Attacks on Gov. Rick Scott’s Medicaid move mask Adam Putnam’s big-spending record

Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam’s headline-grabbing criticism of fellow Republican Rick Scott over expanding Medicaid highlighted just how much the governor flip-flopped on government spending and entitlement programs.

But Putnam has a more extensive record of supporting expensive entitlements and big-government spending.

As a member of Congress from 2001-2011, Putnam voted for budget-busting legislation — including the massive Medicare prescription-drug entitlement program estimated to cost nearly $1 trillion over a decade. Putnam also stuffed the federal budget with hometown-spending and helped override vetoes by President Bush on what the White House called a “fiscally irresponsible” Medicare bill and a $300 billion farm bill.

Years later, Putnam called Scott’s call to expand Medicaid as irresponsible, costly and “naive.”

“Throughout my career as a public servant, I have fought for issues important to Floridians based on my belief in conservative values and smaller government,” Putnam said in a written statement.

“I have a strong record of supporting economic growth and ensuring taxpayer dollars are used to support valuable public programs and services,” he said, implicitly drawing a distinction between the Medicare program he voted to expand in 2003 and Scott’s request to expand Medicaid under President Obama’s health plan, which Putnam opposed in Congress in 2009.

The fallout between Scott and Putnam stoked speculation that Putnam might challenge Scott in a GOP primary next year. Putnam’s office downplayed the talk.

The GOP discord —as well as the tensions between each man’s rhetoric and record — is also emblematic of Obama-era Republican struggles. Many Republicans spent big under Bush then became deficit hawks under Obama. They railed against Obama policies, only to tacitly support some of them in the end.

Putnam said his opposition to Obamacare has been consistent.

Scott’s hasn’t.

Scott’s Feb. 20 call to expand Medicaid was an abrupt about-face for a man who campaigned against Obamacare — first as a private citizen, then as a candidate for governor. With low and stagnant polls numbers, Scott’s move was widely seen in Tallahassee political circles as a political move to the center.

Putnam, voicing widespread GOP concerns over Scott, struck quickly in a speech, press interviews, web postings and even a Republican Party of Florida email.

“I think we all have an obligation to look beyond the window of our own time in public life and think about the long-term impact of these policies in Florida,” Putnam told The Tampa Bay Times days after Scott’s Medicaid announcement.

The criticisms — about thinking long-term and leaving politics behind — were said years ago, in 2003, by conservative leaders who practically begged Capitol Hill Republicans like Putnam not to expand Medicare under Bush for political gain.

The measure barely passed in the GOP-controlled House. Years later, when Republicans lost the House, the measure was held up as a defining moment when the party lost its way.

Many conservatives haven’t forgotten, though they’ve forgiven.

“A lot of politicians and the political class think there was a reset with Obama,” said Mark Cross, an early tea party leader in Central Florida. “But voters remember your record.”

Read More..

Near-record warm winter for South Florida

Winter won’t officially be over for a few weeks but it’s already been a near-record warm one in South Florida – not including the cold front rolling through this weekend.

From December through February, Miami recorded the third warmest winter on record, the National Weather Service’s Miami office reported Friday. The average temperature of 72.3 degrees was 2.7 degrees warmer than normal.

Fort Lauderdale and Naples recorded the fifth warmest winters and West Palm Beach the ninth.

In Miami and Fort Lauderdale, November 2012 actually wound up colder than any of the three following winter months, the Weather Service said – something that has happened only twice since 1910.

Read More..

Driver gets 6 years for hit-run death of 11-year-old

A Miami-Dade County judge on Thursday sentenced a driver for the 2009 hit-and-run death of an 11-year-old girl to six years in prison, plus eight years of probation.

Harvey Abraham, 37, was convicted in November of fleeing the scene where he struck and killed Ashley Nicole Valdes as she crossed a West Kendall street on Jan. 8, 2009.

He was arrested after a citizen who had been following the case saw Abraham’s Ford F-150 outside a South Miami auto body shop. Abraham took the truck to the shop and filed an insurance claim after the crash, saying he was the victim.

On Thursday, Judge Thomas J. Rebull decried Abraham’s decision to flee the scene.

“Mr. Abraham, if you had just stopped, even if there was nothing you could do to help Ashley Valdez, I can’t imagine you would be facing what you are facing,” he said.

Abraham received six years in prison plus four years of reporting probation for leaving the scene of an accident involving death. For tampering with evidence by attempting to have his truck repaired, he received an additional four years of probation.

Read More..

Broward government executive drops outs of Miami Beach city manager race

Monica Cepero has dropped out of Miami Beach’s search for a city manager.

Currently an assistant to the Broward County administrator, Cepero was one of three finalists being considered for the job.

In a letter emailed to city commissioners at about 11 p.m. on Tuesday, Cepero wrote: “The nature of this process has made it clear to me that this position is not the right one for me, at this time.”

Miami Beach has been without a city manager since July 2012, when former City Manager Jorge Gonzalez was forced to resign amid corruption scandals — though he was never implicated in any, and actually reported some of the shenanigans himself to law enforcement.

The city conducted a nationwide search for a new top administrator, which is when Cepero applied for the position. But commissioners were unhappy with the candidates brought forward by a headhunter, and added their own to the mix.

“She may be questioning the commission’s seriousness in finalizing this process,” Vice Mayor Michael Góngora said.

Cepero called the search for a new city manager “protracted” and noted in her letter that she was the only finalist who had been involved in the search from the beginning. The other two finalists — former Miami-Dade County commissioner and current Doral City Attorney Jimmy Morales, and longtime City of Miami administrator Frank Rollason — were handpicked by commissioners to be considered for the position.

Cepero did not return a phone call for comment.

Miami Beach Commissioner Jerry Libbin was reluctant to speculate about why Cepero has withdrawn her name from the process.

“I tend to take people at face value. There’s no reason for me to think there’s anything more or anything less,” than what’s included in her letter, Libbin said.

Góngora and Libbin are running for mayor in the November election.

