Add RSS RSS

Non-Sequiturs: 07.25.07

Elizabeth Halverson small Judge Elizabeth Halverson Liz Halverson Above the Law blog.JPG* Can you invoke the Fifth Amendment if you’re a juror being voir dired? [Southern District of Florida Blog]

* When it comes to the administrative state, you can run but you can’t hide. [DealBreaker]

* The Elizabeth Halverson saga rolls on — and social studies teachers are grateful for the judicial soap opera: “My high school students have never read the newspaper with such genuine excitement before… So please, let Judge Halverson stay on the bench, just a little bit longer.” [ABA Journal]

* Who’s up for an Italian sausage grinder? [New York Post]

Comments

avatar
1 Posted by Freddie First! | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 6:16 PM

Finally first! Lat, how did you make the transition from law practice to doing this great job?

First forever,
Freddie first

avatar
2 Posted by Captain FIRST! | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 6:26 PM

I am clearly on a black list.

Fredie First: Captain FIRST! was here FIRST!

Sadly, however, this is no longer a sustainable enterprise. I must retire.

avatar
3 Posted by Freddie First! | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 6:43 PM

You could change your name to Captain Second. Or, given your demotion, Lieutenant Second.

avatar
4 Posted by guest | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 6:51 PM

Masturbating in your jail cell is illegal because it offends the female security guard watching you? What kind of bullsh*t is that? Sounds like an Eighth Amendment violation to me, and maybe the Fourteenth, too.

avatar
5 Posted by guest | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 6:56 PM

Lat, it is your holy duty to post the full size version of that photo of the judicial behemoth.

avatar
6 Posted by guest | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 6:58 PM

At the heart of liberty is the right to define one's own concept of existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human life. And also the right to masturbate in one's jail cell.

avatar
7 Posted by dd | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 7:01 PM

mm

avatar
8 Posted by Anon | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 7:07 PM

Crackin me up 6:58.

avatar
9 Posted by Hans Moleman | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 7:36 PM

Hey Lat, do they make you link to dealbreaker?

It seems like you are getting much more traffic than him, what's your secret?

avatar
10 Posted by Thad | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 7:47 PM

Judge Halverson is HOTTTT! I'd hit it.

avatar
11 Posted by Loyola1L | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 7:52 PM

Honestly, this is worth the 15 seconds...

http://www.halverson4judge.com/commercial-pop.html


ps, that was her election website.

avatar
12 Posted by guest | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 7:52 PM

Does anyone know the true poundage of judicial heavyweight Elizabeth Halverson? Surely, it is more than the 425 pounds listed on her driver license.

I propose a Halverson weight pool. Winner gets to dine with the good judge on whole fryers, platters of fries, and Big Macs.

avatar
13 Posted by BIG LAW SUCKS | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 8:28 PM

Finally first! Lat, how did you make the transition from law practice to doing this great job?

Yale Law Grads can do anything and get away with it. If you or I had 3 jobs in as many years we'd be labeled as unstable- for a guy like Lat its viewed favorably- i.e. hes' sooooooooooooo smart his inquisitive mind with its insatiable thirst for knowledge (and celebrity gossip) will not permit him to endure the drudgery of maintaining a steady gig....

avatar
14 Posted by I Hate the Guy Who Hates Billy Merck | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 8:43 PM

6:51: I'm with you. For chrissakes, if you can't even jack off in the clink, how does that help keep the cons in line? Add sexual frustration on top of all the other frustrations of prison--doesn't sound like a prescription for compliance and order to me. Also, this female guard was "offended?" She honestly doesn't see worse things as a guard on a daily basis? Maybe she needs thicker skin or a new job.

avatar
15 Posted by guest | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 9:04 PM

Lat, you didn't link to the right article about MC 800-Pound Judge.

She was suspended by the Nevada Supreme Court on an interim basis pending the outcome of her disciplinary case.

http://www.abajournal.com/news/judge_halverson_suspended_in_nev_flap/

Nev. Judge Suspended, Poses ‘Substantial Threat,’ Commission Finds

Posted 2 hours, 7 minutes ago
By Martha Neil

A controversial Nevada judge was suspended today by the state Commission on Judicial Discipline, which found that Elizabeth Halverson "poses a substantial threat of serious harm" to the public and the administration of justice.

In a final order of interim suspension (PDF) filed today, the commission suspended the judge with pay, pending a final determination in a judicial disciplinary proceeding. Substantial evidence presented at a July 16 hearing closed to the public and in pleadings shows that the judge "is without sufficient legal abilities to conduct trials in criminal cases," isn't impartial or diligent, has treated staff badly and subjected them to "a hostile work environment and sexual harassment," doesn't cooperate with other judges and court administrators, and has fallen asleep on the bench at least once, according to the opinion.

Another ABAJournal.com post earlier today about an ABA Journal story discusses the situation in greater detail.

Although Nevada law doesn't specify how such a suspension should be handled procedurally, when, like Halverson, a judge is not facing any criminal charge, the commission looked to the law of other states, as well as Nevada Supreme Court precedent. It determined that special counsel must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that interim suspension is justified, "considering the totality of circumstances," today's opinion explains.

avatar
16 Posted by guest | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 9:23 PM

Lat, you gotta post this picture tomorrow. I just love a lady with an oxygen tank!

http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/youre_not_the_boss_of_me/

avatar
17 Posted by guest | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 9:30 PM

You anti-Halverson commenters best watch it, or she'll put a price on your head so large, every bounty hunter in the galaxy will be looking for you. Then you'll have an unpleasant meeting with her friend the Sarlacc.

