Comments on: Reconsidering Colon http://briefcase8.com/2008/08/04/reconsidering-colon/ Case analysis with an attitude Mon, 21 May 2012 14:51:19 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: A young lawyer http://briefcase8.com/2008/08/04/reconsidering-colon/comment-page-1/#comment-39373 A young lawyer Tue, 05 Aug 2008 13:51:07 +0000 http://briefcase8.com/2008/08/04/reconsidering-colon/#comment-39373 You don't think there was ever any mention of what could happen at the next election if a judge was made to be "responsible" in the public's eyes for the release of say 5,000... felons from Ohio Prisons and countless more from probation / PRC for a "technicality" that the public would never understand. Clearly the principal group opposing the Colon decision was made up of prosecutors and they have a good grasp on elections (as many of them must be elected). Alas, perhaps I am just bitter about having the rug yanked out... suppose it would be much more difficult if I were in Prison. You don’t think there was ever any mention of what could happen at the next election if a judge was made to be “responsible” in the public’s eyes for the release of say 5,000… felons from Ohio Prisons and countless more from probation / PRC for a “technicality” that the public would never understand. Clearly the principal group opposing the Colon decision was made up of prosecutors and they have a good grasp on elections (as many of them must be elected).

Alas, perhaps I am just bitter about having the rug yanked out… suppose it would be much more difficult if I were in Prison.

]]> By: Russ Bensing http://briefcase8.com/2008/08/04/reconsidering-colon/comment-page-1/#comment-39372 Russ Bensing Tue, 05 Aug 2008 12:59:35 +0000 http://briefcase8.com/2008/08/04/reconsidering-colon/#comment-39372 First, keep your passion. It's an essential ingredient for a good lawyer. That having been said, I have to disagree with you here about the decision itself. I don't think Colon II was the result of undue pressure being brought against elected judges, I think it was just judges realizing they'd made a bad decision, and had to clean it up. Colon I didn't address the retroactivity issue, and the structural error issue was, to put it bluntly, simply wrongly decided. They could have come to the same result on a plain error analysis. The main consequence of Colon will be to muddy the waters about what structural error really means. Finally, I do agree with you about elected judges. First, keep your passion. It’s an essential ingredient for a good lawyer.

That having been said, I have to disagree with you here about the decision itself. I don’t think Colon II was the result of undue pressure being brought against elected judges, I think it was just judges realizing they’d made a bad decision, and had to clean it up. Colon I didn’t address the retroactivity issue, and the structural error issue was, to put it bluntly, simply wrongly decided. They could have come to the same result on a plain error analysis. The main consequence of Colon will be to muddy the waters about what structural error really means.

Finally, I do agree with you about elected judges.

]]> By: A young lawyer http://briefcase8.com/2008/08/04/reconsidering-colon/comment-page-1/#comment-39366 A young lawyer Tue, 05 Aug 2008 05:33:43 +0000 http://briefcase8.com/2008/08/04/reconsidering-colon/#comment-39366 Perhaps the previous was overly bitter but I am enduring my first round of "election judges" in this the infancy of my legal career an the hits... they just keep a comin'. Perhaps the previous was overly bitter but I am enduring my first round of “election judges” in this the infancy of my legal career an the hits… they just keep a comin’.

]]> By: A young lawyer http://briefcase8.com/2008/08/04/reconsidering-colon/comment-page-1/#comment-39364 A young lawyer Tue, 05 Aug 2008 05:18:31 +0000 http://briefcase8.com/2008/08/04/reconsidering-colon/#comment-39364 As a defense attorney to say that I am shocked by this spineless backtracking of the court is an understatement. I have several Colon based cases now pending that appear to be "in the crapper" as a result of this "revised" opinion. While opinions may differ on the merits of this case and what does or does not constitute structural error I believe that one unifying truth has been exposed by this opinion... Judges should NOT BE ELECTED Constitutional principals should not be dictated by external pressures on the judiciary as appears to be the case here... isn't there enough of that BS in the lobbyist driven legislature already?!? To all of you in law school or contemplating a career in law, be jaded, assume that the political pressures of the moment dictate EVERYTHING that happens in the courts, justice be dammed, integrity be dammed, people (intentionally plural) rotting behind bars to satisfy another's political ends be dammed. It is so pervasive on ALL the levels of the judiciary in Ohio that if you go in with that attitude you will be pleasantly surprised when it does not happen and sufficiently insulated from the shock when it does. As a defense attorney to say that I am shocked by this spineless backtracking of the court is an understatement. I have several Colon based cases now pending that appear to be “in the crapper” as a result of this “revised” opinion. While opinions may differ on the merits of this case and what does or does not constitute structural error I believe that one unifying truth has been exposed by this opinion… Judges should NOT BE ELECTED

Constitutional principals should not be dictated by external pressures on the judiciary as appears to be the case here… isn’t there enough of that BS in the lobbyist driven legislature already?!?

To all of you in law school or contemplating a career in law, be jaded, assume that the political pressures of the moment dictate EVERYTHING that happens in the courts, justice be dammed, integrity be dammed, people (intentionally plural) rotting behind bars to satisfy another’s political ends be dammed. It is so pervasive on ALL the levels of the judiciary in Ohio that if you go in with that attitude you will be pleasantly surprised when it does not happen and sufficiently insulated from the shock when it does.

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