Florida judge in Anna Nicole hearing: Is he a loose cannon or a TV star in the making?

[Radio_Lady]

He seems to be all over the place in this morning's hearing.

Very full of himself. Wonder if he really is auditioning for a TV show...



http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/local/states/florida/counties/broward_county/16744203.htm

[Radio_Lady]

1. Anyone else watching this... or is it just me?

[Webster Green]

2. I saw it yesterday...

I could not believe what I was seeing.

MSNBC followed it for hours as "Breaking News".

The judge was/is a complete nut job.

[Radio_Lady]

3. Agreed. I was busy doing other things yesterday, so I'm late to the party.

Wow! Was this judge elected or was he appointed?

I'm glad I don't live in Broward County anymore.

[Blue_In_AK]

18. My mother-in-law has had it on this morning...

...but I'm trying to ignore it. The judge seems like a wise-ass.

[Radio_Lady]

20. Good description. Thanks for your comments.

[Greybnk48]

4. I saw the montage on KO last night highlighting his behavior

talking about being the first to get an A+ from his philosophy prof. at Hunter College, when he had gotten up that morning, how far he had jogged, etc. Judge "Needy" seems to be starved for attention, if not batshit crazy. I don't want to watch the trial but my sis keeps calling with updates, including the ME on speaker phone saying the body of ANS is now beginning to rot and that her mother has to pee every time she gets caught in a lie.

I wondered if it's as entertaining as my sister makes it sound? And poor ANS. Jeez.

[Radio_Lady]

5. Here's some of the Miami Herald article --

(Larry) Seidlin was elected a County Court judge in 1978, becoming one of the youngest at age 28. He was appointed circuit judge in 1989. Prior to that, he worked as a Broward prosecutor. He put himself through college by driving a taxi in New York City. Public records show he has a permit to carry a concealed weapon.

[Radio_Lady]

6. Was there another thread on this yesterday?

[Gin]

7. He doesn't need any other attorney's in court because he is running the

whole show...He speaks for them....asks them to sit down while he lectures to
the attorneys on all sides...I think he is auditioning for his own show...and that this is a farce.

[Lex]

8. I'm not impressed with this guy at all.

Although I don't think a courtroom has to be run by a surly, humorless judge, it DOES have to be run by a judge who can direct the proceedings without making the proceedings look like a farce.

This judge gets a thumbs down from me, fwiw.

[Connie_Corleone]

9. He needs to hurry the hell up and make his ruling.

The body is rotting according to the coroner. The body needs to be viewed no later than Saturday.

[hashibabba]

10. I saw a little yesterday and again today. He definitely is eating

up the attention.

I don't like him, I don't like the constant coverage of this story, and I don't like MSNBC carrying this garbage.

[spanone]

11. What's the difference?

He's a clown.

[Crabby Appleton]

12. A flaming asshole nt

[Faux pas]

13. He makes judge Ito look like a flipping gen-i-ass. n/t

[951-Riverside]

14. He seems like a pretty nice guy IMO. n/t

[Radio_Lady]

15. UPDATE: It's like watching a train wreck this afternoon 2/21

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

16. There is no doubt in my mind. This is totally ridiculous. The woman bought burial plots

in the Bahamas. This should have been ended 10 minutes after court started.

[Bluebear]

17. Every tape reveals she hated her mother.

What is the big mystery here?

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

22. There isn't. This is All About This Judge and shame on MSNBC for running this crap all day long. eom

[Radio_Lady]

25. I agree. However, they must be getting huge ratings.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

29. What really bothers me is that there were some important hearing held by Waxman

2 weeks ago that should have been aired and was kept for the most part from seeing the light of day..and this garbage drivels on.

Meanwhile, Tweety must be having a fit! They've cut into his show!

[MonkeyFunk]

49. Even without the Anna Nicole

stuff, believe me, the major cable outlets aren't going to provide live, ongoing coverage of a Waxman committee hearing.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

53. And that is my point and biggest gripe. The Waxman hearings are uncovering things

that affect every taxpayer in our country. Something that is relevant, and yet MSM instead feeds the basest part of our natures. Engrossing people in pulp that has absolutely nothing to do with them. Keeping people asleep and in the dark, deliberately.

[MonkeyFunk]

54. Congress

does stuff every day that affect every taxpayer. They do relevant stuff every day. People who care watch it on C-SPAN, and there's probably only a few hundred thousand people max who care enough to tune in.

