside military funerals, despite the pain they cause grieving families.
The court voted 8-1 in favor of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan. The decision upheld an appeals court ruling that threw out a $5 million judgment to the father of a dead Marine who sued church members after they picketed his son's funeral.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the opinion for the court. Justice Samuel Alito dissented.
Roberts said free speech rights in the First Amendment shield the funeral protesters, noting that they obeyed police directions and were 1,000 feet from the church.
"Speech is powerful. It can stir people to action, move them to tears of both joy and sorrow, and - as it did here - inflict great pain. On the facts before us, we cannot react to that pain by punishing the speaker," Roberts said. "As a nation we have chosen a different course - to protect even hurtful speech on public issues to ensure that we do not stifle public debate."
Alito strongly disagreed. "Our profound national commitment to free and open debate is not a license for the vicious verbal assault that occurred in this case," he said.
Maybe the title to the post is too harsh... Justice Alito did side with corporate First Amendment rights.
In other SCOTUS news, the Court again reiterated that judges weren't tied to the guidelines, even on resentencing cases. In Pepper v. United States, Justice Sotomayor explained that a resentencing court could take into account post-sentencing rehabilitation. Doug Berman has more at his blog, but it is worth pointing out that the Court made sure to reiterate to district courts that there are times that the guidelines are based on "wholly unconvincing policy rationales not reflected in the sentencing statutes Congress enacted."
In other news, give your thoughts on Magistrate Judge Hopkins.
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