Trump's US Ambassador to Israel Sworn In - Bankruptcy attorney David Friedman has been sworn in as U.S. envoy to Israel, becoming President Donald Trump's first ambassador to take office. (March 29)

Muslim Woman Suing Judge for Banning Headscarf Read more at: http://www.jewishpress.com/tv/video-picks/muslim-woman-suing-judge-for-banning-headscarf/2014/02/04/

I’m not crazy about the fact that this case is being handled by our friends at CAIR, but the attorney being interviewed does mention that forcing a Muslim woman to remove her hijab is exactly like making an Orthodox Jew take off his yarmulke.

LOCAL COMMUNITY MEMBER LEAD DEFENSE IN THE HIGH PROFILE KELLY THOMAS MURDER TRIAL.

Lead Defense Attorney, Michael Schwartz,(standing)  in the Kelly Thomas Case. Defending his client
Jay Cicinelli (seated far left) in court during the trial.

When you meet Michael Schwartz, you will not know that he is one of the best  and most succesful criminal defense litigators in California. He is soft spoken, humble and likeable, always with a pleasant and caring smile. You get the sense that he would rather talk about Torah than the law. But when he does begin to talk about the law, his clients and his job, you quickly understand why he is so powerful in the courtroom. He is very smart and very passionat about what he does. 

He earned his B.A. at Hofstra University in 1987, and his law degree at George Washington University in 1993. After being admitted to the State Bar of California in December 1993, he served as a deputy public defender in Ventura County. During his tenure in Ventura, Schwartz litigated nearly one-hundred fifty jury trials to verdict. From 2000-2001 he was a deputy public defender in the Riverside County Public Defender's Office.

CURRENTLY, Michael D. Schwartz is a Sr. Associate with Rains Lucia Stern Law Firm and has been with them since October 2013.

Michael Schwartz was hired to head up the firm’s Southern California practice. Michael is a highly-regarded and experienced trial attorney. For the past twelve years he has focused on representing peace officers in some of the toughest and most noteworthy criminal cases venued in Southern California.

Michael’s recent trial victories include the successful defense of San Bernardino Sheriff’s Deputy Ivory Webb in the nationally publicized video-taped shooting of an unarmed airman home on leave, the acquittal of Deputy Richard Heverly who faced a maximum term of up to thirty years in prison, as well as the acquittal of Deputy Erik Orduno accused of failing to report misconduct as a mandated reporter.

He also succesfully defended Riverside County Firefighter Michael Arizaga, who was charged with vehicular manslaughter in a 2005 engine accident that killed a fellow firefighter. The case was abruptly dropped when Michael Schwartz helped prove that this type of truck has a long history of  mechanical and braking problems.

His most recent and highest profile case yet was as lead counsel for Fullerton Police officer Corporal Jay Cicinelli, accused of Involuntary Manslaughter and Battery Under the Color of Authority in the in-custody death of Kelly Thomas.

According to Schwartz, the Kelly Thomas case has been the most complex case he has had to work on. Most complex in terms of showing cause of death, and having to work with many medical experts. Complex media issues: because of the unbelievable amount of media coverage, Michael had to fight to avoid the tainting of the jury pool. The video was being shown on television over and over again every day for months. Complex technological issues.;Since the video itself was the largest piece of evidence and most important to the case dealing with the technology of video forensics became a major focal point to the defense. {See related story David Notowitz; Forensic Expert}

What is it like as a frum Jew to walk into a secular courtroom to try such a high profile case? Do you face any professional obstacles as a result of who you are?

"At this point in my career no, not really. In San Bernadino it is not an issue. I have tried many cases there and they know me already. However, the Kelly Thomas case was only the second trial for me in Orange County. I had a certain degree of trepidation about how people would look at me and react. For the most part, judges show respect for Shabbos and the Chagim. Collegues cover for me on Friday afternoons.

It has been pretty inspiring that majority of my clients are police officers and they are very respectful of who I am, they have a positive outlook of who a Jew is. I feel like an ambassador to the community. 

