Lynn Rosenthal
Lynn Rosenthal was a judge on the Seventeenth Circuit Court in Florida. She was appointed by Governor Rick Scott (R) on July 6, 2012, to succeed Judge Susan Greenhawt.[1] Rosenthal resigned on October 31, 2015. At the time of her resignation, she was awaiting a Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission hearing for charges of violating judicial ethics. Read more about her misconduct charges below.[2]
Education
Rosenthal received her undergraduate degree and J.D. from the University of Florida.[3]
Career
Rosenthal was an assistant United States attorney from 1985 to 2012. Before that, she was an associate attorney in private practice.[3]
Elections
2014
See also: Florida judicial elections, 2014
Rosenthal ran for re-election to the Seventeenth Circuit.
Primary: She was successful in the primary on August 26, 2014, receiving 56.28 percent of the vote. She competed against Frantz Jahra McLawrence.
[4][5]
Noteworthy events
Judge arrested for DUI
On May 27, 2014, Judge Rosenthal was arrested on a DUI charge in the courthouse parking lot after allegedly crashing into a sheriff's vehicle. Deputies at the scene said the judge did not seem to have been drinking alcohol, though her speech was slurred and she was having trouble standing steadily. Rosenthal reportedly said she had taken an Ambien sleeping pill the night before.[6]
In addition to hitting the patrol car, the arrest report said Rosenthal also hit a gate multiple times before she was taken into custody around 8:45 a.m. Prior to the incident at the courthouse, she told officers that a truck had tried to run her off the road on the Interstate. However, after watching a video she took of the incident on her phone, the officers said there was no truck involved. Deputy Michael Wiley stated, "The video did display that [Rosenthal] was unable to maintain a single lane, drove in the breakdown lane and failed to avoid a collision with a concrete wall."[7]
Defense attorney Michael Dye, however, explained, "Under Florida law, Ambien is not listed as a controlled substance...It doesn't apply to Florida's impaired driving statute."[7]
Regardless of the substance, this was the third Broward County judge in six months to be arrested for a DUI. The others were Gisele Pollack and Cynthia G. Imperato.[7]
Rosenthal pleads no contest
Rosenthal pleaded no contest to the charge of reckless driving on July 22, 2014, and was sentenced to three months probation and 25 hours of community service. However, she was not charged with a DUI. Rosenthal defended herself, stating:
| “ | It is important for the public to know this accident was the result of an involuntary overdose and adverse drug reaction I had to Zolpidem Tartrate ER (extended release), the generic form of Ambien CR. This involuntary overdose was caused because my doctor mistakenly prescribed me twice the amount of Ambien CR recommended by the FDA.[8][9] | ” |
Discipline recommendation by the JQC
The Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission (JQC) recommended that Rosenthal be suspended without pay for 90 days, which was announced on August 17, 2015. The commission noted that the judge had refused to give a blood or urine sample and made "misleading or incomplete statements" during the investigation of the incident. The video she had taken while driving had also been deleted from her phone. The JQC filing said, "Judge Rosenthal now acknowledges that her conduct eroded public confidence in the judiciary and demeaned the judicial office she holds."[10] She was also instructed to attend 12 hours of legal ethics training and family counseling, and pay for the cost of the JQC's investigation. Rosenthal agreed to take the suspension.[10]
On September 8, the Florida Supreme Court, however, rejected the JQC's recommendation "in order to fully develop the facts regarding any misconduct that occurred during the criminal investigation and the Judicial Qualifications Commission investigation, including any destruction of evidence and any false and misleading statements made by Judge Rosenthal."[11] The court ordered the JQC to hold a hearing for Rosenthal to respond to allegations that she violated judicial ethics following her arrest.[11]
In early October, Rosenthal announced that she would resign, effective October 31, 2015.[2]
Recent news
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See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Sunshine State News, "Rick Scott Appoints Four Judges," July 7, 2012
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Sun Sentinel, "Broward Judge Rosenthal resigns," October 8, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 SunSentinel.com, "Gov. appoints Lynn Rosenthal to judgeship," July 6, 2009
- ↑ Florida Department of State, "2014 Candidate Listing," accessed May 16, 2014
- ↑ Florida Division of Elections, "Circuit Court Judge primary results," accessed August 27, 2014
- ↑ Local10 News, "Broward County Judge Lynn Rosenthal arrested on DUI charge," May 27, 2014
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Sun Sentinel, "Broward judge arrested on DUI charge in courthouse parking lot," May 27, 2014
- ↑ CBS Miami, "Broward Judge Pleads No Contest To Reckless Driving Charge," July 24, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Sun Sentinel, "Broward Judge Rosenthal agrees to suspension after DUI incident," August 17, 2015
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Sun Sentinel, "Florida Supreme Court rejects deal with Broward Judge Lynn Rosenthal," September 8, 2015
Federal courts:
Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Southern District of Florida • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Southern District of Florida
State courts:
Florida Supreme Court • Florida District Courts of Appeal • Florida Circuit Court • Florida County Court
State resources:
Courts in Florida • Florida judicial elections • Judicial selection in Florida