If people WANTED to watch Waxman hearings, the networks would cover it.

[havocmom]

88. Was wondering what was going on that Cheney didn't want America to watch

Have had the news off all week. Thanks for the explanation.

[Radio_Lady]

19. I don't know how this judge is going to decide. She was not a Florida citizen, and

she just happened to be in Broward County, Florida -- where she was partying when she died. Where does that give ANY Florida judge ANY jurisdiction?

They are supposed to be deciding the disposition of the body. That is not what they are discussing. Drug use has come up this afternoon. This judge is all over the lot.

Whatever he decides, I'm sure it will be appealed.

[Blue_In_AK]

21. What does her prescription drugs have to do with

where she should be buried? This is crazy. I think I'll have to go upstairs and get away from it.

[Radio_Lady]

23. As I said, it's like watching a train wreck. This is the worst I've ever seen.

[treestar]

77. The place of death is definitely going to have jurisdiction

of at least some things. Probating her estate could be different, and maybe in her state of domicile.

[TahitiNut]

66. A corpse becomes PROPERTY upon death.

Without other binding agreements, the disposition of PROPERTY is up to the owner. The wishes of the decedent, absent a contract, are no more binding upon the owner than the wishes of a person who built your house.

At least that's how the law was explained to me. IANAL.

[Clark2008]

24. I have no idea - I refuse to watch the coverage of this drivel.

[Radio_Lady]

26. You're better for it, Clark2008. It's just droning on in the background here while I try to work.

Thanks for posting.

[Bake]

27. Both!

Actually, judging from the picture in the OP, the judge could always get a job on ESPN as a body-double for Dick Vitale.

Bake

[Marie26]

28. Has she even had a funeral yet? nt

[malaise]

34. No

Apparently they all prefer a fugging circus.

[Marie26]

40. He's getting his own reality show?

Ugh, I just read the article the OP posted.

''He is not as pretty as Judge Judy, but he is cut from the same tooth,'' said Vinnie Politan, co-host of CourtTV's weekday morning show, Bloom & Politan. ``We here at CourtTV love him. This is going to put him on the map, and he knows it.''

No wonder he's drawing out this hearing as much as he can. He thinks this is going to make him a star, baby!

[Radio_Lady]

41. Frankly, I don't think it will happen. He's too much of a nutcase!

[Marie26]

42. Let's hope! nt

[malaise]

44. A nutcase is exactly what MSM want

If that raving mad woman Nancy Grace is a star, why not hire one more lunatic. I can't believe they are avoiding serious news for this crap but as I suggested elsewhere Blair's pulling out, Libby's going down and who needs to hear anything serious.

[Radio_Lady]

35. No. She has been embalmed and now "rests" in the medical examiner's

care in Broward County.

That's what I understand.

[Marie26]

37. How awful

Just let her have a funeral & burial, like every other human being. This circus is kind of sickening. Everyone's exploiting this routine hearing to get their fifteen minutes of fame - while the media enables it. I guess MSNBC, the judge and the lawyers are happy, but it's incredibly disrespectful to the deceased. You know that if this was a closed hearing, it'd be over in an hour.

[Radio_Lady]

38. My father was a lawyer in Dade County, Florida. They voted in a "sunshine" law years ago.

I guess that allows live cameras in the courtroom.

Not sure it's a good decision in cases like these.

Thanks for posting, Marie26

[CTyankee]

30. He's a New Yorker! What else is new?

If you've lived in New York, you know his style. He seems strange to people outside of New York, but I've known so many New Yorkers like him, I really don't see what the fuss is about. Actually, I think he's kind of refreshing! :shrug:

[Radio_Lady]

33. Well, I lived in New York, married a New Yorker (my ex-husband) and had a daughter born in NYC.

What is your point?

I lived in Florida for 28 years and have dealt with many New Yorkers. Then, I lived in New York from 1962 to 1969.

IMHO, this judge does not have the proper grasp of legal proceedings and injects himself into the proceedings.

Read the Miami Herald article I posted. Lots of people seem to agree with me.

[CTyankee]

46. Well, to me he has a breezy style of New Yorkers I have known,

I lived in NYC for 10 years, but I certainly do not know his grasp of the law, as you do. So I bow to your expertise, Radio Lady, since I have not studied his comments to a degree worthy of judgement on his merits.

Thank you so much.