Balancing fighting aggressively for your client and being a kiddush Hashem

Maintaining what is right, dignity and halacha always come into play. Schwartz if always

mindful of word choice and his actions. If inappropriate words are part of transcripts Schwarts will try not to use them. However, sometimes it is absolutely  necessary, so he will explain first that he is only useing this certian word that a witness used and it is not his own.

Even with courtroom antics he is careful. Some attorneys by way of courtroom antics will make faces, to show disgust, disagreement or make fun of, for Jury to see while other side is making arguments.  Schwartz says he does not do this.

Lastly, Schwartz talks about the challenges of being shomer negiah in a trial, especially a hight profile case the Kelly Thomas trial, with so much media around.

"Years ago I was on the Today show to talk about a trial I was involved with. I was told that I would be introduced the women host of the show shake my hand or give a hug and ask me to sit down for the interview. I told them, respectfully of course, that I was not able to do touch women and I would not be comfortable with this. So they had me already seated when the segment began."

"In the kelly Thomas case the wives of the men we defended wanted to hug me to thank me for helping their husbands. They were told before hand that I do not hug women and this was important because with so many cameras around it could make for a very uncomfortable situation." says Schwartz.

The Power of Prayer

 I had a client, a Deputy Sheriff charged with a serious crime. Preliminary hearings were  set during Shavuous and I was not in court that day. The other side and the courts scheduled the preliminary hearing on a Friday morning in San Bernardino! Michael recounts how he called all the parties involved to explain  Shabbos, sunset and long drive from San Bernadino to LA and ask for a change in day. All parties were sympathetic but did not want to change the day. Michael davened for several days the same mantra: 

“Out the courthouse doors by 2:45 pm, in my car by 3pm, home by 4 pm. Three times a day for several days he repeated the pleas to Hashem. “Out the courthouse doors by 2:45 pm, in my car by 3 pm, home by 4 pm”

That day Schwartz left early for the Preliminary Hearing in San Bernardino. Michael,recounts how he arrived at the courthouse early for the 8:30 am meeting-- "so far so good on schedule", but the meeting was delayed untill 10:00 am and they did not begin discussing the case until 10:30 AM! I was thinking that two hours of wasted time and I was getting very nervous.

Just as we began the hearing and talking about the case the Judge's Balif comes out and tells us “The Judge has a meeting in LA and MUST be OUT at 2:45 PM -NO MATTER WHAT! If this is OK we can continue, or if not we can switch days. All parties agreed to keep going and to finish at 2:45pm!!! 

"I was out of the courthouse doors by 2:45 pm, in my car by 3 pm, and home by 4:10 pm!”, an hour and a half before Shabbos!", with a smile on his face Schwartz retells  the story.

CLOSING ARGUMENTS STRESS AND SHABBOS

Schwartz's closing arguments concluded Thursday 1/9/14 in the afternoon. He had to wait Shabbos, Sunday, and most of the day Monday before he was informed that the jury had reached a decision in the case.   "Were you able to put the trial out of your mind and enjoy Shabbos?" 

Michael, answered with a smile on his face, "It was Shabbos! Admitedly I could not block it all out. I was thinking about the case. I very much like my client and had much at stake. It was the Shabbos prior to my closing arguments that was the most difficult because I had the closing arguments ahead of me and I knew just how much was at stake for my client and myself personally and professionally. 

STORY OF DAVENING DURING  THE TRIALCicinelli’s USE OF FORCE training officer was being cross-examined by the prosecution. The DA asked him "how many times did you see Cicinelly striking Kelly Thomas in the face?"

"We have been arguing and maintaining during our case that Cicinelli hit him twice", recounts Schwartz.

Our witness answers the prosecution, "I saw this video months ago, it has been a long time, but I would say 4-6 times!!!"  

UH OH!!!! The Defense team is shocked and can't believe what the witness just said. “We have been maintaining that our client Cicinelli only struck Kelly Thomas two times!"

The DA  asks, “Would it refresh your memory if we see video again now?"

The video is showed again to the witness. “Is your memory refreshed now?" asked the DA.

 "YES", says the witness.

 "As I was watching this all play out I started davening over and over again the following tefilla", says Schwartz.

“Ribono shel olam, You know the thought of every human being, You are in charge of all man's thoughts-- whatever You do, let him say less than 4- 6 times!!”

