Tampabay.com: This Just In

Dunedin man killed after scooter collides with vehicle

Sat, 02 Jun 2012 09:35:17 -0400

By Kameel Stanley, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, June 2, 2012

DUNEDIN — A man on a motor scooter died Friday night after colliding with a car on Bayshore Boulevard, authorities said.

The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office said Alex Gregory Lynam, 26, of Dunedin was southbound on Bayshore on his 2008 ZLMI Scooter at about 10:30 p.m. when a northbound 2008 Mercury Grand Marquis made a left turn in front of him near the intersection of Baywood Drive North.

The scooter and car collided head on, but at an angle, officials said.

Lynam, who was wearing a helmet, was taken to Bayfront Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead about an hour later.

The driver of the Mercury, Shirley A. Gil, 73, of Dunedin, was not injured and displayed no signs of impairment, officials said.

The incident is still under investigation.

Boston Celtics beat Miami Heat 101-91 in Game 3 of East final, pull within 2-1

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 23:41:50 -0400

Times wires
Friday, June 1, 2012

BOSTON — Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo combined for 68 points and the Celtics beat the Heat 101-91 Friday night to cut their deficit to 2-1 in the Eastern Conference final.

LeBron James scored 34, his third straight 30-point game, but 16 were in the first quarter.

Garnett had 24 points and 11 rebounds, Pierce 23 points, and Rondo 21 points, six rebounds and 10 assists.

James and the rest of the Heat went cold during a seven-minute stretch at the end of the first quarter and the beginning of the second, when Boston outscored them 15-0 to turn a six-point deficit into a nine-point lead.

By the fourth quarter, the Celtics had a 24-point lead. The Heat cut its deficit to eight with three minutes to go. Then Dwyane Wade (18 points) missed a shot, and Ray Allen grabbed the rebound, sending Rondo on a fast break that made it a 99-89 with 99 seconds to play.

James threw the ball away underneath, then missed a 3-pointer the next time down, one of only four shots he took in the quarter. He had four points in the fourth.

Pierce found Garnett for a long jumper at the other end, and the teams began emptying their benches.

Down 2-0 when the day began, the Celtics remained emotionally between confident and defiant. They were emboldened by their Game 2 performance, despite the overtime defeat, and by the change in surroundings.

"We have not given our best shot yet," coach Doc Rivers vowed before tipoff.

MIAMI (91): James 16-26 1-5 34, Battier 0-6 0-0 0, Turiaf 1-1 1-2 3, Chalmers 5-11 3-6 14, Wade 9-20 0-0 18, Anthony 1-1 2-2 4, Miller 4-8 0-1 11, Cole 0-0 0-0 0, Jones 1-2 2-2 4, Haslem 1-2 1-2 3, Harris 0-0 0-0 0, Howard 0-0 0-0 0, Pittman 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 38-77 10-20 91.

BOSTON (101): Pierce 7-21 7-7 23, Bass 1-3 2-2 4, Garnett 10-16 4-6 24, Rondo 9-16 3-5 21, Allen 4-8 0-0 10, Pietrus 0-2 2-2 2, Stiemsma 0-0 1-2 1, Dooling 3-4 0-0 7, Daniels 4-6 1-2 9, Hollins 0-0 0-0 0, Pavlovic 0-0 0-0 0, Moore 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 38-76 20-26 101.

Miami 28 14 21 28— 91

Boston 30 25 30 16— 101

3-Point Goals—Miami 5-17 (Miller 3-6, Chalmers 1-2, James 1-4, Jones 0-1, Battier 0-4), Boston 5-17 (Allen 2-5, Pierce 2-6, Dooling 1-2, Pietrus 0-1, Daniels 0-1, Rondo 0-2). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Miami 42 (James 8), Boston 51 (Garnett 11). Assists—Miami 20 (Chalmers 6), Boston 16 (Rondo 10). Total Fouls—Miami 24, Boston 24. Technicals—Garnett, Boston defensive three second. A—18,624 (18,624).

Spurs regroup for Game 4

OKLAHOMA CITY — After losing for the first time since mid April, it was time for the Spurs to face a different set of questions with their West final lead over the Thunder cut to 2-1.

No longer was the talk about whether the Spurs — riding a 20-game winning streak less than 24 hours earlier — were invincible. It was about how to regroup after a 102-82 loss for Game 4 tonight.

"Usually it's easier to refocus after a loss than after a win," said Manu Ginobili, held to eight points in Game 3 after totaling 46 in the first two games. "In the past, we've reacted really well to wins. We'll see now how we do against losses."

The Thunder limited the output of San Antonio's best backcourt players by deploying 6-foot-7 Thabo Sefolosha to use his 5-inch height advantage and wingspan to corral Tony Parker, and by changing its defense on the Spurs' pick-and-roll attack. San Antonio's 82 points were a season low.

Report: Phil Jackson bows out of Magic plan

ORLANDO — For a few days this week, Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson was interested in the possibility of joining the Magic's front office, the Orlando Sentinel reported. In the end, he decided he wasn't that interested.

Magic CEO Alex Martins was presented Wednesday with a scenario involving Jackson by former player and Bobcats coach Sam Vincent, who played for the Magic from 1989-92 and for Jackson with the Bulls in 1988-89, the newspaper said.

"It drew some interest from Phil," said Vincent. "But in the end, Phil decided to go with another opportunity."

Martins learned of Jackson's exit late Thursday. He wouldn't comment. "I have been consistent during the search that I won't comment on specific candidates," Martins said in an email to the Sentinel.

Vincent's plan would have involved Jackson, 66, as either the team president/general manager or in a consulting role. The coach would have been a former all-star player and Hall of Famer who has never coached before. The Sentinel said it knew the identity of the former player but wouldn't reveal it because he works for another NBA team.

Ex-player woolridge dies: Orlando Woolridge, the rugged forward who carved out a reputation over 13 seasons as a scoring specialist and one of the original alley-oop artists, died Thursday (May 31, 2012) at his parents' home in Mansfield, La. He was 52. Mr. Woolridge died in hospice care for a chronic heart condition, DeSoto Parish Chief Deputy Coroner Billy Locke said. Mr. Woolridge was the sixth overall pick by the Bulls in 1981 after starring at Notre Dame. He played for Chicago, the Lakers, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Denver, Milwaukee and Detroit.

Johan Santana throws first no-hitter in New York Mets history

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 23:08:35 -0400

Times wires
Friday, June 1, 2012

NEW YORK — Johan Santana pitched the first no-hitter in Mets history, helped by an umpire's missed call and an outstanding catch in leftfield in an 8-0 victory over the Cardinals on Friday night.

After a string of close calls in their 51-season history, Santana finally finished the job in the Mets' 8,020th game since the team was born in 1962.

"Finally, the first one," Santana, 33, said. "That is the greatest feeling ever."

He needed a couple of key assists to pull off this season's third no-hitter.

Carlos Beltran, back at Citi Field for the first time since the Mets traded him in July, hit a line drive over third base in the sixth inning that hit the foul line and should have been called fair. But third-base umpire Adrian Johnson ruled it foul and the no-hitter was intact, even though replay clearly showed a mark where the ball landed on the chalk line.

Mike Baxter then made a tremendous catch in leftfield to rob Yadier Molina in the seventh. Baxter crashed into the wall, injured his shoulder and left the game.

Making his 11th start since missing last season after shoulder surgery, Santana threw a career-high 134 pitches in his second consecutive shutout. He struck out eight and walked five.

"Amazing," Santana said. "Coming into this season I was just hoping to come back and stay healthy and help this team, and now I am in this situation in the greatest city for baseball."

The White Sox's Phil Humber pitched a perfect game April 21 at Seattle. The Angels' Jered Weaver no-hit Minnesota on May 2.

Santana got an ovation as he headed out to the mound for the ninth, and the two-time Cy Young Award winner quickly retired Matt Holliday and Allen Craig on shallow fly balls.

With the crowd of 27,069 on its feet in a frenzy, World Series MVP David Freese went to a 3-and-2 count before his foul tip was caught by Josh Thole, just activated from the disabled list earlier in the day.

Santana pumped his left fist and slammed it into his glove as Thole showed the ball to plate umpire Gary Cederstrom and went running to the mound.

The Mets rushed out and mobbed Santana in a raucous dogpile as security tackled a fan who ran onto the field near home plate. Moments later, the pitcher raised his right arm and saluted the crowd, which was chanting his name from the eighth inning on. The scoreboard in center flashed Santana's picture and read "No-Han."

"It was a crazy night — my fastball moving all over the place," Santana said.

In the seventh, Molina hit a one-out drive to deep left. Baxter, who grew up rooting for the Mets only 10 minutes from where Citi Field stands, raced back and made the catch before crashing into the fence. The Mets said Baxter has a bruised left shoulder and would have more tests.

"When I saw him running back onto the warning track and he made that play, it was amazing. An outstanding play and he saved the game," Santana said. "All these guys, I want to thank them for what we accomplished."

Deputies arrest man in May 14 home invasion in Dunedin

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 22:52:18 -0400

By Dan Sullivan, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

DUNEDIN — Pinellas sheriff's detectives arrested a man Friday night in connection with a May 14 home invasion that injured a Dunedin man and his wife.

Christopher A. Austin, 24, was one of multiple people involved in the robbery at the home of Robert and Paula Babcock, deputies said. Austin previously did odd jobs around the home.

The couple was attacked at about 5:30 a.m. when multiple people came into the home at 548 Chicago Ave. Robert Babcock, 66, was stabbed, and Paula Babcock, 63, was pistol whipped, deputies said.

The Babcocks were taken to Bayfront Medical Center. On Friday, they were still recovering from their injuries, deputies said.

Austin is charged with home invasion robbery. Detectives are trying to identify other people involved in the robbery.

Anyone with information can call the sheriff's office at (727) 582-6200. Tips can be provided anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-873-8477.

Tampa Bay Rays shut out Baltimore Orioles 5-0

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 22:00:52 -0400

By Rick Stroud, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

ST. PETERSBURG — Standing 6 feet 6 on a 10-inch mound, pitcher David Price has a way of leveling the playing field for the Rays.

In Friday's 5-0 win over the Orioles, Price retired the first 13 batters he faced before catcher Matt Wieters bounced a seeing-eye single through the infield between first and second with one out in the fifth inning.

Price left in the eighth to a standing ovation from 17,224 at Tropicana Field after scattering four hits and throwing 113 pitches to snap the Rays' three-game losing streak.

Helped by outstanding defense from outfielders Matt Joyce and B.J. Upton, Price tied the Rangers' Yu Darvish and the Indians' Derek Lowe with an American League-leading seventh victory to lift the Rays (30-22) to sole possession of first place in the American League East. The Orioles (29-23) lost their sixth straight game.

