PALM BEACH POST:
St. Lucie Judge Drops Magistrates Lawsuit Against Other Judges
"He had asked the appeals court to order other judges to comply with state law by considering bond reductions at first appearances and accepting pleas in some cases...

Previously, the hearings seemed scripted with no variation from one case to the other, Barnes said. Suspects who asked for lower bonds were told that wasn't the place to hear the request.

The 4th District Court of Appeal issued two decisions last year requiring that bond schedules not be used by judges, and that they consider reduced bonds for defendants."

Berger's Retirement Impacting Caseloads
"Senior judges are judges who retired in good standing and are not practicing law or engaged in anything else that could create a conflict of interest, according to Florida Supreme Court spokesman Craig Waters. They are paid $350 per day and can serve anywhere in the state...

The 15th Judicial Circuit, which serves Palm Beach County, has 68 senior judges eligible to serve, according to Letitia McDonald, a program specialist in court administration. Of those, nine are used on a regular basis. On average, Palm Beach County uses a senior judge 14 days each month."

NEW TIMES:
"Bust Me If You Can"
"Authorities would later describe (Brady) as a curious con man, blessed with intellectual gifts and cursed with psychological troubles. They compared Brady's story to Hollywood movies like Six Degrees of Separation or Catch Me If You Can, both featuring clean-cut imposters who knew how to push the right buttons to finagle their way into influential circles.

Said prosecutor David Schulson, "Brady's a poor man's Leonardo DiCaprio."

MIAMI HERALD:
Sex Offender Laws and Homelessness
''These people are sort of victims of the system,'' Davie civil rights lawyer Randy Fleischer said. 'Under the law, they're not protected from discrimination in housing. And yet they need to live somewhere, but where do you put them? People will say, `I don't want them in my backyard.' ''

Miami Judge Apologizes For Ordering African-American Child From Courtroom
"Butchko had asked Marquis to leave her courtroom on Thursday after a prosecutor said he didn't want the jury to think the boy was the defendant's son -- perhaps increasing jurors' sympathy for the accused.

Both the boy and the defendant are black; they are not related...

The State Attorney's Office defended its prosecutor, James DeMills, and said the incident was not racially motivated. DeMills refused to comment for this story, but also delivered an apology to Jones."

Krathen Orders Investigation of Impact Community Services Shelter

Budget Cuts Amount To A "Contract On Kids"
''These cuts are going to be absolutely devastating,'' said Broward Circuit Judge John A. Frusciante, who has presided over child welfare cases for a decade. ``We are sacrificing the future for what is perceived to be an emergency at the moment. It will come back to haunt us.''

THE NEWS-PRESS:
Rauschenberg's Florida Lawsuit Will Impact International Art World
"Robert Fontaine, a Naples artist accused of taking from the garbage the work of Captiva artist Robert Rauschenberg and selling some of it fraudulently, claims at least two others helped themselves to the trashed cache.

If so, many more unauthorized Rauschenberg works could be floating around in art limbo in the public domain.

The revelation comes in a case that has attracted international attention.

Rauschenberg is considered the greatest living contemporary artist, known for an array of work including paintings, sculpture and mixed media.

The lawsuit could define for artists what rights they have to their own work, legal experts say."

Judicial Applicant's Complaint Against 20th JNC Dropped
"Stephen Hooper, senior staff attorney for the 20th Judicial Circuit, filed the complaint with Crist, alleging his references weren't checked. He said the chairman of the nominating commission, with whom Hooper was involved in a malpractice lawsuit in 1990, should have removed himself from interviews."

ORLANDO SENTINEL
"FBI chief: Are Americans becoming more crooked?"
"In a speech to the American Bar Association, Mueller asked the assembled defense lawyers for help in "creating a culture of integrity" by reporting evidence of wrongdoing by politicians and corporate executives alike."

"Without plea agreements, the courts would be clogged"
"Though not in the Bill of Rights -- like the right to a fair trial -- plea bargaining has gone on since the 19th century. Some legal scholars say such negotiations date back to 1633, when Galileo got a deal to serve house arrest during the Inquisition. He was also ordered to renounce the teachings of Copernicus, including the theory that the sun was the center of the solar system, then deemed heresy."

PENSACOLA NEWS JOURNAL
Judge In Santa Rosa County Orders 130 No-Show Jurors Into Court
"Circuit Court Judge Gary Bergosh has issued “orders to show cause” to those no-shows, who could now face jail time. They must explain why they should not be held in contempt of court for failing to appear when summoned."

DAILY BUSINESS REVIEW
African-American Judge Explains Why He Ordered Whites From Georgia Courtroom
“It was not done for race reasons,” (Arrington) said, explaining that he is confronted daily with a stream of criminal acts, “most committed by African-Americans.”

Arrington, one of the first black graduates of Emory Law School, described his own troubled youth as an impetus for outreach...

“People of responsibility need to speak up,” he said, as murmurs of approval rippled through the courtroom."