The prosection says to the witness, "You said before…"

The witness at that moment interrupts the DA and says…..

“I CHANGED MY MIND.”  The entire court becomes silent.

Michael, is continuing to repeat the tefilla “Ribono Shel Olam You know the thought of every human being, You are in charge of all man's thoughts-- whatever You do, let him say less than 4- 6 times!!”

The witniss says
“I only saw 2 or 3 punches thrown by Cicinelli and I am not sure if one was an actual hit or just a wind up.”
      BARUCH HASHEM!

 Always be true to who you are

 I have used David Notowitz twice in the past. And on this case, the Kelly Thomas case, I thought it might throw the jury off a bit to have two yarmulkes at the table, like bookends.", recalls Schwartz.

"We decided after much discussion that  David would sit behind the councils  table in the front row corner.

If Technology went wrong or we needed David to show video he would be close enough but not conspicuous. We took pains to keep David off the council table.  Of course during a most important witness testimony early on in the trial the audio visual did not work. The Judge called upon David to take over and operate the projectors. He had David get up and walk across the well of the court to flip the light switch.  From that moment on we had David sit at the counsel table, directly facing the Jury.
"I took this as a sign from HaKadosh Barachu--a sign that Hashem  was saying NO, NO this is what I want.  You don’t have to be inconspicuous or hide" says Schwartz.

(read the story on DAVID NOTOWITZ and how his work played a big part in the trial)

The verdict came down after 8 hours and two days of jury deliberations.
Both Officers were aquitted of all charges against them.  Michael Schwartz’s client was stunned when the verdict was read acquitting him of all charges. As the verdicts were being read by the jury foreperson, Michael quietly sat with his head down. Seconds later the entire verdict was read and Cicinelli was found not guilty of all charges: involuntary manslaughter and excessive force. Michael repeatedly said “Thank God” and he tightly embraced his client. Cicinelli, looked forward with a look of absolute relief. Two and half years of stress realeased as the two embraced.

Former Fullerton Police Officer Jay Cicinelli (L) shows relief Monday, 
after he is found not guilty of involuntary manslaughter and excessive 
use of force for the 2011 beating of Kelly Thomas. Michael Schwartz (R) 

Ex-Fullerton police officer Jay Cicinelli (r.) looks back into the court
gallery as his attorney Michael Schwartz (c.) embraces the defense
team after the acquittals on Monday

Jewry Duty I wear the kippah for 15 minutes and I'm already bad for the Jews.by Jeff Astrof

I still get excited when the mail comes. Maybe it's my nostalgia for a time when letters and birthday cards were actually delivered by the postman. Nowadays my mailbox is home only to bills, solicitations for home refinancing, Chinese restaurant menus and... a jury duty notice!

The letter said I was to appear at a downtown Los Angeles courthouse to serve on a jury the week of July 20th. My first thought was that I had to get out of it. I have nothing against performing my civic duty -- I've never missed voting and I pay my taxes scrupulously, I've never even lied and said my coffee was "to go" to avoid paying sales tax -- but the thought of spending days or even weeks in a stifling courthouse in downtown LA was too much for me to bear. The question was, how?

I had a job so I couldn't plead financial hardship, and I had already postponed twice. Maybe I could make myself an undesirable juror. Some friends at work recommended I issue a racist or sexist or anti-police rant, although that seemed to be unsavory. Especially in a room full of people I would be offending.

Then I had a "radical" idea: what if I wore my yarmulke? After all, the attorneys are looking for people who can be easily manipulated, and with a legacy of thousands of years of arguing, a religious Jew is going to be no pushover. Plus, I'd probably be pegged as some sort of fanatic which would disqualify me right away.

It was the perfect plan. Except for one thing: I don't wear a yarmulke.

Actually, that's not true; I wear a yarmulke when I go to shul or to Jewish events like weddings and bar mitzvahs. But as soon as I'm in public, or at work, I quickly cover my head with a baseball cap or some other type of hat. We call it "undercover Orthodox." Not that I'm embarrassed to be an observant Jew, God forbid; it's just easier for me not to be too public about it.

