Hearing to Take Place in Internet Identifier Case Tomorrow
A hearing on the parties’ Motions for Summary Judgment, will take place tomorrow, October 26, 2017 at 10AM before JUDGE ROBERT L HINKLE, United States Courthouse, Courtroom 5 East, 111 North Adams St., Tallahassee, Florida 32301.
Please keep your fingers crossed!
What could be possible outcomes?
They need to throw this ridiculous law out the door all together. infringement on free speech and ban on Anonymous speech should alone suffice to throw this whole crap out for good.
Our prayers and gratitude go with our attorneys.
Gail
President
FLORIDA ACTION COMMITTEE
Ms. Gail, I cannot thank you enough for you efforts and energies! While I no longer reside in the US as I moved to a Territory where I have unlimited freedoms, I applaud you and your staff for the non-stop energy that you provide US! I feel all of the PAIN in this community. For me and many others it is the pain and suffering that other families and extended families experience that has always pissed me off…because the restrictions placed on the SO are also so restrictive to the family members at large…Wish I had $100 Million because that is what it will take to move this horrible mountain of PUKE!
DO NOT STOP..BE STRONG!
Where did you move to?
what is the case about? saying a prayer it goes our way
https://floridaactioncommittee.org/amended-complaint-filed-florida-internet-identifier-challenge/
I find it very easy for people that don’t have Pacer to use Pacermonitor for free to keep updates on cases that effect this community. Here is the one for this case
https://www.pacermonitor.com/public/case/17806494/DELGADO_et_al_v_SWEARINGEN
Just read the Judge made a ruling and will write a order! Does anybody know if it was in our favor.? The suspense is killing me!
Case: 4:16cv501-RH/CAS 10:00 a.m. – 11:32 a.m.
Date: 10/26/2017
MANUEL DELGADO et al v. RICHARD SWEARINGEN
DOCKET ENTRY: Summary Judgment Hearing and Motion Hearing on all pending motions. An Order will
be issued by the Court.
PRESENT: HONORABLE ROBERT L. HINKLE , UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Kimberly Westphal Deputy Clerk Judy Gagnon
Court Reporter
Attorneys appearing for Plaintiffs: Attorneys appearing for Defendants:
Dante Trevisani Blaine Winship
Randall Berg Karen Brodeen
Erica Selig
PROCEEDINGS:
10:00 Court in session
Argument to the Court by Plaintiff (Trevisani)
10:33 Argument to the Court by Defense (Winship)
11:05 Argument to the Court by Plaintiff (Trevisani)
11:13 Court questions Defense and argument to the Court (Winship)
11:31 Ruling made by the Court: an Order will be issued by the Court
11:32 Court adjourned
It worries me that we do not have an update.
It will take a few days for the Judge to render an order in the case. Please don’t worry.
Was nobody in the courtroom to hear the decision?
There was no decision made in the courtroom. There rarely is.
The judge takes the oral arguments into consideration, then goes back and reviews the motions, evidence, law, etc. and renders an order.
What we are hoping to hear is that the State loses their motion for summary judgment.
If we win our motion for summary judgment – that’d be phenomenal, we prevail without anything more. But, so long as the State loses, it goes to trial.
When do you anticipate a verdict?
Thank you FAC!
Hoping for Today!
Assuming we win this… How immediate will the affects be? Assuming one had to report in the month of November/December could we theoretically create or reactivate social media accounts, freely download apps with communication etc. and not report it?
Registration with FDLE is already a stressful event. Nothing better than being searched and interrogated by an officer that hates life and getting to pay money for the experience. Only to be followed up with an annual compliance check at hours nobody would be home.
if we win summary judgment – immediate.
If it continues to trial, after the trial is decided.
Just remember – FL does not restrict whether you can have a social media account (when off paper). They just make you register all your identifiers which chills free speech. It is the separate social media places – such as Facebook – that do not allow RSOs. Although I think you can use Twitter without problems – or I haven’t heard of any.
This still alive?
Yes, why do you ask?
Just curious as nothing on the news or searches. Didnt even make the news…
I’m getting anxiety about this too. If it’s one thing the sex offender laws are good at, it’s creating anxiety. I jump every time I hear a knock on the door or any car go by and wonder if today will be the day I get locked away for something else. It’s depressing, really.
All – I know the waiting is torturous, but keep in mind; the hearings were 10/26 and that’s not even two weeks ago! If the judge were writing a simple order that said “DENIED”, yes, we could have heard by now, but in all likelihood we’ll get a well researched and articulated Order.
When this same judge granted the preliminary injunction, he issued a 12 page order!
Remember also, there are two motions to rule on; the governments and the registrants. Hang in there!
How long did it take for a ruling last time? 3 weeks, very anxious here. I want this done before past day of my registration period.
Having been in court on multiple State and Federal Civil cases I can tell you in my opinion its good that we have no heard yet. A denial is easy but when a Judge makes a ruling they have the Law Clerk publish a written opinion they approve. A opinion can have far reaching effects not only on this case but others. We definitely want a good written opinion because this Judge has the ability to actually lead the turn in the application of existing law and changes in Future Offender law. I have seen Judges take Months or more especially at that level. I do believe based on prior rulings and my own research on this Judge we will have a favorable ruling with a very articulate brief. The better the ruling the more it will stand up to any further scrutiny and again could alter existing and future Unconstitutional offender laws in Florida.
