Miami Herald - August 12, 2004
Sara Olkon, solkon@herald.com

Lawyer Robert Malove is challenging incumbent Circuit Judge Cheryl Alemán in a race that has become personal.

In a rare challenge, a Pembroke Pines lawyer is trying to unseat Broward Circuit Judge Cheryl Alemán, who was appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush in 2001.

The thrust of Robert Malove's campaign is to paint himself as completely unlike Alemán.

"I think my opponent is doing a lousy job," he said. "The people of Broward County deserve better."

Alemán said she is running on her record, and decried what she said were unfair personal attacks.

"In a courtroom, what counts is the truth," she said during a recent interview.

On Aug. 31, voters will choose between them for the $134,650-a-year job hearing serious criminal or civil cases in Broward County.

Malove cites controversy that began after Alemán, past president of the Broward Christian Legal Society, discussed her strong religious beliefs at her robing ceremony. Then, in July 2003, she was broadly criticized for refusing to release a severely ill AIDS patient, Jean Felix, so that he could die at home. The man had been jailed for violating his drug probation, but jail officials had suggested he be released, and prosecutors had agreed.

"It is really difficult to tell what the life expectancy is of the defendant," Alemán said, according to a transcript of the hearing. "The defense concedes two, three, four, six months. Nobody knows, to use the words of the defense counsel when asked how long." Alemán declined to discuss the Felix case, as it is still pending.

A different judge heard the case a week later, and ruled differently.

Malove has raised $125,000, including $70,000 in personal loans. Alemán has collected $68,000, including $30,000 in personal loans.

Contributors to Malove include a number of local criminal defense attorneys, several of whom were not willing to be quoted in print.

"If you have a judge that basically favors the prosecution on every issue, why would you be afraid it would be worse?" asked Fort Lauderdale criminal defense attorney Kevin Kulik, who is chairman of Malove's campaign.

Much of the vitriol against Alemán stems from her appointment by the governor in a heavily Democratic county, said Perry Hodges, a Fort Lauderdale attorney who is supporting her campaign.

It doesn't help, he said, that Alemán doesn't have a long history here. She moved from Colorado in 1995 after meeting the man who became her husband, consultant Omar Alemán.

"It's really easy to dislike someone that we don't know," Hodges said.

As for the infamous Felix case, he said the criticism has been unfair.

"Should a judge always do what two attorneys want the judge to do?" Hodges said.

To win her appointment, Alemán completed a lengthy written application and was among the candidates recommended to Bush by a committee after a personal interview.

Malove said the judiciary needs someone "level-headed" and able to build consensus.

He declined to discuss his own religious beliefs, explaining he doesn't want to inject religion into the race. He said he would never make his spirituality a public matter. Instead, he said he hopes voters focus on his unusual background: He holds a bachelor of science degree in the administration of justice from American University and a master's degree in forensic science from George Washington University.

He got his start in 1984 with the Broward Public Defender's Office and later became the training attorney for new lawyers entering the department. He switched to private practice in 1996.

He is married to a photographer, Nadia Cohen Malove, and the couple have two children.

Malove has been endorsed by the Broward County AFL-CIO, the Broward County Council of Professional Firefighters and the Palm Aire Civic Association.

Alemán has been endorsed by the Police Benevolent Association and the Broward Allied Medical Political Action Committee.

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