Monday morning has me swamped....
So, if you are interested in the big Supreme Court decisions that came out today (including the Bong Hits for Jesus case), check out Scotusblog.com.
If you are interested in reading a great legal blog, check out the WSJ blog.
If you want fun legal gossip, check out Abovethelaw.com
And if you want some law and some other interesting stuff all mixed together, check out Althouse.
And there's always Rumpole for our state court updates.
Will get back to SDFLA news as soon as I can.
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
Monday, June 25, 2007
Sunday, June 24, 2007
More discovery leaks in the Miami 7 case
This case -- this is the "terrorist" case about the 7 guys in Miami who discussed blowing up the Sears Tower in Chicago -- hasn't been in the news in a while. The last time it was, we were discussing leaks. Here we go again.
This time prosecutors made public the post-arrest statements of the defendants. And the defense lawyers are none too pleased. According to Vanessa Blum of the Sun-Sentinel:
Defense lawyers for Abraham and Augustin lashed out at prosecutors for publicly filing the statements from their clients, which they are trying to keep out of the trial.
A summary of statements themselves:
The man federal authorities accused of plotting with an al-Qaida operative to bomb the Chicago Sears Tower and government buildings in Miami told FBI agents he was trying to hustle a man he knew as Mohammed for money.At first Narseal Batiste, a Liberty City resident, denied ever discussing such attacks, according to notes from an interview conducted after his arrest exactly one year ago.
He changed his story after the agents played a videotape showing him and several accused associates reciting an oath of allegiance to al-Qaida and Osama bin Laden. The pledge was led by an informant working undercover for the FBI who called himself Mohammed and posed as an al-Qaida contact from Yemen."I can't believe I got these guys into this," Batiste said after watching the video, according to the FBI notes.
This time prosecutors made public the post-arrest statements of the defendants. And the defense lawyers are none too pleased. According to Vanessa Blum of the Sun-Sentinel:
Defense lawyers for Abraham and Augustin lashed out at prosecutors for publicly filing the statements from their clients, which they are trying to keep out of the trial.
A summary of statements themselves:
The man federal authorities accused of plotting with an al-Qaida operative to bomb the Chicago Sears Tower and government buildings in Miami told FBI agents he was trying to hustle a man he knew as Mohammed for money.At first Narseal Batiste, a Liberty City resident, denied ever discussing such attacks, according to notes from an interview conducted after his arrest exactly one year ago.
He changed his story after the agents played a videotape showing him and several accused associates reciting an oath of allegiance to al-Qaida and Osama bin Laden. The pledge was led by an informant working undercover for the FBI who called himself Mohammed and posed as an al-Qaida contact from Yemen."I can't believe I got these guys into this," Batiste said after watching the video, according to the FBI notes.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Happy meal lawyer sanctioned
Judge Laurel Myerson Isicoff ordered William P. Smith, of the famous comment that the judge was "a few french fries short of a Happy Meal", to take an online course in professionalism administered by the Florida Bar. Smith could have had his pro hac vice license pulled, which would have been a big blow to his practice. In addition, he is going to do pro bono work and has agreed to step down as the head of McDermott Will & Emery's bankruptcy practice.
Did this thing get a wee bit overblown? Thoughts?
Did this thing get a wee bit overblown? Thoughts?
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
TMZ ordered to show cause...
...for posting the entire book IF I DID IT -- OJ's "fictional" account of the murders. Bankruptcy Judge A. Jay Cristol (pictured) had a hearing on the emergency motion today and ordered TMZ to show cause why he should not hold them in contempt. Here is trustee Drew Dillworth's* motion.
Some background from the Smoking Gun:
A court-appointed bankruptcy trustee wants a gossip web site held in contempt for its publication yesterday of the entire manuscript of "If I Did It," O.J. Simpson's purportedly fictionalized account of the murder of his ex-wife and a male friend. The "exclusive" posting of the 235-page book by TMZ.com came days after a federal judge ruled that the work's copyright can be pursued by the family of the late Ron Goldman, who was murdered along with Nicole Brown Simpson in June 1994 (Simpson was acquitted of the killings). According to an emergency motion by Drew Dillworth, the federal trustee, the web site's posting of the manuscript in a downloadable PDF format has likely "diminished or destroyed" the value of the book, which the Goldmans may eventually publish (and promote) as Simpson's confession.
*Disclosure: Drew Dillworth works at Stearns Weaver where my wife works.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Caruso on cross
Lead Jose Padilla lawyer, Michael Caruso, cross-examined the lead FBI agent today and by all accounts, did a ton of damage.
The agent conceded that Padilla never used any of the code words that the other defendants had used. And he admitted that Padilla was focused on learning Arabic and memorizing the Koran. Some examples from the AP article:
Caruso asked Kavanaugh if Padilla ever was heard using what prosecutors say were code words for violent jihad, such as "picnic," "smelling fresh air" or "eating cheese."
"No, he does not," Kavanaugh replied.
***
Caruso asked Kavanaugh if Padilla was ever overheard discussing jihad training.
"No jihad training that I've seen," Kavanaugh said.
***
"He's not referring to anything here but studying Arabic, correct? Study means study, right?" Caruso asked.
"That's what they're talking about," Kavanaugh testified.
More on Caruso's cross from the Miami Herald here.
This isn't the first time that the defense has scored points on cross. See here and here and here and here. My wife says boring (but she's watching a rerun of Brothers & Sisters, so what does she know!). I say fascinating.
The agent conceded that Padilla never used any of the code words that the other defendants had used. And he admitted that Padilla was focused on learning Arabic and memorizing the Koran. Some examples from the AP article:
Caruso asked Kavanaugh if Padilla ever was heard using what prosecutors say were code words for violent jihad, such as "picnic," "smelling fresh air" or "eating cheese."
"No, he does not," Kavanaugh replied.
***
Caruso asked Kavanaugh if Padilla was ever overheard discussing jihad training.
"No jihad training that I've seen," Kavanaugh said.
***
"He's not referring to anything here but studying Arabic, correct? Study means study, right?" Caruso asked.
"That's what they're talking about," Kavanaugh testified.
More on Caruso's cross from the Miami Herald here.
This isn't the first time that the defense has scored points on cross. See here and here and here and here. My wife says boring (but she's watching a rerun of Brothers & Sisters, so what does she know!). I say fascinating.
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