Florida Judge Denies First Amendment to Block FIJA Activism
It appears that Fully Informed Jury Association (FIJA) activism in Florida has angered Ninth Judicial District judge Belvin Perry, Jr. enough to cause him to ban the distribution of leaflets on the grounds of his court, on penalty of contempt charges. Full text of the order below. Local text version here (8K). Local PDF version here (29K).
The official copy of the order is at http://ninja9.org/adminorders/orders/2011-03%20-%20order%20governing%20expressive%20conduct%20toward%20jurors.pdf
ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE
NO. 2011-03 NINTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND
FOR ORANGE AND OSCEOLA
COUNTIES, FLORIDA
ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER GOVERNING EXPRESSIVE CONDUCT TOWARD
SUMMONED JURORS, ORANGE AND OSCEOLA COUNTIES
WHEREAS, pursuant to Article V, section 2(d) of the Florida Constitution and section
43.26, Florida Statutes, the chief judge of each judicial circuit is charged with the authority and
the power to do everything necessary to promote the prompt and efficient administration of
justice; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to the chief judge's constitutional and statutory responsibility for
administrative supervision of the courts within the circuit and to create and maintain an
organization capable of effecting the efficient, prompt, and proper administration of justice for
the citizens of this State, the chief judge is required to exercise direction, see Fla. R. Jud. Admin.
2.215(b)(2), (b)(3); and
WHEREAS, to ensure the safe and orderly use of court facilities, and to minimize
activities which unreasonably disrupt, interrupt, and interfere with the fair and orderly conduct of
jury trials, and the orderly and peaceable conduct of court business in a neutral forum free of
actual or perceived partiality; and
WHEREAS, expressive conduct and the dissemination of leaflets and other materials
containing written information tending to influence summoned jurors as they enter the
courthouse may be in violation of section 918.12, Florida Statutes; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to a defense motion to strike, a Ninth Judicial Circuit Court judge
recently found a jury panel had been tampered with per section 918.12, Florida Statutes, and
Nobles v. State, 769 So. 2d 1063 (Fla. 1st DCA 2000), as members of the jury were in possession
of leaflets containing information attempting to influence the jury. Such occurrences severely
impact the court's ability to conduct the efficient, prompt, and proper administration of justice;
and
WHEREAS, restriction upon expressive conduct and the dissemination of leaflets and
other materials containing written information tending to influence summoned jurors as they
enter the courthouse is necessary to serve the State's compelling interest in protecting the
integrity of the jury system; and
WHEREAS, any such restriction will be narrowly drawn to achieve that end; and
WHEREAS, such regulation is a proper exercise of the Court's inherent authority to take
supervisory and administrative actions necessary to implement its judicial functions; and
WHEREAS, the power of courts to punish for contempt is of immemorial antiquity, and
is inherent in all courts as a necessary power belonging to them in order to enable them to
accomplish the purposes for which they were designed; that is, the orderly trial and decision of
causes, the enforcement of public order, the prevention of interferences with their proceedings,
and the enforcement of the due respect belonging to them as institutions of the country;
NOW THEREFORE, I, Belvin Perry, Jr., in order to facilitate the efficient
administration of justice, pursuant to the authority vested in me as Chief Judge of the Ninth
Judicial Circuit of Florida under Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.215, hereby order the
following, effective immediately, and to continue until further order:
1. The dissemination of all leaflets and other materials to summoned jurors containing
written or pictorial information tending to influence summoned jurors, as well as approaching a
summoned juror for the purpose of displaying a sign to, or engaging in oral protest, education or
counseling with information tending to influence summoned jurors on any matter, question,
2
cause, or proceeding which may be pending, or which may by law be brought, before him or her
as such juror, shall be prohibited on the Orange County Courthouse complex grounds.
The term "courthouse complex" and any restrictions on expressive conduct contained
herein shall apply to the Orange County Courthouse complex grounds, which includes the
adjacent courthouse parking garage, the courthouse courtyard, and all other grounds surrounding
the courthouse, from the intersection of Orange Avenue and Livingston Street, to the intersection
of Livingston Street and Magnolia Avenue, to the intersection of Magnolia Avenue and Amelia
Street, to the intersection of Amelia Street and Orange Avenue, to the intersection of Orange
Avenue and Livingston Street. The public sidewalks that comprise the boundaries of this
designated perimeter are excluded from this designation of the courthouse complex grounds.
