Federal Judges

Our New Favorite Federal Jurist Punches Up Opinions With Pop Culture References

Federal judge binge-watches shows and can't stop thinking about them when he's at work.

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Breaking BadAnyone who has spent hours upon hours doing legal research knows it can be a slog. Reading all the holdings with barely distinguishable facts, desperate to find the perfect case to satisfy the demanding partner late into the night can make you go cross-eyed. Well, one federal jurist has got your back.

The Ninth Circuit’s Judge John Owens is rapidly becoming known for his ability to drop sly pop culture references in the middle of his opinions. It’s just enough fun to keep you reading cases when coffee doesn’t cut it.

Take his recent decision in U.S. v. Harmon. It’s a case where a defense attorney, Jamie Harmon, was convicted of money laundering. She allegedly took money from her client’s stolen electronics enterprise, put it in a trust account, then distributed the money back to the client. If those facts aren’t enough to keep you reading, Judge Owens is happy to point out that one of the names of a witness in the case (who’d pleaded guilty to money laundering himself) was the Star Trek reference your little nerd mind suspected:

The astute reader will note that “Yan Ebyam” is a play on “Yes and No, Maybe.” Cf. Star Trek, All Our Yesterdays (first aired March 14, 1969) (introducing viewers to “Mr. Atoz,” the last resident of planet Sarpeidon and a shifty librarian).

He then analogizes the fact pattern to the TV show about everyone’s favorite accidental criminal, Breaking Bad:

Hollywood could turn this into “Breaking RAM,” with Pantages and his wife as Walter and Skyler White, Ebyam as Jesse Pinkman, and Harmon as Saul Goodman.

Federal jurists, they’re just like us! They binge watch shows and can’t stop thinking about them when they’re at work too.

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Read the full decision on the next page.

Earlier: This Federal Judge Is As Obsessed With Game Of Thrones As The Rest Of Us
This Federal Judge Just Loves Nerding Out

Kathryn Rubino is an editor at Above the Law. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

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