"That's the last thing I'm thinking about out there," Price said of the no-hit bid. "I want to go out there and get as many innings as possible and put up as many zeroes as possible."

In the bash-for-cash division with the Yankees and Red Sox, the Rays have struggled to score, particularly with leftfielder Desmond Jennings and third baseman Evan Longoria on the disabled list.

The Rays' bats were mostly silent in managing only six runs in three games while being swept by the White Sox this week. But the Rays nearly matched that output in the first inning Friday against Wei-Yin Chen.

Tampa Bay sent 10 men to the plate in a five-run first that was highlighted by a monster two-run blast by Hideki Matsui, his second homer in two starts.

Designated hitter Luke Scott drove in the first pair of runs with a bases-loaded single to center, one of five hits in the inning. A sacrifice bunt by third baseman Sean Rodriguez plated another. Leadoff man Carlos Peña, who doubled, made the first out when he was cut down at the plate on a grounder to short.

"It was great to get that kind of offensive outburst, even after having Carlos thrown out at the plate," manager Joe Maddon said. "All of a sudden we did some really good things to follow, including how about Matsui's homer? That was pretty far."

In the fourth, rightfielder Joyce made a diving catch in the gap of a line-drive hit by shortstop J.J. Hardy. The next inning, Joyce made an over-the-shoulder grab near the foul pole to rob first baseman Mark Reynolds.

In the sixth, centerfielder Upton preserved the shutout by doubling up the Orioles with a pinpoint throw to second base to nail Steve Tolleson and negate an apparent sacrifice fly.

Price was charged with a fourth hit in a postgame scoring change that gave Wilson Betemit, his final batter, a single on a grounder that was first called an error on second baseman Ben Zobrist.

Though Price fell short of a no-hitter, Maddon believes it's only a matter of time.

"It's something I'm sure he probably thinks about in some quiet moments," Maddon said. "When you see that kind of ability, that kind of skill level, you almost automatically think that can occur for that guy at some point in his career. And it probably will."

Gov. Rick Scott: Florida is "absolutely not" targeting minorities in noncitizen voter purge

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 21:43:16 -0400

By Marc Caputo, Miami Herald
Friday, June 1, 2012

Two Miami-Dade men caught up in a controversial voter purge could face criminal charges for possibly casting unlawful ballots in Florida elections, the Miami Herald has learned.

The cases of Neville M. Walters and Ramon Cue add a new layer of political complexity to Florida's contentious noncitizen voter purge, a focal point in the national debate over fraud and fairness in this year's presidential election.

On Friday, county elections supervisors showed so little faith in the state-led purge that their state association said they shouldn't cooperate. The announcement came just hours after the U.S. Justice Department ordered Florida to stop its effort due to two federal voting rights laws, partly because the purge could disproportionately affect minorities.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott wouldn't rule out fighting the Justice Department in court. "We want fair elections," Scott said. "We want people who have the right to vote go out there and vote."

The cases of Cue and Walters could strengthen his administration's hand because they suggest there's a good chance more ineligible voters are on the rolls and could cast ballots unlawfully if they're not stopped.

They were among 13 registered voters who acknowledged they weren't U.S. citizens, Miami-Dade's election supervisor says. Since elections records show each voted — Cue once in 1996 and Walters seven times since 2000 — the office forwarded the men's names to the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office. The two could face third-degree felony charges.

"We are investigating the allegations," said Ed Griffith, Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office spokesman. "First, we need to make sure the data is accurate."

No easy task. Any large-scale effort to clean voter rolls is beset with false positives and errors due to misspellings and inaccurate addresses in a database of more than 11 million active voters, plus nearly 1 million more classified as inactive voters.

Cue, 53 and from Miami, told the Herald he's a schizophrenic, doesn't remember voting and said three others have his same name and birth date. "I've never voted a day in my life," Cue said. "I've lived in this house for 14 years and I have never filled out any paperwork regarding voting."

Walters couldn't be reached. The 13 total noncitizen voters identified so far on the Miami-Dade rolls are minuscule compared to the 492 people identified as citizens and, therefore, lawful voters.

Of the more than 1,600 potential noncitizens in Miami-Dade about 65 percent have cast ballots. About 72 percent have cast ballots of the 262 identified in Broward.

In all, the Florida Division of Elections has identified nearly 2,700 voters who may not be eligible to vote because they are not U.S. citizens. But, supervisors say, the vast majority found have turned out to be citizens.

Miami-Dade is the state's most populous county and has the largest foreign-born population. As a result, its residents are most likely to be flagged in a sweep of potential noncitizens.

Hispanics are the state's largest immigrant group. As a result, they account for 58 percent of those flagged as potential noncitizens, a Miami Herald analysis found. Hispanics make up 13 percent of the state's 11.3 million active registered voters.

Independent voters and Democrats are the most likely to face being purged from rolls. Republicans and non-Hispanic whites — the backbone of the Republican Party — are the least likely to face removal.

Based on the racial and ethnic disparities in who's targeted and who's not, liberals and Democrats accused Scott and his handpicked secretary of state of intentionally targeting minorities.

Asked Friday if the state is targeting minorities, Scott said, "Absolutely not."

"The Secretary of State's Office is doing the right thing," Scott said. "We want people to vote. But we want fair elections."

But, under the federal Voting Rights Act, the state needs to get permission before hunting for ineligible voters, Christian Herren, the DOJ's lead civil rights voting lawyer told the state Thursday. He also said the National Voter Registration Act bans purges within 90 days of an election, meaning Florida should have stopped May 16.

Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner's office says it will respond to Herren next week.

Detzner's office and the Republican Party of Florida chairman, Lenny Curry, have complained that another agency under President Barack Obama, the Department of Homeland Security, has blocked access to a federal database that would help the state more easily identify noncitizens.

So the state began comparing the voter rolls, instead, with a motor vehicle database containing citizenship information that has out-of-date information. As a result, some people are improperly flagged as noncitizens, such as the two lawful Broward voters — including a Battle of the Bulge veteran — falsely identified as potential noncitizens.

The uncertainty made the state's election supervisors association so nervous that they advised members to cease contacting voters.

"We haven't halted," said Christina White, Miami-Dade deputy elections supervisor. "We found the state list had a 33 percent error rate. But when voters like Cue admit they shouldn't be on the rolls, the county will remove them.''

Cue doesn't seem to mind. "I don't care about this country to know who to even vote for. I was born in Cuba many years ago," he told a Herald reporter. "Now please, let me eat."

Miami Herald staff writers Scott Hiaasen, Mary Ellen Klas and Michael R. Vasquez contributed to this report.

Man dies after being thrown from truck on U.S. 19 in Hernando

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 21:05:00 -0400

Times staff
Friday, June 1, 2012

WEEKI WACHEE — A Brooksville man died Friday when the pickup he was driving spun off the road and overturned along U.S. 19.

Raymond G. Davis, 52, was driving north about 5 p.m. in a 2003 Toyota Tundra in the center lane of U.S. 19, north of State Road 50, when the truck began to turn clockwise, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. The truck spun onto the east shoulder of the highway, where it rolled multiple times.

Davis, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was thrown from the truck onto the road's shoulder, troopers said. He was taken to Bayonet Point Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead about an hour after the crash.

It was unclear why Davis spun off the road, troopers said. The crash remained under investigation late Friday.

Well-connected RNC party planner eyes two historic Tampa properties

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 21:00:16 -0400

By Richard Danielson, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

TAMPA — A well-connected party planner who has created hot tickets at the last four Republican National Conventions wants to bring her elaborate warehouse parties to Tampa.

Joyce Gates of Alexandria, Va., this week filed applications with the city of Tampa to host private parties for 600 to 800 people. For a site, she's looking at two historic properties — the old trolley barn near Tampa Heights and the Kress and Woolworth buildings in downtown Tampa.

Gates, who once served as chief of staff to John Boehner before he became speaker of the House, founded her company, Warehouse Productions, in 1996. At the GOP convention that year, it converted an 1890s-era warehouse into what became known as "The Best Little Warehouse Party in San Diego."

The company went on to produce warehouse parties at Republican conventions in Philadelphia, New York and Minneapolis-St. Paul.

At the 2004 GOP convention in New York, the company re-created street scenes of New York inside Manhattan's once-infamous Tunnel Club for "The Party that Never Sleeps." Picking up the tab were some 68 major corporations and interest groups. That year, Boehner told the Dayton Daily News that he left the "Where the Convention Gets Unconventional" party in Philadelphia at 3:30 a.m. and 500 people were waiting to get in.

Gates could not be reached Friday about whether she's planning two parties or is simply looking at two possible locations for one event.

In her applications, however, she proposes similar events at each all four nights of the convention, which runs from Aug. 27-30. She's planning for 10,000 or more square feet of main event space, plus another 2,500 to 3,000 square feet for use as a jazz club. Festivities would start at 10 p.m., with a requested close of 4 a.m., an hour later than closing time for bars in Tampa.

Buffet catering would be provided by Bernini in Ybor City, and there would be barbecue, beans, slaw and grilled corn from Sharon's Smokin' Angel Foods. The parties would be staffed by 80 people, 10 of them private security, plus three to five off-duty Tampa police.

Warehouse Productions, known for taking rough-hewn industrial spaces and doing all-encompassing build-outs, says it would bring in its own air-conditioning and deluxe portable bathrooms — a 10-stall unit from Royal Restrooms.

Neither the Kress and Woolworth buildings nor the trolley barn are in the official list of event venues for the convention. The Kress and Woolworth buildings are between Franklin Street and Florida Avenue, south of Cass Street.

The trolley barn is on the eastern bank of the Hillsborough River a few blocks north of Interstate 275.

It is, says one longtime fan, a building with a lot of character.

"It's genuine," said Darren Booth, the development manager for a now-defunct redevelopment project. "It's not Disney World. It's a 100-year-old industrial building."

It's also a building with serious flaws, city officials say.

In a letter sent to a convention official on Tuesday — the same day Gates filed her application — Tampa director of planning and development Thomas Snelling said he understood that the convention was interested in using the trolley barn and might even "be able to provide the funding to address many of the code violations and concerns that exist in the building" so that a special event could take place there.

Then Snelling outlined just what that would take.

"The facility has serious and complex code issues and violations that need to be resolved prior to your group applying for a special event," he wrote.

Snelling added that the fire marshal agreed that an event could be staffed with fire marshals on scene to do a "fire watch," but organizers would still need to install a complete fire alarm system.

Until late 2010, the trolley barn had built up a reputation as an attractive venue for big parties.

But the parties ended after the Tampa Fire Marshal's Office inspected and found a range of safety problems.

As of Friday, "the fire issues have not been addressed," Fire Marshal Russell Spicola said.

Also, Snelling said, a licensed engineer would have to do a complete structural evaluation, including assessing the roof and truss system. Once that is done, repairs would have to include repair and replacing of the roof, decking and covering.