2. The dissemination of all leaflets and other materials to summoned jurors containing
written or pictorial information tending to influence summoned jurors, as well as approaching a
summoned juror for the purpose of displaying a sign to, or engaging in oral protest, education or
counseling with information tending to influence summoned jurors on any matter, question,
cause, or proceeding which may be pending, or which may by law be brought, before him or her
as such juror, shall be prohibited on the Osceola County Courthouse complex grounds.
The term "courthouse complex" and any restrictions on expressive conduct contained
herein shall apply to the Osceola County Courthouse complex grounds, which includes the
adjacent courthouse parking lot, the courthouse courtyard, and all other grounds surrounding the
courthouse, from the intersection of Bryan Street and Rose Avenue, to the intersection of Rose
Avenue and Patrick Street, to the intersection of Patrick Street and Bryan Street, to the
intersection of Bryan Street and Rose Avenue. The public sidewalks that comprise the
boundaries of this designated perimeter are excluded from this designation of the courthouse
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complex grounds.
3. Regardless of whether the conduct at issue occurs on the courthouse complex grounds,
any person who influences the judgment or decision of any grand or petit juror on any matter,
question, cause, or proceeding which may be pending, or which may by law be brought, before
him or her as such juror, with intent to obstruct the administration of justice, may be in violation
of section 918.12, Florida Statutes.
4. Anyone engaging in the type of expressive conduct as contemplated by this Order may
be in violation of section 918.12, Florida Statutes, and/or may be found in contempt of court.
5. The Orange County Sheriff's Office, the Osceola County Sheriff's Office, or any
other law enforcement agency, shall give a copy of this Order and advise anyone who is within
the courthouse complex grounds, as described herein, violating the provisions of this Order, of
the restrictions on expressive conduct contained within this Order. Further, law enforcement
shall instruct anyone violating the provisions of this Order to cease and desist immediately.
6. Anyone who is observed continuing to engage in such conduct as contemplated by this
Order, after receiving a copy of this Order and being instructed to cease and desist by law
enforcement, may face indirect civil contempt of court proceedings. If found to be in contempt
of court, penalties include confinement, fine or both.
DONE AND ORDERED at Orlando, Florida, this 31st day of January, 2011.
____/s/_________________
Belvin Perry, Jr.
Chief Judge
Copies provided to:
Clerk of Court, Orange County
Clerk of Court, Osceola County
General E-Mail Distribution List
http://www.ninthcircuit.org
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Orlando, Orange County Courthouse, FIJA
Mark Schmidter TO ALL!
I would probably be the one to receive the arrest because I was the only one there last Monday morning. Me being there last Monday morning and this article Monday afternoon, probably triggered the Judges order. Read this:
http://freelinemediaorlando.com/ 01/31/2010
Small government activist aims to educate jurors about their rights.
January 31st, 2011 Michael Freeman
Mark Schmidter was at the Orange County Courthouse this morning, distributing pamphlets with information about juror rights.
ORLANDO – Most people don’t realize this, Mark Schmidter said, but on a regular basis, they commit plenty of crimes.
“Everybody commits three felonies a day and just doesn’t know it,†said Schmidter, a roofing contractor. “Most of us are not claiming money on their incomes tax, which is a felony. Let’s say you hire a babysitter and at the end of the night you hand them $20, and you don’t report it. Technically, that’s a felony.â€
The problem, though, isn’t the fact that too many people fail to respect and obey our laws, Schmidter said. The real problem is a government that passes far too many laws, almost to an extreme extent, he said.
“I think they have all these laws to keep you in fear of the government,†he said.
That’s one reason why Schmidter has been fighting back, in a unique way. On Monday mornings from 7-8:30 a.m., he can be found in front of the Orange County Courthouse, talking to people who have been called for jury duty, and handing out fliers that offer “Factual information about Jury Service.â€
His main point to jurors is they have more power than they think. If they don’t like a particular law, the solution is simple: don’t vote to convict the defendant. Also known as juror nullification, it’s the act of refusing to find someone guilty of a crime if the jurors feel the offense doesn’t belong on the books in the first place.
