Miami-Dade has authority to enact absentee ballot law, judge rules

In its effort to crack down on voter fraud, Miami-Dade County has the authority to limit how many absentee ballots a voter can possess, a judge ruled Friday.

The ruling came in the case of Sergio “El Tio” Robaina, whose lawyers had challenged a county ordinance that makes it a misdemeanor to collect multiple absentee ballots.

Prosecutors say Robaina, 74, illegally collected absentee ballots and filled out two against the wishes of two voters, one of them a woman with dementia. He faces two felony counts of voter fraud, and two misdemeanor counts of illegally possessing absentee ballots.

The Miami-Dade County Commission, worried about the perception of election fraud, passed the ordinance two years ago. A person may turn in only two absentee ballots in addition to their own: one belonging to an immediate family member and another belonging to a voter who has signed a sworn statement designating that person as responsible.

Friday’s order by Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Milton Hirsch was his second ruling against Robaina.

Last month, Hirsch ruled that Robaina did not have standing to challenge the constitutionality of the ordinance. His lawyers argued that the law disenfranchise elderly Hispanic voters who rely on friends and associates to help them deliver absentee ballots.

In Robaina’s latest request, lawyers claimed that Miami-Dade County — under a recent state voting law — did not have the power to enact the ordinance because elections also feature state and national candidates.

But Florida, in 1885, granted Miami-Dade County sweeping powers because of its unique status as the state’s preeminent city.

Hirsch pointed out that decades ago, the state’s Supreme Court said Miami-Dade was a “teeming, cosmopolitan city” that needed broad powers to legislate its affairs. The same hold true even today, Hirsch ruled.

“Miami has become one of the crossroads of the world,” Hirsch wrote in a 15-page order. “It is a leader on a global scale, in countless commercial, cultural and other activities.”

The judge agreed with county attorneys, who said absentee ballot fraud had become a “cottage industry” unique to Miami-Dade. The ordinance, the judge said, still does not prevent a Miami voter from filling out an absentee ballot and mailing it.

Robaina has long admitted to collecting the ballots, but merely as a way to help elderly citizens. The probe started after authorities discovered 164 absentee ballots dropped off at a North Miami-Dade post office.

The bundle was dropped off by an aide to Miami-Dade Commissioner Esteban “Steve” Bovo, who has not been accused of wrongdoing. Robaina, the uncle of former Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina, has consistently shifted the blame to that aide, now a key witness against him.

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Stars Without Makeup!

Malin Akerman

February 22, 2013

A makeup-free Malin Akerman showed off her natural pregnancy glow shopping at Bed Bath & Beyond in Hollywood.

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Bloomberg says NYC must press for 'real' teacher evaluations

Mayor Michael Bloomberg says the $250 million New York City schools stand to lose amid a standoff on teacher evaluations is important, but the city "cannot compromise on having a real evaluation system."

The mayor spoke on his WOR-AM radio show Friday. On Thursday, a judge blocked the state from withholding the money, at least for now.

The judge froze any sanctions until the resolution of a lawsuit filed by parents. The state plans to appeal.

School districts had to have evaluation systems in place by Jan. 17 to get a state aid increase this school year.

Bloomberg's administration and the teachers' union couldn't agree on a system, so the city missed the deadline.

The city has said the lost money means eliminating 700 guidance counselor and teacher positions.

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National Hotel nears end of long renovation

A panel of frosted glass puts everything in perspective for Delphine Dray as she oversees a years-long, multi-million dollar renovation project at the National Hotel on Miami Beach.

“Chez Claude and Simone,” says the piece of glass stationed between the lobby and restaurant, a reference to Dray’s parents, who bought the hotel in 2007.

“Every time I am exhausted and I pass that glass, I remember why,” said Delphine Dray, who joined her father — a billionaire hotel developer and well-known art collector in France — to restore the hotel after the purchase.

After working with him for years, she is finishing the project alone. Claude Dray, 76, was killed in his Paris home in October of 2011, a shooting that remains under investigation.

In a recent interview and tour of the hotel’s renovations, which are nearly finished, Dray did not discuss her father’s death, which drew extensive media coverage in Europe. But she spoke about the evolution of the father-daughter working relationship, the family’s Art Deco obsession and the inspiration for the hotel’s new old-fashioned touches.

The National is hosting a cocktail party Friday night to give attendees a peek at the progress.

Dray grew up in a home surrounded by Art Deco detail; her parents constantly brought home finds from the flea market. By 2006, they had amassed a fortune in art and furniture, which they sold for $75 million at a Paris auction in 2006.

That sale funded the purchase of the National Hotel at 1677 Collins Ave., which the Drays discovered during a visit to Miami Beach.