Very true – and remember this judge has already seen the state try to re-write this law 3 times to circumvent rulings. Perhaps he is writing his decision so tightly to prevent that from happening again.
FAC have we heard any whisperings that the verdict will be shared soon?
Its been awhile.
As of this post, I have yet to find any updates to this October 2017 article.
There is no order issued YET on the hearing. The Federal Government has a website, https://www.pacer.gov/ which you can monitor for any news in the case. If we don’t report it, there’s nothing new.
This better be the ultimate written and favorable outcome ever.
Wonder if the length of this decision has anything to do with a case that is similar but different in AL. i think but it’s in the same circuit if i remember properly that case also included compelled speech about markings on id/dr. lic.
https://www.annistonstar.com/free/as-some-states-reconsider-sex-offender-registries-an-alabama-resident/article_d8f12a3c-699a-11e7-a777-d71fa6cbf90b.html
McGuire in the 11th also has been waiting for a while to be heard
I’m thinking that they’re postponing this for political reasons. It’s been almost 6 months, what is the holdup?
It has been a few days shy of 6 months for the judge to render a decision on this hearing. What is the disposition? The lawyers need to ask for an update.
The lawyers do not “need to do” anything. We defer to them for their professional opinions.
There is no deadline for the judge to render a decision and we are unwilling to do anything to compromise our chances in this case.
We submitted a notice of supplementary authority in an important District Court decision in Alabama and will do another one for the recent SCOTUS case touching on vagueness.
What was the action taken place on 3/21?
We filed a notice of supplemental authority.
@FAC
That was a disappointing reply to a case that has had no update. Perhaps the choice of words by MJ were forthright but it is merely anxiety speaking.
Perhaps the better verbiage here is: Is it possible to obtain an update with regards to where in the decision making progress this case is as half a year has now gone by with no additional update?
Obviously you never want to hurt your chances with any case by doing anything that could / would compromise it but keep in mind this forum is adhered to on an almost pedestal-like status.
Anon for now
There is no order from the judge yet. There is no timeline they are required to issue an order within and there is nothing, unfortunately we can do to compel the judge to write it.
We filed a notice of supplemental authority last month and will do another this month, highlighting 2 cases that help our petition. We hope these pleadings will be a subtle reminder to the court.
Excuse the frustration, but we have 5 volunteers that run this org and 800 members who tell us what we “need to be doing” without pitching in to help.
That is a bit of a snarky response considering that I have attempted to contact you guys or your lawyers offering to help in any way that I could on a couple of occasions and heard nothing but crickets. Not sure about the other folks on here.
JoeM – please reach out directly to legal@floridaactioncommittee.org – Legal needs volunteers
Sorry about the crickets – we will speak to membership about that.
Amen to that, Too many Chiefs, but not enough Indians. I pray for you Gail and your helpers. It is so much you do. All I can do is say Thank you for your never-ending work and countless hours you and staff put in these fights.
I have to say I think you are all sounding quite entitled. With the exception of one poster no one else has said they have tried to volunteer. We would all (including FAC) like to see an end to this situation but we have no control over it (nor does FAC) – FAC has come to my rescue more than once in the last 8 years. I know they my back and yours. Perhaps the snarky responses were justified – the original poster made a comment that the lawyers needed to do something as though they weren’t or as though they had control over the judge. I for one (although impatient) am glad that this judge is not rushing to judgement. For me that is a good sign. FAC is not a servant to us – you are not entitled to anything from them (especially if you are not a member or donor but even if you are the same thing applies) and since I know they will maintain a diplomatic response I figured I would say things for them! lol
Thank you, Karen.
Six months with no response from the courts is not unusual.
Neither is 12 or 18 months. That’s just how things roll in our justice system, slow and slower.
On the other hand, when it comes to the criminal side things tend to move much faster prior to a conviction rather than after.
The entitlement was about the attitude that nothing was being done. Not about your feeling of justified apprehension. I understand that and do not seek to diminish it at all. But the length of time it is taking is not in the control of FAC or the lawyers. The ball is in the judges court.
I wouldn’t say “entitled” is the correct word in this. And while I do not know which word would be the best to describe the anxiety felt waiting for a judgement that has major impact on us would be, I can tell you that I… having gotten a failure to register 10 years ago over an email address I didn’t even use anymore, and having nearly 200 internet identifiers registered with FDLE due to my line of work and hobbies… it’s something that I personally have been waiting to change for years. To see that a case has possibly gone our way with this is HUGE, and waiting 6 months so far for something that could have such an impact on me… well, you give me the word to describe it.
is this something that can be submitted in this case ??
https://www.courthousenews.com/sex-offender-with-secret-facebook-wins-appeal/
I know it’s in NY, but… still should carry some weight in our judges decision
“New York law requires sex offenders to register any “internet identifiers” that they use, but Justice Stan Pritzker wrote for the Third Judicial Department that “an internet identifier is not the social networking website or application itself.”
“Rather, it is how someone identifies himself or herself when accessing a social networking account, whether it be with an electronic mail address or some other name or title, such as a screen name or user name,” Pritzker added. “Defendant’s failure to disclose his use of Facebook is not a crime, rendering the indictment jurisdictionally defective.”
The judges decision in this case appears to be based on the flawed indictment (the wording in the indictment) rather than the statute itself, but I could be reading the filing wrong.