Sep 12, 2007 9:56 pm US/Eastern
Custody Trial: Judge Reprimands Defense
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MIAMI (CBS4) ―
In an unusual move in the Miami-Dade courtroom on Wednesday, Judge Jeri Cohen asked lawyers in an international custody battle to take the oath.
Judge Cohen called both the DCF lawyer, Jason Dimitris, and the father's lawyer, Steve Weinger, up to a podium and swore both lawyers to offer explanations for what she considered "inappropriate behavior"
The trial, in its third week, is over whether Cuban farmer Rafael Izquierdo is fit to raise his daughter, who is at the center of an international custody dispute. State lawyers say Izquierdo abandoned the girl by allowing her to emigrate to the United States with a mother he knew was mentally unstable.
Dimitris, who is DCF's statewide chief of staff and a former federal prosecutor, said Weinger made snide remarks about his divorce. "I've never been offended by the actions of another lawyer," Dimitris told the judge. He explained that the opposing attorney said he left his wife when she went deaf.
Judge Cohen asked Weinger, "I'm asking a yes or no. That is not a privileged communication."
Judge Cohen then asked Weinger to take an oath. "Raise your right hand."
The judge then scolded the attorney, saying "There is going to be no more of this. I run this courtroom. It's going to be run respectfully, it's going to be run ethically, and there's not going to be any professional misconduct here. If there is, I will take swift action, and I will turn it over to the Forida bar."
Cohen lectured the entire courtroom for several minutes about their behavior, threatening to discipline any attorney who behaved improperly.
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