Month: April 2008

     The substantial criminal records of the men who yesterday received a restraining order from Judge Julio E. Gonzalez Jr. against a Poinsettia Heights man, were obtained today by Tim Smith’s Fort Lauderdale. 
 
      They are sometimes called the Railroad Track Gang, not so lovingly, by residents in the four neighborhoods surrounding NE 13th Street in Fort Lauderdale. They have been holding up in makeshift campsites along the RR tracks, and some are suspect in the areas’ recent surge in crimes. They had complained to the Public Defenders Office that local businessman and artist Steve Sticht, had chased them with a chainsaw, posted wanted posters of them, and threatened to kill them. Sticht, a member of one of the area’s anti-crime committees, says that is “all bull”, that he just cut down one of their many campsites, dubbed “Camp Crackhead”, after authorities were either unable or unwilling to accomplish it. 

               Here are the  men and some highlights of their rap sheets:

                                

                                 Steven Charles Newton (42)
                                             a.k.a. “Shorty”
                         
                                            Multi State Offender
                                 Total Felony Charges – 15
                                 Total Felony Convictions – 5 
                                 Total Misdemeanor Charges – 9
                                 Total Misdemeanor Convictions – 2
                                 Total Failure to Appear – 3  
                                 Total Incarcerations – 5
     ( charges include Burglary, Larceny, Cocaine Possession, Resisting Arrest, Cocaine-Sell, Trespassing,among others)

                                     
                                      
                                                Michael Scarola (39)
                                             a.k.a. – Michael Carpece, 
                                                        – Cross Eyed Mike

                                             Multi-State Offender
                                     Total Felony Charges – 11
                                     Total Felony Convictions – 6
                                     Total Misdemeanor Charges – 20
                                     Total Misdemeanor Convictions – 11
     ( charges include Burglary, Larceny, Cocaine Possession, Lewd/Lasciv, Prostitution, Trespassing, Shoplifting, Resisting Arrest, Drugs Sell, among others. 

                                            
                                               

                                     
                              &nb
sp;                James Earl Brown (38)
            
                                               Total Felony Charges – 7
                                       Total Felony Convictions – 3
                                       Total Misdemeanor Charges – 4
                                       Total Misdemeanor Convictions- 0   
                                       Total Failure to Appear – 5
                                       Total Incarcerations – 0
     (charges include Burglary, Larceny, Fraud, Cocaine Possession, Cocaine-Distr, Trespassing, among others)           

                                  
                                       
                                   Terry Dwayne Hampton (41)

                                          Total Felony Charges – 2
                                          Total Felony Convictions – 1

        (charges include Cocaine Possession, Drug Equip, Trespassing)

     These men have a Protective Order in place against Sticht, which orders him to stay away from their residence, which in this case we assume means “Camp CrackHead” on the FEC Railroad line! Another hearing is scheduled  on April 17.
 


                                          

      Broward County Judge Julio E. Gonzalez Jr.,  Monday, ordered Court Protection for a Fort Lauderdale neighborhoods’ known felons and crackheads.

     In a move that stunned neighborhoods that have been under siege from street criminals over many years, Judge Gonzalez, acting under the request of the Broward Public Defenders Office, ordered local business man and neighborhood crime fighter, Stephen Sticht, to stay away from the areas’ admitted drug addicts and suspected burglars.

     According to the Sun-Sentinel newspaper, some of the men he was ordered to stay away from had felony convictions for cocaine possession, prostitution, lewd and lascivious conduct, burglary and grand theft.  The Judge also ordered Sticht to “surrender any weapons that he had to Law Enforcement”. Sticht was accused by the felons of “posting wanted posters ” of them, chasing them with a chainsaw, and threatening to kill them. Sticht denies all of the felons’ allegations. Sticht says he used his chainsaw to decimate the “crackhead camp” that they had built along the RR tracks. Sticht’s neighborhood, and those surrounding it, had experienced a marked increase in burgularies, (homes and cars), as well as many other crimes since the encampment arrived. City Officials had not been successful in eliminating it.
      