Cepero also wrote that other municipalities have contacted her for city manager positions during the Miami Beach search, but that the other job offers didn’t affect her decision.

“My decision to withdraw is based on my evaluation of a mutual fit with the organization,” she wrote.

Follow @Cveiga on Twitter.

Read More..

Homestead, farmer look to settle lawsuit with Air Force

The Homestead City Council met Monday night to discuss settling a lawsuit that the U.S. Attorney’s Office filed on behalf of Homestead Air Reserve Base against the city and a family farm near the base.

For decades, the city has struggled to find a balance between property owners’ rights and base officials’ safety concerns. The lawsuit, filed in 2011, alleged that the city had ignored safety restrictions after it allowed Alger Farms to develop residential units near the end of the base’s runway.

Alger Farms President John Alger said he had no intention of building the residential units or selling the property to developers. But Air Force officials were concerned the city was putting lives at risk since Alger Farms lies in the flight paths of F-16s, F-15s and other warplanes that pass 750 feet overhead while coming in for a landing.

“We have no immediate desire for development,” said Alger, a third-generation farmer. “But the development rights allow us to preserve a hypothetical value that can be used for collateral.”

City restrictions established in 2010 limit development in an area of Homestead that the Air Force calls “the accident potential crash zone.”

Councilman Stephen Shelley said this week he worked on a settlement agreement that respects the safety restrictions.

“The settlement will benefit all of the parties involved,” Shelley said. “The solution is so simple. I’m not sure why we didn’t think of it before.”

Shelley said the deal would allow Alger to transfer his development rights to another property he owns that is not in the danger zone.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office filed the lawsuit after the city allowed Alger Farms to build one residential unit per five acres. This translated into 48 housing units in Alger’s 240 acres. The new proposal would allow Alger to transfer the right to build those units to another tract he owns in the city.

The other site “is not the greatest place for homes, but I still have this value,” Alger said.

With the new deal, Alger would have the right to build 55.4 units on a 37-acre property, because he would have the 7.4 units inherent to the 37 acres and the 48 units transferred. Shelley said there would not be a density issue.

“We clustered the density into an area that is not compromising the safety and it’s much less dense than what’s adjacent to it,” Alger said.

Alger’s grandfather, Mason W. Alger, started farming the land in 1934, and in 1942 military planes started taking off and landing at the base nearby. Alger’s father, Richard Alger, and his grandfather purchased land from South Dade farms in the late 1950s. They now grow sweet corn, snap beans, and trees for landscaping.

The base is home to units of the Air Force Reserve Command, Florida Army National Guard, Florida Air National Guard, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Coast Guard, and Special Operations Command South.

When Alger found out that the restrictions affected his land, he thought the U.S. Constitution and Florida’s Bert J. Harris Act, which passed in 1995, protected him. The act allows property owners to seek remedies against government regulations causing an "inordinate burden."

But the U.S. Attorney’s lawsuit questioned the existence of Alger’s development rights. Before the council granted Alger Farms the right to build the residential units, city staff and city attorneys said Alger Farms didn’t have any development rights in the first place, because it lost them after annexation into the city in 1996. Alger disagreed.

“It’s an asset,” Alger said. “The federal government was asking me to devalue an asset without compensation.”

Alger said he is in agreement with the settlement that Shelley is proposing. Now he hopes that military officials will be in agreement too.

The settlement the council discussed Monday night will come up for a final vote within the next month or so, Shelley said.

“My family is very anxious to get our name off that lawsuit,” said Alger. “Imagine that your government is suing you because you want to preserve your rights. So I can spend money paying my lawyers while my government uses my own money to pay for their lawyers.”

Read More..

Poll: 7 in 10 back FL medical-marijuana plan, could affect governor’s race

As many as seven in 10 Florida voters support a state constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana – more than enough to ensure passage and possibly affect the governor’s race — according to a new poll from a group trying to put the measure on the 2104 ballot.

Medical pot’s sky-high approval cuts across party and demographic lines, with Republican support the lowest at a still-strong 56 percent, the poll conducted for People United for Medical Marijuana, or PUFMM, shows.

The outsized support of Democrats and independents brings overall backing of the amendment to 70 percent; with only 24 percent opposed, according to the poll obtained by The Miami Herald.

Regionally, voters from the Miami and Orlando areas, among the most socially liberal in the state, want medical marijuana the most.

Non-Hispanic white women, blacks and Hispanics — all Democratic leaning — are the most-likely to back the measure and could be more likely to turn out to vote in two years if the medical marijuana makes the ballot.

“Supporters of the proposed amendment are less certain to cast ballots in the 2014 governor’s race,” David Beattie, Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson’s pollster, wrote in an analysis of the poll of 600 registered voters taken Jan. 30-Feb. 3 by his firm, Hamilton Campaigns.

If it made the ballot, the measure would draw even more attention to Florida’s nationally watched 2014 election in which Gov. Rick Scott will fight for his political life.

“The proposal to allow the medical use of marijuana could provide a message contrast in the Governor’s race,” Beattie wrote, “heightening its effectiveness as a turnout mechanism.”

But, Beattie warns PUFMM in a memo, “don’t frame turnout efforts on the passage of the ballot initiative in a partisan way.”

To that end, former-Republican-operative-turned-Libertarian Roger Stone is planning to join PUFMM’s efforts to give it a bipartisan feel.

A longtime backer of marijuana legalization, Stone, a Miami Beach resident, is seriously considering a run for governor, where he’ll likely advocate for the initiative called “Right to Marijuana for Treatment Purposes.”

On the Democratic side, former Nelson and Hillary Clinton fundraiser Ben Pollara, of Coral Gables, is signing up as the group’s treasurer. Pollara said they’ve had discussions with Eric Sedler, managing partner at Chicago-based ASGK Public Strategies, which he started in 2002 with former White House advisor David Axelrod, still a President Obama advisor.

“The poll numbers were very encouraging,” Pollara said. “But it’s still a Herculean effort.”

