Dancing around Gomez in New Jersey and Tennessee

As detailed in this post, New Jersey's Attorney General recently submitted a letter to the NJ Supreme Court in the state's pending Blakely case which contends the "Supreme Court of Tennessee [in Gomez] was absolutely correct in its interpretation of Booker."  I found this submission almost comical because Tennessee's own attorney general, as detailed here, has filed a petition to rehear Gomez (as has the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, as detailed here).  The Tennessee Supreme Court's ruling in Gomez finding Blakely inapplicable to Tennessee's sentencing scheme is discussed here, and my explanation of why that ruling seems to rest on a misunderstanding of Apprendi and Blakely is here.

The New Jersey Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, serving as amicus in the NJ Blakely case, has now filed its own letter in the NJ Supreme Court concerning Gomez.  Available for download below, this letter highlights that everyone is seeking rehearing in Gomez.  Getting in an indirect dig at the effort by NJ's AG to use Gomez in New Jersey, the letter closes with this comment:

The Tennessee Attorney General's willingness to place intellectual honesty before political expediency is commendable, if not refreshing.

Download nj_reply_letter_re_gomez.pdf

Relatedly, attorney David Raybin, who has been integrally involved in many Tennessee Blakely developments, was moved by the musical stylings in recent Booker song parody posts here and here to put Gomez to music.  Here are highlights from his fitting effort:

The Blakely Tennessee Waltz (Rewritten by David Raybin)

Sung to the Tennessee Waltz (Originally Written by Pee Wee King and Redd Stewart)

I was appeal’n with my clients to the Tennessee Courts
When some new precedent I happened to see
I introduced it to my client
And while we were appeal’n
The Supreme Court stole my lawsuit from me

I remember the night and the Tennessee Courts
Now I know just how much I have lost
Yes, I lost my little appeal’n
The night they were misconstruing
The beautiful Tennessee Waltz