"Thank God Almighty I'm Free At Last!!"

That joyful cry emanating from 73 West Flagler could only be the sound of one fax machine clapping:

The Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office has decided not to file criminal charges against Circuit Judge David Miller, closing its investigation into a complaint by Circuit Judge Maria Dennis that Miller had shoved her.

The two judges were arguing over a fax machine Oct. 7 when Miller allegedly shoved Dennis. Assistant State Attorney Joe Centorino wrote in his close-out memo that similar allegations made by someone who was not a judge would not result in criminal charges. Dennis had asked that Miller be charged with battery.

''While it may have involved inappropriate behavior by a sitting Miami-Dade Circuit judge, the type of incident is more properly a matter for review by the state of Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission than the subject of a criminal proceeding,'' Centorino wrote this week.

So is the JQC investigating, or is this issue as dead as the rest of the equipment our judges have to deal with over at the courthouse?