Sentencings in high-profile cases delayed by hurricane
Several sentencings in high-profile cases and the selection process to replace two circuit judges all have been postponed by Hurricane Irma, even as business resumed Wednesday at a Palm Beach County satellite courthouse.
The North County Courthouse in Palm Beach Gardens reopened Wednesday after being closed for a total of four business days because of the storm, whose wide bands reached the area Sunday.
Nonjury cases will resume today at the main courthouse in West Palm Beach and the other branch courthouses in Delray Beach and Belle Glade when those courthouses reopen to the public, but the 15th Circuit State Attorney’s and Public Defender’s offices already have reopened.
Jury duty, however, is canceled for the remainder of this week and will resume on Monday. Prospective jurors can call the court hotline at 561-355-6744.
The federal courthouse in West Palm Beach will reopen on Monday.
The closings have already delayed hundreds of cases in Palm Beach County Circuit Court, including the sentencing of 50-year-old Rodney Clark, convicted last month of the 1987 murder of 27-year-old Dana Fader.
A jury last week had begun hearing testimony to decide whether they would recommend a sentence of life in prison or the death penalty for Clark. But after a day of testimony, Circuit Judge Charles Burton told the panel that the courthouse would be closing in anticipation of the storm and asked them to come back Wednesday.
On Wednesday morning however, a voice-mail recording from Burton’s judicial assistant asked all jurors to return to court on Monday for the continuation of the hearing.
The timing, in turn, makes the scheduled start of another death penalty case doubtful. Jury selection was supposed to begin Friday in the first-degree murder and child abuse trial of Kimberly Lucas, the Jupiter woman charged with the May 2014 drowning death of the 2-yearold daughter she shared with her former partner. Lucas is also charged with trying to kill their 10-year-old son by drugging him with Alprazolam and telling him “it would help make him grow.”
Both Clark and Lucas are represented by Palm Beach County Public Defender Carey Haughwout and one of her top assistant public defenders, Elizabeth Ramsey. And Burton is presiding over both cases. Because the judge and attorneys can’t handle two trials at once, it appears the Lucas case will be delayed until Clark’s sentencing hearing is done.
Burton on Wednesday was also supposed to sentence Paul Maida, a Boca Raton man convicted in July of leaving the scene of an accident involving a death and other charges in the 2014 crash that killed George Morreale. Maida faces up to 26 years in prison. As of Wednesday afternoon, no new sentencing date had been set for Maida.
Also on Wednesday, the local Judicial Nominating Commission extended by three days the deadline for applicants to turn in paperwork in hopes of replacing resigned judges Richard Oftedal and James T. Ferrara. The applications had been due Sept. 18, but applicants now have until 10 a.m. on Sept. 21. The group will send its top picks to Gov. Rick Scott, who will make the final selections.
Tuesday also was supposed to mark the sentencing hearing for Donna Horwitz for her second conviction in the shooting death of her estranged husband, Lanny Horwitz. But the hearing was canceled, and as of Wednesday, no new hearing date had been set.
Question: One of my estate planning goals is to protect my adult son’s inheritance from his many creditors, if possible. He is in serious debt and, most likely, he’ll never be able to dig himself out of the hole. Do I have any options?
Answer: If your son’s debts are dischargable in bankruptcy, that may be the best course for him, and for your ultimate estate planning. If your finances permit, consider giving him the money to retain a bankruptcy attorney.
If his debts are not dischargeable in bankruptcy, (this would include student loans and child support obligations), and you either can’t or don’t desire to help him pay off his obligations, you still have alternatives. None are without disadvantages, though. First, you could completely cut him out of your estate, and leave his inheritance to someone else — a sibling, for example — who you trust will take care of him. The danger here is that whoever holds your son’s funds may run into his/her own economic difficulties, get sued, divorced, etc., thus putting the funds in jeopardy.
You could leave your son the money in a trust over which an independent, third-party trustee has absolute control and discretion. If the document is properly drafted, your son would not be able to compel the trustee to use the money for your son’s benefit. But on the upside, neither could your son’s creditors get to it. Another estate planning possibility: Direct your personal representative under your will, or the trustee of your trust, to purchase an annuity for the benefit of your son. While the money is in the annuity, it is safe from his creditors.
I must also mention that if your son ever needs to apply for Medicaid, the funds in the trust or annuity, while safe from creditors, would be deemed as an available asset and thus, impact on his eligibility.
As you can see, there are no flawless estate planning solutions. That is why I would prefer to see you help your son get out of debt — whether through bankruptcy or resolving the claims of his creditors — than take the alternative approaches.
Joseph Karp, a member of the Florida and New York Bars, is a Nationally and Florida Bar Certified Elder Law Attorney and founder of The Karp Law Firm, located in Palm Beach and St. Lucie counties. The firm assists clients with wills, trusts, Medicaid and VA benefits planning, asset preservation, probate/trust administration and estate litigation.