The property also would need a temporary wet-zoning to serve alcohol.

"The building has currently been declared unfit for human habitation and was placarded on Aug. 22, 2011," Snelling wrote. "Occupying the building would be a violation until the items mentioned above are addressed."

Times researcher John Martin contributed to this report.

Fight to control leadership of state Senate looms over this year's elections

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 20:24:18 -0400

By Mary Ellen Klas and Steve Bousquet, Times/Herald Tallahassee Bureau
Friday, June 1, 2012

TALLAHASSEE — The road to the future of the Florida Senate goes through Tampa Bay in November.

Some of this year's fiercest state election fights are likely to occur in the region, mainly because of a job held by someone that's rarely a household name — the state Senate president.

"After the election this year, you will probably get a sense of the Senate leadership for the next six years," said Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, who is running to be Senate president from 2016 to 2018.

That's because, due to redistricting, every seat in the 40-member chamber is up for election, and the winners will determine who holds the clout for the next decade.

Latvala, who returned to the Senate in 2010 after being termed out in 2002, wants to make sure that enough returning and newly elected Republican senators support him. He even held a fundraiser for his political committee, proclaiming the money would go to "the first Senate president from Pinellas County."

Sen. John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine, is also lining up support for the 2016-18 presidency, albeit more quietly. Sen. Joe Negron, R-Stuart, says he, too, remains a candidate.

The men are all Republicans, but they differ in philosophy. Thrasher and Negron are conservative; Latvala is a moderate. Thrasher forged his reputation as a dominant House speaker who forcefully pushed through former Gov. Jeb Bush's agenda. Negron began his career in the House and moved to the Senate, where he has become a budget and health care expert. And Latvala is a maverick who relishes challenging leadership and forging consensus on thorny issues.

Latvala helped secure the 2014-16 Senate presidency for Sen. Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, when Thrasher and Negron lost confidence in Gardiner and attempted to hoist Thrasher to power instead. Now Gardiner, and Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, the designated Senate president for 2012-14, can help determine which candidates align with whom in 2016. The battle is fiercest in Tampa Bay.

Gaetz, for example, on Friday endorsed former Sen. Tom Lee of Brandon, himself a former Senate president, over Rep. Rachel Burgin, also of Brandon, in the District 24 race to replace Sen. Ronda Storms.

Candidates have until noon Friday to declare for office, but the move of one affects another. Take Latvala's district. A week ago, he told Gaetz that he was planning to switch from his safe North Pinellas Senate district to Tampa Bay's reconfigured Senate District 22, which consists of South Pinellas and Tampa.

State Rep. Jim Frishe, R-St. Petersburg, who is closely aligned with Latvala, was lined up to run against Rep. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, for District 22. Brandes declared his intent to run Friday. Both Frishe and Latvala said they are undecided where they will land.

"I'm just pondering," Latvala told the Times/Herald, noting the new District 22 includes 80 percent of his current district.

The move is a classic gamble. "Any time you move out of your district to run in another district, it adds some element of risk," said Gaetz, who would back Latvala in any race.

If Latvala stays put, he runs the risk of Brandes winning and supporting Thrasher or Negron. Brandes, a member of the Cox Lumber family, could easily tap into his personal wealth to spend on his campaign. Brandes has already run TV ads for his now-abandoned state House re-election campaign. But if Latvala were to win, his reward would be securing his and Frishe's vote to a Senate presidency victory.

"I don't think it's any secret. I've publicly pledged my support to Jack Latvala for Senate president," Frishe said. "He and I don't always agree on everything. But I've known the man for 35 years and consider him a friend, and I think having a Senate president from Tampa Bay would be very, very positive for us." Not only is Frishe a personal friend of Latvala's, but Frishe again is paying for the services of Latvala's direct-mail company in his race for the Senate.

Another area of conflict is a three-way fight for the Republican nomination for District 17 in Pasco and Hillsborough. Sen. Jim Norman of Tampa, Rep. John Legg of Port Richey and former Rep. Rob Wallace of Tampa have filed to run.

Norman, a former Hillsborough commissioner, is considered the incumbent in a seat that redistricting left vastly reconfigured by merging south Pasco with northwest Hillsborough.

Legg, who has served in the House since 2004, had planned to run in Senate District 18 against Pasco County businessman Wilton Simpson. But two weeks ago he announced he would instead switch to Senate District 17, which now includes half of Pasco County.

Gaetz said Senate leaders will support Norman. Legg understands but doesn't believe Norman can win. Two years ago, Norman overcame a federal investigation about a vacation home bankrolled by a businessman friend for Norman's wife, but his narrow victory was in a Hillsborough-based district.

"They told me they wanted to support all incumbents; however, all incumbents had to show a clear path to victory, and Jim Norman has not demonstrated that threshold," Legg said. A Legg-Norman primary is complicated for Latvala since both pledged to support Latvala's presidency bid.

One thing is clear, Legg said: The road to the future Florida Senate may go through Tampa Bay, but it is full of potholes.

"It's not just sinkholes," Legg said. "The ground is very unstable here for candidates, too."

Times staff writers Lee Logan and Lucy Morgan contributed to this report.

State mental health hospital wasn't prepared for baby's birth, report says

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 20:02:45 -0400

By Carol Marbin Miller, Miami Herald
Friday, June 1, 2012

Held against her will at Florida's largest state mental hospital, and fearing that she was about to give birth, a 34-year-old woman became so frantic in her efforts to get medical care that she called 911, twice. "There's nobody here that can help me right now, and I'm pregnant," she said.

But when the emergency dispatcher asked to speak with a caregiver, she was told there was nothing to worry about: "This is a mental hospital," a supervisor, Eddie McMillian said. "She says she's going into labor; she's not going into labor … Can't send her nowhere right now."

But she was, indeed, in labor. And her son was born hours later with profound brain damage. He remains on a ventilator, perhaps permanently..

In an 88-page report by the inspector general of the Department of Children & Families — which operates Florida State Hospital in Chattahoochee — state mental health administrators acknowledged the facility was poorly equipped to handle a high-risk pregnancy, and lacked policies to ensure the woman was well-cared for.

Though many details of the tragedy were removed from the report, records show the mother was eventually airlifted to a Tallahassee hospital, after Gadsden County emergency workers arrived at the psychiatric hospital to check on her welfare.

"This thing has torn our family apart," said Ken Wills, the baby's grandfather. "It's really been difficult; it's been a strain. This has been a horrendous time for our entire family.

"It just seemed like people did not care — from the top down," said Wills, 54, of Tallahassee. The Miami Herald is not naming Wills' daughter, who suffers from schizophrenia, in order to protect her privacy.

Wills' grandson, named Elon by his mother, is not expected to breathe, walk, or talk on his own, and likely will require life-long complete medical care, Wills said. "He is not doing well. He is on life support."

Florida State Hospital, with nearly 2,000 employees, is the oldest and largest psychiatric hospital in the state. Nearly 40 percent of all state mental health patients — some are civilly committed and others are either facing criminal charges or have been ordered into treatment there by a criminal-court judge — are housed at the facility in rural Chattahoochee.

Local venues begin booking for Republican convention

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 18:56:08 -0400

By Shelley Rossetter and Amy Scherzer, Times staff writers
Friday, June 1, 2012

TAMPA — The California delegates have more than politics on their minds for the Republican National Convention.

They want to party.

The group booked Jannus Live for an event on the second night of the convention and plans to hire a band, said Lynda Rucker, the St. Petersburg music venue's marketing director.

The festivities could go into the early-morning hours with the party not starting until 11 p.m., Rucker said.

The California delegates won't be the only ones cutting loose. It's going to be a week full of parties across Tampa Bay.

On Friday, some of the 73 "official venues" working with convention organizers found out which events they will be hosting. While details are still being finalized, many sites are ramping up for a busy and profitable week.

Glazer Children's Museum executive director Al Najjar and in-house caterer, Puff n' Stuff, have begun planning with Newsweek and the Daily Beast website for an evening event Aug. 28 and a luncheon Aug. 29.

Also in the works: An Aug. 28 cocktail reception for the Tennessee delegation and another Aug. 29 for the Lifetime Network, "and several other requests floating around," Najjar said.

"This is the biggest concentration of events we've ever had," he said. "It's tricky for us to have this many multiples in the same day, so we're really happy to have Puff n' Stuff and all their abilities to accommodate us."

The Florida Aquarium has yet to sign any agreements, but delegates will certainly be diving in the shark tank.

"All our space is booked, inside and outside in Explore A Shore,'' said Jason Carroll, director of sales, as well as the aquarium's 150-passenger, 72-foot Bay Spirit II catamaran. He declined to name the "four or five state delegations" he is expecting.

Carroll noted event planners are asking for "Tampa flavor," such as Cuban food and cigar rolling.

So far, five organizations have booked events at the Centre Club, said Robby Allender, the Tampa venue's private events director.

Those include the Kansas State Delegation, the Republican National Lawyers Association, the Republican Jewish Coalition, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee and the Libre Initiative, Allender said.

"I've been told there are more coming my way," he said. "It's been a little nerve-racking, especially at first since we hadn't heard anything or done a tour in a while. But it seems like things are working out."

To be on the "official venues" list, facilities had to agree to hold off on making any deals on their own and wait for the RNC to match them up with potential clients. The venues and party organizers then negotiate their own deals.

The Channelside attractions of Splitsville, Tinatapas, Howl at the Moon and Stump's Supper Club are attracting a lot of attention. Tiffany Davies, a spokeswoman for the venues, said they are in the process of booking 16 to 20 events during the convention week.

"We feel as though we have been pretty lucky so far with the venue assignments that we have gotten from the (Committee on Arrangements)," Davies said in an e-mail.

Davies declined to identify the interested groups until negotiations are finalized.

Tampa Club general manager Barry Shields said he's been assigned 10 groups, including the Republican Party of Florida for several lunches and dinners; and an evening cocktail reception for the Illinois delegation.

But perhaps most challenging: The 11:30 p.m. start time for a wrap party, booked by National Convention Events for 350 people.

"We anticipate it going until 2:30 a.m.," Shields said from the restaurant on the 42nd floor of the Bank of America building in downtown Tampa.

"August is normally our slowest month of the year,'' Shields said. "We'll definitely be using temporary employment services and sharing employees with other clubs. It's going to be a busy, crazy week. Having the RNC in town could prove to be one of our better months of the year."

The Tampa Bay History Center is finalizing a contract with a major media entity to rent significant portions of the entire building, according to Manny Leto, director of marketing. "If that comes to fruition, it would be a great opportunity to showcase the history center to a national audience."

He did say, however, that such a booking would mean the museum, which is in the proposed secured Event Zone, would be closed to the public until the conclusion of the convention.

