I'm reminded of the famous "Joe Cool" murder on the high seas trial. After the defendants were found guilty, Judge Huck, on his own initiative without any motion by the defense team, issued an order where he stated that he gave an incorrect jury instruction and that he had no choice but to grant a mistrial.
WHAT ARE THE DISADVANTAGES OF TAKING SENIOR STATUS?
There are a few statutory restrictions. On paper, one looms large:
Under 28 U.S.C. § 294(b), a senior judge cannot perform judicial duties unless "designated and assigned" to do so; the chief judge of the
circuit (Alex Kozinski) makes designations for assignments within the senior judge's
circuit, while the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court makes designations
for assignments outside the circuit in response to a certificate of
necessity from the circuit of the "borrowing" court.
CURRENT:
Chief Justice of the Supreme CourtJohn Glover Roberts, Jr. (born January 27, 1955) is the 17th and current Chief Justice of the United States. He has served since 2005, having been nominated by President George W. Bush after the death of Chief Justice William Rehnquist. He has been described as having a conservative judicial philosophy in his jurisprudence. Roberts grew up in northern Indiana and was educated in a private school before attending Harvard College and Harvard Law School, where he was managing editor of the Harvard Law Review.
See David R. Stras & Ryan W. Scott, Are Senior Judges Unconstitutional?, 92 CORNELL L.
REV. 453 (2007).
The Senate confirmed Michael W. Fitzgerald as a federal trial judge in Los Angeles, making him only the fourth openly gay person confirmed to the federal bench in the United States. It also makes him the only openly gay judge on California’s federal bench.
The Senate approved the former federal prosecutor and white collar defense litigator on a 91-6 vote, with three Senators not voting.
Fitzgerald, 52, was nominated in July to fill the seat of U.S. District Judge A. Howard Matz, who took senior status in July 2011. His nomination was cleared by the Senate Judiciary Committee in early November and he has been awaiting a full Senate vote since then.
Although Fitzgerald is currently the only openly gay federal judge in California, former Chief Judge Vaughn Walker of San Francisco disclosed last year he was in a long-term, same-sex relationship after he presided over the lawsuit challenging Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage in the state.
Walker’s announcement came nearly 22 years after his appointment to the bench by President George Bush in 1989.
Fitzgerald has been a partner with Corbin, Fitzgerald & Athey since 1998, specializing in commercial litigation, white-collar defense and internal investigations. From 1991 to 1995 he worked in the Heller, Ehrman, White & McAuliffe firm, which went into bankruptcy in 2008.
He was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Central District from 1988 to 1991.
He is a native of Los Angeles. He received his law degree from the University of California, Boalt Hall School of Law in 1985 and his undergraduate degree from Harvard University in 1981.
He served as clerk for 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Irving R. Kaufman.
Henry Louis Gates' Contempt Of Cop Emptywheel - At tonight's nationally televised press conference, a reporter asked President Obama a question about the July 16 arrest of famed Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates. Obama set off...
Contempt of Cop' by William Norman Grigg - The police are to the government as the edge is to the knife, insists sociologist David Bayley, who apparently couldn't explain why the typical...
Welcome to America Now step inside the jail cell - The audio exchange in this video was apparently recorded at the U.S. Canada border after a Canadian displayed contempt-of-cop towards the American law enforcement officer asking questions.
Contemptible police tactics - Cops raid the home of a licensed medical marijuana provider in Washington, handcuff the fourteen year old son and put a gun to his head, and search the nineteen year old daughter and take the contents of her mickey-mouse wallet.
How To Survive Traffic Stops in America, Submit, Instantly! - What the cops want is immediate obedience and submission. Many cops are ex-military and view the civilian motorists of America about like they viewed the hapless peasants of Iraq and Afghanistan, that is, with contempt, not as fellow citizens deserving of civility and respect. It is a possibly lethal mistake to do anything other than submit, instantly and obey! Or be ready to shoot first. But aim high.