That’s because Florida’s Legislature and voters have made it tougher than ever to get measures on the ballot by citizen petition. PUFMM needs to collect the valid signatures of 683,149 Florida voters. That could cost up to $3.5 million.

Right now, PUFMM has raised just $41,000 and has collected only 100,000 signatures, not all of which are valid. Some might be too old because they were collected as far back as 2009.

PUFMM’s Florida director, Kimberly Russell, said the group hopes that this poll and the top-notch campaign minds could turn things around.

“If we get this on the ballot, we have a great chance of getting this passed,” Russell said. “The more these pass in other states, the more people support it everywhere else.”

Read More..

Cessna crashes into Biscayne Bay; four people rescued near Homestead

A Cessna carrying four people crashed into the waters of Biscayne Bay Sunday afternoon within Bayfront Park in Homestead.

The crash occurred at around noon. Four people onboard were rescued from the water by Miami-Dade fire rescue workers,” said U. S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Jon-Paul Rios.

The plane was headed to the Florida Keys at the time of the accident.

“We understand the crash happened at the water entrance to the park,” Rios said.

The four onboard suffered minor injuries but were transported to local hospital for treatment.

It’s unknown if the plane was attempting an emergency landing in the water or crashed. The incident is under investigation

At this time, the Cessna remains submerged in the bay.

“We have sent out a Coast Guard vessel to determine if its a hazard to navigation,” Rios said.

An earlier version of this story implied the crash was near Miami’s Bayfront Park.

Read More..

South Florida “dreamers” gather for information, maybe some financial aid

Carmen cleans Miami houses for $200 a week. So she turned up as early as she could Saturday at Miami Dade College to ask for the $465 grant that would pay for the application to legalize her undocumented daughter’s immigration status.

“This is a blessing,” the Peru-born Carmen said as she waited nervously, green application folder in hand, to chat with one of the immigration rights activists manning desks around the MDC classroom.

A coalition of activist groups hosting the session Saturday was taking the first applications from low-income migrants for the $465 grants – the cost of applying for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program for undocumented youths.

The volunteers were also, as they have been doing at 14 to 15 clinics since August, providing legal advice to youths and parents dealing with a sometimes confusing process of filing the DACA applications to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

“We work hard so they can have a future,” said Sandra Leyes, an Argentine who arrived in 2000 on a tourist visa with her then 3-year-old son. Gian is now a high school freshman with hopes of becoming a doctor with a specialty in sports medicine.

Leyes said she and Gian were at the clinic to make sure his application was correct and avoid having to pay an immigration lawyer for counsel, but they did not need the $465.

But Carmen said she definitely needs the money because her income barely covers costs. Her daughter Marianne is a senior in high school – top 10 percent of her class – and wants to be an architect.

Colombia-born dishwasher José said it would take his family months to save up the money for his son’s DACA application — if no one gets sick because they have no health insurance. Like others at the sessions, he asked that his last name not be published for fear of repercussions.

Immigrant rights activist Gaby Pacheco said the coalition sponsoring the clinics is hoping to provide the $465 grants to least 50 low-income youths. The groups already have received a $10,000 gift from the Fragomen law firm in Coral Gables.

Most of the DACA applicants seen at the South Florida clinics have been from Latin America, but one came from South Africa and another said he was a Roma – a gypsy – whose father might have been born in Bulgaria.

Youths at the clinic Saturday seemed to prefer to speak in English, jelled their hair in the latest style, wore tight jeans and hoodies and played with smart phones and portable game consoles. Their parents preferred to speak Spanish.

Manning the DACA information and application desks during Saturday’s session at the MDC InterAmerican campus on 27th Avenue and Southwest Eighth Street were law students from Florida International University, the University of Miami and St. Thomas University.

An immigration attorney reviewed the completed DACA applications, and then sent the youths and families to the Ecuador-born Pacheco if they wanted to apply for the $465 grants.

The volunteers have seen about 30 potential applicants at each of the clinics for undocumented youths held all around South Florida since August and completed applications with about 75 percent of them, Pacheco added.

The volunteers also are taking a survey in the hopes of explaining why the number of undocumented youths applying for DACA is far below the estimates of how many would apply.

Estimates of the number of undocumented youths in Florida alone range from 85,000 to 160,000. But the latest U.S. government report showed 19,336 individuals have requested DACA in the state.

Jose Machado, a leader of the group Students Working for Equal Rights (SWER), has said his own study showed the top reason for the gap is the $465 cost of the application to DHS.

Some fears of deportations may also linger, said Juan Carlos Gomez, head of the Carlos A. Costa Immigration and Human Rights Clinic at the FIU law school. And perhaps some have been waiting for the politics of immigration reform to settle down.

Republican presidential candidates promised tough anti-immigration policies if elected, Gomez noted. And now Republicans and Democrats in Congress have been talking about different immigration reforms.

Among the groups sponsoring the clinic and grant projects are SWER, Gomez’ clinic at FIU, the Florida Immigrant Coalition, and DREAMERs’ Moms. Their next clinic will be from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. on March 2 at the FIU law school, 11200 S.W. Eighth St.

Read More..

In David Rivera investigation, suspected ringer charged in federal court in $81,485 scheme

A one-time candidate whose suspicious campaign finances led to an investigation of former Miami Congressman David Rivera was formally charged Friday in federal court with three crimes.

Justin Lamar Sternad pleaded not guilty to conspiracy, false-statement and illegal campaign-contribution charges.

Sternad, however, is expected to strike a plea deal as he cooperates with federal authorities as part of their investigation into Rivera, a Republican, and the former U.S. representative's close friend, Ana Alliegro, who managed Sternad's disastrous campaign. Sternad ran as a Democrat.

Neither Rivera nor Alliegro is listed by name in the 10-page federal charging document, which lists nameless “co-conspirators.”

The co-conspirators helped steer $81,485 in cash to Sternad, who intentionally disguised the illegal campaign contributions by failing to list them on his federal campaign-finance reports.