The idea of wearing a kippah to get out of jury duty went sour pretty quickly. I wasn't really ready to make the commitment so I threw on a baseball cap and headed to court.

As I got on the elevator to go up to the courtroom, a guy exited wearing a black velvet kippah, tzitzis dangling freely, with a gemara in his hands. "Man, this guy must really want to get out of jury duty," I thought to myself.

I walked into the courtroom, awash in the awful feeling that God was about to play a practical joke on me.

I got off at the 11th floor, headed into the courtroom, and as I was about to step in, the bailiff stopped me. "No hats."

"I know, but..."

This guy had a gun and a stern voice: "No hats in the courtroom. Take off your hat."

I wasn't going to be arrested for contempt of court, especially since I'd have to go hatless for my own trial anyway. So I took off my hat, revealing the kippah I was still wearing from praying an hour earlier. I walked into the courtroom, awash in the awful feeling that God was about to play a practical joke on me.

As I was called for questioning, my mind raced for ways to get out of this. No way was I going to issue an off-color rant wearing a kippah. I'd have to rely on the prejudice of the court to disqualify me. As luck -- or Divine providence -- would have it, I was picked for the jury. For the next week I would be Alternate Juror Number Two, or as everyone else would surely see me, "The guy with the yarmulke." I felt nauseous.

The judge announced that we would be taking a 15 minute break before starting, and we jurors filed out. I tossed my baseball cap on the second I crossed the threshold out of the courtroom. I was very uncomfortable and decided my best course was to remain as low-profile as possible. I then noticed the Defense Attorney and asked her if she knew what time lunch was going to be. She curtly told me that she was not allowed to have any contact with any of the jurors and that I please not ask her any more questions. Okay, starting nowI would remain low profile. A moment later, we were called back in to the jury room.

"Hats off, please." Darn, I thought the bailiff wouldn't remember.

I marched my kippah-wearing head into the jury box and sat as unobtrusively as possible. The judge asked for opening statements. The Defense Attorney leapt up: "Your honor before I begin I want to disclose that Alternate Juror Number Two approached me and asked me what time lunch was."

Ugh! I couldn't believe it. Everyone in the courtroom looked at me and I knew what they were thinking: "The Orthodox Jews always think about food." And I'm sure they were waiting for the follow-up from the Prosecutor: "He also asked me when he'd be getting his $15 per diem." This is exactly why I didn't want to wear a yarmulke; I wear it for 15 minutes and I'm already bad for the Jews.

When we finally did break for lunch, I grabbed my hat, put my head down and didn't speak or make eye contact with anyone remotely associated with the court or who wore any type of badge or robe. About a block away from the courthouse, Alternate Juror Number One ran up to me.

"I'm not allowed to talk about the case," I quickly told him.

"I know. I just wanted to say that when you took off your hat I was surprised to see a yarmulke."

"Are you Jewish?" I asked.

"No. Catholic. But I liked seeing that you wore a yarmulke. It meant that there'd be someone smart on the jury."

"So you didn't think it was stupid to ask the Defense Attorney what time lunch was?"

"No," he replied, "that was very stupid. But in general, I've found that the religious Jews I know tended to be smart."

Not what I expected to hear.

The next few days, forced to wear my yarmulke, I tried to live up to the standard that it represented. I took notes diligently during the trial and watched everything I said. In fact, I got so used to wearing my kippah that I didn't even put my baseball hat on when I left the courtroom to grab a snack or use the restroom.

The trial ended Friday morning, and despite all my apprehension, I knew I was going to miss the experience. Before we left the courtroom, the judge told us that we were free to discuss the trial now. On my way out, I noticed the Defense Attorney gathering her papers. Now that I could speak to her, I approached her: "I don't know if you remember this, but on the first day I asked when lunch was. I'm really sorry about that."

She told me she felt awful about it and apologized for singling me out. She was new at this and was a little nervous. She then asked my opinion about how she could have presented her case better and I was eager to offer her advice.

I'm not quite ready for the challenge of living up to wearing my yarmulke in public, but I hope someday I will be.

After catering to my unfulfilled fantasy of being a trial lawyer, I checked my watch and told her I had to get home. She thanked me for my input and as I turned to walk away she said, "Shabbat Shalom" in a way that made me know she was Jewish.

