Fort Myers Federal Court judge slaps TikTok Antifa Internet terror with $62K in fees, then lets him ignore it.
LUTHMANN NOTE: Fort Myers Federal Court Judge E. Steele just told America what sanctions mean in his courtroom: nothing until the very end. He found bad faith. He imposed $62,000 in fees. Then he admitted that his own order had no deadline or teeth, so nonpayment violates nothing. That is not accountability. That is delay as doctrine. For litigants like Fort Myers Plastic Surgeon Dr. Ralph Garramone, it confirms a brutal truth. You can spend millions defending your name, win a sanctions order, and still get no relief. This is the age of the troll. If federal courts will not enforce their own orders, why should anyone believe they enforce justice? This piece is “Sanctions Optional in Federal Court.”
By M. Thomas Nast and Richard Luthmann
The Hammer Came Down in August, We Thought
(FORT MYERS, FLORIDA) – For a brief moment, the Fort Myers federal court looked like it had found its backbone. Then came the order on February 11, 2026.
Danesh Noshirvan dragged Jennifer Couture and her husband, Dr. Ralph Garramone, into the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. The case landed before Senior Judge John E. Steele, a Bill Clinton appointee who took senior status in 2015.
The roots of Noshirvan v. Couture trace back to a 2022 altercation in a Dunkin’ Donuts parking lot in Southwest Florida. What should have ended as a routine dispute spiraled into a viral social media saga. Danesh Noshirvan seized on the incident, blasted allegations online, and turned a local confrontation into a national outrage campaign.
Jennifer Couture was at the center of the clash, charged by local State Attorney Amira Fox, after an AI-driven bot campaign flooded Lee County, Florida, law enforcement with hundreds of calls per day demanding Couture’s arrest. Prosecutor Fox generally does a good job. However, here law enforcement was hoodwinked by a sophisticated Antifa operator utilizing AI-driven bots to simulate real outrage.
Now, no one wants to admit how easy it is for foreign-backed paid agitators to run a disinformation campaign on law enforcement and governmental arms, including the Fort Myers federal court.
Dr. Ralph Garramone and Garramone Plastic Surgery are incidental participants, not political players, not agitators, and not influencers. They were dragged in after the fact. In their filings, GPS frames itself as an “innocent bystander” caught in Noshirvan’s digital crossfire, forced into federal court to defend its name against what it calls a sustained social media terror campaign.
Why? Because Dr. Garramone is a world-class plastic surgeon – talented, successful, and wealthy. The Noshirvan lawsuit is an ambulance-chaser’s dream, and he found one in the person of shady Antifa-linked Lake Worth, Florida, Attorney Nicholas Chiappetta.
Noshirvan is tied to hard-left activist networks, feeding the digital trough upon which Antifa agitators feast. National reporting has described him as a political provocateur who amplifies outrage campaigns and targets ideological opponents online. He has also posted or circulated personal information connected to conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices during periods of national controversy.
He teams up with others who are like-minded, including the notorious online bully, Mr. James McGibney, and, admittedly, produced commercial pornography with his wife.
Noshirvan denies wrongdoing and frames his conduct as protected speech and activism. But to his victims, the pattern is clear: aggressive online targeting, high-profile conservatives in the crosshairs, and a platform built on confrontation rather than restraint.
Judge Steele found “subjective bad faith.” He said Danesh’s conduct was intentional; it crossed the line. The record was ugly. Judge Steele found Noshirvan disrupted a deposition with threats and profanity. He found social media posts that were “inflammatory” and “false,” designed to “incite” harassment, and that served “no purpose” other than intimidation.
That was not a slap on the wrist. That was a judicial body blow. Steele seemingly issued a warning shot. He said conduct that “disrupts” litigation or “incites” harassment could trigger dismissal. He publicly reprimanded Noshirvan’s lawyer, Nicholas Chiappetta, for court-related conduct.
Then Steele opened the meter. He ordered the parties to confer on fees. If they could not agree, they were to file. They did not agree. Garramone Plastic Surgery moved to set the number.
On October 30, 2025, Judge Steele put a price tag on the chaos: $62,320 in attorney’s fees. In so doing, he trimmed Duane Morris LLP’s $100K request and Miami lawyer rates. He cut the fat from the billing sheets. Judge Steele set lead counsel Harvey Gurland at $600 per hour. He set Julian Jackson-Fannin at $450. He set Anoosheh Shaikh at $300. He capped paralegals at $200.
He denied $2,739.06 in expenses as vague. He denied a $3,000 request for an expert fee tied to rate opinions.
The order closed with a clean table and a clean total.
It looked like justice had teeth.
Sanctions Optional in Federal Court: February Brought the Big Reveal
The $62,000 sanction did not end the war. It exposed it.