The money paid for printing and mailing services for a batch of fliers, some of which attacked a Rivera rival, Democrat Joe Garcia, who beat Sternad in the Aug. 14 Democratic primary for the Kendall-to-Key West Congressional District 26 seat. Garcia went on to beat Rivera in the general election.

During the primary, Garcia's campaign complained that Sternad was a ringer, a stand-in attack dog doing Rivera's bidding.

Rivera, who has maintained his innocence, refused comment but pointed to past statements in which he said he never has been informed by authorities of a federal investigation.

Read More..

South Florida existing home sales, prices rose again in January

The median price of an existing single-family home in Miami-Dade County rose 14.8 percent to $194,000 in January from a year earlier, according to the Miami Association of Realtors.

The median price of a condominium in Miami-Dade jumped 24.1 percent year over year.

Compared with December 2012, the median price for a single family home fell 9.4 percent in January and was off 4.9 percent for condos.

Sales of previously owned homes and condos in Miami-Dade rose 7.5 percent in January to 1,947 units. That included a 19.1 percent spike in the sale of existing single-family homes while condo sales were essentially flat, with a 0.3 percent increase in volume year over year.

The scenario was similar in Broward County, where the median price of an existing single-family home jumped 24.5 percent to $224,088 in January from a year earlier, according to the Greater Fort Lauderdale Realtors.

The median price of a condominium or townhouse in Broward increased 26.5 percent to $94,900 in January from a year earlier.

Sales of single-family-home in Broward increased 15.3 percent in January to 1,033 from a year earlier, while closings on townhouses and condos increased 10.7 percent year over year, the Realtors group said.

Extremely tight inventory continues to shape South Florida’s recovering housing market.

“There’s like nothing for sale. Inventory is so tight,’’ said Lisa Dority, an agent with REMAX/Advance Realty. “When something comes on the market, it’s a stampede with multiple offers and back-up contracts.’’

In Miami-Dade, the total inventory of residences available for sale plunged 10.7 percent in January to 13,316 from a year earlier, with single-family home inventory down 12.9 percent and existing condominium listings off 9.3 percent, the Miami Realtors group said.

In Broward, the number of single-family homes available for sale on the multi-listings service plunged 26.5 percent in January to 4,510 from a year earlier. The number of available listings of condos and townhouses on the market was down 11.2 percent year over year to 6,407 units in Broward in January, the group said.

The months of supply of existing single-family homes fell to 3.8 months in Broward, while the inventory of condos and townhouses shrank to 4.7 months. A six-month supply of homes for sale is considered a balanced market between buyers and sellers, while a lower level favors sellers, helping fuel price increases, Realtors say.

Broward homes are selling more quickly and for levels closer to their asking prices in Broward. In January, existing single-family homes fetched 93.4 percent of their listing price, up from 90.9 percent a year earlier. Condos and townhouses went for 93.8 perenct of their asking price, an increase of 1.4 percent from a year earlier.

The median days on the market was 48 for a single-family home, down from 53 a year earlier, and 42 days for a condo or townhouse, down from 43 in January 2012.

“I’m seeing strength right across the board,’’ said Charles Bonfiglio, president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Realtors and head of AAA Realty Group. Many Broward residences are fetching multiple offers, frequently above the asking price, he said.

Statewide in Florida, sales of existing homes jumped 11.7 percent in January to 13,679 units from a year earlier, while condominium and townhouse sales totaled 6,670 units, a 2 percent increase year over year, according to the Florida Association of Realtors.

The median sales price for a single-family existing home across Florida rose 12.4 percent to $145,000 in January from a year earlier while the median price for condomiums and townhouses was up 18 percent year over year to $112,000, the Florida Realtors said.

Read More..

No mistrial after surprise evidence surfaces in trial of Miami cop-killing suspect

A judge won’t grant a mistrial, for now, in the case of cop-killing suspect Dennis Escobar after a startling police audiotape surfaced that could taint the man’s confession.

Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Leon Firtel made the decision against the backdrop of history: In 1997, the Florida Supreme Court threw out Escobar’s original conviction and death sentence. It took until last week for Escobar to finally begin his new trial.

“I don’t want to deny the defendant his rights but this judge has an obligation to the State of Florida to get this case to trial after 15 years,” a frustrated Firtel told prosecutors and defense lawyers, who had agreed to ask for a mistrial.

Firtel on Monday will reconsider granting a mistrial after lawyers hash out more legal issues. Jurors, for now, are on standby.

Escobar, 52, is accused of shooting Miami Officer Victor Estefan to death after the veteran officer pulled him and his brother, Douglas Escobar, over in a stolen Mazda in Little Havana in March 1988.

The brothers fled to California, where they were wounded in a shootout with highway patrol troopers about 180 miles north of Los Angeles.

Police have long maintained that Escobar, while in a California prison hospital room, agreed to waive his right to remain silent and talk to Miami homicide detectives. Three days later, he confessed to killing Estefan.

But on Sunday, an unmarked, undated cassette tape was found in an evidence box that depicted Escobar refusing to speak, instead telling Detective Jorge Morin to talk to his lawyer.

Morin himself discovered the tape and alerted prosecutor Reid Rubin, who immediately turned it over to Escobar’s defense team.

With the case significantly weakened, prosecutors floated an offer to the brothers: no death penalty if they plead guilty and agreed to life in prison.

Escobar has yet to decide whether to accept the deal. The brothers are already serving a life prison term in California for the attack on the troopers.

Defense attorney Phillip Reizenstein may also ask the judge to throw out the confession. That would deliver a major blow to the prosecution’s case in this trial — or a future one.

As Escobar mulled the plea offer Tuesday night, prosecutors found a second audiotape, this one of Escobar’s interview with California detectives investigating the attack on the highway patrol troopers.

The second tape wasn’t wholly a surprise: Lawyers on each side long had a transcript of that interview.

But the additional discovery was enough that Judge Firtel ordered lawyers to listen to and document every tape left in evidence, about 15 or so, to make sure none others could impact the trial. Firtel gave them until Monday to finish.

