The federal government’s secret informant and undercover agents who helped catch a suspected Key West terrorist last summer may testify at trial using fake names and even disguises, a judge has ruled.
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Two FBI agents and one confidential informant “may testify under their undercover pseudonyms at trial without disclosing their true identities,” Magistrate Judge Lurana Snow wrote in an Aug. 17 ruling. “The defense shall be prohibited from asking any questions seeking personal identifying information from or about [them].”
Also, the witnesses may enter and leave the courthouse from a non-public doorway and their voices and pictures may not be publicly disclosed through any recordings or images, Snow ordered.
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
Thursday, September 01, 2016
You have the right to confront an actor against you.
Another "terror" trial and another set of witnesses allowed to testify in disguise. From the Herald:
Tuesday, August 30, 2016
Election Tuesday
Thank goodness we don't elect judges in federal court. I'm not saying it's a great system we have, but I think it beats elections. Asking the lawyers that appear before you for money... Ads that have nothing to do with judging... Yuck.
Anyway, I was very proud of having the blog after lasts week's comments and posts about Hogan and Richey. People wrote such beautiful tributes and memories. Speaking of which, there is a memorial this Friday for Jay Hohan at the Biltmore at 11am.
Sunday, August 28, 2016
Judge Gayles' new clerk was just married and it's in the NYT
Here.
Shahrzad Daneshvar, the daughter of Afsaneh Pournaderi Daneshvar and Farhang Daneshvar of Fair Oaks, Calif., was married Aug. 25 to Travis Viola, a son of Teresa Viola and Vincent Viola of New York. Judge Ann Claire Williams of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit officiated in her chambers in Chicago.On Sept. 17, A. Reza Sheikholeslami, emeritus professor of Persian studies at Oxford, is to lead a traditional Persian ceremony at the Waldorf Astoria in New York.Ms. Daneshvar, 28, is keeping her name. Next month, she is to begin a clerkship in Miami for Judge Darrin H. Gayles of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. She graduated summa cum laude from George Washington. She also received a master’s degree in education from the University of Miami and her law degree with honors from the University of Chicago.Her father retired as an industrial engineer in Fair Oaks.Mr. Viola, also 28, is the vice president for hockey operations for the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League. He graduated from Fordham. His father is owner, chairman and governor of the Panthers.The couple were originally supposed to meet on a blind date in 2010. Though that date was canceled, they kept in touch, and met in person five months later in New York.
Friday, August 26, 2016
Jay Hogan obit in the Herald
Jay Weaver starts with a story I just love hearing about every time it's told:
Everyone seems to have a story about courtroom legend James Jay Hogan, who died this week at age 82, but no one will ever forget this surreal moment: In the mid-1980s, the Miami defense attorney got a key government witness to testify that in his previous life he was Hollywood icon Jean Harlow.
The credibility of the witness, it is safe to say, was instantly in serious question.
During the federal trial, Hogan unveiled a blown-up photo of the Roaring Twenties blonde bombshell, who died in 1937 of a brain infection. The man testifying was born five years later. Hogan’s client, a Miami lawyer accused of preparing phony real-estate documents for the witness, was acquitted.
Former law partner Hy Shapiro recalled how Hogan dug up the tidbit about Harlow from a little-known book written by the witness, a revelation that drew gapes and howls from jurors. He said Hogan’s secret weapon was his work ethic.
“He would eat, sleep and breathe a case when he got into it,” Shapiro said on Thursday. “He would delve more deeply than anyone into a witness’ life.”
Here's the newspaper story from the time, which is fun to read.
Everyone seems to have a story about courtroom legend James Jay Hogan, who died this week at age 82, but no one will ever forget this surreal moment: In the mid-1980s, the Miami defense attorney got a key government witness to testify that in his previous life he was Hollywood icon Jean Harlow.
The credibility of the witness, it is safe to say, was instantly in serious question.
During the federal trial, Hogan unveiled a blown-up photo of the Roaring Twenties blonde bombshell, who died in 1937 of a brain infection. The man testifying was born five years later. Hogan’s client, a Miami lawyer accused of preparing phony real-estate documents for the witness, was acquitted.
Former law partner Hy Shapiro recalled how Hogan dug up the tidbit about Harlow from a little-known book written by the witness, a revelation that drew gapes and howls from jurors. He said Hogan’s secret weapon was his work ethic.
“He would eat, sleep and breathe a case when he got into it,” Shapiro said on Thursday. “He would delve more deeply than anyone into a witness’ life.”
Here's the newspaper story from the time, which is fun to read.
Thursday, August 25, 2016
Judge Cooke rules for Jason Pierre-Paul against ESPN
The NYP covers the story here:
A Florida judge has green-lighted Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul’s invasion-of-privacy lawsuit against ESPN and its reporter Adam Schefter for posting his private medical records online to millions of readers.Meantime, I wanted to thank all of the readers who posted comments yesterday about Hogan and Richey. This is what the blog is all about. Thanks. --dm
The ruling by Miami federal Judge Marcia G. Cooke sets the stage for the state’s second high-profile legal battle in a year between a sports star and a media organization over privacy issues. In March, wrestler Hulk Hogan won a record-breaking $140 million victory over Gawker for publishing his sex video.
***
Cooke agreed in a ruling she issued from the bench Thursday morning after an hour of arguments.
“This just went beyond the pale,” sports law expert Daniel Wallach said of Schefter’s decision to post the private records.
“If this is not where the line is, where would it be?” said Wallach, of the law firm Becker & Poliakoff. Wallach, who is not involved in the case, expects the decision will mean a quick settlement.
“The judge has the case on fast track with discovery cutoff in Februrary, meaning in-season depositions,” Wallach explained.
Lawyers for ESPN and Schefter had asked the judge to toss the case, citing First Amendment protections.
Pierre-Paul is suing for unspecified damages. He is also represented by lawyers Kevin Fritz and John C. Lukacs.
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