While some venues are figuring out how to deal with multiple events, others are left waiting for good news.

The St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts has no official bookings as of yet, said Allison Canfield, manager of special events.

"We've done several dozen tours and have a couple of people who have expressed interest," she said. "We are hoping. Our fingers and our toes are crossed."

Times staff writer Richard Danielson contributed to this report. Shelley Rossetter can be reached at srossetter@sptimes.com or (813) 661-2442.

Woman suffers burns in Tampa house fire

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 18:52:27 -0400

Times Staff
Friday, June 1, 2012

TAMPA — Paramedics took a woman rescued from a fire to the hospital Friday evening with burns on 80 percent of her body.

Tampa Fire Rescue went to 2920 Cord St. in the Highland Pines neighborhood to fight a structure fire. At the home near N 50th Street and Interstate 4, rescuers found 38-year-old Guislante Joseph severely burned. She was taken to Tampa General Hospital.

Investigators believe that paper caught fire in a bathroom. A damage estimate had not been completed Friday evening.

Can Florida's economic recovery continue? 5 things to watch

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 18:45:26 -0400

By Jeff Harrington, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

Hard-hit Florida has closed the economic gap on the nation in recent months.

The question now: Can the state continue its slow but steady improvement, or will it get caught in the downward pull of the dismal national job numbers released Friday?

Florida's unemployment rate has fallen from its 11.4 percent peak to 8.7 percent, closing to within half a percentage point of the 8.2 percent U.S. rate. The state is no longer among the worst five states for unemployment, where it was mired for much of the recession's aftermath.

Like the nation as a whole, Florida's job creation record has been ragged. Last month, the state lost 2,700 jobs, though it's still up a net 52,600 jobs compared to a year ago.

Nonetheless, Mekael Teshome, an economist with PNC Financial Services Group, is among those confident that Florida's economic recovery remains on track and will continue to outperform the country this year in creating jobs.

Among his reasons for optimism: Foreign investment is still flowing into the state and the housing market is starting to recover. "The drop here was so sharp relative to the nation that the bounceback should be stronger," Teshome said.

Here are five things to watch to see if Florida keeps its recovery intact and avoids succumbing to another economic slump.

Hitting the gas

Lower gas prices are key, especially in an economy where tourism is a linchpin.

The lower prices put more money in the pockets of consumers to buy goods and provide greater savings for employers and manufacturers.

In Tampa Bay, unleaded gas prices are averaging $3.36, according to AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report. That's down from $3.72 a month ago. It's still high, but far removed from the $4 to $5 range feared not that long ago.

Job seekers may have to be patient, however, to benefit from lower prices at the pump.

"There's a lagging impact," said Scott Brown, chief economist with Raymond James Financial. "We're now feeling the impact from the recent peak, and it will be a couple months before we see the impact of lower gas prices."

A growing issue

For better or worse, Florida's economy is still largely driven by how much and how fast the state grows. It's a matter of attracting retirees, families and investors in second homes to Florida, lured by the persistently low interest rates.

Increasingly, the numbers are playing out in Florida's favor, said Mark Vitner, senior economist with Wells Fargo Securities.

"Net migration is picking up," he said, "and one of the reasons Florida is doing better is homes here are selling at a greater discount. More people are realizing Florida is a compelling bargain. It's clear to me housing has bottomed."

Lately, Tampa Bay builders are starting to build again as if they will come. New housing starts in the region rose 26.8 percent in the first quarter, according to Tampa's Metrostudy, a national company that tracks the construction industry.

"We're definitely coming out of the housing funk," said southwest Florida homebuilder Pat Neal. "We'll sell close to 500 homes this year and will be a bigger company than we were in 2005" before the housing bust.

The buoy from Brazil

International tourists and investors, particularly those from Brazil, have played an oversized role in propping up Florida tourism and housing.

Propelled by their economic success, Brazilians have recently emerged as Florida's fastest-growing group of overseas visitors and by far the biggest spenders. Brazilians spent $1.4 billion in Florida last year, nearly twice the level of their counterparts from the United Kingdom.

"A big risk to the outlook is if the Brazilian economy slows down more than we expect," said Teshome of PNC Financial.

Any slowdown in South America or Europe, however, shouldn't have an immediate impact on Florida tourism, said Pinellas County tourism chief D.T. Minich. "Most of the summer bookings (from Europe) were done in late winter or early spring," he said. "So they'll be coming no matter what the Euro does."

Of course, close to home, there's the added tourism boost from the Republican National Convention coming to Tampa Bay in August.

The hidden labor pool

There are 804,000 Floridians officially counted by the state as unemployed.

But that's only the above-water portion of the state's employment problem. It doesn't including those working part-time unable to find full-time work. And it doesn't include those who have temporarily given up looking for work either.

Last month, Florida's labor pool — the number of people either working or looking for a job — dwindled by 28,000. Some retired permanently; some went on disability or shifted their family from a two-income to a one-income household for the foreseeable future.

But Florida's economic future hinges in no small part on how many of them are discouraged job seekers sitting on the sidelines and ready to re-enter an improved labor market. When they do come back, that drives up competition and drives up the unemployment rate once more.

A temporary solution

Many companies hire temps before committing to full-time hires. That's why the temporary staffing industry is often viewed as a harbinger for future hiring.

If so, it has been a rather inconsistent year so far, says Jeremy Dixon, vice president of A1 Temps in Brandon, a division of Nesco Resources.

After a strong start to 2012, A1 clients pulled back for about a month and a half with business falling up to 10 percent, he said. Some shifted part-timers to permanent positions, but many just wound down short-term, contractual projects.

The last couple weeks, Dixon has seen another uptick in demand. But employers are extremely picky on whom they hire and what they're willing to pay.

"They're looking for unicorns that have this skill and this skill and this skill and want to work for $10 an hour," Dixon said. "I'm not sure you're going to get all that. And if you do . . . you'll lose them. If you want to invest money in training them, understand that you'll lose them (when the economy improves) because they know they're worth more than that."

Some Pinellas commissioners moving toward firefighter transport of emergency patients

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 18:35:15 -0400

By Anne Lindberg, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

At least three of the seven county commissioners say Pinellas firefighters should be allowed to take emergency patients to the hospital.

None of the three — Norm Roche, Nancy Bostock and Ken Welch — want to immediately and completely transform the county's emergency medical services system. Instead, all visualize some variation of a hybrid system that would include transport by both the private company that currently provides ambulance service and firefighter-paramedics who are now prohibited from transporting patients.

Their comments come at a time when County Administrator Bob LaSala has said he plans to ask for a property tax increase to pay for an expected shortfall in the estimated $103 million EMS budget for the coming fiscal year. That after increasing the EMS tax 46 percent this year.

It also comes as county, city and fire officials have been squabbling about the best way to control costs. LaSala has suggested a plan to cut funding for personnel and emergency vehicles in the 18 fire departments that provide EMS service. Some firefighters and city officials say the answer lies in allowing firefighters to transport patients to the hospital. A study expected to kick off later this year is designed to answer that question. But Roche said he doesn't need another study done.

"We know fire transport works," Roche told an audience of about 20 during a coffee klatsch in Palm Harbor on Friday. Firefighters "should be able to transport. … I think it's a better way."

LaSala could not be reached for comment.

Roche was reacting in part to a recent experience with Pinellas' dual-response EMS system, which has firefighter-paramedics respond to most emergency calls to provide immediate treatment. Patients needing to go to a hospital are taken there by Paramedics Plus, a private, for-profit company based in Texas, that contracts with the county to operate under the name Sunstar. The system is set up so firefighters arrive first in most cases while the ambulance gets there shortly after.

Roche said a neighbor recently needed help. Firefighters arrived quickly, then everyone stood around waiting for the ambulance to arrive. The ambulance had done nothing wrong, Roche said, it was merely performing according to the system.

"It was ridiculous," Roche said. If the firefighters are there and determine someone needs to go to a hospital, he said, they should be able to immediately take the patient.

"If the paramedics determine the person should go, you go," he said.

Under the system Roche envisions, firefighters would transport only emergency cases. Non-emergency transports — from a nursing home to a hospital and back, for example — would continue to be handled by the private company.

Mark Postma, Paramedics Plus vice president and Sunstar chief operating officer, declined to comment.

Roche said he would not simply change the transport system but would include it in talks about consolidating the county's 18 fire departments into larger blocks and eventually into one.

Welch envisions a different type of system, at least to start with. Not all the departments want to transport or have the equipment to do so, he said. He suggested the best way to start changing the system is to allow those departments that want to transport to do so. But the fees for the transport, which now go to the county, which pays Paramedics Plus, would go to Pinellas and stay there. The city or fire district would not receive any of the fees. Like Roche, he would allow firefighters to transport only emergency cases.

The county would benefit in several ways, he said. One is that it would keep some of the money that is now flowing into the private company. Another is that the county will get more use out of equipment and personnel that are already in place.

"It's a different mix, but it lets us use those resources more effectively and save money," Welch said. "We're already paying for those firefighters and infrastructure."

Bostock said, "I'm definitely interested in moving toward some fire transport."

She agreed with Welch in saying that existing personnel and equipment that the county is "already paying for" could be used more efficiently.

But Welch's suggestion, she said, is a "very good and very obvious step one."

The next step, she said, is to more efficiently use personnel who are already in place, even if it means buying more vehicles.

"I think that might be the key to finding some savings," Bostock said.

Anne Lindberg can be reached at alindberg@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8450.

Deputies arrest another suspect in transcontinental crime ring based in Largo

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 18:33:37 -0400

Times staff
Friday, June 1, 2012

LARGO — Authorities have arrested another suspect they say was part of transcontinental crime ring that duped several banks out of millions of dollars.

Kiril Dinev, 43, of Chicago, faces charges of racketeering and conspiracy to commit racketeering. Pinellas County sheriff's deputies arrested him Thursday.

Dinev, detectives said in an arrest warrant, took part in a ring that used fake documents to get credit cards and luxury vehicles resold overseas for up to twice their value. The organization was based in Largo.

Detectives spent three years investigating the case, and in March rounded up many of the key players in the scheme. They are still seeking others, however.

All of those accused in the ring are from Bulgaria or other eastern European countries, officials said. Several entered the country legally and became U.S. citizens.

Dinev remained in the Pinellas County Jail on Friday in lieu of $500,000 bail.

Husband, wife sentenced to 10 years prison for racketeering involving state funds

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 18:10:49 -0400

By Curtis Krueger, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

A husband and wife were sentenced to 10 years in prison for their roles in a scam to divert money away from state government and into their own hands.

Allen E. Nelson and Melody Oakleaf, both previous employees of the state Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, were sentenced to prison time Friday. They previously pleaded guilty to racketeering and conspiracy to commit racketeering.

