Judge’s Anti-Tax E-Mail Annoys Court Employee
BY BUDDY NEVINS
Broward Judge Joel Lazarus has annoyed at least one courthouse employee.
Lazarus, who retired earlier this year but is back serving as a senior judge, e-mailed a report on taxes from the Kiplinger Letters to all judges, judicial assistants and courthouse administrators yesterday.
David Tilbury, who is a teen court case manager, didn’t appreciate the message. The Kiplinger Letter talked how all taxes are headed up starting in 2011, including dividend and estate taxes and levies to pay for the new Obama health care plan.
Tilbury fired off his own response, which is reproduced below.
In the e-mail, Tilbury calls himself “a disabled parent with a recently deceased daughter who was also disabled. He criticizes the judge for beefing about taxes while he enjoys a high salary.
“Do you duty and pay up your honor, wrote Tilbury.
Lazarus?
“I forwarded a Kiplinger Newsletter for informational purposes. I plead guilty, the judge said. “It was for informational purposes. I never said to vote one way or the other, or gave my opinion.
He is right. The judge never mentioned what he believed. But by forwarding the anti-tax Kiplinger Letter, wasn’t he taking a position against the taxes?
It’s your call.
(Click on image to make it bigger.)
November 1st, 2010 at 3:29 pm
Judge Lazarus has been around long enough to know that it is verboten to send out e-mail on controversial political subjects like taxes from the courthouse e-mail system. Why didn’t he use his personal e-mail?
November 1st, 2010 at 3:49 pm
I declare BS on Judge Lazarus?
Informational purposes only?
Have you read this Kiplinger piece of propoganda?
I agree with a number of things in the Kiplinger piece and have many of the same concerns on the tax issues, but for a Judge to claim ignorance as to the politically charged nature of what he is forwarding, he doesn’t appear to have the brains to judge a dog show.
Agree with Kiplinger or not, the following quote (one of many that are similar) shows this is not an “informational piece” but rather a conservative/tea-party political piece:
” . . . the dupes, er, dopes, who backed this administration will be astonished!”
Sorry, this was no news piece. This was political advocacy by a judge, pure and simple.
JQC Calling, JQC Calling!
November 1st, 2010 at 5:52 pm
Either way, I’m more embarrassed that we have case managers in the courts that use poor grammar, “As a judge you should no better.” It’s KNOW. I also think Tilbury’s comments regarding the Judge paying up are way off base. Personally, I believe in the Flat Tax – maybe Mr. Tilbury should move to Europe to recieve his entitlements.
November 1st, 2010 at 9:58 pm
Judge Lazarus should be ashamed of himself. He knows what he was doing it wrong. Is he a good judge who has lost his judgement?