[Blue_In_AK]

31. Speaking as a legal transcriptionist...

I'd hate to be transcribing this mess. There's nothing we hate more than "all talking at once."

[Radio_Lady]

36. Right. On the long shot, there was a woman transcriptionist this morning.

I feel sorry for her.

[City Lights]

32. Don't know. Don't care. Just get it off my screen!

I turned on the television just as Hardball was supposed to start. Why is this whatever it is still on? Surely there is more important happenings to discuss than whatever it is they are discussing, no? I mean no disrespect to the dead, but Anna Nicole Smith was one person. Her life, while tragic, was worth no more than any other life. I'm sick to death of it already. :rant:

I feel so much better now. :D

[Radio_Lady]

39. MSNBC and Fox have pre-empted regular programming for this hearing.

As it nears 6 PM Eastern Time, they may break for the night.

[AngryAmish]

67. Anna Nicole died for our sins

[City Lights]

75. LOL!

:thumbsup:

[Generator]

81. I think you have something there

What is it with this country and these people from TEXAS? What country is this? Is she our Lady Di? Is Bush our Churchill? Vat a country, ladies and germs.

[Radio_Lady]

43. CNN has gone on with Lou Dobbs Tonight at 3 PM PT/6 PM ET.

You can get away from that hearing now.

[tammywammy]

45. I luckily don't have cable news.

:)
But I read a couple of "news" stories about it today. I can't believe this is even going on. The mother was so out of touch with Anna, how could anything she say hold any weight in the matter.

And Anna Nicole Smith purchased 2 plots at the cemetery. This is a travesty that this case is even happening, it should have been open and shut.

[BluePatriot]

47. He needs to cut it out.

His behavior seems excuse enough for the verdict to be instantly appealed.

He is mildly amusing, though.

[Radio_Lady]

48. Amusing? Calling somebody "Texas"? Stopping and starting in the middle of testimony?

I don't know.

I fail to understand your amusement.

[BluePatriot]

57. Well,

Olbermann's montages of the guy have a Daily-Show-esque sensibility, so you want to laugh AT him. Mildly amusing in a "they couldn't have even TRIED to make this guy up" sort of way. I'd be lying if I said my only emotional response was shock or annoyance, though I experience those feelings too in a rapidly shifting mixture of dissonance....Then, when I get a headache, I just turn off the TV. There's a good bet if I was watching a simple courtroom feed vs. Olbermann's mocking-via-clips, I would not be amused at all. Framing the issue, and such.

*edit: typo

[AlCzervik]

50. i find him unprofessional, the hearing shouldn't be about him but thats what

he's doing. Maybe probate court isn't as formal but even still.

[MonkeyFunk]

51. I actually like him

HE'S not responsible for this fiasco - there are three parties vying to get the body, and they have to be given their chance to be heard.

I think he's pretty funny, and I think he's trying to do the right thing.

[lse7581011]

52. I Agree!

This guy impresses me in an odd sort of way!

[Bryn]

55. Me, Too

I watched the whole thing. I liked him! Anyway, he seemed to be impressed with Larry. I hope Larry is the real father of Dannielynn, but I feel sure he is because I noticed that the baby had same eyes as Larry's!

[lse7581011]

56. I Hope

you are right-the guy seems very sincere!

[Radio_Lady]

58. BREAKING: Judge is turning over remains to guardian ad litem

of the child. Judge says she should be buried with her son in the Bahamas.

The judge is acting as if he is having a nervous breakdown.

[qanda]

61. I think that's a fair decision

I'm not sure why it took so many theatrics for him to get to that decision though.

[Bluebear]

62. This should have taken him about a half hour. nt

[KamaAina]

59. Neither. He's a Carl Hiaasen character in the making.

Come to think of it, this whole episode sounds as if someone hacked into Carl's "Pending Projects" folder.

[Radio_Lady]

72. Hi KamaAina,

I have no idea who you are referencing here.

Thanks anyway,

Radio Lady

[KamaAina]

74. Carl Hiaasen is an uproariously funny Fla.-based fiction writer

formerly worked for the Miami Herald. His books feature slice-of-life Florida characters, and outrageous situations, no doubt modeled on those he covered while with the Herald. This one would be perfect.

[Radio_Lady]

76. Thanks for the info. He must have been "after my time."

I left Florida in 1972 for Boston, Massachusetts. Have only been back for brief visits since then.