After having lunch at the Delano next door, Dray said, “My dad came inside the hotel and fell in love.” The owner was not interested in selling, but Claude Dray persisted, closing the deal in early 2007. Her family also owns the Hôtel de Paris in Saint-Tropez, which reopened Thursday after a complete overhaul overseen by Dray’s mother and older sister.

Delphine Dray said she thought it would be exciting to work on the 1939 hotel with her father, so she moved with her family to South Florida. She quickly discovered challenges, including stringent historic preservation rules and frequent disagreements with her father.

“We did not have at all the same vision,” she said.

For example, she said: “I was preparing mojitos for the Winter Music Conference.” Her father, on the other hand, famously once unplugged a speaker during a party at the hotel because the loud music was disturbing his work.

“We were fighting because that is the way it is supposed to be,” she said. “Now, I understand that he was totally right.”

She described a vision, now her own, of a classic, cozy property that brings guests back to the 1940s.

Joined by her 10-year-old twin girls, Pearl and Swan, and 13-year-old son Chad, Dray pointed out a new telephone meant to look antique mounted on the wall near the elevators on a guest floor. She showed off the entertainment units she designed to resemble furniture that her parents collected. And she highlighted Art Deco flourishes around doorknobs and handles.

“It’s very important for us to have the details,” she said.

With those priorities in mind, she is overseeing the final phase of the renovation, an investment that general manager Jacques Roy said will top $10 million. In addition to the small details, the renovation includes heavier, less obvious work: new drywall in guest rooms, for example, and new windows to replace leaky ones.

Painting of the building’s exterior should be finished in the next two to three weeks, Roy said. Dray compared its earlier unfinished state to resembling “a horror movie — the family Addams.”

And the final couple of guest room floors, as well as the restoration of the original Martini Room, should be done by the end of April.

“At the end, I will be very proud,” Dray said.

The National’s renovation wraps up as nearby properties such as the SLS Hotel South Beach and Gale South Beach & Regent Hotel have been given new life. Jeff Lehman, general manager of The Betsy Hotel and chair of the Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority, said the National has always been true to its roots. He managed the hotel for 10 years, including for a few months after Dray bought the property.

“I think historic preservation and the restoration of the hotels as they were built 70, 80 years ago is such a huge piece of our DNA,” he said. “It’s a lot of what sets us apart from any other destination on the planet.”

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LGBT students, allies, supporters put on Youth Pride Band concert

Music is “a great conversation starter,” says Ezequiel Beltrame, an 18-year-old flutist from Hollywood Hills High School. “Even if you have nothing to talk about, you can talk about music. And that usually leads to other things.”

For Beltrame and more than 50 other South Florida Youth Pride Band students, who perform Sunday at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, post-music discussion topics include sexual orientation, gender identity and bullying.

“We don’t talk about it enough,” says Beltrame, who identifies as pansexual. “Most people don’t even know what that is. It means that gender is not a factor in my attraction.”

The Youth Pride Band is a project of the South Florida Pride Wind Ensemble, an LGBT band that marched last month in President Barack Obama’s inaugural parade in Washington, D.C.

“It started as an idea of our board in April 2011,” said ensemble member Adam DeRosa, youth band coordinator and president of the international Lesbian and Gay Band Association.

In June 2011, the Community Foundation of Broward gave the adult ensemble $5,000 to launch a youth band. In 2012, 23 students participated in the three-week program, and the ensemble awarded five $1,000 college scholarships.

Last year, the Community Foundation gave another $8,000. Private donors have also contributed, and additional scholarships will be announced at Sunday’s concert.

The youth band will be joined on stage after intermission by the adult ensemble. The program, called “Taking Flight,” will feature songs including Come Fly With Me, Defying Gravity from Broadway’s Wicked and Theme from Superman.

“The concept of bringing in the 50-some young musicians to sit beside the older musicians is a fantastic learning opportunity,” said Grammy-winning vibraphonist Gary Burton of Fort Lauderdale, who has guest-starred with the wind ensemble. “I’ve heard other gay bands around the country, and I have to say it’s one of the best.”

Ensemble director Dan Bassett said the adults advertised in high school marching band programs and relied on word of mouth to reach teen musicians from Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties.

“The kids get out of it a real sense of camaraderie,” said Bassett, assistant principal and band director at St. Mark’s Episcopal Academy in Oakland Park.

There’s no requirement that youth members be gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. “It’s not something we ever ask,” DeRosa said. “We don’t ask our own members and they’re adults.”

Ensemble members want to nurture the students and provide a safe space for them, he said. “The most important thing is we want it to be an outstanding musical experience for the kids. The idea of the organization is to celebrate diversity and be a positive way to combat bullying.”