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I smiled. "Shabbat Shalom," I replied, and left.

I got more out of this week than I could have imagined. I realized that many of the prejudices that I thought people had about religious Jews were my own prejudices, or at least insecurities. I'd like to say that I wore my kippah out the door and haven't taken it off since, but the truth is, I tossed on baseball hat just as I was leaving. I'm not quite ready for the challenge of living up to wearing my yarmulke in public, but I hope someday I will be.

In the meantime, I'll do my best to act like I'm wearing a kippah and I'll always cherish my week of Jewry Duty.

From Sinai to the Supreme Court; Civil liberties attorney Mr. Nathan Lewin revisits his past victories to examine their impact on the Jewish community and the state of religious freedom in America today.

From the National Jewish Retreat taking place now in Alexandria, VA: From yarmulkas in the military to public menorah displays, civil liberties attorney Nathan Lewin has argued some of America’s most famous First Amendment cases. In this session he revisits his past victories to examine their impact on the Jewish community and the state of religious freedom in America today.

Civil Trial Attorney Baruch C. Cohen meets attorney Michael Schwartz & Jewish Journal editor David Suissa at Kollel Banquet

photo courtesy of Joseph Ober -- josephober@gmail.com

Running For Judge With An Orthodox Background And A Universal Perspective

Just days before the entire world stands before the great Judge on Rosh Hashanah, Democrats of the 5th district of Brooklyn will be casting their votes in the primary election for civil court judge. Shlomo Mostofsky, private attorney and former president of the National Council of Young Israel (NCYI), is currently campaigning to secure the post as judge.

“I always wanted to be a judge,” Mostofsky told The Jewish Press, “[and now] was the best opportunity to do so.” Mostofsky explained that there was a seat that had recently been vacated and that because there was virtually no Republican opposition, winning the primary would effectively mean winning the general election as well. Additionally, Brooklyn’s 5th District encompasses “key areas” in which he could serve the local communities, neighborhoods such as Boro Park, Kensington, Bay Ridge, and Sunset Park. Recalling his 11 years as president of NCYI, Mostofsky said that he believes his previous projects and experiences would help him in his new position.

He also said that he’s confident his countless meetings with politicians and citizens from countries around the world would provide him with a larger, more wholesome perspective on the diverse ethnic, religious, and immigrant groups that are in the district than those of the traditional attorney or judge. Additionally, Mostofsky met the chief justice and the associate justices of the South African Supreme Court and of the International Court of Justice. “These are [unique] life experiences to bring to the court that others may not have,” Mostofsky said. He also mentioned that during his tenure as president, he succeeded in “taking the [NCYI] from the red to the black.”

“Brooklyn is the melting pot of New York City,” Mostofsky said. Although many people have endorsed Mostofsky, some are hesitant to elect an Orthodox Jew to the court system. Mostofsky, however, believes that becoming judge will benefit both the Jewish community and the Brooklyn community as a whole. “I’ve worked in court for 12 years and many of my clients have been Orthodox Jews.” Although halachah allows and requires Jews to go to court under specific circumstances, Mostofsky doesn’t “believe that our community is comfortable in court.” He hopes that a “Jewish presence” in the court, although it won’t affect the court’s decision, will help Jews become less wary with the American justice system. He stressed that the civil courts, known as “the peoples’ court,” is usually a person’s “first contact” with the courts.

Additionally, Mostofsky explained that he would “have the opportunity to make a Kiddush Hashem” working as a judge. A single courtroom is filled with judges, court officers, litigants, and lawyers. He hopes that when people see a Jewish person treating every person, regardless of his or her background, fairly and equally, they will carry that image with them as they “move on to other places [in life].”

Originally, the primaries were supposed to be held on September 11, but were postponed to September 13.

Defense attorney Michael D. Schwartz, who is representing Fullerton police officer Jay Cicinelli, in the beating death of Kelly Thomas, a homeless man in Fullerton, cross-examines a witness during a preliminary hearing in Santa Ana

Fullerton police officer Jay Cicinelli watches and listens as defense attorneys Michael D. Schwartz, left, and John D. Barnett confer in Court