"Any accurate depiction of the criminal justice microcosm must include the vital role of the coffee shop."

That's Milton Hirsch on the absence of a coffee shop in the new federal courthouse. John Pacenti covers the issue here:

Three years after the Ferguson courthouse was dedicated, the chief judge is fed up with the General Services Administration and is demanding to know when the planned cafeteria will materialize. Sustenance is available. Two vending machines are the only options right now. The delay in what some say is a necessary amenity prompted U.S. District Chief Judge Federico Moreno to fire off a letter Feb. 19 to the landlord, acting regional GSA commissioner James S. Weller. “I have absolutely no confidence that the restaurant is in reality to open soon,” Moreno wrote. His account of his dealings with the agency on the cafeteria reads like a classic bureaucratic nightmare. Moreno first asked when the restaurant would be opening Sept. 5, 2008, and was advised an exhaust hood, electrical wiring and fire suppression equipment would be installed shortly thereafter. The GSA said the hood vendor was on site that month. But dates came and went. The agency has said work on the cafeteria would be completed by last June, last November and then this past January. The exhaust hood has been particularly troublesome. Moreno said he was told last April 14 that hood work still needed to be completed. Moreno and Weller met in his chambers last July 21, and the judge was told the next day the “work is progressing.” In September, the GSA advised the vent hood contract had just been awarded, and fabrication would take five weeks. An electrical contractor was “standing by.” The GSA advised Moreno in January that “the remaining electrical work came to halt when it was learned that certain electrical components were missing.” Now, Moreno has been informed a “soft opening” is tentatively set for this month. “GSA’s most recent response concerning a hopeful soft opening in March is the same sort of response we have been receiving to our inquiries for the past year and half — a list of excuses or reasons for delay,” the judge’s letter said.

And you can always count on Judge Palermo for a good quote:

U.S. Magistrate Judge Peter Palermo, whose courtroom is in another building, refers to the courthouse as the “Vegas building.” “I just think there is a lost of wasted space,” he said. U.S. District Judge Paul Huck, a Ferguson tenant, said the building is just going through some growing pains. “It’s going to be a signature building in downtown for years to come,” he said. Still, he said it’s a little roomy, and there has been some tweaking here and there, particularly on the sound system. “It has some nice features that are good for lawyers and jurors in the presentation of evidence. That is a major improvement,” Huck said.

The Chief isn't happy:

Moreno, though, has thrown down the gauntlet, saying he is embarrassed by the lack of a cafeteria at the courthouse due to the GSA’s failure to deliver. “Our government is at its best when we see our armed forces in action,” the chief judge wrote. “Unfortunately, it is perceived at its worst by the thousands of jurors, lawyers, staff, litigants, etc., when they see GSA’s promises on such a simple task end in delay after delay.”

Wanted: Guest Blogger

It's been a hectic week for your favorite federal blogger. Yesterday in Tampa; today in Ft. Pierce. I promise to be better next week. In


the meantime, here's a picture of the federal courthouse in Ft. Pierce. They are building a new one up here so this old relic doesn't have much time left. Have a nice weekend everyone.

More on Scalia vs. Alito

I've often said that Justice Scalia is the most criminal-defense friendly Justice, while Justice Alito is the least. More support for this argument from yesterday's opinion in USA v. Curtis Johnson. The Court ruled 7-2 that a “violent felony” under federal law requires the use of physical violence, thereby reversing and remanding the lower court which found that a misdemeanor battery counted. Justice Scalia wrote for the majority, while Justice Alito dissented, joined by Justice Thomas. The full opinion is here. The case came out of the Middle District of Florida, and I was lucky enough to attend the Supreme Court argument. (Here are my comments from after the argument).

It's always fun reading a Scalia opinion. Here's a taste from one footnote:

Even further afield is the dissent’s argument, post, at 2–3, that since §924(e)(2)(B)(ii) requires conduct that "presents a serious potential riskof physical injury to another," §924(e)(2)(B)(i) must not. That is rather like saying a provision which includes (i) apples and (ii) overripe oranges must exclude overripe apples. It does not follow.

Is 5 hours enough time to conduct voir dire?

That's the question before the Supreme Court in the Jeff Skilling case. Here's the summary from ScotusBlog:

With Justice Stephen G. Breyer leading the way, the Court probed deeply into the questioning of potential jurors at Skilling’s trial in Houston, examining whether District Judge Sim Lake took too little time to ferret out potential prejudice or stopped short of following up to test jurors’ pre-trial intimations — or outright conclusions — that the accused Enron brass deserved to be convicted. Several of the other Justices questioned the brevity of that probing, but there was no evident consensus about what the Court should now do about it. Even Justice Breyer, who was the most troubled about Judge Lake’s performance (“I’m genuinely concern about a fair trial”), repeatedly stressed that he did not want the Court to go too far to second-guess such performances. “I’m worried about controlling too much,” he said on the second point.

And the NYTimes:

Mr. Srinivasan disputed that, and several justices appeared sympathetic to his argument. The lawyer said Judge Lake had spent only five hours on the task, posing cursory questions to jurors and taking them at their word that they would be fair despite evidence to the contrary.
By contrast, Mr. Srinivasan said, questioning in the trial of Timothy McVeigh for his role in the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, which killed 168 people, took 18 days after a motion for change of venue from Oklahoma City to Denver was granted.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said the two cases were very different. In Mr. Skilling’s case, she said, “what’s involved is money rather than life or limb.”
Mr. Srinivasan said that extended questioning was not unusual in less serious cases, saying it had taken six days to select jurors in Martha Stewart’s trial for lying to federal investigators.
Justice Anthony M. Kennedy indicated that the questioning in Mr. Skilling’s case had been too brief. “It’s hard for me to think,” he said, that the questioning “would have been much shorter even if there had been no showing of pervasive prejudice.”

