Judge Maria Ortiz of Miami, FL; greedy ingrate

The state of Florida presented Maria Ortiz with a law license in 1989 after she graduated from Nova Southeastern University School of Law.

In one matter, the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission found Maria guilty of the following misconduct.

• Failed to respect and comply with the law
• Failed to promote the integrity of the judiciary (Say what?)
• Failed to advise family members to not accept gifts that are or may be intended to influence a judge’s decision making
• Husband Mariano Fernandez previously served as the Director of the Building Department for the City of Miami
• Maria’s husband charged with multiple felony counts of receiving unlawful compensation in association with his employment as Director of the Building Department for the City of Miami
• Improperly received and then failed to disclose receipt of free hotel accommodations and benefits provided to her husband, her family and herself by the RIU Hotel Group

The illegal freebies that Mariano received and that Maria benefited from are as follows.

• Mariano’s illegal compensation were free hotel accommodations and other valuable consideration in exchange for expediting permitting problems being experienced by the RIU Hotel Group in Miami Beach
• On at least three occasions Maria accompanied Mariano when he received illegal free hotel accommodations and shared in said free accommodations
• Stayed free-of-charge in an expensive “Ocean Front” double room at the Riu Miami Beach Hotel
• Stayed free-of-charge at the RIU Palace Bavaro All-Inclusive Resort in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
• During Punta Cana week-long vacation, Maria and her family stayed for free, in a jacuzzi suite
• The Hotel arranged special excursion and a trip to the VIP area of the famous Coco-Bongo Show and Disco, which was provided free-of-charge
• Stayed free-of-charge at the RIU Palace All-Inclusive Resort in Playa del Carmen, Mexico
• During the Playa del Carmen vacation, Maria and her family stayed for free in an Ocean Jacuzzi Suite

The cheerleaders for Judicial Misfits sitting on the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission recommended that Maria receive a complimentary reprimand for the egregious misconduct she so cheerfully engaged in. However, the Justices of the Florida Supreme Court rejected the Commission’s recommendation and sent the matter back to them for reconsideration.

All that remains now is to see what the enablers for Judicial Misfits sitting on the Judicial Qualifications Commission will now recommend as punishment to the Supreme Court.

As we speak (ca. July 2018), Maria continues to sit as a county judge of the Miami-Dade County Court of Florida.