“Let’s say the judge and prosecution are selecting a jury, and it’s against the law to eat a ham sandwich, and the defendant ate a ham sandwich, so the judge says ‘Are you going to find him innocent or guilty?’ If you say innocent -- because you think the law is stupid -- then the judge weeds out the people who say ‘He’s innocent’ because it’s a bulls__t law,†Schmidter said. “The only way to get rid of a bad law is with jury mollification. If you have jury nullification, the attorneys say ‘I can’t get a conviction.’ “
Schmidter was at the Orange County Courthouse in downtown Orlando this morning, handing out the yellow flyers to anyone showing up for jury duty, and the flyers – printed by FIJA, or the Fully Informed Jury Association of Helena, Montana – let them know “What rights do you have as a juror that the judge won’t tell you?â€
As the pamphlet notes, “Judges only rarely ‘fully inform’ jurors of their rights, especially their right to judge the law itself and vote on the verdict according to conscience. In fact, judges regularly assist the prosecution by dismissing prospective jurors who will admit knowing about this right – beginning with anyone who also admits having qualms with the law.â€
And that, Schmidter said, is what got him involved in this cause back in September – the view that government passes too many laws, heavily over-regulating American citizens with a myriad of victimless crimes that in a truly free society don’t belong on the books to begin with.
“Pornography is an example of no victim, no crime,†he said. “If you have no victim, there should be no crime. In our federal prisons, 40 percent of the people incarcerated are small time, non-violent drug users. We incarcerate 25 percent of the world in our jails, more than any other country. What it is doing is bankrupting the country.â€
Schmidter got involved in this cause last fall, although his interest dates back to the 2008 presidential election and the feeling that government was drastically overreaching – taking far too much control over the lives of average citizens.
“I started paying more attention to politics, because the economy was so bad,†he said. He became a supporter of Ron Paul, the Texas congressman and unsuccessful 2008 Republican presidential candidate, who has a strong libertarian bent.
“I met other people that were interested in freedom and less government,†he said. That’s how Schmidter learned about FIJA, and decided he wanted to take part in leafleting courthouses and letting jurors know about their First Amendment right to, as the pamphlet notes, “explain how jurors can protect the rest of our rights, simply by acquitting defendants being charged with breaking a bad law.â€
“I discipline myself to come down here on Monday mornings for an hour and a half,†he said. “The judges don’t like this at all. The judge doesn’t tell the jurors they can nullify the law.â€
He stays busy in those 90 minutes, asking everyone who walks in the door if they’re at the courthouse for jury duty.
“I hand out about 350 of these a day,†he said. “They call 1,000 jurors five days a week. I’m doing one thing I feel like I can do to help this screwed up country.â€
Generally, he said, he gets a good response from potential jurors – and a hostile response from court employees.
After handing the pamphlet to jurors, some of them will quickly read it, he noted.
“Immediately when I say ‘What do you think about it?’, every one of them thanks me for handing it to them,†Schmidter said.
But court workers, he said, have questioned his right to stand in front of the courthouse distributing the flyers.
Is the Orange County Courthouse a place for justice -- or for harassing those with dissenting viewpoints?
“We’ve had people come out and say ‘You can’t do this – because we can’t see the jury,’ “ he said. “One time a judge came out and said ‘What is this?’ I could tell he was a judge from the way he was dressed. I explained the jury’s rights to him, then I said to him, ‘It’s about nullification,’ and he said ‘No, you can’t do that’ – then just walked away.â€
As Freeline Media was interviewing Schmidter, a court employee did come up to him and ask for one of his pamphlets. Her court badge identified her as Jennifer Hinton from the Office of the State Attorney. When asked by Freeline Media what she thought of Schmidter’s efforts, Hinton said “I’m not going to comment on that.†She then remembered her I.D., quickly covered it with her hand so her name couldn’t be read, then took the pamphlet and left.
“Even prosecuting attorneys take one,†Schmidter said. “It’s kind of fun. But they definitely don’t want jurors to know this. Prosecuting attorneys are evaluated on the number of convictions they get. They want to score big so they can stay employed.â€
The more he does this, though, the more Schmidter feels like he’s making an impact.
“Three weeks ago, I was talking to a guy and he said, ‘Are you paid for this,’ and I said no,†Schmidter said. “These (flyers) only cost me 4 cents each. So then he reaches into his pocket and hands me a $100 bill. I’ve never had that happen before.â€
To learn more about FIJA, log on to www.fija.org, or call 1-800-TEL-JURY.
Contact us at FreelineOrlando@Gmail.com
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