Judge throws out rape case after prosecutor late to court (Cuyahoga County OH)

AP via Cantonrep.com ^ | 06/18/2006 | AP

[Lurker]

With any luck some miscreant will assault one of the good judges family members someday and she'll be forced to undergo what passes for 'justice' in Cuyahoga County OH.

See tag line.

L

[ozzymandus]

So you think a rapist should go free?

[airedale]

Since they don't use the middle initial and there are two judges with the same name the more I think about it it's probably the older Eileen Gallagher rather than Judge Eileen T. Gallagher This judges Gallagher's webpage is: http://cp.cuyahogacounty.us/CCPCourt/JudgeDetails.aspx?ID=84

[dayglored]

> I think the ugly one is the right one.

Ummmm, WHICH ugly one?

[eastforker]

He has not been tried yet and you are already calling him a rapist. Did you also call the Duke boys rapist when the story first came out?

[airedale]

I agree. The media appears to always use the T when they mean the younger one. My guess mom and daughter, but I'm not sure

In google I came across this for Eileen T Gallgher when she was running for office at: http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=13127352&BRD=1698&PAG=461&dept_id=21846&rfi=6:

Jan. 12 term
Eileen T. Gallagher and Nicholas Papa are running for the bench of outgoing Judge John O'Donnell, who was defeated by Gallagher in the March 2 primary election. She isn't related to Judge Eileen A. Gallagher.
Despite her primary success, Gallagher got four bar associations' "not recommended" ratings. Papa got two "not recommended" ratings, but three "adequate" ratings, and he has more experience than Gallagher.

[skr]

The judge should have punished the lawyer, not the entire court.

[LibertarianInExile]

I may be a voice crying out in the wilderness, but I have to point out that judges let lawyers run rampant in the courtrooms and we bitch about it here often. Here a judge doesn't let a lawyer control the proceedings--and there is no excuse from the lawyer as to why they didn't show, mind you--and everyone's on the judge like it's some sort of awful chore to REFILE a dismissed case.

As long as it's not dismissed with prejudice, it's no big deal, and it'll probably end up in another courtroom instead of in front of the p'oed judge, which solves another problem, too.

I would be on the prosecutor's ass instead of the judge's here--if they're not showing up 45 minutes into a hearing, what else are they probably missing?

[Candor7]

The charge will be refiled and the fact is the prosecutor could have called in and asked for a postponement, or had another lawyer appear and ask for a postponement, or delay.

Not showing up for a court date can constituite grounds for disbarment.

[rogue yam]

The judge should have punished the lawyer, not the entire court.

The judge punished both the victim and the public.

[napscoordinator]

So you think a rapist should go free?



No and I believe he will be retried and hopefully that lawyer is fined and maybe even spends a few days in jail to teach him about time management.

[napscoordinator]

The judge should have punished the lawyer, not the entire court.



True. I wrote similar statement in post 31.

[driftdiver]

Sounds like its more about the Judges ego than justice.

[ATOMIC_PUNK]

“It was all about the unprofessional actions of a prosecutor,” she said. “You don’t show up — too bad. Don’t treat me like a punk and not show up in court without giving us the courtesy of notifying us where you are.”

Ahhhh acting just like the Punk she don't want to be treated like is a class act all by itself "gotta love that legislating from the bench punk act" !

[meyer]

I think that about 50% of the judges in Cuyahoga County are named Gallagher. All of them are liberals.

Terrible decision, but it seems to be a trend.

[Mad Dawg]

Actually it's interesting.

If a prosecutor is late for a trial, he abuses the defendant, the victim, the witnesses, and everybody else who has business before that court that day.

The judge just should have slapped the prosecutor with contempt and levied a fine or some jail time. And yes, it sounds like there might be problems with this judge sitting on this case.

But we haven't had the trial, we don't know that the defendant is guilty. So while I tink the judge's action was wrong, it's not totally off the wall.

[Piranha]

What stupidity on the part of Schneider -- he was late to court so he could finish working on a petition to get the judge thrown off of the case.

I would reinstate the case and fire the prosecutor.

[DustyMoment]

This is despicable. Ohio, you know what to do.

[Wolfie]

Clearly, the prosecutor was being punished for deigning to question Her Royal Highness earlier in the case. Never mind that a rape victim takes some shrapnel. On the plus side, maybe this judge doesn't get the case when its re-filed.

[WorkerbeeCitizen]

The perp of a rape against a ten yr old girl shouldn't have lived long enough to go to trial.