Federal Judiciary

FOR THE DEFENSE, EPISODE 2 ROY BLACK DISCUSSES HIS DEFENSE OF LUIS ALVAREZ

Posted on November 03, 2020
Happy Election Day!  One of the big issues in this election is criminal justice and especially racial justice.  George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Tamir Rice, and so on.  Back in the early 80s, Miami was going through a similar time of racial tension...

Of course there's already a problem in Miami with the election

Posted on November 02, 2020
 The Feds are investigating what's going on with piles of ballots sitting at post offices in Miami.  The Herald is covering it here:Two days after inspectors found dozens of undelivered ballots sitting in a post office in South Miami-Dade County, the U...

A day off to vote

Posted on October 30, 2020
What a cool concept from Adam Rabin.  He explains it on his FB page:A Day Off to Vote is set up to encourage law firms, professional practices, and businesses of all types to support their employees with time off to vote on or before Election Day...

Zoom hearings... so much fun.

Posted on October 29, 2020

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NEW PODCAST SERIES ?FOR THE DEFENSE,? CHRONICLING FAMOUS DEFENSE ATTORNEYS AND THEIR MOST FASCINATING TRIALS, DEBUTS TODAY

Posted on October 27, 2020
 I am very excited to announce my new podcast, For the Defense, which is being produced by rakontur.  Here's the release.  Please let me know what you think:OCTOBER 27, 2020 -- David Oscar Markus, a Miami trial attorney who has been called ?a reincarnation of the old school criminal defense lawyer? and has represented clients from the head of the Cali Cartel to Fortune 500 companies and their CEOs, has partnered with rakontur, the lauded storytellers behind Cocaine Cowboys, The U and 537 Votes, to launch a new podcast series called For the Defense...

RIP Alvin Entin

Posted on October 26, 2020
 Heard some really sad news this morning... Alvin Entin passed away yesterday.  He was recovering from COVID-19 and had a stroke.  He was such a good guy.  I had the good fortune of having tried a couple of cases with him.  I'll never forget one closing he did -- he started out by saying: I'm so sorry ladies and gentlemen...

ACB to be confirmed Monday

Posted on October 25, 2020
 The WaPo has the story here:Judge Amy Coney Barrett?s nomination broke through one more hurdle ahead of her all-but-assured installation to the Supreme Court as the coronavirus pandemic ? which has inextricably been intertwined with the story of her nomination ? once again intersected with her confirmation fight...

News & Notes

Posted on October 22, 2020
1.    Another debate tonight.  This time with a mute button.  Fun times.2.     Obama goes after Trump.3.    ACB takes next step to confirmation.4.    Wear a mask, even Chris Christie says so...

Court packing

Posted on October 21, 2020
 There's been a lot of debate about packing the Supreme Court.  Most Americans are against it, and according to a recent poll, 51% of Americans want ACB confirmed. That said, here's an interesting essay from Charles Fried about why Biden should do it if SCOTUS goes too far...

Attorney Aaron Honaker arrested for bank robbery

Posted on October 21, 2020
Another Miami story.Here's the Herald:A Coral Gables attorney was called a ?serial bank robber? by the FBI, which believes he robbed five banks since Sept. 30 before his Tuesday night arrest. The agency said Miami resident Aaron Honaker, 41, was headed into a bank when Coral Gables police arrested him...

Who is left on SCOTUS from Bush v. Gore?

Posted on October 19, 2020
Billy Corben's and Alfred Spellman's new documentary 537 Votes has me thinking Bush v. Gore...Only Justices Thomas and Breyer remain on the Court from that time.  But two current Justices (Roberts and Kavanaugh) and one soon to be Justice (Barrett) all worked for the Bush team...

SDFLA trials suspended until April 2021

Posted on October 16, 2020
 But grand juries are coming back in November instead of January as originally planned. That?s the word out of the judges? meeting today but no official order yet. 

District Judge in L.A. dismisses case with prejudice for speedy trial violation

Posted on October 15, 2020
 Oh wow, this Order is worth a read.I consider the trial by jury as the only anchor, ever yet imagined by man, by which agovernment can be held to the principles of its constitution.?Thomas Jefferson1The United States Constitution protects our fundamental freedoms and liberties...

Judge like a champion today

Posted on October 13, 2020
Apparently, Judge Amy Coney Barrett was given a sign for her chambers from judge Don Willett that says, Judge Like A Champion Today (which is a play on the sign that Notre Dame players hit on the way onto the football field).  There's another judge that has that same sign -- Judge Like A Champion Today -- in his chambers and has had it since his law clerks got it for him in 1998: Judge Moreno...

Amy Coney Barrett's opening remarks

Posted on October 12, 2020
The confirmation hearings start today. You can read Barrett's opening statement here.Here are some articles about the hearings:Barrett Supreme Court hearing expected to focus on health care, with the pandemic looming over the proceeding The Washington PostMany Firsts At Confirmation Hearings For Judge Amy Coney Barrett NPRAmid pandemic and presidential race, Supreme Court confirmation hearing will be unprecedented USA TodayMeantime, congrats to the HEAT on an incredible season and playoff run...

