Julie Kay on the new federal courthouse

This story isn't ending...

Check this out.

Here's an update on the lawsuit re Ted Klein, which is now being handled by Alan Goldfarb, not Ervin Gonzalez:

The judges' move to the new building could free up space for occupants of the Dyer Building. Several magistrate clerks, courtroom deputies and interpreters who work in the building have complained of such respiratory problems as double pneumonia, nosebleeds and severe allergies. Water intrusion is apparent in some areas, with peeling wallpaper, stained carpets and musty smells.

Two studies performed at the building since Klein's death concluded there are significant mold and air safety issues in the building, particularly in the basement.

Goldfarb said he is frustrated because the government has promised to provide FOIA information by certain dates and has not met these deadlines. Goldfarb is trying to find out when the government knew there were problems in the building and what action, if any, they took.

The GSA, which received the FOIA requests on Oct. 29, was not available for comment at press time.

Chief Judge Federico Moreno said there is "no problem in the Dyer Building. It's all been remedied. There's only a problem in one part of the basement.".

Happy new year!

Back to work everyone...

It's 2008.

And it's cold today.

We don't have a blogging message as cool as this:

So, we'll just leave it at Happy New Year. Here's to a great 2008.

Rumors of my demise...

...have been greatly exaggerated.

It's just that it's the deadest week of the year. EXCEPT IN STATE COURT! Are you kidding me? Yes, we have anonymous juries and explosions in buildings, but nothing like the Christmas Eve Massacre (reported by Rumpole).

Guinea pigs

According to today's DBR, the probation office will begin moving into the new Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. federal courthouse in January. But none of the other occupants (including judges) will start moving in yet.

Liberty City 7 update

Judge Lenard has ordered an anonymous jury in the next Liberty City 7 trial. (via Miami Herald). Very bad news for the defense.

Here's the intro to the article:

A federal judge on Friday aired concerns about the possibility of jury tampering in the upcoming retrial of an alleged homegrown terrorism group and ordered that Miami-Dade jurors be selected anonymously for the high-profile proceeding.U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard cited numerous reasons for her order -- including a jury list handed by one defense lawyer to his client's mother so she could pray for an acquittal during first trial deliberations last week. Lenard noted that it was a ''pristine list'' with all 12 of the jurors' names and ''X'' marks next to six of them.''At this point, it's unclear to the court what that list was about,'' she said.Her order -- an edict normally seen in organized crime or major drug cases -- means that potentially hundreds of Miami-Dade voters who receive jury summonses for the retrial in January will be referred to by number, not by name. The judge also ordered the U.S. Marshals to provide criminal background checks on all prospective jurors for both sides.***''I do find there is strong reason to believe the jury needs protection,'' Lenard said. ``Here we have defendants accused of being members of a terrorist cell.''

On the other hand, Judge Lenard ordered the government to keep Lyglenson Lemorin here in the United States because he may be needed for the next trial. (via Sun-Sentinel). From the article:

U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard cautioned the government against moving ahead "with lightning speed so that he would not be available to testify.""I don't know if it's on a fast track or not on a fast track," Lenard said. "I have to protect the rights of these defendants and I intend to do so."

So, do we start calling the case the Liberty City 6 now?

Jailhouse snitch?

Apparently someone at the federal jail claims that a defendant in the Joe Cool case confessed. Smells fishy to me. Here and here are the articles.

Holiday cards

The Wall Street Journal Blog likes Stearns Weaver's holiday card....

The following text accompanies this picture:

Past contributions by our firm have enabled the Daily Bread Food Bank to deliver over 1.3 million meals to those in need in our community.
This year, we decided to contribute a truck to help make the deliveries a little easier.
When you see this truck in our community, you may notice that our name is not on it. That is because the gift of this truck is made in your honor. It would not have been possible without you.

Where in the world is Lyglenson Lemorin?

Check out this AP story, by Curt Anderson, about the one defendant who was acquitted in the Liberty City 7 case. Even when you win, you lose....

A U.S. jury did not think Lyglenson Lemorin was involved in a terrorism conspiracy to topple Chicago's Sears Tower and bomb FBI offices, but he did not walk out of court a free man.
Instead, federal agents took the legal U.S. resident to Georgia, where he remained Wednesday facing possible deportation to his native Haiti, his attorneys said. And Lemorin could be forced to return to court early next year in Miami to testify in the retrial of his co-defendants in the so-called "Liberty City Seven" case.
Lemorin's treatment has led people involved in the case to question the government's motives, especially if he is charged with largely identical terrorism-related offenses in deportation proceedings.

We also haven't had a Go Dore Go segment in a while, but the article quotes blog favorite Dore Louis:

His lawyers didn't know where he was until Monday, and Lemorin told them he feared he would be taken to the U.S. terrorist detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. A Miami lawyer who represents a co-defendant in the Jose Padilla terrorism case said Lemorin was afraid for good reason.
"This is a category of individuals who are subjected to different rules," said attorney Marshall Dore Louis, who is not involved in the Liberty City Seven case. "I think anybody who is in that system should be terrified about what the government is going to do."