Robin Rosenbaum in the DBR

Julie Kay follows up on our scoop here that Robin Rosenbaum in the new Ft. Lauderdale Magistrate.

Tom Langston?

That's the name used by the CIA agent who testified in disguise during yesterday's proceedings in Jose Padilla's trial. Jay Weaver reports:

The man who appeared in Miami federal court on Tuesday hid his identity as a CIA officer by using the alias ''Tom Langston'' and wearing a discreet disguise -- black-rimmed glasses along with a closely cropped beard.
Testifying as a witness in Jose Padilla's terror trial, he told jurors that only three months after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, an unnamed man in Afghanistan gave him a blue binder with dozens of documents.
Among them: a five-page form written in Arabic that would eventually lead federal investigators to conclude that Padilla had applied to join the al Qaeda terror network.

Here's the AP and the Sun-Sentinel report on the bizarre beginning to the trial.

They let this guy testify in disguise and I can't even bring my phone into the courtroom (it has a camera and is allowed in the building and in every other courtroom) or my briefcase (because it had a newspaper in it). I understand we need security but the lawyers are officers of the court.

My prior coverage of the disguise ruling can be read here. Judge Cooke has had another run-in with a witness wanting to wear an odd item to court. I loved how she handled that one!

Padilla trial day 2

Lots of good Jose Padilla coverage from opening statements yesterday.

But what caught my eye was this reporter's comments about the rules for press coverage:

But court security officers are enforcing an unusual rule for the trial, which is set to get under way with opening statements Monday. They are prepared to prevent members of the media from asking questions of defense lawyers or federal prosecutors at the trial.
In effect, newspaper, radio, and television reporters are being granted observer status – they may sit quietly, watch the trial, and take notes. But if during a court recess they approach a defense lawyer or prosecutor in the courtroom with a question, they risk being whisked away by security officials.
The ban on media questions also extends to the lobby outside US District Judge Marcia Cooke's courtroom and chambers.
If reporters need to ask questions for clarification or routine housekeeping matters during the trial, they must ask their questions somewhere else.

The reporter, Warren Richey, for Christian Science Monitor, then explains what happened to him:

I learned about this rule the hard way. During a recent five-minute recess during jury selection, I approached one of the prosecutors and asked who at the US Attorney's Office was handling questions from the press.
He gave me the name of a spokesperson and a telephone number. When I lifted my notebook to jot these down, a court security officer confronted me. He accused me of conducting an interview and asked me to step out of the courtroom.
I told him that I'd merely asked a question, but added that I'd never heard of a rule barring news reporters from asking questions, or even from conducting brief interviews in a courtroom at a public trial at a time when both the judge and jury were not in the courtroom.
Having covered scores of hearings and trials in the federal courts as a journalist, I am well acquainted with courtroom etiquette. But I have never heard of courtroom officials barring reporters from asking routine questions.

Other reporters spoke with Richey:

Neither has Associated Press correspondent Curt Anderson, who has covered the Padilla case closer than any other reporter. "I don't know of such a rule," he said in an e-mail. "I haven't had any problem talking with the various lawyers anywhere in the courthouse or outside, even in the courtroom itself during breaks."
Jay Weaver of the Miami Herald also says he is unaware of such a rule against journalist questions. "I would like to know what the ground rules are. It is going to come up," he says.

It will be interesting to see exactly what this rule is and how it's enforced. I'm all for protecting the rights of the defendant, and being especially careful in a trial like this is important. That said, the public has a right to see and understand this trial. I really believe we should have cameras in federal court. The Padilla trial should be watched in classrooms and studied. Instead, our country is left with images of OJ as how our justice system works.

"The politics of fear"

That was Anthony Natale's theme in opening for Jose Padilla.

"Political crises can cause parts of our government to overreach. This is one of those times," he said. Natale said Padilla wanted to become an imam — an Islamic religious leader — and asked him to stand for the jury to see. "He's a young man who has been wrongly accused," Natale said.

Again, Curt Anderson got on the board first with this coverage. I'm sure there will be a lot more.....

"Jose Padilla was an al-Qaida terrorist trainee providing the ultimate form of material support - himself,"

That was Brian Frazier in opening statement. Frazier continued: "Padilla was serious, he was focused, he was secretive. Padilla had cut himself off from most things in his life that did not concern his radical view of the Islamic religion."

Curt Anderson, for the AP, has the first report from today's proceedings...

Padilla's lawyers haven't countered yet. More to follow.

Congrats to our new Magistrate

A (reliable) little birdie told me that Robin Rosenbaum is our new Ft. Lauderdale Magistrate Judge. Congratulations!

Computer issues

My computer at the office is down as is my server.

This will teach me to go away for the weekend (even if it was for a conference!).

I did manage to get up two posts this morning before everything crashed. Now I'm on the computer of someone down the hall who hasn't made it in to work yet. You know who you are...

In any event, there is a bunch of weekend stuff to catch up on, but it will have to wait until the afternoon. Plus, I'm going to try and make it over to see some openings in Padilla. Will check in later.

Jose Padilla opening statements

Jose Padilla opening statements are today. There is a buzz in the legal community over the case, but I wonder if the general public has the same interest. You would think everyone would be following this trial, but I get the sense that it's a case of a lot of interest to us, but only of moderate interest to everyone else...

In any event, there are a zillion articles about the start of the case. Here's one by Vanessa Blum about Judge Marcia Cooke. (And here's a brief bio) Here's our initial coverage of Judge Cooke.

Good luck to the lawyers today. I'm sure everyone has those trial jitters, especially in this case.