Wilma

Federal courts are closed Monday due to Wilma. Here is the press release:

Federal District Court Operations and Hurricane Wilma
Chief United States District Judge William J. Zloch announced that United States District Court operations in all divisions be closed Monday, October 24, 2005 due to wind and rain conditions anticipated to develop with the approach of Hurricane Wilma. These closures affect the District Court’s operations in Key West, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Fort Pierce. The District Court in these locations will be closed to the public, and jurors have been or soon will be instructed to call in for further reporting instructions. The United States Bankruptcy Court will also be closed.
Federal court operations will resume at the regular time in all Divisions on Tuesday, October 25th. Please consult the Court’s website at www.flsd.uscourts.gov for changes to these instructions.

11th Circuit decides USA v. Fabio Ochoa

Today, in a 2-1 decision, the 11th Circuit affirmed the conviction and sentence of Fabio Ochoa, who is said to be one of the high ranking members of the Medellin drug cartel in the 1980s. I haven't had a chance to digest the 83 page opinon, but it looks like it packs a lot in. District Judge Avant Edenfield, sitting by designation, wrote the opinion (which was joined by Judge Hull) and Judge Barkett dissented, arguing that the jury selection process was unconstitutional. More to follow after I've had a chance to read the whole decision.

State of the Blog

Just an update -- this is our 100th post and we have been averaging over 50 visitors a day.

A reminder -- tonight at Greenberg Traurig's office is the American Constitution Society event discussing the Cuban Spy opinion by the 11th Circuit. It should be a great and lively discussion. Will write about it tonight...

Gotcha

Sorry for the slow blogging lately -- very very busy... But here is some news from the Miami Herald about Christopher John Clarkson, aka Stephen Duffy, who has been on the lam for 30 years, using a dead child's identity. Unbelievable story.

First Roberts' Court opinion

Paul Rashkind at the U.S. Supreme Court blog posts this interesting bit of trivia regarding the first opinion of the Roberts' Court. Here's a taste:

A bit of trivia: For whom did the Roberts' Court rule in its historic first published opinion? It ruled in favor of convicted murderer Paul Allen Dye, who sought a writ of habeas corpus based on prosecutorial misconduct. Check out Dye v. Hofbauer, 526 U.S. ___ (2005) (per curiam) here.

Cuban spy panel discussion

The American Constitution Society has put together a panel discussion regarding the Eleventh Circuit's opinion in the Cuban Spy case. Panelists are Judge Stan Blake (11th Judicial Circuit), Former Chief Judge Edward B. Davis (Southern District of Florida) , Former U.S. Attorney Guy Lewis (Southern District of Florida), and Federal Defender Kathleen Williams (Southern District of Florida). I'll be moderating what is sure to be a very lively debate. Any suggestions for questions?

News and notes

The Federal Bar Association's Young Lawyers Division had a luncheon today. Judge Ursula Ungaro was the featured speaker. Very nice turnout. We learned that the new federal courthouse isn't going to open until June 2006. Also, the Southern District is going to implement the all e-filing system, i.e., no paper, in the near future. More on that to follow when I get info.

Bond for alleged Katrina scammer

Magistrate Judge Patrick White set bail at $125,000 (the Sun-Sentinel article, which is otherwise good, does not mention whether this is a corporate surety bond, 10% bond, or personal surety bond) for the supposed Katrina scammer, Gary S. Kraser. Defense lawyer is Alvin Entin. Prosecutor is Joan Silverstein.