“This is my second year here,” said clarinetist Jake Glass, 17, of Pompano Beach and North Broward Prep. “It’s a great experience. ... Because it’s a gay-straight alliance band, it’s an extremely open community. I’m straight myself, but I have a number of friends who have been bullied or suffered through it because they are gay or bisexual.”

Clarinetist Natalie Mullen, 18, of McArthur High School in Hollywood, said the band experience has taught her much.

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Stars Without Makeup!

Calista Flockhart

February 21, 2013

A bravely bare-faced Calista Flockhart accompanied her husband Harrison Ford to the Conservation International conference in Sao Paulo.

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Rhode Island police charge two Queens residents with credit card fraud

WEST GREENWICH, RI — Rhode Island State Police have charged two New York City residents with obtaining credit cards through fraudulent means after finding dozens of cards in their vehicle.

Col. Steven O'Donnell said 22-year-old Emendjer Mathurin and 37-year-old Abdul Springer, both of Queens, NY, were arrested this week after a trooper stopped them for speeding on Interstate 95 in West Greenwich and found dozens of credit cards. Some had the name of the driver and others had the names of unknown people.

Authorities say the credit cards were encoded with information from stolen cards. State Police says the two were arraigned on Wednesday and did not enter pleas. They were released on $5,000 surety bail each.

A message was left for Mathurin. A current listing for Springer couldn't be found.

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Broward’s existing home sales, prices rose again in January

The median price of an existing single-family home in Broward County 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 the market. 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, while the inventory of condos and townhouses shrank to 4.7 months. A six-month to nine-month supply 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.

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Election reform, bridge repairs top Miami-Dade Commission agenda

Miami-Dade commissioners are expected Wednesday to urge the state legislature to allow Election Day voters to drop off their absentee ballots at their local precincts, and ask the mayor to identify funding to repair and upgrade the county’s 203 bridges.

Returning absentee ballots to local precincts was one of 13 recommendations in a report by an Election Advisory Group that needs local and state approval to become law. Now, absentee ballots can only be returned to election headquarters in Doral.

The advisory group, created after the embarrassing November presidential election saw people waiting in lines for up to six hours, also wants to change the name of absentee ballots to “Vote by Mail.”

Other recommended voting changes include expanding early voting days from eight to 14, including the last Sunday before an election; expanding the number of permissible voting sites; limiting ballot language on constitutional amendments to 75 words; and expanding the number of days elections supervisors are allowed to total and check votes from 15 to 20.

Commissioners are also expected Wednesday to urge Mayor Carlos Gimenez to identify funding sources to repair the county’s bridges. The county estimates that over the next two decades it will need as much as $450 million for repairs. The issue came to light in early January when the county was forced to close down the west-bound half of Bear Cut Bridge leading to Key Biscayne, after structural flaws were found.

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Pope Benedict XVI may enact law governing upcoming conclave to elect new pope

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI may enact a new law governing the upcoming conclave to elect a new pope amid continued uncertainty over when the voting can begin.

The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said Wednesday that he didn't know for sure if the new law under consideration would address the timing of the conclave following Benedict's Feb. 28 resignation. He said it would contain some "clarifications" on certain points. But given the crush of interest surrounding the conclave date, it's likely to address the issue.

The current law says cardinals should wait 15 days after the papacy becomes vacant before launching a conclave to allow all eligible cardinals to arrive in Rome, making March 15 the presumed start. That delay, however, assumed a papal death and funeral. In this case, the cardinals already know that this pontificate will end Feb. 28 and can get to Rome in plenty of time to take part in the conclave.

AP

Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican on Sunday

Some canonists and scholars have said the current rules allow for some wiggle room on the 15-day wait given that most if not all the cardinals will already be in Rome for Benedict's final general audience Feb. 27 and his farewell meeting with cardinals on Feb. 28.

"The document says that the cardinals present in Rome must wait 15 days for the arrival of the others," noted Ambrogio Piazzoni, the vice prefect of the Vatican library. "That can mean that if the cardinals all arrive before the 15 days there is no need to wait. The phrase 'must wait' doesn't say that you can't start before 15 days."

However, leading US canonist Edward Peters, an adviser to the Vatican high court, welcomed word that the pope himself might intervene.

"Advancing the conclave start-date would make obvious good sense, but actually doing so on anything less than express papal authority raises serious canonical and even ecclesiological problems," he said on his blog.

The date of the conclave's start is important because Holy Week begins March 24, with Palm Sunday Mass followed by Easter Sunday on March 31. In order to have a new pope in place in time for the most solemn liturgical period on the church calendar, he would need to be installed by Sunday, March 17, because of the strong tradition to hold installation Mass on a Sunday. Given the tight time-frame, speculation has mounted that some arrangement would be made to start the conclave on March 10 or thereabouts, earlier than a strict reading of the law would allow.

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