   

                                               

                                                                      the brochure

     On Tuesday night, at the Council of Civic Associations monthly meeting, (an advocacy group that fights for neighborhoods), Judge Gonzalez had operatives handing out his reelection brochures. Some in attendance, keenly aware of Gonzalez’s ruling earlier in the day, were drawn to the last line of his brochure that claimed he was “devoted to family and community”. One attendee was overheard asking, “is that the criminal community, or our community”. 

     A formal hearing on the matter is tentatively scheduled for April 17th, where many in the affected neighborhoods hope that the Judge will decide that he is devoted to the law-abiding members of their neighborhoods, not the criminals.

    

      His name is Romney Rogers, age 55.

     And he filed papers today to run for the open Commission seat in District IV, being vacated by the term-limited Commissioner Cindi Hutchinson, who is running for Mayor. Rogers had originally toyed with the idea of jumping in the Mayoral race also, but settled on the District IV Commission seat instead. District IV is the area of the City that covers most of the Downtown, the southern most portion of the beach, the 17th Street corridor and other areas south. 

     Rogers is new to Politics, but his family is not. Romney’s grandfather came to the area in 1925, and was one of the first Congressional Representatives for the Fort Lauderdale area. His uncle Paul also served in Congress. Rogers is a local lawyer who lives in Rio Vista, just down the street from the current Mayor Jim Naugle.

     The District IV race has been expected to be crowded, as open seat races generally are, but so far the only other candidate in the race is another local lawyer, Coleman Prewitt ( see a previous post on him).    

     Rogers says he is getting in the race because “he loves Fort Lauderdale”, and figures it’s his time to give back. He said he feels some “overwhelming excitement” today, but knows he will have “alot on his plate” in the coming months. He says he is prepared for a vigorous campaign, where he expects to have to raise gads of money and meet thousands.
 
     Rogers has a solid background in the City, having been the Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce, member of the Historic Preservation Board, member of the Police Pension Board, and a past President of Stranahan House Inc.. When asked if he thought the decade long fight by Stranahan House to stop the Icon Condominium from being built next to the Stranahan House was over, he replied “I hope not”.  

     On other issues, he says the City Commission should be “sensitive to market conditions” when considering how to end the Police Contract stalemate. One of the main barriers to a contract is that Fort Lauderdale Police are amongst the lowest paid Cops in the County, and many are leaving our force for other Police jurisdictions. He says he “likes the City Manager personally” and thinks he is “trying hard”.          

     Asked about his long time friendship with Mayor Naugle, and whether he holds the same views that have made the Mayor nationally infamous, Rogers said “Jim is his own person, but the bottom line is a Commissioner is there to serve all the people, and respect all the people”, and Rogers even quoted the Bible, saying ” respect everyone, love the brotherhood….. but fear God”.

     She did do it !

    I just got off the phone, (again), with City Commissioner Cindi Hutchinson. She called to apologize to me for lying during our phone call this morning, and was about to come clean to the press. 
  
     She is guilty of the infraction of using the taxpayer’s money to mail campaign literature after all. The allegation by fellow Commissioner Christine Teel is true, and Hutchinson, just minutes ago, sent out the following statement.


For Immediate Release                                              Contact: Stephen Gaskill
Thursday, April 3, 2008                                                      

                              STATEMENT OF CINDI HUTCHINSON

There has been an allegation that an envelope with materials regarding my Mayoral campaign was sent from City Hall and then returned because of an addressing error. I am issuing this statement to set the record straight and apologize for this mistake– I used a city envelope, label and about $4.00 in postage for my campaign needs. I am sorry that some may have the perception that I didn’t live up to the standards that have characterized my eight years as a City Commissioner. Throughout my tenure as a City Commissioner I have prided myself on the trust that our residents and those working in the Commission office have felt towards me and I have always focused on providing positive leadership for our City. This momentary lapse of judgement underscores my commitment to work harder to retain the trust of our citizens. I am sorry, and this will not happen again.


