Blacks need apply - there's a deepening diversity crisis in the 17th Circuit judiciary. With Mary Robinson on extended medical leave, and Ian Richards under attack at the polls, Broward is in grave danger of losing badly needed Black representation on the bench. There are currently six judges that fit the description (out of 90), only three more than when we first wrote about the issue back in 2008. It's a disgrace, and current governor Rick Scott has yet to appoint a Black 17th judge, while making at least four blatantly political local appointments thus far.
Still, it's hard to pin it on the JNC and Scott if qualified minority applicants don't apply. Sure, the "why bother, it's all fixed" argument is understandable, as is the fact talented Black private sector lawyers typically top a judicial salary within a year or two of finishing law school. But it's not called public service for nothing, and the community's need for Black judges couldn't be more glaring. The point is qualified minority lawyers need to put in for Ed Merrigan's county seat, if only to see what kind of claptrap the JNC or Scott come up with to deny the community comes second when it comes to picking judges. Exposure is a powerful tool, and it may fix the problem going forward, at least to a degree. And who knows, they may surprise everyone and do the right thing, even if the applicant isn't married or otherwise related to a judge or political boss. So spread the word, as this one may be attainable for all the right reasons, for a change ...
Relapse is part of Rehab ... and everyone knows it, except perhaps Peter Weinstein. His decision to leave a vulnerable and suffering Gisele Pollack on the criminal bench has backfired big time, following last week's much talked about second public benching of Broward's misdemeanor drug court judge. The details will be emerging shortly, suffice it to say Weinstein's leadership is once again being called into question. As we told Bob Norman a few months back, allowing Gisele to pass judgment on drug users while battling her own demons is a real credibility buster, and now, unfortunately, if reports of wildly erratic behavior are true, seemingly a recovery killer too.
Let's face it. Weinstein isn't the first chief judge to cater to the whims of his voting subjects. He also isn't the first to promote an image of a strong judiciary at all costs, even if the tactic has proven to almost always make things worse in the end. But this one seemed like an easy call to make, and a lot of people aren't happy about the way the whole thing was handled.
But hey, we're here to help. A bunch of calls were placed on Friday to the Florida Bar, since substance abuse issues in the workplace are nothing new to a body governing nearly 100,000 stressed out souls. It turns out there's an agency called Florida Lawyers Assistance, based right here in Pompano, which was created in response to a Florida Supreme Court mandate to help lawyers and salvage legal careers. Bar reps put us in touch with Michael Cohen, the Executive Director, who gave us the rundown of options for balancing rehabilitation with protecting the public, such as behavior contracts, random testing, monitoring, and meetings, with the threat of discipline for those that don't take things seriously. Interestingly, Cohen also stated the JQC has been in contact in recent months, although he has no insight into what the secretive judge protectors are thinking about.
So stay tuned. There's light at the end of the tunnel, as soon as Weinstein and the JQC start treating judges just like everybody else ...
JAABLOG Movement - Sandy Perlman to vacated civil O'Connor, Cindy Imperato to vacated foreclosure Perlman, Barry Stone to vacated foreclosure Imperato, and either Liz Scherer or Ed Merrigan to vacated criminal Stone. If Scherer gets Imperato's old criminal division (FJ), then Merrigan would go to vacated Scherer dependency. None of this is anywhere near official of course, but we're told Imperato is moving her office from the North Wing to the old courthouse in May, meaning her desired return to criminal may not be so imminent. Additionally, there are whispers that some veterans want out of criminal, so there may be more openings soon. In any event, as of Friday there was still some confusion as to who is getting stuck in dependency. Since Stacy Ross seemed to get seniority credit for being a county judge, some are wondering if Merrigan will also get special consideration, in addition to his already helming Veteran's Court, which deals with circuit felony issues. In the old days Scherer would have had her choice of assignment, particularly after dedicated and lengthy service in the grueling dependency court. But since politics play a very important role in this judicial administration, we're told it's still a wait and see ...
Additional FDMC confirmations - John Howes, who didn't return a call before deadline, is a member of the First Degree Murder Club, as is judicial candidate Dennis Bailey. We're still looking for a working phone number forTom Gallagher, so in the meantime drop a comment concerning anyone else you think we need to contact ...
Meet Melissa Donoho
SS: Merrigan appointed to circuit judgeship
Bob Norman: Streitfeld/Trump coziness could lead to new trial
How terribly strange to be 70 ...
Barry Stone (
Not a law firm ...
Oh Mike, not again ...
Guest columnist Charlie Gasko writes:
Sorry, merit based entry only (for a change) ...