"I think the 10-year prison sentence was fair," said Cathy McKyton of the statewide prosecutor's office.

The couple were among five who concocted an elaborate scheme involving phony purchases and doctored receipts to siphon money out of state coffers, some of which was used to buy a $350,000 home in Las Vegas.

As prices drop, home security cameras on the rise

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 18:06:56 -0400

By Jessica Vander Velde, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

TAMPA — Across the street, as four men punched and kicked a U.S. Army sergeant, a little camera watched.

As the attackers pushed Sgt. Johnny Aparicio back to the ground and continued the beatings, the home surveillance camera recorded every blow.

Police got a copy of the recording from the homeowner with the camera. They posted it to YouTube the next day. Within hours, the assault turned into a national story, and tips started pouring in to police — largely thanks to that camera.

And that's not uncommon, police say.

More homeowners are installing home surveillance cameras than ever before, according to police and security companies. That's because the once cost-prohibitive devices are dropping in price, and they're becoming easier to access with smartphones.

Big-box stores sell multicamera systems that come with DVRs for just over $200. And locally, Verizon and Bright House have joined the game — Verizon in October and Bright House following in January, offering packages that start at $10 a month.

"It's a really popular product, because what we're offering gives customers a peace of mind," said Bright House spokesman Joe Durkin.

With this kind of technology, homeowners can watch Fido from work, spy on the sitter or train cameras outside.

And detectives know this.

For decades, law enforcement officials have sought surveillance video from convenience stores and fast-food restaurants. Now, when they canvass a neighborhood after a crime, they're asking homeowners if they have video footage. Often, the answer is "yes."

"We know companies are really pushing them," said Tampa police Assistant Chief John Newman.

In April, home cameras helped crack the case of a serial burglar. A week later, another camera recorded two men suspected of robbing a U.S. Postal Service worker at gunpoint in Tampa.

In St. Petersburg, a camera mounted on a neighbor's house recorded two would-be burglars trying to break in through a back door. One man took a running start and slammed into the door, which didn't budge.

"He nearly knocked himself out," said police spokesman Mike Puetz.

That video, he said, was very popular.

Often, the images are too blurry for investigators to recognize facial features, but they can capture information about clothing and getaway cars. Video also time-stamps actions, and its release often leads to tips, as it did in the beating of Sgt. Aparicio.

Many times recordings of crimes lead to confessions. Tampa police sometimes show surveillance videos to suspects.

"You're able to see their reaction," said police spokeswoman Andrea Davis. "And oftentimes, it's hard for them to deny it."

Sometimes, home cameras catch a unique feature that can lead police to a suspect. In the case of the serial robber, it was the unusual rims on his wife's Altima that connected him to each scene, police say.

Hilda Belez, 28, lives a few houses down from one of the homes targeted by the serial burglar.

She and her husband installed an entire camera system shortly after moving in three years ago, and though the images of the burglar were too blurry for police to use, she likes the reassurance the cameras offer.

She and her husband monitor their home from their smartphones, and whenever they go on vacation, they keep a laptop open and stream the real-time images recorded on the cameras.

"It's a worthy investment," she said.

Once, one of their cameras recorded public workers accidentally demolishing the couple's mailbox, she said. With one phone call — and a mention of her proof — she had a new mailbox.

For those who aren't ready to drop a couple of hundred on a security system, Belez suggests fake cameras. Many sell for about $10.

It's a small step, she said, that could persuade a would-be burglar your house just isn't worth the hassle.

Jessica Vander Velde can be reached at jvandervelde@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3433.

Whooping cough spreads to 10 Hillsborough schools

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 18:02:40 -0400

By Irene Maher, Times staff writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

TAMPA — An outbreak of whooping cough in Hillsborough County has struck 10 schools—nine public and one private. Now health officials worry that summer camps, outings and family vacations may allow the illness, also known as pertussis, to spread even more widely.

"Kids will be fanning out to various churches, camps and community centers, which increases the opportunity to spread pertussis and the number of people who will be exposed," said Warren McDougle, epidemiology program manager for the Hillsborough County Health Department. "The school year ending isn't necessarily going to bring us relief from this outbreak."

Pertussis or whooping cough, as it is commonly known, is a highly contagious bacterial infection that causes coldlike symptoms and uncontrollable, violent coughing that can go on for weeks, even months. It is most dangerous — even potentially fatal — to infants.

So far this year, Hillsborough County has seen about 40 cases. Last year Hillsborough reported just two cases between January and June.

The Florida Department of Health issued a reminder about the importance of vaccination late in April when whooping cough cases spiked statewide. But cases are not up in all counties — Pinellas has had just two this year.

Although children must be vaccinated against the disease to enter school, infection rates have been on the rise nationally for the past few years. Experts say that may be largely because many adults do not get booster shots, recommended every 10 years.

Pertussis symptoms may not seem so bad in older children and adults, especially at first, so people might not even know they are a danger to others.

Also, some parents are refusing vaccines for their children — making them more vulnerable if they come into contact with the bacteria. At least seven of the Hillsborough cases are linked with vaccine refusal.

It's also possible that the vaccine schedule might need to be adjusted, or that the vaccine might need to be reformulated, McDougle said.

Dr. Charurut Somboonwit, associate professor of infectious diseases at USF Health, has been called in by the health department to help with some cases. She shares the concern about adults not getting boosters.

"They may not know that immunity wanes, and they haven't had the vaccine since childhood,'' she said.

The vaccine is given in five stages: at two months, four months and six months; between 15 and 18 months and before a child begins school, usually between 4 and 6 years of age.

Hillsborough County and other jurisdictions require children to receive the pertussis vaccine again before entering seventh grade, as part of the Tdap combination that protects against tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis. Though Florida law does not require a seventh-grade shot, health officials recommend it.

Since April, the affected Hillsborough schools have sent hundreds of letters and emails to parents informing them when a case was detected at their child's school. The most recent letters went out Thursday after six cases of whooping cough were identified at Wilson Middle School.

All those children were current on their immunizations, though some of them, as sixth-graders, hadn't yet had their seventh-grade shot.

In the letters to parents, officials are urging them to consider antibiotics for their children, which have been shown to prevent the disease or at least shorten its duration in those who have been exposed. Antibiotics can also make a child who is infected less contagious to others.

But some parents aren't heeding the warnings. At least two children who developed the disease did not receive antibiotics after they had been recommended, McDougle said.

"I know that some people just don't like to take medications or get vaccines, but it's for the good of the community, to protect others not just to protect you,'' Somboonwit said.

"This disease can be fatal in young children who get it and yet it is largely preventable."

Shots and drugs aren't the only means of prevention, she said.

"It's very important that everyone practices coughing etiquette. Cough and sneeze into your elbow. Wash your hands frequently. Doing that will help a lot in preventing the spread of infectious diseases, not just pertussis."

Irene Maher can be reached at imaher@tampabay.com.

Hernando sheriff, other officers hold line on proposed 2012-13 budgets

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 17:51:55 -0400

By Tony Marrero, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

BROOKSVILLE — Hernando Sheriff Al Nienhuis says he gave his staff a directive: Hold the line on next year's budget.

The staff met that goal and more, Nienhuis says.

The sheriff on Friday submitted a 2012-13 budget of $38,277,524, the exact figure as last year. As reported previously, he also is offering to take over the expense of putting four Animal Services officers on the street, a savings for the county's general fund.

Nienhuis said he will be able to keep his budget flat and assume the costs of the animal control officers — estimated at $300,000 — by cutting some positions and trimming other areas.

Asked for specifics, he said the final details are still in the works, but that he does not foresee layoffs or a reduction in patrol deputies.

"I have to submit a budget that's reasonable and necessary to protect the citizens of Hernando County. In fact, I have to swear to it," Nienhuis said. "I believe this budget is more than reasonable and necessary."

In a cover letter to the County Commission, Nienhuis noted that his agency has collected an annual average of $300,000 in revenue from the county jail since taking over that operation in the summer of 2010. He compared that to the average of just more than $40,000 a year that the previous private operator collected.

Three of the county's other four constitutional officers submitted proposed 2012-13 budgets this week that are slightly smaller than this year's.

The tax collector's spending plan is $1.93 million, the clerk of the circuit court's is $1.76 million and the supervisor of elections' budget is $874,000. The property appraiser's proposed budget of $2.14 million is a slight increase from this year.

John Emerson, chief deputy to the appraiser, said the office has assumed the responsibilities for geographic information system, or GIS, programs previously handled by county transportation services.

Taking into consideration the revenues the constitutional officers receive to offset some of their costs, they would collectively cost the county's general fund about $140,000 less next year than this year.

But with the county facing an $8 million shortfall in the general fund next year due to property values that continue to fall, "that's not really going to put a dent in that,'' said county budget manager George Zoettlein.

Last year, in anticipation of a revenue shortfall in the 2011-12 budget, the county administrator issued a directive to the constitutional officers to trim their budgets by a total of $3 million. There was no such directive issued this year.

Staff writer Barbara Behrendt contributed to this report. Tony Marrero can be reached at (352) 848-1431 or tmarrero@tampabay.com.

St. Petersburg's Women's Running magazine, related fitness assets sold to San Diego company

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 16:52:26 -0400

Times staff
Friday, June 1, 2012

Women's Running magazine, the Lady Speed Stick Women's Half Marathon Series and the womensrunning.com website, all founded by Dawna Stone in St. Petersburg, have been acquired by San Diego-based sports media business Competitor Group Inc.

Terms were not disclosed, but CGI said it would use the Women's Running assets to build "the largest participatory platform in the world dedicated to female athletes."

Stone will join CGI, part of Falconhead Capital, as a consultant and media contributor.

"This agreement will allow us to reach even more women with our message about the importance of a healthy, active lifestyle," she said.

Stone, a former marketing executive at Clearwater boat retailer MarineMax, started the magazine under the title Her Sports' Fitness but changed it to Women's Running to reflect reader interest. According to CGI, increased participation of women has been driving the latest renewed "fitness boom" in the endurance industry.

Stetson law school opens Veterans Law Institute with support services for veterans

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 15:57:58 -0400

By Alli Langley, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

GULFPORT — If you're a soldier worried about staying alive, protecting your fellow soldiers and finishing a mission, dealing with legal issues back home is probably low on the priority list.

Imagine, as Stetson University College of Law professor Charles Rose put it, "you're sitting in a foxhole in Afghanistan, and the bank forecloses on your house."

The law school's new Veterans Law Institute will help veterans and active-duty military with foreclosures and other legal issues such as benefits claims, divorces, child custody disputes, traffic tickets and property repossessions.

About 100 people attended the institute's ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday and toured the facility, a 1,041-square-foot pink house across the street from the school's campus in Gulfport.

Speakers included veterans and Chief Judge Bruce Kasold of the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.

