Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry.

Ah, those spell checkers... Today the Herald's op-ed pages support Judge "Hulk's" decision in the Joe Cool case. Judge Hulk is discussed throughout the op-ed, which I agree with wholeheartedly... Here's the intro:

Better late than never. This is the best that can be said about U.S. District Judge Paul Hulk's decision last week to throw out four guilty verdicts against a Hialeah security guard whose gun was used in the murders of a Miami Beach charter-boat captain and crew. It's a pity that Judge Hulk didn't realize the mistake earlier -- during trial -- when it could have spared the victims' grief-stricken family members another round of trauma.
Relatives of charter-boat captain Jake Branam, his wife and two crew members were initially relieved with the guilty verdicts against Guillermo Zarabozo, 20. The jury had convicted Zarabozo of providing one of the guns used to kill the captain and crew of the charter boat Joe Cool. However, the jury was deadlocked on 12 other charges against Zarabozo alleging conspiracy, kidnapping and murder. Zarabozo faces a retrial on those charges on Jan. 20, and the dismissed weapons charges should be added to that case.
Jury sought clarification
The jury obviously was confused in its deliberations. It sent a note to Judge Hulk asking for clarification of whether Zarabozo would ''automatically'' be considered a participant in the kidnappings and murders if he brought the gun aboard the boat not knowing that crimes would be committed. The judge didn't clarify the point, and sent them back to deliberate.
That was a mistake, Judge Hulk said last week. He acknowledged that he should have told the jurors they could find Zarabozo guilty of the gun charges only if they also found him liable for the kidnappings or deaths. It is rare for a judge to publicly admit to a trial error, especially after a verdict has been rendered. For this, Judge Hulk deserves credit. It took courage and conviction for him to do so.

Everyone is flattered

Here is the Daily Business Review article discussing potential replacements for Alex Acosta now that Obama has been elected. All the candidates say that they are flattered to be considered. It's a very good slate of candidates, including Jackie Becerra and Curt Miner -- two smart young and dynamic lawyers that I have tried cases against.

But on a personal note, I am very sad that Acosta may be replaced. He has been a wonderful US Attorney. If he was to get a grade, it would clearly be an A. He is very smart, and has always been dedicated to doing the right thing. I can't say enough about how great he has been.

I know I am not alone in saying this.
He has won the support of his own office, the defense bar, and the judges. I have spoken to many prosecutors and defense lawyers who say that the only thing bad about an Obama presidency is having to replace Acosta. Well, perhaps Obama will surprise us and reach across the aisle, as he is known to do, and keep Acosta. If not, he's got a fine list to choose from.

Sorry for the formatting, but I have a new blackberry and I am still figuring it out.

http://www.dailybusinessreview.com/news.html?news_id=51603

The list includes newly minted Florida state Sen. Dan Gelber, a partner at Akerman Senterfitt in Miami; Greenberg Traurig litigators Mark Schnapp and Jackie Becerra in Miami; Bruce Udolf, a white-collar specialist at Berger Singerman in Fort Lauderdale; Curtis Miner, a partner at Colson Hicks & Eidson in Coral Gables and Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Daryl Trawick.
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At least two people from the list are already canvassing for support, a source said.
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A possible internal candidate would be Jeff Sloman, Acosta's top assistant. Sloman is likely to take over as interim U.S. attorney if Acosta decides to step down before a replacement is named. Guy Lewis stepped from the first assistant slot to acting U.S. attorney in 2000 when Tom Scott resigned after George W. Bush's victory and stayed until August 2002 when Marcos Jimenez was appointed.

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Miami Herald : South Florida ''Legal Legends'' honored at awards banquet

A wonderful list of honorees from the 11th Circuit Historical Society.

The one glaring omission is my former boss, Judge Edward B. Davis.

Here's the Herald article and the list of honorees:

http://m.miamiherald.com/mh/db_8477/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=rnerGm0N&full=true#display

Rosemary Barkett -- The first woman to serve on Florida's Supreme Court.

  Bennett Brummer -- Retiring Miami-Dade County Public Defender.

