Robin Ficker is an American attorney, real estate broker, political activist, and sports heckler who lives in Boyds, Maryland

Boyds, Maryland

Boyds, Maryland is an unincorporated community in rural Montgomery County, Maryland, located north of Washington, DC. Its ZIP Code is 20841.According to the United States 2000 Census, the ZIP Code Tabulation Area for the town of Boyds covers an area of and has a population of 2,025...

.

Education and professional career

Ficker attended United States Military Academy

United States Military Academy

The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...

 for five semesters. He received a B.S. in electrical and mechanical engineering from Case Institute of Technology

Case Western Reserve University

Case Western Reserve University is a private research university located in Cleveland, Ohio, USA...

. Ficker attended the University of Pennsylvania Law School

University of Pennsylvania Law School

The University of Pennsylvania Law School, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the law school of the University of Pennsylvania. A member of the Ivy League, it is among the oldest and most selective law schools in the nation. It is currently ranked 7th overall by U.S. News & World Report,...

, receiving his JD

Juris Doctor

Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...

 from the University of Baltimore

University of Baltimore

The University of Baltimore , located in downtown Baltimore, Maryland in the Mt. Vernon neighborhood at 1420 N. Charles Street, is part of the University System of Maryland. Through the Freshman Initiative or Lower Division Initiative, UB has transformed from an upper division university to a...

 School of Law. Ficker also received an M.A. in public administration from American University

American University

American University is a private, Methodist, liberal arts, and research university in Washington, D.C. The university was chartered by an Act of Congress on December 5, 1892 as "The American University", which was approved by President Benjamin Harrison on February 24, 1893...

 in 1969.

Ficker won two landmark injunctions preventing the state of Maryland from denying access to serious traffic and criminal court records. In 1992 U.S. District Court Judge Nickerson granted Ficker an injunction against provisions of the Maryland Public Information Act that denied access to police reports, criminal charging documents, and traffic citations in the Maryland Automated Traffic System. A 2003 Attorneys General opinion said the 1992 "Ficker order is still in effect and enforceable." In 1997, in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, Ficker successfully challenged the constitutionality of a Maryland law forbidding lawyers from targeted direct-mail solicitation of criminal and traffic defendants within thirty days of arrest.

He has been a member of the Maryland Bar since 1973. His first case went to the Supreme Court of the United States seeking to end the National Football League's blackout of sold out home football games. After allegations of misconduct by the Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland Ficker’s law license was suspended on June 7, 2007, but was reinstated on December 8, 2008, by the Maryland Court of Appeals

Maryland Court of Appeals

The Court of Appeals of Maryland is the supreme court of the U.S. state of Maryland. The court, which is composed of one chief judge and six associate judges, meets in the Robert C. Murphy Courts of Appeal Building in the state capital, Annapolis...

. Ficker became a real estate broker with his own company, Robin Realty, in 2008.

Political career

Ficker has run for numerous state and local offices since the 1970s. His only victory came in his 1978 election to the Maryland House of Delegates

Maryland House of Delegates

The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland, and is composed of 141 Delegates elected from 47 districts. The House chamber is located in the state capitol building on State Circle in Annapolis...

 as a Republican. Ficker represented Montgomery County

Montgomery County, Maryland

Montgomery County is a county in the U.S. state of Maryland, situated just to the north of Washington, D.C., and southwest of the city of Baltimore. It is one of the most affluent counties in the United States, and has the highest percentage of residents over 25 years of age who hold post-graduate...

 from 1979 to 1983.

He ran for U.S. Senate in 2000, coming in fourth in an eight-person Republican primary. Ficker ran for Montgomery County Executive in 2006 receiving 28,063 votes, more than any other independent candidate in county history. However, he still finished in third place (out of three) with less than 10% of the total vote. In 2009, Ficker ran for County Council in District 4 winning a three-way primary with 58% of the vote. As the Republican nominee he lost to Democrat Nancy Navarro 61% to 35%.

In November 2010, running as a Republican for Montgomery County Council District 2, Ficker received the highest percentage of the vote of any Republican candidate for local or state office but lost to State Delegate Craig L. Rice

Craig L. Rice

Craig L. Rice is an American politician, a member of the Montgomery County Council and a former member of the Maryland House of Delegates, representing District 15 in western and northern Montgomery County.-Background:...

 (D-Dist. 15), of Germantown

Germantown, Montgomery County, Maryland

-Demographics:As of the census of 2010, there were 86,395 people, and 30,531 households residing in the area. The population density was 7,999.5 people per square mile . There were 31,807 housing units at an average density of 2,001.9 per square mile...

 59% to 40%.

Ballot initiatives and legal challenges

Since 1974, Ficker has become known for promoting a series of ballot initiatives. The issues range from term limits, curbing tax increases, to limiting budget waste and duplication. He collected as many as 15,000 signatures for each of 20 initiatives, that together received 2 million votes. A county initiative he proposed for the November 2008 ballot received 194,151 votes, prevailing by about 5,000 votes. The measure requires the nine-member Montgomery County Council to vote unanimously to raise property tax revenue above the local limit. The victory earned him the Libertarian Party's Free Market Hero of the week award.

In October 2009, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union

American Civil Liberties Union

The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...

