Lawyer sought to be first federal public defender for north Alabama

Published: Friday, November 26, 2010, 5:30 AM

A federal appeals court is advertising to find a lawyer to become the first federal public defender to represent indigent clients in north Alabama.

People charged with federal crimes in the Northern District of Alabama who can't afford a lawyer are now appointed one from a group of attorneys called the Criminal Justice Act Panel. The district has been one of only four court districts nationwide that doesn't have some form of a public defender office to represent indigent clients.

The United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit Applications began accepting applications for the public defender several weeks ago. That person will lead a 14-member staff of attorneys, administrative employees and other support personnel with offices in Birmingham and Huntsville.

Deadline for applying for the $139,950 a year job is Dec. 17.

"We were happy to learn that the 11th Circuit has begun the process of advertising for the federal public defender for the Northern District of Alabama," said Chief U.S. District Judge Sharon Lovelace Blackburn.

Creation of the Federal Public Defender Organization was approved late last year in a unanimous vote of the district's federal judges. Blackburn said judges also are grateful for the support of the state's two U.S. senators and congressmen within the northern district.

James P. Gerstenlauer, circuit executive for the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, said he would not expect the public defender to be chosen before the middle of next year. After the application deadline next month, a committee of judges and lawyers will review and interview candidates, he said.

The federal public defender will hire the assistant federal defenders and other staff members for both the Birmingham and Huntsville federal defender offices, Blackburn said.

Birmingham attorney Brett M. Bloomston is one several attorneys on the CJA Panel available for appointment to indigent cases in the Northern District of Alabama. He also is on an administrative committee that acts as a liaison between the panel of attorneys and the court.

Initially some attorneys opposed the creation of a federal public defenders office, Bloomston said. He said there was a don't fix it if it isn't broken mentality. "We just weren't satisfied there was a need for it," he said.

But it's a decision that has been made and "we'll live with it," Bloomston said.

Despite the public defender's office, there will still be a need for the panel of attorneys because the public defenders office likely won't be able to handle the entire workload, Bloomston and others said. Also, there will be times when conflicts of interest within the public defenders office, may require the use of other lawyers.

"We will continue to be utilized," Bloomston said.

Blackburn estimated that the attorneys will still be getting at least 25 percent "and likely more" of the court-appointed cases.

"We are confident that a federal public defender along with the excellent lawyers on our Criminal Justice Act Panel will provide the best possible representation for indigent defendants in the Northern District of Alabama," Blackburn said.

Join the conversation by clicking to comment or e-mail Faulk at kfaulk@bhamnews.com.

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Birmingham group is state's first all-Hispanic Lions Club

Published: Saturday, November 20, 2010, 9:00 PM

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? Officers and members of what officials say is Alabama's first Hispanic Lions Club were installed during a celebration at the Vestavia Hills Civic Center tonight.
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? J. Frank Moore III of Daleville, past International Lions Club president, presented the 23 members of the Birmingham Hispanic Lions Club with their official charter at 5:30 p.m. Lions Clubs has 160 clubs across Alabama, but the Birmingham club is the first Hispanic-only club.
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? Members of the Pelham Lions Club, who sponsored the new club, along with officers and members of Lions Clubs from across Alabama, were at the ceremony. "I am proud to welcome these men and women into Lions. Birmingham will be proud to have such a fine group serving their community," said Jane Barker, district governor.
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? The Birmingham Hispanic Lions Club will meet on the second Thursday of each month at 7 p.m. at La Brisa Restaurant, 2341 John Hawkins Parkway in Hoover. John Ocampo is the club's president.
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? Moore said Lions Clubs International is the world's largest service club organization with nearly 1.3 million members in approximately 45,000 clubs in 200 countries. The civic club was founded in 1917.
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The Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People - Are You Putting First Things First?

A book called the "Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People" says nothing worthwhile will ever be accomplished if the performer lacks focus. Even then, focus will only count for something if what we focus our attention on is relevant to our major goal.

And to maximize the impact of your actions, they should also come in the order of their importance. For example, if you are a builder, how soon would you complete a house if you start from the roof?

Unknown to many, this principle applies in virtually every area of life. Stephen R. Covey in his book "The Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People" sums it up by saying "Put First Things First".

It is the third of the seven habits discussed by the author. No, this article is not a book review, but it is amazing how much we can all accomplish within a given timeframe if we form the habit of performing tasks in their proper sequence.

Develop the Habit of Putting First Things First How can this be done, and what will help you to succeed in doing so?

Have A Goal: Naturally, the first thing you need to do is to have a goal, something toward which you'll be directing all or most of your efforts.

It is only with a goal in mind that you can tell if your activities are taking you closer or further away from your destination.? Indeed without a definite goal, all actions you engage in will appear equally important.?

Prioritize: Putting first things first basically involves prioritizing our tasks.? It means knowing what things must first be accomplished before others can make any sense.?

Pick out that first step and perform it first.

You must also know that the finer details of certain tasks can only crystallize after you have accomplished the earlier stages of the task.

Well, if you really stop and take a closer look, you'll discover that certain bits of activities can often be attended to much later without disrupting the process.

So identify the key roles for each action you have to take and how these relates to your overall goal.

Get Organized: Organization is very crucial if you are to put first things first. Indeed, it's often been said that unless you organize you cannot prioritize.?

Organizing involves putting down in writing all the tasks that need to be done. You should also indicate when each piece of work must be done. And allocate time for each task. This is one of the most effective strategies toward ensuring that tasks will get done—and on time.

What happens is that when you write things down, you keep them staring you in the face until they are accomplished. It also helps if the things you've written down are kept at a place where you would frequently bump unto them. They should only be removed from that conspicuous location after the tasks have been performed.

Going about your tasks in this manner will help you to keep track of all you do in the course of a day, a week, or a month. It will become easier for you make adjustments in terms of what activities are taking up the chunk of your business time take a look at how those activities are contributing to the bottom line of your business. This is the sure way to increase efficiency and productivity.

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Metro Birmingham forecast: first round of storms more widely; second round on road

Published: Monday, October 25, 2010, 6 H 15 update: Monday, October 25, 2010, 6: 20

It is 63 degrees at 6 o'clock in the morning in Birmingham, as a strong line of thunderstorms swept that is passed over the Metro area.

However, the rain is in the forecast for the region, according to the National Weather Service.Some rain is possible the rest of this morning, and the rest of the day is supposed to be cloudy with a maximum of 81 degrees.

Predicted low night around 70 degrees.

Tuesday will be a low risk of rain in the morning, followed by the possibility afternoon storms, some possibly severe, front froid.Le high Tuesday is supposed to be close to 83 degrés.La chance of rain is fixed at 50% by Tuesday evening and Wednesday.

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