[Bryn]

86. To give you an idea how funny Carl Hiaasen is

By CARL HIAASEN

Yes, you could say mistakes have been made

President Bush's prime-time TV appearance on Wednesday night was way more than a speech. It was a séance.

The man was plainly in a deep trance, channeling Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon.

Give us more, more, more, the president kept saying, and we'll fix this mess.

More soldiers. More money. More time.

It's what is best for the country, Bush recited somberly -- our national security is at stake.

Good morning, Vietnam!

The president didn't mention that nasty ''conflict'' by name, but he didn't need to. You remember the old script -- just scratch out ''communists'' and pencil in ``terrorists.''

Bush has been well-coached by the ghosts of LBJ and Tricky Dick to stoke fear, invoke patriotism and selectively skirt the facts. It helps, of course, to be in a delusional fog.

When the president said, for example, that Anbar Province has become a hotbed for al Qaeda, he didn't point out that al Qaeda was nowhere to be found in Iraq before the U.S. invasion.

By his own pig-headed blundering, he created a new home for the terrorists, and therefore we must stay and fight to the bitter end. It's vintage Vietnam-era logic, from a guy who never got within 9,000 miles of Saigon during the war.

Here's what happened in Iraq while Bush and his speechwriters rehearsed, communing with the spirits of dead presidents: Scores of Iraqi civilians were murdered, and the total of U.S. military casualties rose to 3,008. By the time you read this, it probably will be higher.

The Pentagon hasn't released the name of the most recent fatality, a soldier from the 13th Sustainment Command, who was blown up by an improvised bomb near Fallujah.

Borrowing a guilt-inducing line from Johnson and Nixon, Bush said that pulling out of Iraq would be a disservice to all the troops who've given their lives there.

Get us out

Only victory, the president declared, will do honor to our fallen heroes.

Victory, like truth, is a fluid concept in this administration. Attacking Iraq was one of the most vaingloriously stupid decisions in the history of U.S. foreign policy, and Bush desperately wants to salvage for himself a legacy other than that of bungler-in-chief.

A huge majority of Americans, including many in his own party, want the president to commence getting us out of Iraq -- not sinking us deeper.

The nation has turned against the war out of concern for the very troops whose valor and sacrifices Bush is using as a justification to send more. Our young men and women are dying at the rate of more than 100 a month with no end in sight, and it's nothing but patriotic to ask: For what?

Nearly four years after bombing Iraq, the president has finally gagged down his pride and said mistakes have been made.

Gee, you think? We bombed and occupied a neutral country because Bush claimed it had weapons of mass destruction, which turned out to be a line of crap.

Now we're mired in the middle of a bloody civil war that's costing about $100 billion a year, which is sweet for the vice president's pals at Halliburton but not so good for the deficit.

Blasted to pieces

Meanwhile, our troops are getting blasted to pieces by folks they were sent to liberate.

Yeah, you could say mistakes have been made.

Yet Bush still insists that victory lies within our grasp. All he needs is 21,500 live bodies . . . for now.

Hardly anyone believes the shaky Iraqi government will be able to stop the sectarian slaughters and stabilize Baghdad anytime soon. Even after the president's speech, seven of 10 Americans oppose expanding our forces there, according to an Associated Press poll.

Bush will send the soldiers, anyway, Congress will howl, and the flag-draped coffins will keep arriving.

Top generals who opposed the troop surge have been replaced by others who are more inclined to say what Bush wants to hear. And when he's not listening to his posse of cheerleaders -- led by Dick Cheney and Condi Rice -- he's evidently listening to the ghosts of those who botched Vietnam.

Dispirited exhaustion

''Peace with honor,'' was Nixon's mantra, though he was gone from the White House by the time U.S. troops made their chaotic exit from Saigon. Bush will be out of office, too, chopping wood down in Texas when the last American soldier leaves Baghdad.

Who knows when that will happen. The Vietnam War ended in dispirited exhaustion, and so will Iraq. There's no quick and bloodless way out.

This time, though, the deeds of those men and women who served will not be diminished by the outcome. The same cannot be said of Bush's standing in history.

To the end, he'll insist that he was right and everyone else was wrong, because that's the dreamy, disconnected nature of his trance.

And he will never snap out of it.

[treestar]

79. I've read his books

They are funny!

[Fleshdancer]

60. wow. that man is a nut

I haven't been following this until the decision made today (home with a sick daughter). This judge is insane.