Escobar’s defense team has also asked the judge to conduct a hearing to find out why the state attorney’s office, years ago, never turned over the tape to Escobar’s previous lawyer.

Reizenstein said the current prosecution team “did their job honorably” in immediately turning over the tape. Rubin has also told the defense, many months ago, that the evidence box of cassette tapes was available for examination.

But Detective Morin, or the original prosecutors, should have to explain why the tape was never disclosed years ago, and if prosecutors knew that Morin lied under oath at previous hearings, Reizenstein told the judge.

Read More..

Tough gals: Roller derby players enjoy contact sport

For Danielle Shaffner, 33, raising three children with another on the way and having her husband patrol the streets on his police vehicle could be stressful.

That’s why she counts on a sport on wheels for relief: women’s roller derby.

“I let loose and become a little maniac on the rink,” said Shaffner, who is four month pregnant and goes by the name of Pree-T-Manik.

Shaffner, who lives near Palmetto Bay, is one of many professional women competing in Miami’s Vice City Rollers roller derby team. The team was formed back in 2011 and practices at the Palmetto Golf Course hockey rink, 9300 SW 152nd St. in South Miami-Dade.

“It just comes a little naturally,” said Shaffner, who works as a dental assistant and has skated since she was a child. “I love the adrenaline rush. I use it as anger management. It is a great way to make friends and socialize.”

Her pregnancy doesn’t allow her to have contact, so for now, she is taking advantage of the exercising the sport provides.

The team has started their second season on a high note defeating their fist opponent in January.

The game is played on a rink wearing quad roller skates. There are five players to a team. Games consist of a series of short match-ups where a designated player known as a jammer scores points by lapping members of the opposing team, who in turn try to stop the jammer from scoring.

Team president and skater Kristen De La Rua, 30, was instrumental in putting together the team. She and other teammates practiced for Broward’s team, the Gold Coast Derby Grrls. They felt it was only appropriate Miami had a roller derby team.

“Miami needed it’s own team,” she said. “We got a huge response.”

At first, she worried playing because her profession is of a massage therapist, so an injury to the wrist or hands could be costly.

“I was always getting scared because of my career, but I got over it,” she said. “Once I started playing it, it was not that bad.”

Players were recruited using Facebook. Each player pays $40 a month to cover the team’s cost such as paying for the practice location and travel fees.

The Women’s Flat Track Derby Association sanctions the games.

Currently, they are playing Florida teams, but plans are to travel and play teams outside of the state and overseas. There are about 30 members. Each player has a nickname that fits their character, but names are earned. The team is still considered amateur.

Edley Duclos is one of few males who practice with the girls. He is a referee and acknowledges the women’s hard work.

“I do it for the exercise, “he said. “Keeping up with these girls is hard.”

Wearing a pink helmet, elbow and knee pads, Marcy Mock skated around with teammates at the outdoor hockey rink, at Coral Reef Drive and U.S. 1.

She goes by the name of Pinky Gomez, 41. She is a graphic designer who travels from North Miami to practice. She says the game could lead to injuries, but the sport’s rush keeps her motivated. She suffered two broken ribs during a game and still came back to finish.

“You get this adrenaline rush that you don’t feel anything,” said Mock, who also teaches spinning classes.

Aside from the competition, Mock said their bond built between teammates and opponents is a great feeling.

“It doesn’t matter who wins,” she said. “You are playing this game and it’s a women’s driven game.”

Their next game is scheduled for March 2. All of their home games are held at the Palmetto Golf Course hockey rink.

For information visit facebook.com/miamirollerderby.

Read More..

Hawkins withdraws his name from Jackson Health System board post

In a kerfuffle with echoes from political battles almost two decades ago, former Miami-Dade commissioner and state legislator Larry Hawkins announced Monday he was withdrawing his name from nomination to the Jackson Health System board.

Hawkins, 68, who had been nominated to be the unions’ representative on the seven-member board, sent a letter to the clerk of courts saying he was “deeply honored” by the nomination but “after considering the time commitment and the physical demands associated with fulfilling the responsibilities of this position, I have decided to decline this opportunity to serve.”

In a telephone interview, Hawkins said his decision “had nothing to do with Katy Sorenson,” who defeated him in the 1994 election for his commission seat and had been calling journalists and union leaders objecting to his nomination.

Sorenson, now president the Good Government Initiative at the University of Miami, gave The Herald a statement on Friday: “It’s disturbing that the union, which represents so many hard-working women, would appoint a person with such disdain for women and a record of ethics violations.”

In 1995, the state ethics commission fined Hawkins $5,000 after finding that he had sexually harassed three aides while county commissioner. Hawkins, a disabled Vietnam vet who uses a wheelchair, said he had never made lewd comments and his actions had been misunderstood.

Hawkins also has strong supporters. On Monday, before Hawkins withdrew, Phillis Oeters, a South Florida civic leader, praised him as a “brilliant choice” for Jackson’s board because he knows a lot about healthcare and had a long reputation of government service.

Oeters decried dredging up charges from two decades ago. “As a society, can’t we forgive and forget, if forgiveness is even necessary in this case? ... We need the best and the brightest in the county to serve.”

Oeters, chairman of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce and a vice president of Baptist Health South Florida, said her remarks reflected her personal views, not those of the organizations.

In his letter to the clerk’s office, Hawkins said he decided to withdraw because “over the past few days, I have had numerous conversations with current board members ... and have spoken with CEO Carlos Migoya regarding the meeting schedules and operations,” which include monthly committee days that start about 7 a.m. and end sometimes past 5 p.m.

Hawkins said his mother is in hospice care and his life was too busy to add Jackson to his schedule. He said that Sorenson, as commissioner, had approved him for volunteer board posts and he was mystified why she would object now based on old allegations. Jackson board members get no salary for their service.

County bylaws allow the unions to name one person to Jackson’s board. Last week, Andy Madtes, president of the South Florida AFL-CIO, announced Hawkins’ selection, which was scheduled to go to the County Commission Wednesday for approval.