"Boonowa tweepi, ha, ha!" "Eeth wong che coh pa na-geen, nah meeto toe bunky dunko. Lo choda!"

avatar
18 Posted by can't stop me | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 9:43 PM

9:30 - not funny. Too tried. And to think you actually queued up that section of the film to get it just right... ...loser...

avatar
19 Posted by MC 800 Pound Judge | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 10:01 PM

Halverson has just been suspended by the Nevada Supreme Court on an interim basis pending removal from the bench. Fish around the ABA Journal website for the breaking story. I tried to post the URL but the judge ate it... er, I mean the post was held pending approval to make sure it isn't Viagra spam or something like that.

BTW, there's nothing as sexy as a morbidly obese judge in an oxygen mask as far as I'm concerned.

avatar
20 Posted by anon | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 10:11 PM

Halverson = too fine

avatar
21 Posted by guest | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 11:37 PM

Links to the Halverson order of suspension and a summary of the order are available at www.harmfulerror.com.

avatar
22 Posted by guest | Permalink Wednesday, July 25, 2007 11:47 PM

An easy way to keep her out of the court house is to turn off the freight elevator.

avatar
23 Posted by Old Guy | Permalink Thursday, July 26, 2007 7:08 AM

So you're at work and decide to masturbate in your office. A female (or male) walks by and sees you. Do you think you would not be fired? Or, would that be violating your constitutional rights? Did you even read the article? This was excessive and is "normally" done under the sheets/blanket. I guess she could have called the muscle, and beat the crap out of him. They are in jail they deserve no rights!

avatar
24 Posted by can't stop me | Permalink Thursday, July 26, 2007 7:20 AM

Old guy - unless I'm missing something, your analogy is flawed at its base.

How can your employer violate your constitutional rights? Unless of course you work for the man...

avatar
25 Posted by guest | Permalink Thursday, July 26, 2007 8:10 AM

Just wallpaper the prisoner's cell with pictures of Judge Halverson. That ought to fix his masturbation problem.

avatar
26 Posted by guest | Permalink Thursday, July 26, 2007 8:14 AM

From the August 2007 ABA Journal article.

Halverson can be pointed when asked about her weight and health. Responding to a newspaper columnist who had ridiculed her health paraphernalia and appearance, Halverson told the Las Vegas Review-Journal: “The reason I’m supposedly spooky is I’m a morbidly obese woman in a scooter sucking oxygen in my nose. Well, so does Stephen Hawking. Shall we get rid of him?”

Still, it is difficult to square some of the circles in her life.

A San Francisco property owner recently moved for garnishment of Halverson’s pay from the state of Nevada, according to Shawn Miller, a shareholder at the Las Vegas law firm of Shea & Carlyon, which represents the landlord.

Halverson had kept a rent-controlled apartment for many years after relocating to Las Vegas in the mid-1990s. Halverson had litigated all the way to the California Supreme Court to keep from paying legal fees and interest to the former landlord.

She lost at all levels in California. Then she lost in her own courthouse in Las Vegas, where the landlord came to enforce the judgment in 2004. The total was more than $42,000 at the time, and interest still accrues. Faziola v. La Macchia, aka Halverson, No. A497569 (Dist. Ct. Clark County Nev.).

The Las Vegas news frenzy concerning Halverson has turned up a string of felony arrests of her 48-year-old husband, Edward Lee Halverson. According to court records, he served nearly four years in prison. The couple married in 1998, apparently while he was on probation and she was a law clerk.

Then there’s the abatement movement in recent months by the county, which is trying to get the Halversons to clean up their home and property in a neighborhood she describes as “poor” in an appeal of the county action.

Among other alleged infractions cited by the county, there was a large amount of trash in the backyard, overgrown weeds and shrubs, a near-collapsed shed, mosquito-ridden slime in the swimming pool, and the porch and two tents pitched on the driveway were choked with empty oxygen bottles, according to Deputy District Attorney Steven Sweikert.

Sweikert says the Halversons have made considerable progress in the cleanup, and a negotiated settlement granting them more time to complete it has gone to the county Board of Commissioners for approval.

avatar
27 Posted by Old Guy | Permalink Thursday, July 26, 2007 8:14 AM

You would kind of have to right? Work for the man, I mean. Anyway, neither the 8th or 14th amendments were violated here.

avatar
28 Posted by Justice By The Pound | Permalink Thursday, July 26, 2007 8:21 AM

The initial ABA article [linked to in the later less-detailed article Lat posts] gives a lot more info on the issues than previous reports posted here. Judge Halverson is apparently a deadbeat debtor and married to a felon. Her residence has been cited for "a large amount of trash in the backyard, overgrown weeds and shrubs, a near-collapsed shed, mosquito-ridden slime in the swimming pool, and the porch and two tents pitched on the driveway choked with empty oxygen bottles". More directly related to the her fitness for office are reports that she has noted in open court that the attorneys before her didn't contribute to her campaign and that she discussed cases with deliberating jurors outside the presence of counsel.

avatar
29 Posted by I love 9:30 | Permalink Thursday, July 26, 2007 9:39 AM

That was beautiful. I read it out loud and couldn't stop laughing. Of course I'm having a "froggy" voice morning so it sounded even more authentic.

Thanks for the belly laugh.

avatar
30 Posted by guest | Permalink Thursday, July 26, 2007 9:42 AM

I'm sorry, but the photos of the judge wearing her robe with the oxygen mask on are just sooooo sexxxy.

avatar
31 Posted by Rascal Scooters | Permalink Thursday, July 26, 2007 12:26 PM

Ask Judge Halverson and she'll tell you that Rascal Scooters are the toughest, longest lasting scooters on the sidewalk.

The All-New 2008 Rascal Halverson XXL features the largest towing capacity of any scooter in its class.

The All-New Halverson XXL. Built Rascal Tough.

Post Your Comment