Photo and blog post by John HoffAt the end of the recent court hearing on "New versus Old Majority" matters in the Jordan Area Community Council (JACC) there was a surprising, impromptu discussion by Judge Porter about plans and proposals to install Interactive Television (IRV) in the courts of Hennepin County.
Judge Porter--who often watches in grim, wise judicial silence without saying much during proceedings--except when grilling certain plaintiff attorneys to savory perfection--appeared surprisingly animated during the discussion of IRV, which seemed to be something of a passion for him...
According to Judge Porter, the current "sound system" in the court is being replaced with "an ITV system." Judge Porter spoke of how this system would help with the issue of defendants who are charged in multiple jurisdictions, and cited the hypothetical instance of somebody who "stuck up a 7-11 here" but has charges "too many crappies in possession" in some more distant, rural county. (Crappies are a popular game fish in Minnesota)
Porter elaborated further, talking about how being pulled out of treatment facilities can be "disruptive to treatment," particularly with juveniles. Reluctant defense witnesses, he said, might also make use of IRV. This is, however, not without constitutional issues. (At this point, Judge Porter gestured toward and addressed Michael "Kip" Browne in the court room, repeatedly addressing him as "Kip" like an old friend, while the plaintiff attorney appeared to stand and simmer in her own unsavory mental stew)
Near the end of the discussion--in which both defense and plaintiff attorneys participated with questions--a courthouse regular known as "Ollie the Norwegian" jumped into the discussion. (Ollie has told me he works as a translator of legal documents, and he proudly hails from Norway. He appears to be semi-retired, is quite personable, and knows just about everything going on at the courthouse. Ollie hangs out all day on the 24th Floor of the county government building, where there is an extensive law library and an open internet signal, but one must often endure the rancid company of Pete the Pedophile, researching his dung-on-paper attempts at legal filings)
(But I digress)
According to Ollie, there was a recent case in Norway where a pedophile molested 225 boys. Ollie said IRV was used extensively in that case, with "over half" of the boys testifying by ITV. (Ollie may be alluding to this recent case, click here, which was apparently quite a big deal in Norway) Ollie said IRV has been found to be very helpful in Norway. (Yes, dear JNS Blog readers, I too found it odd how Ollie talked about a "pedophile" just moments after word came of Pete the Pedophile serving his worthless legal paper on Kip Browne's wife. My theory? Ollie knows more about Pete's lawsuit than he's letting on, and loathes Pete's presence on the 24th Floor, which is Ollie's personal sanctum)
According to Judge Porter, there will be a public hearing on March 30 before the Minnesota State Supreme Court, and "hopefully there will be a much-expanded use of ITV."
After researching this matter on the internet, I haven't turned up much about ITV in the Minnesota court system except for this article from 2007, click here.
So, by dumb luck and being in the right place at the right time...
It's apparently a JNS Blog exclusive.
Judge Porter--who often watches in grim, wise judicial silence without saying much during proceedings--except when grilling certain plaintiff attorneys to savory perfection--appeared surprisingly animated during the discussion of IRV, which seemed to be something of a passion for him...
According to Judge Porter, the current "sound system" in the court is being replaced with "an ITV system." Judge Porter spoke of how this system would help with the issue of defendants who are charged in multiple jurisdictions, and cited the hypothetical instance of somebody who "stuck up a 7-11 here" but has charges "too many crappies in possession" in some more distant, rural county. (Crappies are a popular game fish in Minnesota)
Porter elaborated further, talking about how being pulled out of treatment facilities can be "disruptive to treatment," particularly with juveniles. Reluctant defense witnesses, he said, might also make use of IRV. This is, however, not without constitutional issues. (At this point, Judge Porter gestured toward and addressed Michael "Kip" Browne in the court room, repeatedly addressing him as "Kip" like an old friend, while the plaintiff attorney appeared to stand and simmer in her own unsavory mental stew)
Near the end of the discussion--in which both defense and plaintiff attorneys participated with questions--a courthouse regular known as "Ollie the Norwegian" jumped into the discussion. (Ollie has told me he works as a translator of legal documents, and he proudly hails from Norway. He appears to be semi-retired, is quite personable, and knows just about everything going on at the courthouse. Ollie hangs out all day on the 24th Floor of the county government building, where there is an extensive law library and an open internet signal, but one must often endure the rancid company of Pete the Pedophile, researching his dung-on-paper attempts at legal filings)
(But I digress)
According to Ollie, there was a recent case in Norway where a pedophile molested 225 boys. Ollie said IRV was used extensively in that case, with "over half" of the boys testifying by ITV. (Ollie may be alluding to this recent case, click here, which was apparently quite a big deal in Norway) Ollie said IRV has been found to be very helpful in Norway. (Yes, dear JNS Blog readers, I too found it odd how Ollie talked about a "pedophile" just moments after word came of Pete the Pedophile serving his worthless legal paper on Kip Browne's wife. My theory? Ollie knows more about Pete's lawsuit than he's letting on, and loathes Pete's presence on the 24th Floor, which is Ollie's personal sanctum)
According to Judge Porter, there will be a public hearing on March 30 before the Minnesota State Supreme Court, and "hopefully there will be a much-expanded use of ITV."
After researching this matter on the internet, I haven't turned up much about ITV in the Minnesota court system except for this article from 2007, click here.
So, by dumb luck and being in the right place at the right time...
It's apparently a JNS Blog exclusive.
1 comment:
Here's an update on the ITV conversation with Judge Porter:
http://www.mncourts.gov/Documents/0/Public/Clerks_Office/2010-06-09%20Order%20Crim%20Proc%20Amendments.pdf
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