On Monday, union leaders issued a statement accepting Hawkins’ decision to withdraw.

In a statement, Martha Baker, president of SEIU Local 1991, said: “Providing our patients and community with cutting edge, fully accessible patient care is our primary goal. We will be putting forward a new appointee as soon as possible...” She said a new nominee will be selected before the next commission meeting on March 5.

The SEIU local represents nurses, doctors and other healthcare professionals at Jackson.

Read More..

Obama, Tiger Woods play golf in Florida

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — That was a big-time ringer in President Barack Obama's golfing group Sunday in Florida.

Famous pro golfer Tiger Woods joined the president at the Floridian, a secluded yacht and golf club on the state's Treasure Coast.

The White House says the group also included Jim Crane, the Houston businessman who owns the resort and baseball's Houston Astros and U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk.

Obama is spending the long President's Day weekend at the Floridian and is expected to return to Washington on Monday.

First lady Michelle Obama and daughters, Malia and Sasha, are on an annual ski vacation out West.

On Saturday, Obama received some instruction and played a few holes with Butch Harmon, Woods' former swing coach.

Read More..

Escobar Barber Shop in Little Havana gains fame with LeBron James’ commercial

The Escobar Barber Shop is more than a place to get a shave and a haircut.

For decades, it’s been a place to hear stories and see the occasional celebrity.

Comedian Leopoldo “Tres Patines” Fernández has been here. So have legendary boxer Roberto “Mano de Piedra’’ Durán and former Sen. Mel Martínez.

And now, the shop at 803 SW Fifth Ave. in Little Havana, can add Miami Heat superstar LeBron James to the list.

Escobar was the backdrop for James’ day-in-the-life commercial for the Samsung Galaxy Note II.

How did it happen?

Thomas Escobar, who with his brother, Evelio, has run the barbershop for 42 years, got a little suspicious one day when he saw someone taking photos of his business while another asked permission to tape a few scenes. Then they identified themselves as part of the team that manages the NBA star’s image and explained the purpose of the commercial.

But it was up to James to make the final call.

“They didn’t make any promises and only said that they would show the photos to LeBron and that he would make the decision,” said Thomas, born in Villa Clara, Cuba, 75 years ago. “That was a Thursday in the middle of October, and the following day about 10 trucks full of equipment came with 70 people who turned the barbershop upside down and stirred interest in the neighborhood.

“It became clear then that LeBron had liked it and that they were going ahead with the commercial.”

The production team got to work depicting two worlds: the nostalgia of a barbershop with the fast-moving communication via cellphones.

Instant attraction

James was attracted to the shop with its photos of Cuba and old-time conversations.

“They told us they had seen and photographed other barbershops with a better look and more luxurious, but LeBron had been attracted to this one,” said Neorlando Urdanivia, a 77-year-old barber born in the Cuban city of Cienfuegos who speaks with pride of his small contribution to the commercial.

“When he arrived and got off this tremendous SUV, there was quite an upheaval. Fortunately, I was sitting outside wearing my glasses and the first thing LeBron did was to say hello to me with a fist bump. That, as everybody can see, came out very well and very natural.”

Except for that segment with Urdanivia and another brief one with Evelio Escobar, the rest of the barbershop staff remained outside during the filming. James’ personal barber cut his hair. And he was surrounded by his inner circle.

In a matter of seconds, James enters the shop asking everyone how they are and telling the barber, “I need the best, because it’s an important day.”

Meanwhile, his friends show him a video on the phone in which someone is dunking a ball. The player, impressed by the image, sends it to others.

The phone is the center of the commercial, but the barbershop steals the show.

José Pañeda, a top executive of the Heat in charge of the team’s Hispanic market, wasn’t surprised that James and his team chose the Little Havana barbershop.

Latino base

“Since he came to the Miami Heat, LeBron has always felt sensitive toward the community and understands the growing importance of the Latino fan in a city like Miami,” Pañeda said. “He was recently in the Three Kings Parade on Calle Ocho and he knows that our team, because of its privileged geography, has millions of followers in Latin America.”

The video, released on Oct. 29, one day before the NBA season started, attracted interest from as far away as Russia, with people calling the barbershop to ask about James sitting in one of its chairs.

Once the filming ended and the cameras were turned off, James talked to each of the barbers and thanked them before leaving.

“Some people are saying that we are LeBron’s Cuban barbers,” Thomas Escobar said. “Because of the commercial they think that he always gets his haircuts here.

“If they ask me, I tell them the truth. But if others out there believe it, who am I to contradict them. Right?”

Read More..

Pinecrest police chief starts burglary, traffic units

Pinecrest experienced an “alarming” sharp increase in burglaries and sex offenses in 2012, the village’s police chief said in his report Tuesday. Pinecrest also saw a slight increase in robberies and nonviolent thefts.

The village hasn’t had a homicide since 2006. But domestic violence calls went up 100 percent, narcotics violations went up 81 percent, and battery and assault incidents went up 20 percent last year, the chief said in his annual report.

Pinecrest Chief Samuel Ceballos Jr. also had good news. He said that after officers arrested “two groups of career criminals in the last quarter of 2012” there was a 50 percent decrease in burglaries this year. In general, however, crime statistics can fluctuate a great deal from year to year, especially in smaller communities with relatively small numbers.

“The emotional and psychological harm associated with victimization is not something that we take lightly,” Ceballos said at Tuesday’s Village Council meeting. “Our hearts go out to those who have fallen prey to criminals.”

Before becoming Pinecrest’s third police chief in July, Ceballos spent about 12 years with the village and 22 years with Hialeah police. He replaced former chief John Hohensee, who retired in April after 13 years of service.

On Tuesday, council members expressed satisfaction with Ceballos and his department. Dissatisfaction with Miami-Dade police was one of the reasons Pinecrest incorporated in 1996.

“We have heard and read in this report how our police department is growing and is getting more professional,” said Councilman James E. McDonald, a former FBI agent.

Ceballos’ new efforts include setting up a new police unit to focus on burglaries. The unit, he said, “has one main mission. That is detecting, deterring and arresting burglars.”