, Ficker convinced parks officials in Montgomery and Prince George's Counties to rescind enforcement of a rule requiring a permit before a person could carry signs or solicit signatures in county parks.

Sports spectator

Ficker is well known as a sports fan. The University of Maryland

University of Maryland

When the term "University of Maryland" is used without any qualification, it generally refers to the University of Maryland, College Park.University of Maryland may refer to the following:...

 wrestling team had Ficker’s support in 2010 with his letter to the Washington Post criticizing the lack of coverage for the Terrapin team, and his attendance at the Atlantic Coast Conference

Atlantic Coast Conference

The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...

 Tournament in Raleigh, North Carolina, and the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championship in Omaha, Nebraska.

Although he last attended an NBA game in April 1998, Ficker is known for his "passionate" support of the NBA's Washington Bullets

Washington Wizards

The Washington Wizards are a professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C., previously known as Washington Bullets. They play in the National Basketball Association .-Early years:...

. For many years, he heckled the opposing team at the games. Ficker had seats at USAir Arena

Capital Centre

The Capital Centre was an indoor arena located in Landover, Maryland, unincorporated Prince George's County, Maryland; a suburb of Washington, D.C. Completed in 1973, the arena sat 18,756 for basketball and 18,130 for hockey....

 immediately behind the visiting bench. When the team moved to the MCI Center

Verizon Center

Verizon Center is a sports and entertainment arena in Washington, D.C., USA, named after telecommunications sponsor Verizon Communications, and has been nicknamed the "Phone Booth" because of its association with telecommunications companies...

, they took the opportunity to reseat Ficker well away from the court. He gave up his seats in response. (Note: This website has a photo of Ficker heckling Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan

Michael Jeffrey Jordan is a former American professional basketball player, active entrepreneur, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats...

.)

Though many players from opposing teams were aware of Ficker, Phoenix Suns

Phoenix Suns

The Phoenix Suns are a professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association and the only team in their division not to be based in California. Their home arena since 1992 has been the US...

 star Charles Barkley

Charles Barkley

Charles Wade Barkley is a former American professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Sir Charles" and "The Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley established himself as one of the National Basketball Association's most dominating power forwards...

 in particular thought so much of him that he flew him out to Phoenix during the 1993 NBA Finals

1993 NBA Finals

The 1993 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1992-93 NBA season, featuring the Chicago Bulls, led by Michael Jordan, and the Phoenix Suns, winners of 62 games and led by regular season MVP Charles Barkley...

. Barkley bought Ficker a ticket directly behind the bench of the visiting Chicago Bulls

Chicago Bulls

The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...

 with the intent that Ficker's taunts would distract the Bulls players. Ficker did not last the first quarter before being removed by America West Arena

US Airways Center

US Airways Center is a sports and entertainment arena located in downtown Phoenix, Arizona. It opened in 1992, and is the home of the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association, the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association, and the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena...

 security.

Family

Ficker's daughter, Desiree Ficker

Desiree Ficker

Desirée Ficker is an American long-distance runner and professional triathlete.- Personal life :Ficker was born in Potomac, Maryland to Annette and Robin Ficker, a perennial political candidate and well-known sports heckler. She has two younger brothers, Robby and Flynn. She currently resides in...

, is a top female professional triathlete, finishing second at the 2006 Ironman Triathlon World Championships in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. Ficker's son, Rob Ficker, has farmed family property, operated a vegetable stand business, and develops butterfly gardens in Florida. Ficker's youngest son, Flynn Ficker, has an MBA and is studying geological engineering. He wrestled 5 years at U.C. Davis

University of California, Davis

The University of California, Davis is a public teaching and research university established in 1905 and located in Davis, California, USA. Spanning over , the campus is the largest within the University of California system and third largest by enrollment...

 and won 140 matches for DeMatha Catholic High School

DeMatha Catholic High School

DeMatha Catholic High School, named after Saint John of Matha, is a four-year Catholic high school for young men located in Hyattsville, Maryland, USA. DeMatha is known for academic achievement, music, arts, service and athletics...

. Dr. Frances Annette Ficker, whose 20-year marriage to Ficker ended in divorce, died on July 31, 2009.

Maryland 2006 Elections

U.S. Senate | U.S. House Maryland congressional elections, 2006 The Maryland Congressional elections of 2006 were held on Tuesday, November 7, 2006. The terms of all eight Representatives to the United States House of Representatives will expire on January 3, 2007, and therefore all were put up for contest...  | Governor Maryland gubernatorial election, 2006 The Maryland gubernatorial election of 2006 was held on November 7, 2006. It was a race for the Governor and Lieutenant Governor of Maryland. The winning candidates -- Martin O'Malley and Anthony G. Brown, who defeated the incumbent Gov...  | State Assembly Maryland General Assembly Election, 2006 The most recent election to choose members of the Maryland General Assembly was held on Tuesday, November 7, 2006. The U.S. House election, 2006, U.S. Senate election, 2006, and Maryland gubernatorial election, 2006 occurred the same day...  | County Exec Maryland County Executive Election, 2006 The election to choose County Executives in Maryland occurred on Tuesday, November 7, 2006. The U.S. House election, 2006, U.S. Senate election, 2006, Maryland gubernatorial election, 2006, and Maryland General Assembly Election, 2006 took place on the same day...  | County Offices