     I’m pretty mad and disappointed that Hutchinson lied to me this morning, particularly knowing that I was about to share it with you. I can say that I am not going to guage her entire political career on this one misjudgement, but what will ultimately be more important to Hutchinson is what the voters think. 

                              Did she do it? She says unequivocally no !

     Things are deteriorating at City Hall. The City Commission, devoid of any leadership since Mayor Naugle went insane some years back, is left with a disjointed group of Commissioners, following the beat of their own drummers.


  
                                    

      Some of them despise one another, and that played out last week when Commissioner Christine Teel dropped a bombshell during a City Commission meeting, accusing Commissioner Cindi Hutchinson of mailing campaign flyers for her Mayoral campaign from City Hall, using taxpayer money. Doing so would not only be an infraction of the law (currently punishable by a $100. fine under the City’s new ethics law), but a giant bonehead move that would seriously undermine her current political endeavors.

     I talked to Hutchinson today at some length and she says it didn’t happen, at least she didn’t do any such mailing, and that she “is on it”. 

     What I’ve been able to find out, (which has been tough with the top-secrecy surrounding the issue), is that an envelope did appear in the City Commission offices, returned due to a bad address, and inside were Hutchinson for Mayor flyers, originally sent out of that office.

     This is where it gets dicey.

     No one will say where the secret envelope is. Seems to me the investigative process would start with the Department of Professional Regulation which has been completely “mum” on the issue, citing confidentiality clauses. Noone there would even state whether their office was involved in such an investigation, whether they had heard about the issue, even if they had ever seen a stamp!

     Some things are certain to me. Evil things do happen in Politics. When I first ran for City Commissioner in 1997, I was blackmailed and told to get out of the race or else. Florida Department of Law Enforcement, secret wiretappings, and an arrest of a sitting City Commissioner for Felony Extortion resulted (read the best seller Politics 101, I was Robbed, Mugged, Blackmailed, and Ignored, So I Got Elected and Made a Difference, available at Border Books or directly from me!), so I personally know how nasty it can get.

     So that gets me back to Hutchinson. When she told me without hesitation that she did not do it, I strongly encouraged her to go to the State’s Attorney’s Office and demands an independent investigation into political dirty tricks. I hope she shouts from the roof of City Hall that she is innocent, take a polygraph if neccessary, scream that she is mad as hell and not going to take it anymore. 

     Any less will have me wondering.
      

                                        
     It’s the bridge that crosses the Middle River on Sunrise Boulevard in between Border’s Books and Keno Jewelers. Some of the people want the government to raise it higher. Other’s want it raised even higher! Some even want a drawbridge. 

     At a meeting held tonight at the Gallery One (the old Doubletree Hotel at the Intracoastal on Sunrise), not a contrary opinion to raising the height of the bridge could be found. About 60 people wandered around a meeting room looking at charts and drawings and sitting at tables writing opinions that would be turned into the authorities.


                                              

                                                                The Bridge

     John Fiore, County Planner (and former Mayor of Wilton Manors) who was answering questions at the meeting, summed up the crowds’ reactions perfectly; ” if it’s built higher, seems as everyone will walk away with a smile.” 

     It seemed the only question left unanswered at the meeting was “how high?”.
Most in the room seemed to think that it should be able to be raised to at least the height of the N. Federal Highway Bridge, which is some 6 feet or better higher than the Sunrise Bridge. This would allow much bigger boats to reach homes in Coral Ridge, Bal Harbour, and on to the City of Wilton Manors. Fiore estimated that a 32′ boat, without radar, could then clear the bridge at high tide.

     A petition was circulated by some that the bridge should be converted to a drawbridge, which would allow boats of unlimited heights up the river. The petition read “think positive, think progressive, replace the bridge with a drawbridge.” Only about 12 people had signed that petition. 

     One drawback? The Florida Department of Transportation has only budgeted about $8 million to repair the bridge, and a total replacement would be much more expensive. Better bring a paddle if you want to be upriver anytime soon!