The Flacks Report [14 Oct. '09]

County Leader Farrell Steps Down---Ct. of App. Lt. Gov. Decision---Handell Moves to New Jersey---Surrogate Up-date---Miriam Friedlander---Maxine Duberstein---Five More Civil Court Vacancies?

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County Leader Farrell Steps Down

Democratic Party County Leader, State Assemblyman Herman Denny Farrell, relinquished his post after 28 years. The coronation of Farrell's successor, Harlem Assembly member Keith Wright, at a recent County Executive Committee meeting was marked by self-congratulatory speeches and mutual adulation. All the Party's feckless district leaders acquiesced. Farrell said that in his years he unified a Reform vs. Regular County party organization. Perhaps, but a proper comparison could be made to Tito's Jugoslavia, and Wright is no Milovan Djilas.

Farrell, by his own admission, is not and never was a Reformer. Some who worked years ago to eliminate political influence in judicial selection by establishing judicial screening panels (which may be said to have improved the course of the Manhattan judiciary with almost every judge we Reformers put on the bench) in the County rules feel that Farrell set back the cause of judicial reform by a quarter of a century. This year we filled the John Stackhouse vacancy on the State trial bench. Interestingly, it was Stackhouse, when he was the Chelsea Club's district leader, who forced Denny Farrell to agree to abide by panel screening of judges 28 years ago. Will Keith Wright support panel-screened judicial candidates? Yes. "I believe in and support the Party's judicial screening panel process" he told your reporter.
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Court of Appeals Lt. Gov. Decision

Links to the N.Y. Court of Appeals decision on the Lieutenant Governor appointment:
http://documents.nytimes.com/the-new-york-court-of-appeals-decision-and-dissent#p=1
http://www.nyrealestatelawblog.com/2009/09/ny_governor_can_appoint_a_lieu.html

And remember, "The Supreme Court follows the election returns."
---Finley Peter Dunne
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Handell Moves to New Jersey

Al Handell, Mister Astoria Graphics and the Ben Franklin of the Reform movement, has moved his plant to the Garden State. Now at 2 Anderson Ave., Moonachie, N.J. 07074, he'll still maintain an outpost at 225 Varick Str. in Manhattan. Telephone: (201) 507+51.51 or (212) AStoria 4 - 9600.

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Surrogate Up-date

Nora Anderson and Seth Rubenstein's motion to dismiss was adjourned until Friday, 23 October, 2009, at the Court's request (Obus, J.).
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Miriam Friedlander

Former liberal and left-wing City Councilmember Miriam Friedlander dead at 95. After leaving office she continued holding yearly conferences on social issues. Link to:http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/08/friedlander-former-councilwoman-dies-at-95/
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Maxine Duberstein

Also deceased, Maxine Duberstein, J.S.C.
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Five More Civil Court Vacancies?

Five N.Y.C. Civil Court judges are contemplating leaving the bench before their term is completed or of not seeking re-election: Ira Globerman, Harold Beeler, Karen Smith (who is leaving next year in May or Oct.), Marilyn Diamond, and one other who asked for anonymity. Lack of a pay raise in the last eleven years is but one issue.
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“A judge can never have a bad day in court, when for a litigant, it’s their only day in court.” --James D’Auguste