Halverson Day 3

More fun from Judge Halverson yesterday. First, U.S. District Judge Robert Jones denied Halverson's motion for a temporary restraining order to have the disciplinary hearing enjoined until after the election.

However, Judge Jones did not squash all hope for Halverson. He scheduled an Aug. 14 hearing for attorneys in the case to present arguments on a preliminary injunction. According to Halverson's attorneys, if Judge Jones grants the injunction, the Nevada Judicial Discipline Commission would be stopped from enforcing any punishment against Halverson, including permanently removing her from the bench. (Review-Journal) One of Halverson's attorneys, Michael Schwartz, was quoted as saying "We have a serious concern that her rights in this country are being deprived."

Then, in the afternoon, the disciplinary hearing was back on. Several more witnesses testified including two attorneys involved in a civil trial before Halverson. John Lukens testified that he saw Halverson slumped forward and sleeping during a case he had before her. He said he didn't want to wake Halverson because "you don't want to embarrass a judge publicly in a courtroom."
The other testifying lawyer, Jeff Braun, testified that he never saw Halverson asleep on the bench. (Review-Journal)

Then, District Judge Stewart Bell testified, stating that he was told that certain judicial orders submitted by attorneys disappeared from Halverson's court. Bell did not disclose who told him about the issue. Bell said he was told that the missing orders were from attorneys who were disliked by Halverson or who hadn't contributed to Halverson's campaign.
"It was very disturbing to us," Bell said. (Review-Journal)

Here's a summary of the Wed afternoon session of the Disciplinary Hearing from a WWL reader:

Halverson could not contain herself and here bizarreness really emerged.

For example, a routine witness from the agency that regulates security guards was called to establish that Halverson's two "body guards" that she brought into the court house bypassing security were not licensed. Halverson (on cross) demanded to know "the precise statute" (thumb and middle finger joined and held up, Halverson's head moving from side to side) that says you can prosecute the CON-SUM-ER for hiring an unlicensed private security guard.

Later, a local lawyer (former DDA, now in private practice) testified that his jury trial was Halverson’s first civil—and she fell asleep. Halverson’s “co-counsel”—who is actually more annoying than Her Fatness (he was actually biting his fingernails while posing questions to a witness at one point)—was boring in on cross, how do you know Halverson was really asleep, etc. etc.

She replied with her eyes closed, chin on chest, and breathing deeper than normal. The attorney then asks 50 different ways if the witness “measured”
Halverson’s breathing on prior occasions (the guy has know Fatso for 10 years)
to make that judgment.

Around 3:35 PM, a Fat woman in the audience—50ish, beach ball body—starts
laughing out loud. The Commission ejects her. She curses the whole way out and says “this commission should be ashamed of yourselves” before calling the proceedings "bullshit". Security was instructed never to let witness back in. It was quite a spectacle, and this was obviously a Halverson supporter. The woman was not Halverson fat—maybe 240 pounds—wearing slacks and tent top. Very trashy shoulder length bleach blond hair with stringy bangs covering most of her forehead. Ugly. Cheaply dressed. Real trailer trash. (In other words, a typical Halverson supporter?)

All in all, Halverson's doing a good job of letting the circus continue. I wonder how she thinks acting bat-shit crazy will play with voters.