Judge Lee hosted and judged a mock trial competition between two Classical Conversations home school teams. The middle school teams were from Hollywood Hills and Miami Shores, and the mock trial involved a case of murder, with a defense of battered women’s syndrome. The competition was close, but the team from Hollywood Hills prevailed.

Students from Barry University took a “forensic social work” field trip last week to the central courthouse. Dr. Jill Levenson, Professor of Social Work at Barry coordinated the trip for her social work students, and it included an entire day of observation and interaction with several judges and court staff. Special thanks to Judges Towbin-Singer, Porth, Levenson, Lerner-Wren, Bristol, Schulman, and Magistrate Laventure for being a part of the day!

Judge Jeffrey Levenson visited Coral Glades High School earlier this week and spoke to Ms. Marcy Hollinger’s 10th grade history/civics class. Judge Levenson also met with the school’s principal, Mr. Lorenzo Wood.

The Florida Courts Public Information Officers (FCPIO) held their annual conference last week in St.Petersburg, Florida. The three-day conference kept court PIOs from around the state busy with workshops, break-out sessions, presentations and hands-on training. State Courts Administrator PK Jameson, Chief Justice-Elect Charles T. Canady, and former Chief Justice Charles T. Wells, were among the speakers. Presentations on the Constitution Revision Commission, Emergency Operations and Communications, Judicial Ethics and Dealing with the Media During a High Casualty Event, were some of the topics the PIOs learned more about. Hands-on training focused on creating website graphics, podcasting, and filming public service announcements.

Broward College hosted a “Changing the Narrative on Mathematics” event on April 6th, featuring panelists sharing their perspective of the importance of mathematical critical thinking and problem solving in the courts and medicine.The panel included Professor David Wirth, Judge Jennifer Hilal, Clerk of Court Brenda Forman and Judge Michele Towbin-Singer.

Broward County hosted two town hall meetings for courthouse staff last week in order to update everyone on the Central Courthouse Construction Project. The 20-story new West tower has been built, but there is much more to go. Demolition of the old courthouse should begin later this year, and the garage going up in its place should be finished by late 2019. Additionally, major renovations are scheduled to begin in the East wing, basically stripping everything down in the interior, and rebuilding it. The North wing will also get new electrical systems, elevator upgrades, and more.

The projected timeline calls for on-going construction projects in to 2022. Additional details will be provided as they are made available.