 Manuel Crespo (posthumously) -- First Cuban-American elected to serve on the Florida Bar Board of Governors.

 Arthur England, Jr. -- Former Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court.

  Peter Fay -- A federal appellate judge.

 Robert Floyd (posthumously) -- Miami's youngest mayor (elected at age 29).

 Seymour Gelber -- Former mayor of Miami Beach, 11th Circuit Court Judge  and author.

 Mario Goderich -- A founding member and the first president of the Cuban American Bar Association.

 Minnette Massey -- When named Acting Dean of the UM Law School she was one of two women in the country to serve in this position.

  H.T. Smith -- Attorney and one of the leaders of the City of Miami boycott.

 Osvaldo N. Soto -- Cuban civil rights attorney and former president of the Cuban-American Bar Association.

 Gerald Wetherington -- Served as chief Judge of the 11th Circuit Court for 10 years.

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Judge Huck tosses gun verdict in Joe Cool slayings

Breaking news!

That's clearly the right result, especially if the prosecution was going to retry the other counts.

Now, will there be an appeal before the retrial is scheduled?

Obama

Election Day

It's that time of year again.

Many federal judges aren't conducting trials today so that jurors can vote.

I always ask the question about judicial elections vs. appointments. Who has the better system? In the judicial races today, what do you know about the candidates? What does the general public know? Are we making an informed decision?

You all know my view -- the federal appointment system, which has its own flaws, is the better way to select judges.

Thoughts?

Federal Bar Luncheon

Celeste Higgins, the new pres of the local Federal Bar Association, asked me to let you all know that Beth Wilkinson is the first luncheon speaker on Wednesday November 12. Here's the info:

Beth Wilkinson is former General Counsel of Fannie Mae. Prior to thatposition, she was partner and co-chair of the White Collar practice groupat Latham and Watkins and prosecutor in the Timothy McVeigh and TerryNichols Oklahoma City bombing trials. She was a special AUSA in Miami in 1990-1991 who worked with the prosecution of Noriega. She will, no doubt,give us a behind the scenes perspective on the current financial crisis andthe other major legal events she has seen and participated in since leavingthe Southern District of Florida. Furthermore, her unique perspective as aprosecutor, defense attorney and general counsel provides a greatopportunity to hear what she thinks the biggest issues will be for attorneys and judges as the financial crisis unfolds and a new administration takes over on January 20, 2009.The luncheon will be held at the Bankers' Club located at One BiscayneTower on Wednesday, November 12th promptly at 12 noon. Reservations can bemade by calling Lourdes Fernandez, Law Clerk to Judge Dube at (305)523-5771. The cost is $35 per person.

Conviction in suitcase-gate

After extremely lengthy deliberations, the jury convicted Franklin Duran today. Congratulations to Tom Mulvihill. Here's the intro to Curt Anderson's AP article:

A federal jury convicted a wealthy Venezuelan Monday of acting as an illegal foreign agent who came to the U.S. to cover up a Latin American political scandal involving a cash-stuffed suitcase smuggled into Argentina.Jurors deliberated seven days -- at one point indicating they were hopelessly deadlocked -- before finding Franklin Duran, 41, guilty of foreign agent and conspiracy charges. He faces up to 15 years in prison.Duran, dressed in a dark suit, stared straight ahead and showed no emotion when the verdict was announced. U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard set sentencing for Jan. 12.Prosecutors said during the eight-week trial that Duran and other South American men came to Miami on orders of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to ensure the silence of a man who carried a suitcase filled with $800,000 into Argentina in 2007. The U.S. said the money was a secret political donation to the campaign of Argentina's president.
Duran attorney Ed Shohat contended his client was entrapped by the FBI and came to Miami only to help a friend and protect business interests. Shohat vowed Monday to appeal, calling the trial ``a political circus'' orchestrated by the U.S. to embarrass Chavez and his allies.``Franklin Duran is a pawn of the U.S. government,'' Shohat said. ``We're going to continue this fight.''Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Mulvihill rejected that description of the case, which has been the subject of relentless media coverage across Latin America.``This was not a political trial. We don't engage in those,'' Mulvihill said.