Streets around federal courthouse closed (UPDATED)

Apparently there is a suspicious package.

UPDATE -- they just blew it up.  See picture below:

A fool for a client...

1.  So, I got a ticket and I'll be representing myself in the Justice Building this afternoon because Rumpole refuses to represent me.  Should I channel Woody Allen from Bananas?

2.  My favorite scene from the debate last night:

Feds indict one of their own

Yikes.  From the Sun-Sentinel:

A member of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami and eight other South Floridians have been arrested in an alleged cocaine and oxycodone trafficking ring, federal authorities said Friday.

Tamika Jasper-Barbary, 36, a legal assistant in the Grand Jury Suite of the United States Attorney's Office in Miami, is accused of participating in a conspiracy to distribute large amounts cocaine and oxycodone, the U. S. Department of Justice said. ...

Jasper-Barbary also was charged with obstructing justice during a federal grand jury proceeding, officials said. ...



Because the allegations involve a member of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami, the U.S. Department of Justice recused the Southern District of Florida, at that office's request, from investigating and prosecuting the case, the Justice Department said.

"He's tried to rule the state like Boss Hogg and he didn't think the law applied to him."

Oh no he didn't!  Even though this deals with the Mississippi justice system, any Boss Hog reference will be posted here (you rarely hear an Uncle Jesse reference...).  Plus, there's nothing like a good fight between two branches of government.  From CNN:

Mississippi's attorney general chastised former Republican Gov. Haley Barbour after a judge issued a temporary injunction forbidding the release of any more prisoners Barbour pardoned or gave clemency to before leaving office this week.
State Attorney General Jim Hood said Barbour violated the state's constitution because the pardon requests for many inmates were not published 30 days before they were granted, as required.
Mississippi is one of the few states that requires advance notice.
***

Hinds County Circuit Court Judge Tomie Green issued the injunction Wednesday, saying it appeared some pardons, including those for four murderers, did not meet the 30-day requirement. Any inmates released in the future must meet the standard, Green ruled.
On his way out the door, the governor approved full pardons for nearly 200 people, including 14 convicted murderers, according to documents the Mississippi secretary of state's office released Tuesday.
The four murderers who received full pardons last week -- David Gatlin, Joseph Ozment, Charles Hooker and Anthony McCray -- were cited in Green's order.
They were all serving life sentences and worked as inmate trusties at the governor's mansion, said Suzanne Singletary, spokeswoman for the Mississippi Department of Corrections. Trusties are inmates who can receive additional rights through good behavior.
Hood told "AC360" that it's possible that those who didn't meet the 30-day requirement may have to return to prison and complete their sentences.
Barbour said Wednesday that some people misunderstand the clemency process and believe that most of the individuals were still jailed.
"Approximately 90 percent of these individuals were no longer in custody, and a majority of them had been out for years," he said in a statement.
"The pardons were intended to allow them to find gainful employment or acquire professional licenses as well as hunt and vote. My decision about clemency was based upon the recommendation of the Parole Board in more than 90 percent of the cases," Barbour wrote. "The 26 people released from custody due to clemency is just slightly more than one-tenth of 1 percent of those incarcerated."

 Sounds like Barbour was well-intentioned.  The clemency process was traditionally a check on prosecutors and was used as a way for the government to show mercy, a quality we hear discussed all the time but that is rarely practiced.  Unfortunately, politics have really gutted the process and it's rarely used anymore.  And then when it is, like in this case, everyone gets nuts and starts referencing Dukes of Hazzard.  

Judge Scola speaks to Federal Bar Association

It was a fun and entertaining talk in which he answered questions from the audience.  Lots of interesting answers, including that his current favorite Supreme Court Justice is Justice Kennedy because of his objectivity and because you don't know which way he is going to rule.  He also mentioned reading the South Florida Lawyers Blog.  I think Rumpole and I should feel offended!

What a day at the Federal Public Defender's Office

The office won two appeals and a trial today.

1.  Bernardo Lopez won United States v. Spriggs, which created a circuit split with the 8th Circuit:

Appellant Timothy Spriggs pled guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a)(2).  At sentencing, over Spriggs’s objection, the district court applied a five-level enhancement for distribution of illicit images for the receipt, or expectation of receipt, of a non-pecuniary thing of value. See U.S. SENTENCING GUIDELINES MANUAL § 2G2.2(b)(3)(B) (2010).  Spriggs argues that no evidence supports application of the enhancement. We vacate the sentence and remand because, although we find evidence that Spriggs distributed illicit images, there is insufficient evidence to support the other elements of the five-level enhancement....
The Eighth Circuit applies the five-level enhancement if the defendant “expected to receive a thing of value — child pornography — when he used the file-sharing network to distribute and access child pornography files.”  United States v. Stultz, 575 F.3d 834, 849 (8th Cir. 2009).  Because file-sharing programs enable users to swap files, the court reasoned that no additional evidence is needed to establish the type of transaction contemplated in the Guidelines.
We have a different view, however, of the function and operation of filesharing programs than that of the Eighth Circuit.  File-sharing programs exist to promote free access to information. Generally, they do not operate as a forum for bartering.  For example, file-sharing programs permit a person to access shared files on peer computers regardless of whether the person in turn shares his files.  The files are free.  Because the transaction contemplated in the Guidelines is one that is conducted for “valuable consideration,” the mere use of a program that enables free access to files does not, by itself, establish a transaction that will support the five-level enhancement.  Accordingly, we disagree with the approach taken by the Eighth Circuit.