On December 5, 2025, Garramone Plastic Surgery went back to Judge Steele. They filed a motion to show cause. They asked the Court to hold Danesh Noshirvan in contempt. They told the Court the obvious: he had not paid “any portion” of the sanction. Not a dollar. Not a gesture. Nothing.
They also told the Court Danesh was still online. Still posting. Still repeating the deposition “sexual assault” narrative that the Court had already found inflammatory and false.
Danesh opposed the motion on December 16, 2025. He fought enforcement the way he fights everything — deny, deflect, delay.
Then came February 11, 2026. Judge Steele denied the motion, framing it as civil contempt. He said contempt is a blunt instrument requiring “clear and convincing” proof. Judge Steele said the underlying order must be “clear and unambiguous.”
Then came the moment that froze the room. Judge Steele looked at the August 2025 sanctions order — the one he authored — and said it contained no deadline. It was silent. He even said that GPS admitted the order was silent. And silence, the Court held, equals immunity.
No payment date meant no violation. No violation meant no contempt. The sanction stood — but only in theory.
Then Judge Steele added the kicker. The $62,320 will be included in the final judgment. It will be addressed “at the conclusion” of the district court proceedings. That could be months. It could be years before all the appeals are done.
GPS also pointed to fresh YouTube and Instagram clips. The same deposition assault claim. The same digital gasoline. But Judge Steele said it didn’t cross the line, noting Danesh “did not name the lawyer or the firm.”
Refusing “the drastic sanction” of dismissal, Judge Steele said there was no evidence the latest posts caused harassment of GPS or counsel.
So the case lives. The sanction sits unpaid. And there is still no due date for justice.
In federal court, that is a technicality. For a social media terrorist, that is oxygen.
Sanctions Optional in Federal Court: Requests for Comment Denied
We asked Dr. Garramone, Jennifer Couture, and their lawyers for comment. Couture responded, “As much as we’d like to speak, we’ve been instructed by counsel to trust the court process. So, no comment at this time.”
Here is what we asked:
From: Richard Luthmann <ri**************@********il.com>
Date: On Thursday, February 12th, 2026 at 9:22 AM
Subject: COMMENT REQUEST: Judge Steele’s Order, Sanctions Enforcement, and Ongoing Harassment Claims
To: Jennifer Couture <je*@*******ne.com>, Dr. Ralph Garramone <Rg********@*******ne.com>, Aaron Alfano <aa*****@*********ry.com>, **@***sq.com <**@***SQ.COM>, hw*******@*********is.com <HW*******@*********is.com>, Jackson-Fannin, Julian A. <jj******@*********is.com>
CC: Frank Parlato <fr**********@***il.com>, Michael Volpe <mv*******@***il.com>, Rick LaRivière <Ri***********@****on.me>, Dick LaFontaine <RA**********@********il.com>, Modern Thomas Nast <mt*********@********il.com>, Frankie Pressman <fr*************@********il.com>Dear Dr. Garramone, Ms. Couture, and Counsel,
We are preparing a detailed follow-up report regarding Judge Steele’s recent Order (attached), the sanctions issues now before the Court, and the broader question of whether meaningful relief is being enforced in the Florida federal courts.
As you know, the Court stated:
“The evidence provided by GPS does not show that GPS, Garramone, Couture, or their respective counsel have faced harassment after the comments were posted on Noshirvan’s own social media.”
We request clarification on the following:
1. Do you dispute the Court’s finding that no post-comment harassment has been demonstrated? Do Danesh Noshirvan and his online minions continue to terrorize you and your business?
2. Are GPS, Dr. Garramone, Ms. Couture, or counsel continuing to experience digital harassment, coordinated follower attacks, bot amplification, doxxing-style targeting, or reputational campaigns connected to Mr. Noshirvan or his online network?
3. If so, was such evidence presented to the Court, and if not, why?
4. Have any incidents been documented, preserved for litigation, or referred to law enforcement? Is an arrest imminent?
Additionally, we seek comment on enforcement:
5. Have court-ordered sanctions been paid in full or in part? The record shows that GPS has promptly paid Court-ordered sanctions.
6. If not, what enforcement mechanisms are currently being pursued? Are any still available aside from a “set-off” at the conclusion of trial?
7. Is it your position that sanctions compliance is now discretionary, or that federal court orders are being meaningfully enforced (even in the absence of actual enforcement mechanisms)?
8. Does this mark a change in litigation strategy as the Fort Myers Federal Court has effectively extended a “License to Dox” and engage in poor, harassing, and even terrorizing behavior with relative impunity?
9. More broadly, should the public interpret this case as evidence that federal courts remain an effective forum for relief in digital harassment matters — or as an example of federal litigation as of limited practical consequence and an exercise in cost and futility?