SDFLA Grand Juries to return sooner than planned

Posted on October 09, 2020
 Chief Judge Moore previously ordered the suspension of grand juries until January 4.  But there has been an effort to get a grand jury up and running before then, and now multiple sources have confirmed that the goal is to have one by mid-November...

Rakontur's new doc coming out soon.

Posted on October 06, 2020
 And it's going to be a doozy.  It's called 537 Votes and is about the 2000 presidential recount in Florida or what Billy Corben and Alfred Spellman call a heist.  It's premiering on HBO Max on October 21. Here's the trailer:  Here's a more detailed description from rakontur's website: In early 2000, the international custody battle over a six-year-old Cuban boy, Elian Gonzalez, triggered a political earthquake in the swing state of Florida, ultimately swaying the outcome of the presidential election...

First Monday in October

Posted on October 04, 2020
 It's been an insane 2020.  The Supreme Court is no different, and we open the Term with 8 Justices.  A ninth may be on the way. And it looks like there will be election litigation that will make Bush v. Gore look like playtime in comparison...

CA11 affirms Judge Moreno's decision to terminate protections for homeless in Miami

Posted on October 02, 2020
 Decision by Judge William Pryor here.  It starts like this:This appeal requires us to decide whether the district court abused its discretion when it terminated a consent decree that regulated how the City of Miami treats its homeless residents...

Abuse of discretion to deny continuance motion leads to reversal

Posted on September 30, 2020
In U.S. v. Schwarz, the 11th Circuit reversed a large white collar SDFLA case, where the defendant was not given sufficient time to prepare for trial.  The defendant was sentenced to 480 months in prison even though he was acquitted of half the counts and even though he only had a few months to prepare for trial...

It's debate night

Posted on September 29, 2020
How about a debate night drinking game.  Take a drink every time the following term is mentioned.  For Joe Biden:$750Starts a sentence with "look"Obama"Trump is going to take away health care" "You're fired."anything in Spanish"Come on man" or "Here's the deal"RBGTrump:Drug testSleep Joe"mail in ballots" or "voter fraud"Closing the borders to ChinaJoe will "defund the police""Law and Order""Fill the Seat"ChinaRigged

It's Amy Coney Barrett

Posted on September 27, 2020
 Many of us here in South Florida were rooting for Barbara Lagoa.  Even though she didn't ultimately get the nomination, what an honor and an experience to have made the 2 person short-list. In the meantime, the left will have to decide how they want to play the Barrett nomination especially since it's pretty clear that she will be quickly confirmed...

Corrine Brown's case goes en banc before the 11th Circuit

Posted on September 24, 2020
 I previously blogged about the fascinating panel decision here.In the Brown case, the district court excused a juror who said that he was deliberating based on what "[t]he Holy Spirit told [him]," which was that Brown was not guilty on all counts...

What about Amy Coney Barrett?

Posted on September 23, 2020
 The blog obviously has a local interest in the consideration of Barbara Lagoa as a SCOTUS short-lister.  But the other woman on the short list is Amy Coney Barrett, a judge on the 7th Circuit.  Here's what she said about replacing her former boss, Justice Scalia during an election year:   Trump #SCOTUS front-runner Amy Coney Barrett, when asked whether Obama should be able to appoint a Supreme Court justice in an election year, said it's inappropriate when it would ?dramatically flip the balance of power...

More on Barbara Lagoa

Posted on September 22, 2020
 This time, a deep dive, by the New York Times. It starts this way:As a young associate in a prestigious Miami law firm, Barbara Lagoa took on an unusual pro bono case, one without a supervising partner and against a formidable adversary: the Clinton administration...

Barbara Lagoa is at the top of Trump?s short list for RBG?s Supreme Court seat

Posted on September 20, 2020
Judge Lagoa, 52, is a Miamian, who currently sits on the 11th Circuit. She previously sat on the Florida Supreme Court and 3rd DCA. And before becoming a judge, she was an AUSA in the SDFLA. She's married to Paul Huck Jr. (son of District Judge Paul Huck Sr...

RIP Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Posted on September 18, 2020
Everyone will be talking about whether Trump has enough time and the votes to get someone confirmed in the next couple of months.  But before we turn to politics, let's take a moment and remember the incredible woman, an inspiration to so many.  What a truly amazing person...

??? (UPDATED WITH NEW ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER CONCERNING COVID-19)

Posted on September 18, 2020
UPDATE -- Chief Judge Moore just issued this new order concerning COVID-19, which seems to suggest that judges are not permitted to hold in person plea or sentencing hearings.  Yet there are rumors that the U.S. Attorney's Office will be convening a grand jury in November to start indicting cases that have been backlogged...

Must read opinion out of the SDNY regarding prosecutorial misconduct

Posted on September 16, 2020
 From Politico:A federal judge has ordered all federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York to read a ruling she issued Wednesday that blasts prosecutors for their handling of evidence in a criminal case involving alleged violations of sanctions against Iran...

If you are looking for some free CLE credits regarding e-discovery....

Posted on September 16, 2020
I'm told that there is a criminal component involving the seizure of a cell phone pursuant to a search warrant, the government?s lengthy efforts to unlock the seized phone, self-incrimination issues re: an i-Phone password, and a Rule 41 return of property issue...

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