2.  Sam Randall and Vince Farina won United States v. Grajales, in which the 11th Circuit reversed a conviction, holding that the trial court should have given an entrapment instruction.  Interestingly, the court also found two other appellate arguments raised by the dynamic duo had merit.  Three reversible errors in one appeal is not common.  I'm not sure why the court didn't publish the opinion.  From the intro:

After a jury trial, Alberto Grajales appeals his convictions for conspiring and attempting to interfere with commerce by robbery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1951(a); conspiring and attempting to possess with intent to distribute five or more kilograms of cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 846; and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence and a drug trafficking crime, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A). Grajales raises three issues on appeal. First, he argues that the district court erred when it refused to instruct the jury on his entrapment defense. Second, Grajales argues that the district court erred when it instructed the jury that his honestly held belief that he was helping law enforcement also had to be objectively reasonable in order to negate his specific intent. Finally, Grajales argues that the district court erred when it prevented him from testifying regarding non-hearsay statements that were crucial to his defense. For the reasons set forth below, we reverse.

3.  Aimee Ferrer and Helaine Batoff obtained a not guilty verdict before Judge Graham.  I'm working on getting the details of that case.

Romney: "I don't know whether a state has a right to ban contrapception."

This is a pretty amazing exchange that I don't think has been really covered in the news.  Is it possible that Mitt Romney doesn't know Griswold v. Connecticut?  Yikes.  (And why were there debates on Saturday night and then 10 hours later on Sunday morning?) 

In news closer to home, the Rothstein mess won't go away.  Jay Weaver writes an in-depth piece about the case here.  From the conclusion to the story:

One major mystery still hangs over the Rothstein case: During the deposition he was confronted by attorney Mary Barzee-Flores about whether he had “conned” and “fooled” a bunch of national politicians during the course of his Ponzi scheme.
Barzee-Flores, who is representing Gibraltar Bank, where Rothstein had also kept his firm’s trust accounts, rattled off a series of big names: former President George W. Bush; GOP presidential candidate John McCain; his running mate, Sarah Palin; U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman from Connecticut; and former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Rothstein, who served as a delegate to the 2008 Republican National Convention and also served on a Florida commission that recommends judges to the governor for appointment, admitted he “fooled” them all.
Rothstein was also asked whether he “fooled” Crist, who ran for the U.S. Senate in 2010, or Martinez, the former U.S. senator from Orlando who resigned his seat before finishing his term, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family.
But Rothstein was not allowed to answer the questions about the two Florida politicians because of objections raised by the lead federal prosecutor in the criminal case, Lawrence LaVecchio, who cited “investigatory privilege.” Legal experts said LaVecchio objected because his team is still investigating political donations that Rothstein and other members of his firm made to their campaigns.
Neither Crist nor Martinez returned phone messages seeking comment.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/01/07/v-fullstory/2578887/rothsteins-ex-buddies-brace-for.html#storylink=cpy

Franky the drug dog goes to Washington

The Florida Supreme Court held earlier this year that police couldn't use dogs to sniff a person's house.  Now the Supreme Court will decide the issue.  From Curt Anderson:

In a case closely watched by law enforcement nationwide, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed Friday to decide whether a Florida police dog's sniff outside the front door of a house with a marijuana growing operation is an illegal search.
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi wants the justices to reverse a state Supreme Court decision that the K-9's sniff runs afoul of the Fourth Amendment protection against illegal search and seizure. Eighteen states and the territory of Guam have filed a brief in support of Bondi's position, concerned that other state courts might start issuing similar decisions.
"If the Florida Supreme Court's decision stands, it could have a profound chilling effect on law enforcement efforts to combat illegal drugs," the states' filing says. "The Florida Supreme Court's decision jeopardizes the states' ability to use this crucial tool to discover illegal drugs prior to their distribution."

I'm not sure what the chilling effect would be...  And the last quote -- that the decision impacts the states' ability to nab criminals -- is true of the 4th Amendment in every case.  But, I'm not sure the Florida Supreme Court's opinion will have much of a shot with this Court...