Staffed by law school students and faculty, the institute's Veterans Advocacy Clinic will help veterans file benefits claims and represent those whose claims have been denied.

"We're going to serve those who've already served us," said Rose, an Army veteran.

The institute will provide free legal services to active duty military, said Javier Centonzio, a recent law school graduate and Marine veteran of the war in Iraq.

If the institute can't handle an issue, staff would match that person with a lawyer in the community who would offer free services.

The institute will push for public policy changes on the local, state and federal level that benefit veterans, active duty and future military servicemen and servicewomen, said Michael Allen, the institute's director.

The institute also will support veteran students and help them pay for their tuition. Their advocacy clinic will also give law students experience working with real clients.

"There aren't many places where you can practice law and feel good about yourself," Rose said, "and this is one of them."

One serviceman stationed at MacDill Air Force Base said he couldn't afford legal counsel when he was going through a divorce.

"It would've been nice to have someone I could talk to," said Eddie Bosquez, 29.

He has since remarried, and his wife, who couldn't attend, is a veteran and law school student who will help at the institute.

Bosquez said he appreciates the services the institute will offer veterans and active-duty military members.

"For a number of them to volunteer to do this for us," he said, "it really means a lot because we know we're not forgotten."

Alli Langley can be reached at alangley@tampabay.com.

Jeb Bush goes to Washington to speak his mind — not politics

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 15:41:07 -0400

By Erika Bolstad, Miami Herald
Friday, June 1, 2012

WASHINGTON — If there were any doubts that former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has no intention of returning to a ballot anytime soon, he laid them to rest Friday, in a rare appearance at a congressional hearing.

The Republican former governor was invited to speak to the House Budget Committee by the committee's chairman, Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., author of a federal budget despised by Democrats in part for its proposed changes to the Medicare program for seniors. Bush's remarks focused on removing barriers to free enterprise, but throughout the hearing, he was free with his opinions on all sorts of other policy matters.

"This will prove I'm not running for anything," Bush said, when talking about how he could support a bipartisan commission to examine the tax code for loopholes. He also noted that he thought immigration reform could be a strategy for sustained economic growth — a position that he said puts him "a little out of step with my own party."

Bush's candor made it clear that he sees his place as a senior Republican whose opinions carry a lot of weight in his party but whose private sector life gives him a measure of independence. In Washington, that ability to speak freely makes him a refreshing figure. He was followed out of the hearing to his taxi by a throng of reporters so deep that, in the crush, one camerawoman tumbled backward in the hallway of the Cannon Office Building.

No, Bush told the scrum, he's not interested in being vice president.

"I'm going to support Gov. Romney, he's a great guy," Bush said. "I believe he has an excellent chance of being elected. I'm going to do what I can to (help him) be elected."

But from the window of his taxi, Bush said he does think highly of his friend Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., for the job.

"That would be my choice, but I'm not Mitt Romney," Bush said. "Marco would bring an incredible energy, he's the most articulate spokesman for conservative principles I think in America today, and he's my friend. So I'm a little biased. But I think he would be extraordinary."

Bush also said he likes Rubio's immigration proposal, a Republican alternative to the DREAM Act. He said that Republicans need to work on attracting Hispanic voters by highlighting their economic policies over those of Democrats.

Bush hasn't testified in front of a congressional hearing since he talked about disaster preparations during the brutal 2005-06 hurricane season — and it's a good guess that he won't return any time soon.

"This is a gotcha kind of environment," he said, seemingly taken aback by the shrill partisan tone of the hearing.

From the moment it began, the hearing focused on the differences between Republicans and the White House on spending.

President Barack Obama's policies "take us in the wrong direction," Ryan said, before introducing Bush. "He has called for higher hurdles and greater complexity in the tax code. He insists on wasteful spending on his political allies and regulatory monstrosities that protect the entrenched at the expense of the entrepreneur."

Not to be outdone, the top Democrat on the committee, Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., said that former President George W. Bush's financial policies "lifted the yachts," but not the rest of the boats.

"I didn't come to criticize anybody, for the record. I came to share my views," Bush said in response. "I'm not used to the 9 o'clock food fight that starts bright and early here in Washington. I'm from Florida, where we don't start that way in life. But it's great to be here."

Hillsborough woman charged with DUI manslaughter in December crash

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 15:41:00 -0400

By Jessica Vander Velde, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

PLANT CITY — A Thonotosassa woman was arrested on a DUI manslaughter charge Friday in connection with a fatal December crash.

At about 11 p.m. on Dec. 18, Mona Lisa Shipley, 45, over-corrected her car as she drove in Polk County and lost control, the Florida Highway Patrol said. Her car swerved across a couple lanes, flipped and collided with a fence.

Passenger Kayla Suzanne Nelms, 28, was thrown from the car, and she died at the scene.

Neither Nelms nor Shipley were wearing seat belts, but Shipley only received minor injuries, authorities say.

A 4-year-old child in the backseat was wearing a seat belt and only received minor injuries.

At the time of the crash, Shipley had a blood alcohol level of 0.149, FHP said. The state presumes impairment at 0.08.

Shipley was arrested Friday morning at the Happy Homes mobile home park at 2900 U.S. 92 in Plant City.

State Rep. Jeff Brandes files to run for Florida Senate

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 14:56:47 -0400

By Adam C. Smith, Times Political Editor
Friday, June 1, 2012

State Rep. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, filed to run for the Florida Senate on Friday, setting up a potentially bruising primary that could pit him against either Rep. Jim Frishe, R-St. Petersburg, or Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater.

"We need a strong leader to represent south Pinellas. I've shown leadership in the House and I bring a fresh perspective both as a small-business owner and former military officer," said Brandes, 36.

Senate District 22 stretches across south Pinellas, and about a quarter of it is in Hillsborough. While it's a competitive district, no high-profile Democrat has emerged for the seat so far. Democrat Mark Robert Moon filed to run last month.

The deadline for qualifying closes at the end of next week, and it's unclear which veteran legislator will face off against Brandes — Frishe or Latvala. Frishe has planned to run in District 22 and Latvala in the Senate district encompassing north Pinellas, but both said Friday they may switch races.

"Jack and I still have to talk about that some," said Frishe, calling Brandes a "young and ambitious" candidate. "It's a redistricting year, so everybody's got to be a little flexible."

Likewise, Latvala called Brandes a "Johnny-come-lately" with nowhere near the community involvement or legislative experience he or Frishe have.

"But we don't have millions of dollars in our pockets to blow and move up the ladder," he said, referring to Brandes' wealth.

"It's unfortunate that many local Republicans worked their heart out for him to win the House seat just two years ago, when he beat a very loyal guy in the community (Bill Heller) who had a lot of respect in the community just to become another one of those ladder climbers that can't get up the ladder fast enough. I think it's sad."

Brandes' move sets up a potentially competitive race in his northeast St. Petersburg state House district, where Republican former legislator Frank Farkas is considering running and Democrats Dwight Dudley and William Nobles have announced. Republican Daryle Lee Hamel filed to run for the seat in January but has kept a low profile. Matthew Weidner is running without party affiliation.

Adam C. Smith can be reached at asmith@tampabay.com.

Heavy rain erodes Peck Sink stormwater filtering project near Brooksville

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 13:49:48 -0400

By Barbara Behrendt, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

BROOKSVILLE — The project was designed to aid in the filtering of stormwater as it flows toward Peck Sink. But the drenching rain of earlier this week proved to be too much to handle.

The heavy rain caused large areas of erosion in the berms that had been constructed over the last year at Peck Sink Preserve, south of Brooksville — just as the $1.3 million project was nearing completion.

Now the county and the contractor are working on a plan to repair the damage, which affected about 60 percent of the berms.

"It was an extreme event, an act of God,'' said Dale Ravencraft, the engineering manager for the county's environmental services division.

The upside was that even with the deluge, the filtering ponds worked.

"It performed exactly like it was supposed to,'' Ravencraft said. "It was a good test, and we're going to be able to improve the system'' as repairs are made.

The project, which was awarded to Goodwin Brothers Construction in June 2011, included swales, lined ponds, piping, diversion structures and plants to treat the stormwater entering Peck Sink, which serves as the drain into the aquifer for a large area from southwest Brooksville to the Hernando County Airport.

The project was funded through a grant from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, as well as money from the Southwest Florida Water Management District and the county's stormwater taxing unit.

"The project was still in the hands of the contractor,'' Ravencraft said. "Because it was an act of God, we will work with the contractor to repair the slopes and stabilize them.''

About $70,000 is left in the project budget, and Ravencraft said he believes the money should cover the cost of repairs. The contractor has already agreed to transport dirt it has available to the site for repairs. The new dirt has more clay content and should work better, he said.

The berms had been planted with grass seed, and the millet had already grown. But the bahia had not yet established itself. Ravencraft said seed was used because it was less expensive than sod, but with the drought that proceeded the storms, it didn't grow enough to protect the berms.

Even if sod had been used, he said, the berms would have been damaged because of the volume of water rushing through the ponds to the sink. He said he heard reports of as much as 9 inches of rain this week in the Brooksville area.

When the contract was awarded last summer, Ravencraft said, there was some concern about how the rainy season might affect the work. But last summer didn't produce any weather that harmed the progress.

"I guess our luck ran out,'' he said. "I just wish we hadn't had such an extreme event so early in the season.''

Barbara Behrendt can be reached at behrendt@tampabay.com or (352) 848-1434.

Two Clearwater women hit by car on U.S. 19 sidewalk

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 13:45:04 -0400

By Peter Jamison, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

PALM HARBOR — Two Clearwater women were injured Friday while standing on a sidewalk at the intersection of U.S. 19 and Tampa Road when a car veered off the highway and hit them, authorities said.

At about 11:30 a.m., Karen Rose Steinbrecher, 56, and Tomana Monic Swartz, 30, were waiting at a crossing signal at the south end of the intersection, preparing to cross U.S. 19, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

Clearwater resident Jeffrey Albert, 17, was driving his 2006 Ford Fusion north on U.S. 19. When traffic ahead of him slowed, Albert didn't slow down in time and veered onto the road's shoulder to avoid hitting cars in front of him, the Highway Patrol said.

The car hit the two women, causing minor injuries, the FHP reported. They were taken to St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa. Albert wasn't injured. Troopers investigating the accident say it was not alcohol-related.

Peter Jamison can be reached at pjamison@tampabay.com or (727) 445-4157.

Broadway star Idina Menzel coming to Straz on Dec. 1

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 11:16:33 -0400

Times staff
Friday, June 1, 2012

Tony Award-winning actor, singer and songwriter Idina Menzel, star of Broadway's Wicked and the original stage production of Rent, is coming to Tampa for a show on Dec. 1 at the Straz Center, the venue announced today.