Ceballos also set up a new traffic unit in November, with four police officers and two fully equipped Harley Davidson motorcycles that cost the city $42,670. This means two officers are looking for traffic violators in the village during the morning and afternoon.

While, Hohensee was not supportive of having an officer working with a multi-agency federal task force, Ceballos is. The financial investment, McDonald said, would eventually pay off when the federal government solves a crime and the value of the seized property related to this crime would be divided among the departments involved.

“It’s time for us to do this,” McDonald said.

After about two years of training, the program would bring in a deputized federal officer to the village. Councilman Bob Ross has firmly opposed this effort, because it would cost the village at least $100,000 a year. The crimes that this officer would be focusing on are not in the village, Ross said, and there is no guarantee that there would eventually be a financial reward that would benefit the village.

The council voted 4-1 to allow the police to participate in the federal task force program.

“Crime doesn’t know boundaries,” Ceballos said. He added that the department has budgeted to hire the new deputized federal officer, and he will promote an officer from within the department, Ceballos said.

Mayor Cindy Lerner supports Ceballos’ effort, and praised him for his efforts to engage the community of about 18,000 in crime watch groups. She also said Ceballos’ use of technology allows residents to get immediate crime reports via a mobile phone application. The department also has a social media component.

“There are just so many ways that you are trying to make the contact and reach into the community and we are doing a better job,” Lerner said.

According to the chief’s report, his department, which employs 50 officers and 20 support staff, had three incidents of “serious misconduct” and five incidents of “misconduct” in the past year. Details of the incidents were not immediately available. But the report said there were five "citizen complaints" and two "internal affairs complaints" that resulted in "corrective action."

“We have to start looking at crime as something more global … crime whether it be drug trafficking, human trafficking … affects all of us,” Ceballos said. “These crimes affect our way of life and the federal government is telling us ‘without your help we are not going to be successful’ … We owe it to our country to help the federal agency.”

Read More..

Crime Watch: Steer clear of these latest email scams

Today I want to share with you some interesting scam emails shared by readers. We truly need to be super-careful and not open or respond to any of them.

I personally got the one from Kabul and had to laugh because this was a new one for me. I am not showing the email address, but trust me it looked very official especially when I do have friends that are stationed in Kabul. Here is the email I got:

Subj: Greetings from Kabul.. ... .

Hello,

I am CPT. Greg Hooper an officer of the U.S Army presently serving with the 395th CSSB peace keeping forces in Afghanistan. You may not know me but i really need your help as i have some very important packages to ship to you for safekeeping until i return back home to the USA.

I will explain in details only if you meet my conditions. Thanks for your prayers & support as we hope to return in one piece!!

CPT. Greg Hooper.

The second email I want to share came from a read who had some very good suggestions and its really worth sharing, since he had a personal experience with the email. Here is what he had to say:

Dear Carmen:

Thank you for your article in The Miami Herald on Jan. 6, 2013, titled "Two email scams you shouldn’t fall for." I haven’t seen the second one you mentioned yet, but I’ve received the first one several times over the last two or three years. It’s amazing how many of my friends and acquaintances have been robbed overseas in the last few years!

I’m writing because I thought there was one element to the scam that I thought important to be emphasized, and, if you ever decide to re-publicize the information, I’d suggest including it. Sometimes, when I’ve received those e-mails, they are not only from someone I know, but the email address in the "FROM" line is identical to the email address of the friend who is supposedly writing to me. This instantly leads a person to trust that the email is legitimate. And, since a quick "reply to" will allow the recipient to verify that it’s true, it’s easy to fall for it.

However, when you hit "reply to", the e-mail address to which the message will be sent is NOT the same as the one from which it appeared to have been sent. The address changes — very, very subtly.

For example, I could receive a message from a friend at "FRIEND101@gmail.com", but, when I hit "reply to", the message will be sent to "FRIEMD101@gmail.com" (the "N" was subtly changed to a "M") or "FRlEND101@gmail.com" (the capital "I" has been changed to a lower-case "L"). So if I sent an email to the person using "reply to", asking "is this true?!?", I would likely receive a message back from the scammer verifying it’s fictitious validity.

Thanks for listening and for aiming to protect the public!

Jeff Rothkopf

Folks, like I always say the Internet is a wonderful form of communication, but it brings its dangers, therefore we all must be vigilant and astute when using it.

Read More..

Mystery shrouds failure of Internet video link between Pakistani hotel, Miami terrorism trial

The mystery of who pulled the plug on the Internet connection linking witnesses testifying in Pakistan to a Miami terrorism trial remained unsolved Wednesday, stalling the high-profile proceeding until next Tuesday as the defense scrambles for an alternate solution.

A defense attorney for Miami imam Hafiz Khan, standing trial on charges of financially supporting the Pakistani Taliban, told a federal judge by phone that the Pakistan government’s foreign and interior ministries did not even know that the live video feed was cut off to Miami Tuesday morning.

A federal prosecutor said his office contacted an FBI legal attache in Islamabad, and the official checked in with several Pakistani government agencies and the staff at the hotel where the testimony was taken earlier this week. No one had a clue about the mysterious shutdown -- whether it was a technical glitch or the secret work of the Pakistan government.

Prosecutor John Shipley accused defense attorney Khurrum Wahid of trying to orchestrate the live testimony at the Serena Hotel in Islamabad “under the radar screen” of the Pakistan government -- an accusation strongly denied by Wahid.

U.S. District Judge Robert Scola, clearly exasperated by the high-tech failure 8,000 miles away, gave Wahid an ultimatum that must be met by Friday. Wahid could take the testimony of 10 remaining witnesses in a third country, such as a United Arab Emirate, as long as he could obtain travel visas for them and resume the depositions by next Tuesday. If not, the judge said, Wahid must abandon his alternate plan and return home over the holiday weekend to resume his defense in Miami.

“One way or the other, that’s the last accommodation I’m making,” Scola told Wahid by phone Wednesday morning.