Given the public interest in judicial authority, sanctions enforcement, and alleged weaponized online conduct, we intend to publish with or without comment. Please respond to us as soon as possible. If we receive your comments after press time, we will incorporate the same into a follow-up. There is much to be said about this issue.
Thank you for your attention to this matter!
Regards,
Richard Luthmann
Writer, Journalist, and Commentator
Tips or Story Ideas:
(239) 631-5957
ri**************@********il.com
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Noshirvan previously evaded questioning, admitting to being a paid agitator funded by foreign sources and professing alliegance to Sharia law.
If we hear from him further, we will incorporate his response in a follow-up.
Sanctions Optional in Federal Court: A License to Misbehave, By Design
This is a pattern, not a paperwork glitch, a “license to doxx.” A denied protective order earlier in this case let litigants weaponize discovery. It quoted Judge Kyle C. Dudek (now an Article III Judge appointed by Trump) as saying there was “too little information” to seal materials. That ruling forced “public opinion” warfare.
At the same time, the defense feared “fodder” for doxxing from discovery. It described tax records and redactions of Social Security and EIN numbers.
“This is not about free speech,” Attorney Patrick Trainor said.
That line matters now. The court can punish speech tied to litigation abuse if the court writes in clear triggers for punishment. Judge Steele’s $62,320 ruling was a “boom.” But this latest February order, basically claiming that previous orders were “toothless,” drains all urgency, invites abuse, challenges popular perceptions that court orders are mandatory, and decouples the federal courts from common sense.
The forward-looking implications are even bigger. Doxxing is now “a courtroom strategy” in Fort Myers federal court. Judges continue to “look away” while mobs form.
Great! Who needs the courts when we have digital mob rule? Maybe that’s not the government we want, but according to the couts, it’s the government we have.
Judge Steele’s February order sits on a tight legal rail. Contempt needs a clear order. But he said his own order lacked that clarity, parking the sanction for later collection. He also refused dismissal without proof of new harassment.
That is how “sanctions are optional” becomes a headline. The court did not erase the sanction; it delayed the pain. In the age of the troll, the federal courts just granted a new license to misbehave, by design.
“I think it’s brilliant,” said journalist Richard Luthmann, who also has a case against Noshirvan in the same courthouse. “This ruling confirms that most actions during federal litigation are immediate consequence-free. If the goal is total victory, courtroom sanctions are no longer a meaningful deterrent if you can make the other side fold through other, non-litigation means.”
Luthmann also relished in the “see no evil approach.”
“I’ve been saying it for a while, that the Emperor Has No Clothes. But I was wrong about who was naked,” he said. “In this ruling, the federal courts just showed their bare ass by fleeing from common sense and popular perceptions of justice and the effectiveness of the courts. So we can investigate the senility and dementia of, and even defame, a senior status Libtard judge appointed by a pedophile President in a federal court district. But it’s not an issue because we don’t name the specific judge or the specific distirct. That make sense. Just like the death threats called in to Duane Morris LLP attorneys by Danesh’s cabal were imaginary. ‘Make Believe’ cuts both ways.”
Sanctions Optional in Federal Court: What’s Left For Garramone and Other Targets
Ralph Garramone is not a politician or a mega-influencer on social media. He runs a private medical practice and treats patients at his Fort Myers office and local hospitals. He’s well-respected, board-certified, and long-tenured locally.
That is the man caught in this grinder.
Couture and Garramone have said Noshirvan uses his platform to target them, and he hasn’t stopped with his “ugly Internet mess.” That is why the sanction mattered. It was supposed to slow the salacious content machine and focus the dispute back into the courtroom. It will have the exact opposite effect.
The case itself grew out of the internet fight. Judge Steele’s August sanctions order tied the sanction to disruption and “incitement,” saying Danesh’s posts falsely claimed a lawyer said Black people “look like monsters.”
In August, the transcript did not support that claim, and the posts tried to mobilize foreseeable harassment.
Now the targets face a new reality. They can win a sanction and still wait forever to collect. Judge Steele says he will stack the $62,320 into a final judgment later. Until then, Danesh’s GoFundMe pleas fund the defense.
They also watch the case remain on the docket.
Judge Steele refused dismissal and cited “no proof” of post-video harassment. Harassment often hides off-platform and off-screen, but it’s not “real” for federal court purposes. Tell that to widow Lori De La Torre, immigrant medical doctor Poneh Rahimi, Navy rape survivor Rebecca Martin, and the hundreds of other Victims of Danesh.
But Judge Steele demanded evidence in the high court, not fumes online or common knowledge within the vulgate. “Tell your Godfather what everyone else seems to already know.”
So the sanction sits in limbo.
The message to future litigants is brutal. If you want teeth, get a judge who’ll put a due date in their order or stay the hell out of federal court to get your justice.
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