Fans of the television's Glee would also recognize Menzel for her role as Shelby Corcoran, Rachel's biological mother.

"I am so thrilled to be back on tour. I am eager to reconnect with my audience, perform my favorite songs and explore some exciting new material," Menzel said in a statement.

The Straz says Menzel's performance will be the centerpiece of the performing art center's 25th Anniversary Gala. Tickets for the concert will go on sale June 22; packages for the gala that include all of the evening's festivities will go on sale at a later date.

Seventh- and eighth-graders succeed on algebra exam, while ninth-graders falter

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 10:28:14 -0400

By Cara Fitzpatrick, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

Facing a tough new graduation requirement, Florida's seventh- and eighth-graders overwhelmingly passed the state's high-stakes algebra exam, while ninth-graders faltered.

Of those who took the test this year, nearly nine out of every 10 middle school students statewide earned passing marks or better. Slightly fewer than half of ninth-graders did.

That pattern held true in the Tampa Bay region, with seventh-graders performing the best, followed by eighth-graders and ninth-graders.

Of those who took the exam, 92 percent of seventh-graders passed in Pinellas County, while 96 percent passed in Hillsborough County and 100 percent were proficient or better in Pasco and Hernando counties.

School officials said seventh-graders were most likely to succeed because only advanced students take algebra at that age.

"Those are your high-fliers," said Dave Rosenberger, principal of Clearwater Fundamental Middle School, where 100 percent of seventh-graders and 94 percent of eighth-graders who took the test passed it. Sixth-graders also take the exam, but typically there are too few to report results.

Rosenberger said he started getting calls from parents before the results had been announced. Students also dropped by the front office Friday to learn their scores — many needed to pass to guarantee placement in high school programs. He described their reactions as a mixture of relief and excitement.

The Algebra I exam is the first of Florida's new high-stakes end-of-course tests — part of a move to increase the rigor of high school graduation requirements. The exams replaced the math and science FCAT for high school students.

Students in grades 6-12 took the new Algebra I exam last year. But this year's ninth-graders are the first who must pass the test to graduate from high school. Students must earn a Level 3 or better on a five-point scale.

Next year's ninth-graders will face an even greater hurdle: needing to pass end-of-course exams in algebra, biology and geometry to earn their high school diploma.

Education Commissioner Gerard Robinson praised students statewide for a better-than-expected performance on the algebra exam. "As our state has raised the bar, our students have shown steady improvement," he said in a prepared statement.

The algebra results are something of a win for the state Department of Education, which has been waging a public relations campaign this year against growing frustration about testing.

Parents, students, teachers and even school superintendents have questioned how quickly the state rolled out changes to its accountability system.

This year's writing results were a black mark for the state, as scores dropped so dramatically for fourth-, eighth- and 10th-graders that the state Board of Education had to lower the passing score.

Parents also were concerned about third grade reading results: Thousands more students failed this year and could be held back.

The state is expected to release the rest of the FCAT scores next week: that includes reading and math, grades 4-8, and science, grades 5 and 8.

School officials throughout the Tampa Bay region were pouring over the algebra results Friday, looking for trends and planning remedial options for ninth-graders who failed.

In Hernando County, where ninth-graders trailed the state average, superintendent Bryan Blavatt expressed concern. Statewide, 48 percent of ninth-graders passed, while 46 percent of Hernando's ninth-graders did.

"I'm certainly not happy that we're performing below the state average," he said. "But I can guarantee that we are looking at why we performed below that average and how we're going to resolve it."

In Pinellas and Hillsborough counties, ninth-graders were well below the state average. In Pinellas, 34 percent of ninth-graders passed, while 28 percent did in Hillsborough.

Pinellas officials said many of their students take algebra in middle school. That means this year's ninth-graders likely struggled in the subject.

"The students who are testing in ninth grade are some of the ones who need more time," said Bill Lawrence, an associate superintendent in Pinellas.

That was true in Hillsborough, too, where the vast majority of students take algebra in eighth grade. Of those students, 78 percent earning a passing score.

Both counties will offer summer school for students who failed, with the earliest opportunity to retake the exam in July.

Phillip Carr, principal of Riverview's Spoto High School, offered a mixed review of his school's performance. Only 29 percent of ninth-graders passed.

"I'm pleased with our results compared to the rest of the district, but I understand that we have some work to do," he said.

Seffner man faces attempted murder charge in shooting

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 10:26:39 -0400

By Laura C. Morel, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

HILLSBOROUGH — A Seffner man was arrested Thursday night in connection with a shooting where one man was shot in the leg.

On May 27 at about 5:30 p.m., the victim was driving in the 1000 block of Tiburon Drive when he was confronted by a man wearing a bullet-resistant vest. The man fired a gun several times into the victim's vehicle and shot him in the leg, court records show.

The victim told police he has known the gunman for more than 20 years and that the man had made death threats against him. He identified his attacker in a photo lineup.

The gunman was identified as 35-year-old James Freeman. He was arrested by Hillsborough County Sheriff's deputies about 5 p.m. on several charges, including attempted felony murder, aggravated battery and assault with a firearm, and possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.

He is being held at the Hillsborough County jail without bail.

Tampa police: String of robberies might be related

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 10:05:47 -0400

Times Staff
Friday, June 1, 2012

TAMPA — Authorities are investigating a string of robberies they believe may be related, police said.

In three of the cases, the robber had a shirt covering his face or wrapped around his head.

On the night of May 29, a man knocked a woman to the ground in the 4600 block of W Gray Street and searched her pockets. The man ran away when the woman was able to strike his head with a gallon water jug.

At about 11 p.m. May 23, a 74-year-old man was knocked to the ground in the 1800 block of West Shore Boulevard N. The man's assailant took money and a hearing aid.

The first two robberies occurred on May 22. At 10:35 p.m., a man pushed a woman to the ground near Lois Avenue N and W North A Street and stole her purse.

And at 10:20 p.m. near North B Street and Hubert Avenue N, a man was shocked with a stun gun, and the robber fled with the man's iPhone.

St. Petersburg police arrest man they say demanded cash, pills from CVS

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 10:02:07 -0400

Times staff
Friday, June 1, 2012

ST. PETERSBURG — Police have arrested a man they say robbed a CVS Pharmacy at gunpoint earlier this week.

Detectives say Zachary Perrine, 21, of St. Petersburg walked into the pharmacy at 8001 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street N just after midnight Wednesday.

He approached a clerk, showed his gun and demanded cash and Oxycodone, authorities said. He fled with just some cash when a pharmacist told him the store didn't stock the drug.

Police released a surveillance video of the incident and arrested Perrine later that night on charges of armed robbery and drug possession. Records show he is also facing charges from a home invasion robbery case from August 2011.

Perrine remained in the Pinellas County Jail on Friday in lieu of $155,000 bail.

Hillsborough sheriff's wife out of hospital after crash with gang member

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 08:47:28 -0400

By Marissa Lang, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

VALRICO — Rhonda Gee, wife of Hillsborough County Sheriff David Gee, was released from Tampa General Hospital late Thursday after a known gang member T-boned her car, officials said.

Gee did not have any permanent injuries, just "bumps and bruises," said Sheriff's Office spokesman Larry McKinnon. He did not know whether Gee had suffered a concussion.

The crash that sent Gee to the hospital happened about 7:30 a.m. near the intersection of Lithia-Pinecrest Road and Bloomingdale Avenue as Raul De Alejandro, 22, sped away from a Hess gas station parking lot with his 15-year-old sister in the car, McKinnon said.

De Alejandro, who McKinnon said is a member of the Dover Locos gang, got into a confrontation with the gas station cashier over her refusal to sell him a pack of cigarettes without photo identification, McKinnon said.

He threatened the clerk, peeled out of the lot, ran a red light and hit the passenger-side door of Rhonda Gee's car going about 15 to 20 mph, said sheriff's Maj. Clyde Eisenberg.

De Alejandro drove away but was caught after his car broke down about a mile from the collision, officials said.

The sheriff arrived at the scene and rode with his wife to the hospital. Gee planned to stay home Friday with his recovering wife.

De Alejandro was charged with aggravated assault with a firearm, disorderly conduct, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and leaving the scene of a crash with injury.

Marissa Lang can be reached at mlang@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8804.

Troubled lives clashed in 'Miami zombie' face-eating attack

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 08:23:57 -0400

By Elinor J. Brecher and Nadege Green, Miami Herald
Friday, June 1, 2012

MIAMI — Saturday's horror-movie episode on Miami's MacArthur Causeway brought together two troubled men, one who was struggling to get his life on track, another who'd given up trying.

Rudy Eugene, 31, had been seeking spiritual guidance in Scripture. On May 24, two days before he would viciously attack a homeless man named Ronald Edward Poppo, Eugene attended a Bible study session at a friend's North Miami Beach home.

Recently, Eugene posted a verse from Psalm 59 on his Facebook page: "Deliver me from my enemies, O my Lord; Defend me from those who rise up against me. For the Lord God is my defense. …''

Friend Bobby Chery said he, Eugene and another friend discussed that day what they could do to become better men according to the word of God, and that Eugene vowed to give up marijuana.

That same Thursday, Miami Police rousted Poppo from one of the last places he called home: the top floor of the parking garage at Jungle Island, a botanical and wildlife attraction on Watson Island in Biscayne Bay.

Outreach workers from the Miami Homeless Assistance Program found him there and offered help, said Ronald Book, chairman of the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust.

But after Poppo became "belligerent and aggressive,'' the outreach team called police. Officers issued Poppo, who had turned 65 a week earlier, a "trespassing after warning'' citation.

"He grabbed his box of stuff and went off,'' said Book. Outreach workers reported he was "cursing and claiming discrimination."

About 2 p.m. Saturday, a naked Rudy Eugene grabbed Poppo near the causeway's west end, stripped off his clothes, beat him, bit him and gnawed off his face.

More than 15 minutes into the attack, a police officer arrived and shot Eugene to death. Poppo remains in critical condition at Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center.

The crazed assault shocked nearly everyone who knew Eugene.

Johansen Aurelus, a childhood friend, called Eugene "preacher" because he liked sharing Bible verses with friends and kept his Bible handy.

Aurelus attended Bethel Baptist Church with Eugene when they were teens. Back then, Aurelus said, Eugene would ask questions about the pastor's sermons and how they applied to his life.

Over the years Eugene had some run-ins with police for marijuana possession and a domestic dispute. Most recently, he had difficulty holding a job, friends say.

Eugene's stepfather, Melimon Charles, of North Miami, said Eugene was "not the kind of devil who goes out and kills people like they are showing on the news. He's a fine boy. He was raised in the church. He was in the choir."

Eugene learned that Charles was not his biological father when he was in ninth or 10th grade. Charles had been with Eugene's mother, Ruth, since the boy was 2.

