Shouldn’t a Black Robe Mean Never Having to Say You’re Sorry?
Actually, as it turns out, Judge Jeffrey Levenson DID say he was sorry — immediately after making the ill-considered gay football / “wide receiver” crack that made him our Judge of the Day. And he apologized repeatedly during the course of the hearing, too.
But that hasn’t stopped the hue and cry. From the Daily Business Review:
Bar leaders and the public defender issued new calls Thursday for sensitivity training for Broward judges after Circuit Judge Jeffrey Levenson made an off-color joke in his courtroom about a teenage boy who allegedly had sex with an adult male defendant.“If this incident doesn’t scream loudly how desperately we need diversity and sensitivity training in this circuit, then I don’t know what will,” said Broward Public Defender Howard Finkelstein. “In a matter of a year or two years, we had a judge insult Haitian-Americans, another insult African-Americans, had a third judge insulting blacks, Hispanics and Catholics, and a fourth judge insulting gay people.”
Maybe Judge Levenson should skip the sensitivity training and become a television judge. After all, TV judges get PAID to insult the litigants.
Food for thought: Why does Florida produce so many TV judges? It is because of their penchant, noted by PD Howard Finkelstein, for being rude and abusive?
The following are former Floridian jurists who left the state bench for the boob tube: Marilyn Milian, of the People’s Court (previously discussed here); Alex Ferrer, a/k/a “Judge Alex”; David Young, the gay TV judge; and the notorious Anna Nicole Smith judge, Larry Seidlin (not on air yet, but rumored to arrive in fall 2008).
Broward Courts: New chief’s honeymoon over [Daily Business Review]
Earlier: Judge of the Day: Jeffrey Levenson
(25) Comments
Comments
At least the judge was trying to be personable and chatty. If you want sensitivity BS, why not just say "no discussions on anything not directly on point." I'm sure everybody would love the atmosphere that creates.
first
Dude, lat, seriously, where can I get my hands on your soft-core collection. Nice!
Don't forget -- Mr.Finkelstien is an elected official and, as such, has both a political agenda and his own axes to grind.
Lat, where do you gets these photos? (I *really* dig 'em).
Don't forget that Mr. Finkelstein is an elected official. As such, he has his own political agenda and axes to grind. Thus, his opinions should not be viewed as simply those of a neutral observer.
Quite the homoerotic theme today, Lat.
How could anyone forget, PMCIII?
You keep reminding us every few minutes!
Is it just me or has ATL been blowing up with the gays as of late?
Is Finkelstein an elected official? From his comments, it seems like he's got some sort of axe to grind...an agenda, if you will.
Of course he has an axe to grind, thats why he slapped that woman after spilling his drink on her.
Puh-lease....will we ever get back to a time when we all have at least a modest sense of humor and slightly thicker skin? If anyone truly is offended by his comment, then he or she is in desperate need of desensitivity training.
A picture is worth a thousand words.
I heard that to make all up he would take the wide receiver to a football game. Unfortunately he chose the Packers vs. the Rams.
"Desensitivity training" -- awesome! I'm going to work the concept into conversations whenever I can.
"Did you hear Al Sharpton's commentary on the _______ incident yesterday?"
"Commentary? That was a rant! He needs to go for some desensitivity training!"
Maybe I'll propose in-house desensitivity training at our firm to our Associate Managing Director of Diversity Developing Initiatives and Programs.
Ah, the Carlson twins. Nice artwork, Lat. Those boys can come work at my law firm anyday.
Getting a little tired of seeing unclothed men and pictures of men ramming each other on this site.
This truly is the most homoerotic ATL day ever.
3:43: thank you, thank you...3:39
More pictures please
Ripped-up pretty-boy twins with one brain between them to 190.
They were guests at the Lamdba Legal Liberty Awards here in LA a couple of years ago. They showed up with their matching blonde dates. Funny how attractiveness on the printed -- or pixillated - page does not always translate into sex appeal in flesh and blood.
People, there's something I'll never understand. All this talk about non-discrimination and yet you use terms such as African-American, Hispanic-American, etc. Why not refer to everyone with a U.S. nationality simply as an "American"? Or is it that only white people of English or Irish descent get to be called “American” with no added distinction? If that is not discrimination, then I don't know what is...
It's not so much that he insulted gays, which I suppose he did, but that he was nonchalant and joking about a kid who had allegedly been abused. That's another thing altogether. It's good and appropriate that he apologized, but it's not a little deal.
is Lat gay? where in the world is he getting all of these homoerotic pics from? this dude must be gay. he's even throwing in gratuitous homoerotic pics where it has absolutely nothing to do with the subject matter of the post. will he just get it over with and just come out?
"Is Lat gay?"
Is the Pope German?