[bleedingheart]

63. What they should have done was cremated her...and separated the ashes

into 50 separate vials...and then sent one vial to each state so that more time and money could be spent on a Shrine to Anna.....

And this shrine would be a TV that constantly played her trainwreck of a TV show and it would have a life like plastic Anna sitting on top of it...and people from all over could visit this shrine in their time of need...or when they wanted to reflect upon the more serious issues in their life..

yup...that is what I would have ruled...

[kerry-is-my-prez]

64. Everytime I see crap like this - I thank gawd I didn't get that law degree.

I decided that the legal system was totally screwed up and that I wanted nothing to do with it. I keep getting proved right over and over again.

[treestar]

78. It's not going to change if you just leave it to the buffoons

Most states in this country need a better way to pick judges anyway. It ought to be by a "super bar" exam. It ought to be the people who know most about the law, not who know the best connections. Judges should be listeners, and not trying to gain attention for themselves.

[AngryAmish]

65. I was listening - the man is a buffoon

That said the ruling is correct. The remains (once dead) is the property of the estate - and the estate is run by the baby (through the guardian ad litem). That is what he did.

[Poiuyt]

68. Was he really blubbering? That probably won't help his TV career

Judge: Baby's Guardian Gets Smith's Body
Feb 22, 4:26 PM (ET)
By MATT SEDENSKY

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) - Blubbering as he announced his ruling, a judge said Thursday he hopes Anna Nicole Smith will be buried in the Bahamas, but he left the decision up to the guardian of her baby daughter.

snip-

The judge choked up frequently and wept as he explained his decision.

more-

http://apnews.excite.com/article/20070222/D8NF0LGO3.html

[City Lights]

69. Yes he was. He's a certifiable kook. eom

[calimary]

70. Probably both, if you consider the prurient idiocy that governs not only

TV watching but TV programming.

I saw some of his schtick on Tuesday, midday. At that time, I found myself wondering if he was trying to position himself either to take on Judge Judy or replace her outright. He already out-obnoxious'es her. Really tawdry, unnecessary, embarrassing, and self-aggrandizing showboating, if you ask me, and evidently it's continued like that all week. That same night, Keith Olbermann asked out loud if it was a court proceeding or a TV show audition. Just WAY too much of this guy. He has an ego as big as the planet Jupiter. I kept yelling at the TV - "ENOUGH ALREADY!" an "GET ON WITH IT!!!" Perhaps what he really needs is a pie in the face.

Perhaps he'll drag this idiocy out so long that he'll piss off any potential audience, and it'll wind up that there will be no market for him. He'll have run through his 15-minutes of fame (if indeed he hasn't already done so) and alienated everybody at the rate he's going.

A VERY, VERY little of him goes a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGG way.

[bridgit]

71. "loose cannon TV star", they say his demo tape is already in the can...

which i take to mean :hurts:

[AngryOldDem]

73. Bingo

You have to give the guy credit though, by taking advantage of a situation that lends itself to an audience who will flock to yet one more court TV show. Built-in fan base already. And I think I heard that he is Judge Judy's brother.

He is the most obnoxious person I have seen in quite awhile. Upstaging Anna Nicole Smith (even in death) is really, really something. Did you hear his spiel before giving his judgment this afternoon?

Look for his daily court show on a local station near you this fall. Bet on it.

ON EDIT: Note to MSNBC -- Can we now resume our regularly scheduled programming of NEWS? PULLEEZE??????? Thank you.

[Radio_Lady]

80. CNN reporting tonight that Virgie Arthur, the mother, is going to file an appeal.

So much for "togetherness" for the sake of the child.

[B Calm]

82. He looks like another Bush selection for Supreme Court...

[Radio_Lady]

83. A beautiful photo at this link:

www.annanicole.com

[Deja Q]

84. I heard it officially yesterday; the dude is using Anna as a stepping stone...

Oops, I mean he wants his own TV show and it's just a sad coincidence he's getting to do Anna's case. :eyes:

[Name removed]

85. Deleted message

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[Name removed]

89. Deleted message

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[Carni]

87. Anyone else think he's Baghdad Bob'esque?

I can't decide if he reminds me of BBob or Telly Savalas (not sure why he strikes me as them) but he's a real honey, whatever his gig is!

BTW Yes, I think he's planning on taking his act on the road lol