I hope everyone had a wonderful 2015. Looking back at the over 200 posts, here are some noteworthy ones:
John Pacenti left the DBR
Jose Gonzalez, 50 years on the bench
Mary Barzee-Flores nominated
Mark Fuller
Cell-Site data
Docs v. Glocks again again and again
Khan!
Go Dore Go!
10th b-day for blog
Ed Carnes concurred with himself
Judge & Mrs. Davis remembered
RIP Judge Peter Palermo, Judge Shelby Highsmith
And the most popular post of the year was this because of the search terms in the title.
See you next year. All the best!
--David Oscar Markus
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
Tuesday, December 29, 2015
Monday, December 28, 2015
RIP Meadowlark Lemon
"The Clown Prince of Basketball." Via ESPN:
Lemon thrilled audiences with his long hook shots, ballhandling skills and ability to make fans laugh with the Globetrotters' bag of tricks -- including throwing buckets of confetti on unsuspecting fans as Lemon chased the referee with what was thought to be water.Lemon left the Globetrotters in 1978 over a contract dispute and thereafter formed his own traveling teams -- the Meadowlark Lemon's Bucketeers, the Shooting Stars and Meadowlark Lemon's Harlem All-Stars -- as he continued to play well into his 70s.
Aside from Lemon's No. 36, other Globetrotters to have their numbers retired are Wilt Chamberlain (13), Fred "Curly" Neal (22), Haynes (20) and Reece "Goose" Tatum (50). Washington Generals founder Red Klotz also had his number retired.
In law news, the Feds have taken the position that Puerto Rico is NOT a state and therefore not a separate sovereign for double jeopardy purposes. Puerto Rico has taken the opposite position. Pretty interesting showdown in the Supreme Court. SCOTUSblog has more.
Anything going on in the District this week? Or all quiet?
The one thing I did see was the Herald coverage of the Lewis Tein victory in the 11th Circuit:
The ruling was another victory for prominent Miami lawyers Guy Lewis, Michael Tein and Dexter Lehtinen, who have long been mired in legal battles over their former representation of the West Miami-Dade Indian tribe.
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article51735585.html#storylink=cpy
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article51735585.html#storylink=cpy
***
“The terrible shame is that the Tribe and its lawyers were able to prosecute these lies for years, leaving a wake of destructive litigation that cost millions of dollars to defend,” said Paul Calli, Lewis and Tein’s lawyer. “Thankfully, the courts have put a stop to it.”
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article51735585.html#storylink=cpy
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article51735585.html#storylink=cpy
Thursday, December 24, 2015
Enjoy the Break!
-- Here's Dave Barry's year in review if you are looking for some fun reading today.
-- DOJ suspends forfeiture program that gives lots of $$ to locals.
-- The 4th DCA reverses judge who tried to keep newspaper from publishing public records.
-- Jeb really likes this sweater.
Enjoy your summer day!
-- DOJ suspends forfeiture program that gives lots of $$ to locals.
-- The 4th DCA reverses judge who tried to keep newspaper from publishing public records.
-- Jeb really likes this sweater.
Enjoy your summer day!
Wednesday, December 23, 2015
Happy Festivus for the rest of us
It's a great day!
My favorite is Rand Paul's annual airing of grievances. Here are some good ones:
My favorite is Rand Paul's annual airing of grievances. Here are some good ones:
to my absentee friend @marcorubio, I didn't put your $170k+ salary in my waste report today. But I could have #Festivus— Dr. Rand Paul (@RandPaul) December 23, 2015
I have no grievances against my fellow doc @RealBenCarson because I have not heard a word he has said in any debate. #Festivus— Dr. Rand Paul (@RandPaul) December 23, 2015
Where to start but @realDonaldTrump. If u bring the Yiddish, know what it means. Guess that's more of a kvetch than a grievance #Festivus— Dr. Rand Paul (@RandPaul) December 23, 2015
Tuesday, December 22, 2015
37 years on the lam, but incompetent
Paula McMahon has this lengthy article about the interesting twists and turns of this old case:
In his heyday, Robert Woodring was a con man who lived a life of intrigue and adventure, then successfully went on the lam for 37 years to avoid going to prison.***
Law enforcement finally tracked him down a year ago in Guadalajara, Mexico, and he was sent back to South Florida to serve his time for the original offenses and to pay the price for eluding justice.
But by Monday, when the 82-year-old Woodring was to be sentenced for jumping bond in 1977, the ravages of time had created another twist: He was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and dementia and was found legally incompetent to be sentenced.
His medical diagnosis does not mean he will get a free pass from the legal system.
On Monday, U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke met privately with probation officials and then held a lengthy sidebar discussion with Salnick and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert T. Watson.
The judge decided the most practical course of action was to send Woodring to a federal prison hospital, where he can receive appropriate treatment. She recommended sending him to Butner Federal Medical Center in North Carolina.
For technical legal reasons, she gave him a provisional sentence of one year in federal prison for the bond-jumping offense and recommended the prior 7.5-year term, imposed by judges who are long dead, also be converted to a provisional sentence because it is unlikely Woodring would ever be restored to legal competency.
Woodring, dressed in khaki prison scrubs and using a wheelchair, joked affably with the deputy marshals who escorted him to the Miami courtroom from the neighboring Federal Detention Center.
He did not speak during the hearing but was overheard talking with his lawyer, saying at one point: "Life is short."
Salnick said Judge Cooke's sentencing was "the very kind and very humane thing to do."
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