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Posted on 06/04/2014 12:07:50 PM PDT by Altariel
If you’ve ever had a public defender in a criminal case, you probably plead guilty for fear of getting beaten in a trial. Yesterday in Brevard County, Florida however, a public defender got beaten at arraignment, literally. Judge John Murphy is accused of punching veteran public defender Andrew Weinstock in the face repeatedly, after the two exchanged words in the court room. Murphy reportedly wanted Weinstock’s client to waive his right to a speedy trial, and when he refused, the judge said “If I had a rock I’d throw it at you” and then invited him outside of the courtroom to “beat [his] ass”.
The dialogue in the court room was captured on video (below). In the video you can see Weinstock exit the court room, reportedly thinking it was just to talk. Once they got off camera, without saying a word, the judge reportedly grabbed him by the collar and began punching him in the head. You can hear the sounds of scuffle on the court room video. Two deputies broke up the melee, after which Judge Murphy returned to the bench and began hearing other cases. “I will catch my breath eventually,” Murphy said. “Man, I’m an old man.”
No arrests were made, no charges were filed, but the public defenders office said they will be reporting the incident to the Bar association. See the video below, then I’d like to riff on this a bit more…
(Excerpt) Read more at christophercantwell.com ...
And none will be. The guy in the black dress can do as he pleases.
I really, really, really hope this judge is a former judge as soon as possible.
Ping
No arrests were made. The deputies should be fired.
Floriduh...
I wonder, is the following applicable?
18 U.S. Code § 242 - Deprivation of rights under color of law
Whoever, under color of any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom, willfully subjects any person in any State, Territory, Commonwealth, Possession, or District to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States, or to different punishments, pains, or penalties, on account of such person being an alien, or by reason of his color, or race, than are prescribed for the punishment of citizens, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both; and if bodily injury results from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include the use, attempted use, or threatened use of a dangerous weapon, explosives, or fire, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and if death results from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned for any term of years or for life, or both, or may be sentenced to death.
Hey, remember that movie “Law Abiding Citizen”?.....hmmmmm....
Reported for questioning the will of one of the lords of the land.
</sarc>
And yet almost all of the perps sitting and waiting for their cases to be heard, cheered and clapped for the judge when he returned to the courtroom. Interesting.
This is, ironically, the reason I'm dubious about becoming a lawyer — I tend to reason from the Constitution [federal or state, as appropriate] and that leads to conclusions that are vastly different than the traditional ideas of what is kosher
. (If I could be assured that my arguments would be effective I'd do it in a heartbeat, but it seams that the legal realm is more than eager to ignore the constitution [and selectively apply lesser law].)
The judge has been relieved of all cases, initially placed on administrative leave [ no doubt while they figure out what else they can do ] and sent to anger management training in the meantime.
oh, there are proceedings for judges, as there are for lawyers, who violate their “professional ethics” code. This guy will probably get nailed. He references being old; he may have early dementia.
Oh I’m sure he might get a nice early retirement or disability payout after a long payed vacation, err, I mean suspension.
that’s how it works! But no lawyer/judge wants that suspension on his record, especially if they’ve had a pretty sterling reputation throughout their career.
I’d take the suspension as opposed to being the public defender that got pimp slapped by a guy in a long black dress.
The constitution is a political document first and foremost, not holy writ. The political and cultural will to enforce what it says has largely disappeared. You’re not going to fix that by being a lawyer, or a baker, or even a politician in most places. If it actually matters to you, being in cultural and/or geographic location with fellow thinkers is going to be key to retaining your sanity.
See tag line.
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