Here in the SDFLA, most judges give about 10 minutes a side for lawyers to question jurors. Some do all the questioning and do not allow any attorney voir dire. Most juries are selected in a day or less. Can fair juries really be picked so quickly? Let's see what the Court says in Skilling...

THIS is American Idol!

Or, rather, Inmate Idol...

On a faded green basketball court surrounded by a tall fence topped with barbed wire, a small platform stood elevated just inches from the ground.
Frederick Davis walked to it, took the mike and grabbed at his orange baggy pants. ``Before what you see on my pants -- INMATE DCJ -- I'm a man,'' he said.
Davis, 21, then launched into a rap in front of the 14 other inmates sitting in rows of plastic chairs. He was taking part in the second annual Corrections Idol contest -- a singing, rapping and poetry competition meant to showcase Miami-Dade Corrections inmates' talents while building their self-image.
``When they come here, they feel like they belong,'' said Chief of Operations Manny Fernandez. ``They're part of the solution, not the problem.''
Sunday's competition at the Metro West Detention Center west of Doral is an annual event planned by the Inmate Special Events Committee. Created three years ago by Fernandez, the committee includes recreation officers from all of the Miami-Dade County Corrections facilities, who also organize basketball, volleyball and Ping-Pong tournaments.

Other quick hits this morning:

1. South Florida Lawyers is hosting the Blawg Review this week.

2. John Pacenti covers the FCPA. Paul Calli is fired up:

But it was the Las Vegas roundup that received all the attention. Some defense attorneys for those arrested are accusing the government of entrapment. They point to an informant as the real culprit. Richard T. Bistrong is a former vice president for military equipment manufacturer Armor Holdings in Jacksonville. He has been charged in Washington with FCPA violations for trying to bribe officials in Nigeria and the Netherlands. He also introduced the indicted executives to the undercover FBI agents. “Mr. Bistrong’s venality, greed and deception, I think, will be an important part of this trial,” said Paul Calli, an attorney for Stephen Giordanella, the only defendant captured in the sting who wasn’t at the Las Vegas trade show.

The DBR is still trying its hand at video. Enjoy.

Seminars, conferences, and lunches: oh my

Well, Miami is the hot spot this week for the criminal practitioner:

1. The ABA's White Collar Crime Conference has been going on all week at the Eden Roc. About 1000 defense lawyers and prosecutors show up and try not to look to out of place on South Beach. I'm not sure the Eden Roc knows what to do with such a high nerd factor. The keynote speaker was
Lanny A. Breuer, Assistant Attorney General, who had this to say (via Miami Herald):

"In tackling financial fraud, we are not on a witch hunt,'' Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer told hundreds of lawyers attending his keynote luncheon address at the Eden Roc Renaissance Hotel in Miami Beach.
"We are . . . seeking fairly but firmly to go after criminal conduct where it exists. We also are striving to innovate in how we do business,'' Breuer said. "That could mean utilizing data and intelligence more strategically, or it could mean -- as we've seen in a couple of prominent cases recently -- going undercover.
"However we do it, we will be more targeted, more creative, and more strategic in where and how we look for criminal conduct.''

2. The Federal Defenders and the CJA reps are also having their annual conference here this week. Of course, their digs are a bit more economical: they are staying at the Hyatt downtown.

3. And the Federal Bar Association's South Florida Chapter is hosting two upcoming events in March.

On March 10, 2010, the Federal Bar's monthly luncheon series continues at The Bankers Club in Miami. Honorable Marcia G. Cooke and Kendall Coffey of Coffey Burlington will lead a discussion on: "Trying High Profile Cases - The Realities, Strategies, and Ethical Considerations." The lunch begins at 11:45AM.

On March 16, 2010, the South Florida Chapter is hosting a reception from 5:30PM to 7:30PM at the Wilkie Ferguson Courthouse honoring retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

To join, visit www.fedbar.org and click on the South Florida Chapter. If anyone has questions about the events, contact Chapter President Bill Roppolo at William.Roppolo@Bakermckenzie.com

CONGRATS TO WILLY FERRER

Jay Weaver is reporting that the White House has officially nominated Wilfredo Ferrer to be U.S. Attorney of the District:

His résumé was an easy sell: He is a one-time federal prosecutor in Miami and is currently chief of Miami-Dade County's federal litigation section. He's also the former deputy chief of staff to U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno.
The son of Cuban immigrants also was valedictorian at Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High, first in his class at the University of Miami, and president of his class at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.
"First of all, he understood better than anybody I've worked with how the federal government works with local and state governments, " Reno said in an earlier interview. "If I wanted to write the book about how to be the U.S. attorney, Willy would be one of my models."
If confirmed by the Senate, Ferrer would replace U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Sloman. Ferrer, 43, married with two sons, would be the fourth lawyer of Cuban descent to fill the prominent job -- but the first appointed by a Democratic president.

Congrats to Willy! Hopefully Kathy Williams' nomination will come soon!

"On October 4, 2010, Elena Kagan Will Ask Her First Question As A Supreme Court Justice"

That's Tom Goldstein over at ScotusBlog, predicting that Justice Stevens will retire and that SG Kagan will take his place. The whole thing is worth a read, but here's the conclusion:

So, here is how I expect the next few months to play out. In the spring, Justice Stevens will announce his retirement. In May or June, the President will nominate Elena Kagan. Explaining that her paper record is a thimble-full of Sonia Sotomayor’s, Senator Leahy will schedule hearings and Senator Reid will schedule a floor vote before the summer recess. The only theme that will give opponents any success is that she fails to express her views on anything. She will then be confirmed by a vote of 61 to 39. Ok, that last prediction about the exact vote could be off by a bit, but I feel pretty confident about everything else.