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
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
Federal Bar Association Judicial Reception
The Federal Bar Association will have its 27th Annual Federal Judicial Reception on February 7, 2008 at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Miami from 5:30-8p.m. $35 for government lawyers and $45 for private practitioners if you purchase in advance. Mail your checks to Federal Bar Association, 300 NE 1st Avenue, Rm. 112 Miami, Florida 33132, 305-52305770. Include a self-addressed return envelope for your tix. RSVP now.
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Poor Judge Cooke...
She has to deal with a lot of sentencing objections in Jose Padilla's case (via the AP).
Go, Dore, Go!
In our continuing Go, Dore, Go! segment, here is Dore Louis from yesterday's hearing in front of Judge Cooke:
An attorney for Jayyoussi, a fundraiser for Muslim causes, launched a more direct assault on the government. ''The CIA and Justice Department destroyed evidence taken from people alleged to be unindicted co-conspirators in this case,'' argued Marshall Dore Louis. ``That's a problem.''
More from the Herald article here.
Jose Padilla sentencing to start today
Any bets as to what Judge Cooke will impose?
The early over-under line is 20 years.
--David Oscar Markus
www.markuslaw.com
305-379-6667
Monday, January 07, 2008
Standby Liberty City 7
Judge Lenard had to continue jury selection because of an emergency situation for one of the defense lawyers. Status conference on Wednesday.
Liberty City 7 retrial
It's now the Liberty City 6, and the retrial starts today, three weeks after the jury hung in the last trial.
Here's coverage by the Herald and AP. What do you think is going to happen? Another mistrial? That's what some of the jurors from trial #1 think (from Jay Weaver's article):
''From now on, they are going to have a hung jury just as we did,'' said Jose Viola, 58, an audio-visual technician for Miami-Dade public schools, who sat on the first panel and thought all of the defendants were innocent.
''There are going to be people who won't have the stomach to send these men to prison because they were set up,'' Viola said. ``And there are going to be people who will want to send them to prison because of al Qaeda.''
Delorise Thompkins, 64, who works at South Miami Hospital, agreed with her colleague on the first jury.
''I think it may hang again,'' she said. ``You're going to find someone always afraid of terrorist groups, but then when you see the evidence, there's not a lot there -- no plans, no papers, no pictures, no nothing, connecting them to Osama bin Laden.''
If that happens, will they go for trial #3?
And while Liberty City starts up, the Padilla sentencing starts Tuesday. Here's Vanessa Blum's coverage.
Here's coverage by the Herald and AP. What do you think is going to happen? Another mistrial? That's what some of the jurors from trial #1 think (from Jay Weaver's article):
''From now on, they are going to have a hung jury just as we did,'' said Jose Viola, 58, an audio-visual technician for Miami-Dade public schools, who sat on the first panel and thought all of the defendants were innocent.
''There are going to be people who won't have the stomach to send these men to prison because they were set up,'' Viola said. ``And there are going to be people who will want to send them to prison because of al Qaeda.''
Delorise Thompkins, 64, who works at South Miami Hospital, agreed with her colleague on the first jury.
''I think it may hang again,'' she said. ``You're going to find someone always afraid of terrorist groups, but then when you see the evidence, there's not a lot there -- no plans, no papers, no pictures, no nothing, connecting them to Osama bin Laden.''
If that happens, will they go for trial #3?
And while Liberty City starts up, the Padilla sentencing starts Tuesday. Here's Vanessa Blum's coverage.
Friday, January 04, 2008
District news
1. Steven Larimore is our new clerk of court.
2. The Tower Building has been named the Clyde Atkins courthouse. For more on Judge Atkins, read here.
2. The Tower Building has been named the Clyde Atkins courthouse. For more on Judge Atkins, read here.
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Should an acquitted defendant, his wife and his lawyer be gagged
That's the issue raised in this morning's article by Vanessa Blum:
A federal judge who declared a mistrial last month for six South Florida men charged with conspiring to support al-Qaida is taking aggressive steps to limit publicity related to the case, including silencing lawyers for a man the jury found not guilty.With a sweeping gag order imposed Dec. 13, U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard cited the need to damp down media coverage that could complicate efforts starting Jan. 7 to find impartial jurors to rehear the case.
Her order at the close of the first trial prohibits the defendants, their lawyers, prosecutors, and others, such as agents, investigators and witnesses, from talking to reporters, raising issues for defenders of free speech and drawing a challenge from one of the lawyers covered by the order.
Lenard extended the same restrictions to Lyglenson Lemorin, who was acquitted, and his criminal defense lawyer, as well as an attorney representing the Haitian national in immigration proceedings.The gag order is so broad that federal prosecutors preparing to retry the case contend it applies to Lemorin's wife, who was once listed as a potential defense witness.
I give my opinion in the article, which is that an acquitted defendant and his family should be permitted to speak.
A federal judge who declared a mistrial last month for six South Florida men charged with conspiring to support al-Qaida is taking aggressive steps to limit publicity related to the case, including silencing lawyers for a man the jury found not guilty.With a sweeping gag order imposed Dec. 13, U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard cited the need to damp down media coverage that could complicate efforts starting Jan. 7 to find impartial jurors to rehear the case.
Her order at the close of the first trial prohibits the defendants, their lawyers, prosecutors, and others, such as agents, investigators and witnesses, from talking to reporters, raising issues for defenders of free speech and drawing a challenge from one of the lawyers covered by the order.
Lenard extended the same restrictions to Lyglenson Lemorin, who was acquitted, and his criminal defense lawyer, as well as an attorney representing the Haitian national in immigration proceedings.The gag order is so broad that federal prosecutors preparing to retry the case contend it applies to Lemorin's wife, who was once listed as a potential defense witness.
I give my opinion in the article, which is that an acquitted defendant and his family should be permitted to speak.
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