A moment later, the judge told the 12 jurors: “We still don’t have any transmission from Pakistan. We are trying to make alternate arrangements.”

Perhaps the most befuddled in the bunch: Khan, 77, who is standing trial on charges of sending thousands of dollars to the Taliban terrorist organization, sworn enemies of the U.S. and Pakistan governments. Khan was the leader of the Flagler Mosque, 7350 NW Third St.

Despite safety concerns, the judge had allowed Khan’s defense attorney to travel to Pakistan to take live testimony from 11 witnesses so the defendant could receive a fair trial. Prosecutors opposed allowing the testimony, and refused to make the trip.

Everything seemed to be going well until about 11:20 a.m., or 9:20 p.m. Tuesday in Islamabad. The flat-screen televisions and video monitors in front of the judge, lawyers and jurors in Miami suddenly lost the signal and flashed “disconnected.”

Wahid explained to the judge by phone Tuesday that there was “absolutely no problem” until a prosecutor in Miami mentioned the name of the Serena Hotel, where the testimony was being taken, during cross-examination. He noted the hotel staff said “there were some intelligence operatives in the business center here, and they were taking pictures of us and our witnesses.”

Added Wahid: “I’ve been told by the hotel staff that it’s from outside the building and that ... the IP [Internet] address has been blacklisted by the Interior Ministry, I’m sorry, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority.”

Read More..

Gov. Rick Scott needs Democrats to pass business tax cut

TALLAHASSEE For the first time in his brief and turbulent political career, Gov. Rick Scott needs a little help from Florida’s Democrats to turn one of his wishes into law.

Scott’s top legislative priority this year — a $141 million tax cut for manufacturers — comes with an asterisk: It has to garner ‘Yes’ votes from two-thirds of the Legislature to pass.

That means Democrats — whose gains in November breached the Republican supermajorities in Tallahassee — suddenly find themselves in an unfamiliar power position as they try to defeat Scott in 2014.

“I doubt that’ll be able to get a supermajority,” said Rep. Perry Thurston, a Plantation Democrat and minority leader in the Florida House. “It’s just another [business] incentive. We don’t know if it works.”

The bill seeks to eliminate sales taxes on all manufacturing equipment and machinery.

Scott has already put considerable political capital behind the tax cut, stating on numerous occasions that this was his top priority for 2013, along with a $1.2 billion boost in education funding.

“We need to build up manufacturing jobs in the great state of Florida,” he said in unveiling a $74.2 billion budget plan last month. Scott said the tax cut would create jobs and increase exports.

A failure on the measure would be politically embarrassing for Scott, who has staked his governorship on job creation and CEO-like efficacy.

It’s not clear if the entire Democratic caucus agrees with Thurston in opposing the tax break, which faces a higher vote threshold because it would hit local governments. Many Democrats have voted in favor of Scott’s tax cuts for businesses in the past. But as 2014 nears and Scott’s poll numbers sag, the party has begun to take a more aggressive stance against such cuts. Democrats recently slammed Scott for supporting “tax giveaways to special interest cronies.”

If Democrats decide to take a united stand against the manufacturing tax cut, it could be the first time the minority party leverages its strengthened numbers to torpedo a Scott-backed initiative. The party has been mostly marginalized for the last two years, as Scott and a Republican supermajority pushed through conservative legislation.

“Politics always come into play,” said Rep. Michelle Rehwinkel-Vasilinda, D-Tallahassee, acknowledging her party’s newfound power to buck Scott’s tax cut. “There’s the political piece as well. And yes, that political piece will be in play. As it should be.”

Rehwinkel-Vasilinda, the top Democrat on the Finance and Tax committee, said she has not decided how she will vote on the measure. She said the bill’s supporters would have to convince her that it would create jobs and not overburden local governments, who stand to lose tens of millions of dollars in tax revenue. Rep. Mark Pafford, D-West Palm Beach, called the proposal “ridiculous” and “trickle-down, voodoo economics.”

Scott’s team said the governor fully expects to get bipartisan support for the measure.

“Gov. Scott is confident that those who support job creation will support this,” said Jackie Schutz, a spokesperson for the governor. “This is about job creation. It’s about bringing more manufacturers to Florida.”

Read More..

Carnival ship fire quickly extinguished as ship wallows in Gulf awaiting tug

The Carnival Triumph, a Galveston, Texas-based passenger cruise ship with the theme “Great Cities Around the World,” might have been better off sitting at port, as a court initially ordered.

As of Monday morning the 14-year old ship was going nowhere, operating on emergency generator power after a fire Sunday in one of the diesel generators killed its propulsion. The fire was quickly put out by an automatic fire extinguishing system, and none of the 4,229 passengers or crew are said to be in any danger

All were waiting patiently as a giant tug boat trudged toward the Triumph, now operating under generator power, with the intention of hauling the 100,000 ton, 893-foot vessel to the nearest port in Progreso, Mexico. It is expected in port some time Wednesday afternoon. Carnival Cruise Lines headquarters are in Miami-Dade.

“The cause of the fire is still to be determined,” said Carnival spokesman Vance Guliksen. In a brief news release, Guliksen said “there were no casualties to guests or crew.”

He said all passengers will be flown back to the United States and will be fully refunded.. Carnival said it will cover any additional transportation expenses. Passengers will also receive a free future cruise.

As of 11 a.m. Tuesday another Carnival ship, the Carnival Elation, was on the scene transferring food and beverages.

According to Carnival, some basic auxiliary power has been restored, cabin toilets are working on part of the ship and some elevators are operational. The dining areas are serving hot coffee and limited hot food.

The $420 million Triumph made news early last year after the family of a German tourist killed in the Costa Concordia disaster in the Mediterranean filed a $10 million lawsuit against Carnival. A judge found the family had standing, and ordered the ship held at port in Galveston. The court later allowed the ship to move between ports until a hearing takes place.

The lawsuit contends that Carnival Cruise Lines is the corporate parent of the Costa Concordia.

Read More..