Rudy "was angry because he was looking for his father," Charles said. "His father passed away and he didn't know. And I didn't know anything about it. I didn't even have a picture to show him."

Soon after, he said, Eugene accepted "the truth and we were doing fine."

But at 17, Eugene moved out without telling his stepfather. He transferred from North Miami Beach High School to North Miami High.

If he was upset over "family issues," it was because of his parents' divorce, which happened after he was an adult, Charles said.

Charles dismisses gossip that Rudy was the target of a voodoo curse. "Nobody went to Haiti and did anything to him," he insisted.

Though Eugene had stopped attending church regularly, he maintained his quest for spirituality. He regularly sent inspirational text messages to his friends. And on Facebook, he mentions "Zoe Life" several times — a phrase both associated with Haitian life and with born-again Christians.

His final post, on May 18, proclaimed: "ZOE LIFE IS ETERNAL!!!!!!!!!"

Friends posted tributes on his page.

"Damn, I still can't believe it, out of all people, YOU! You have been a great friend to me, and for that you will always be missed!" said Meli Mel Rivera.

Ranessia Rollins posted that Eugene was at her house Friday and kissed her cheek.

All of his friends expressed disbelief and solidarity.

Pudding Sabali said: "They're telling me (us) that we shouldn't have any grief for you dying. But it's hard to not have the deepest warm feeling when it comes to you … just a young man misunderstood … God have mercy on your soul."

• • •

Understanding Ronald Poppo is harder because he lived anonymously for so long.

Ron Book said outreach workers had been offering him services since Dec. 27, 1999. He hadn't had a permanent address since 1970.

Poppo said he had become homeless outside Florida, slept on Watson Island and abused alcohol.

He stayed in an emergency shelter for 141 days, during which he saw a counselor once, according to assistance program records. Four years later, Miami police took him back to the shelter. Starting on Oct. 6, 2003, Poppo stayed for 10 days and again met once with a counselor.

Between that stay and his last encounter with outreach workers on May 24, Poppo may have spent less than a week living inside.

Outreach teams approached him three times in 2005 and 2006, but he refused help.

"During one of the contacts he became angry and started throwing rocks at the outreach staff,'' Book said.

Among Miami's 240 to 260 chronic homeless people, "sometimes after three, 10, 30 attempts, we get a guy or woman to come in,'' Book said.

Details of Poppo's life have been surfacing in bits since the assault. The 1964 graduate of New York's elite Stuyvesant High School grew up in Brooklyn, according to long-lost sister Antoinette Poppo.

Neither she nor Poppo's two brothers have seen him in more than 30 years, she said, and none of them plan a trip to Miami. Two siblings live in New York, another in California.

Their late father was a shipfitter, she said, a structural worker in a shipyard. She thinks "Ronnie'' attended both parents' funerals.

She couldn't explain the conditions that led to her brother's downward spiral and his estrangement from the family.

"I'm 12 years older,'' she said. "He was 6 years old when I got married and left the house.''

But she called him "a very intelligent boy and a gentle person.''

For a time in the late '80s, Poppo worked as a roadie for the band Skum, which spent about two years in Miami before breaking up around 1990.

They're reuniting for a documentary, said former lead singer Hart Baur, of Miami. He said part of the band's philosophy was to hire homeless guys to carry equipment.

In an email from North Carolina, former bass player Patrick Burke, a former Miamian, said band members would see "homeless guys panhandling, so we'd take them to Burger King, and say, 'You want to work, take out the garbage and sweep up the parking lot?' "

They'd give them a few bucks, booze and dinner.

There were moments of lucidity with Poppo, whom he called Ernie, "because I thought he looked like Ernest Hemingway,'' Burke said.

Other band members called him Pops, Burke said, because he looked old.

Poppo was hanging out "under a bridge off Biscayne Boulevard'' when the band met him, Burke said. "He loved to drink and we used to always kid him about the fact that homeless people always had the best heads of hair. Pops used to say, 'It's just the lifestyle, man — no bad chemicals on my head.' "

He was always wearing a Yankees cap, Burke said, "and he would take it off to show his locks to the girls at our shows. … Last time I saw him was at the Grove Cinema in 1989.''

On Thursday, the Jackson Memorial Foundation established a fund for Poppo's care. Foundation spokesman Larry Clark said that "inquiries have come from all over the country.''

Donations can be made on the foundation's website, jmf.org (click the "Take Action Now" tab, and then click on donations. On the donation page, select "other" in the Contribution Details section and write in "Ronald Poppo").

Donations by check should be sent to Jackson Memorial Foundation, Park Plaza East, Suite G, 901 NW 17th St., Miami, FL 33136; write "Ronald Poppo" on the memo line.

Herald staff writers Jacqueline Charles and Deborah Acosta contributed to this story.

Authorities search for two after van crashes into St. Petersburg mobile home

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 07:41:12 -0400

By Marissa Lang, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

ST. PETERSBURG — A van careered into a mobile home early Friday, sending two people to the hospital and causing thousands of dollars in damage, deputies said.

The crash happened about 4:30 a.m. in the 5000 block of 28th Street N in the Sunshine City Mobile Home Park. Several hours later, the Dodge van was still stuck in the residence.

Kwansha Christina Collins, 19, had been driving the vehicle north on 28th Street N when she lost control of the vehicle and crashed into the home, causing about $10,000 in damage, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

The van also hit a parked Chevy Camaro owned by Wayne A. Brlecic, 50, of Bushnell, causing about $4,000 in damage, troopers said.

Deputies said Collins was in the van with four men at the time of the crash. Two were transported to Bayfront Medical Center with serious injuries: Darryl Signmon Gainer, 18, and Mark Timpson, 16, both of St. Petersburg.

The other two unidentified passengers left the scene and remain at large, officials said.

Deputies said Luis Dean, 54, was asleep inside the mobile home at the time of the crash, but he was not injured.

A police dog unit was called to the scene to try to track down the two passengers who fled, but was unsuccessful.

An investigation remains under way.

Collins faces charges of careless driving and driving with a suspended license.

Marissa Lang can be reached at mlang@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8804.

Heavy rains wash over Tampa Bay

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 06:58:57 -0400

By Laura C. Morel, Times Staff Writer
Friday, June 1, 2012

Rain fell across the Tampa Bay area Friday as scattered showers moved through Pinellas, Hillsborough, Pasco and Hernando counties.

"It's going to be kind of random," Bay News 9 meteorologist Brian McClure said Friday morning.

A flood advisory was issued in Hillsborough County and expired at noon, according to the National Weather Service. The usual street flooding was reported in Tampa.

Several traffic crashes were reported in the Tampa Bay area. Just before noon, the ramp leading from southbound Interstate 275 to eastbound Interstate 4 was shut down after a car carrier crashed, Florida Highway Patrol spokesman Sgt. Steve Gaskins said. There were no injuries and the carrier was not holding any vehicles at the time of the collision. The ramp is now open.

The heavy downpour was receding from Hillsborough starting around 11 a.m., Bay News 9 meteorologist Mike Clay said, and headed into Polk and Manatee counties.

Heavy morning rainfall was reported in Pasco County, where a strip of Seven Springs Boulevard from State Road 54 to Jenner Avenue was closed due to flooding early Friday.

Drivers were being diverted to Mitchell Ranch Road until the flooding subsided.

Power outages that affected hundreds of homes were reported near Plant City and Lutz, according to Tampa Electric.

In Tampa, rainfall last month totaled 2.6 inches, half an inch above the average amount of rainfall in May. In downtown St. Petersburg, rainfall in May totaled 1.62 inches, 0.59 inches below average.

Rain was forecast across the bay area throughout the morning as showers shifted southwest to northeast. The temperature early Friday morning was in the 70s, McClure said, but will rise to the mid 80s.

Showers were expected to decline by Friday afternoon as eastern winds pushed the rain out of the area. Warmer and drier weather was expected this weekend, McClure said.

Justice Department tells Florida to stop looking for noncitizen voters

Thu, 31 May 2012 22:32:28 -0400

By Marc Caputo, Miami Herald
Thursday, May 31, 2012

The Justice Department ordered Florida's elections division to halt a systematic effort to find and purge the state's voter rolls of noncitizen voters.

Florida's effort appears to violate both the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which protects minorities, and the 1993 National Voter Registration Act, which governs voter purges, T. Christian Herren Jr., the Justice Department's lead civil rights lawyer, wrote in a letter sent late Thursday night.

State officials said they were reviewing the letter. But they indicated they might fight DOJ over its interpretation of federal law and expressed frustration that President Barack Obama's administration has stonewalled the state's noncitizen voter hunt for nine months.

"We are firmly committed to doing the right thing and preventing ineligible voters from being able to cast a ballot," said Chris Cate, spokesman for Secretary of State Ken Detzner, who was ordered by Gov. Rick Scott to conduct the search for potentially ineligible voters.

So far, Florida has flagged 2,700 potential noncitizen voters and sent the list to county elections supervisors, who have found the data and methodology to be flawed and problematic. The list of potential noncitizen voters — many of whom have turned out to be lawful citizens and voters — disproportionately hits minorities.

About 58 percent of those flagged as potential noncitizens are Hispanics, Florida's largest ethnic immigrant population, a Herald analysis found. Hispanics make up 13 percent of the 11.3 million active registered voters.

Independent voters and Democrats are the most likely to face being purged from the rolls. Republicans and non-Hispanic whites are the least likely.

Under the Voting Rights Act, Florida needs federal approval before it makes changes to voting because five Florida counties — Hillsborough, Monroe, Collier, Hardee and Hendry — had minority-voting troubles decades ago.

"Our records do not reflect that these changes affecting voting have been submitted to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia for judicial review or to the Attorney General for administrative review as required by Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act," Herren wrote.

"Accordingly, it is necessary that they either be brought before that court or submitted to the Attorney General for a determination that they neither have the purpose nor will have the effect of discriminating on account of race, color, or membership in a language minority group under Section 5."

He gave the state until Wednesday to inform the Justice Department of its plans.

Herren also said that the National Voter Registration Act bans Florida's effort because it says "a State shall complete, not later than 90 days prior to the date of a primary or general election for Federal office, any program the purpose of which is to systematically remove the names of ineligible voters from the official lists of eligible voters."

Florida elections officials have repeatedly said that their efforts comply with all federal laws, which aren't clearly written. They also say there's nothing discriminatory or partisan about the effort. It's simply trying to remove ineligible voters: felons, dead people and noncitizens.

To spot noncitizens, though, the state began comparing voter rolls with a Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicle database that contains some citizenship information that the agency collects when people get a state ID such as a driver's license.

But the citizenship data in many cases is out of date. That is, many people become citizens after they get their ID and then register to vote. But the highway safety database isn't updated.

As a result, the state has performed its own checking and double-checking and winnowed down a pool of 180,000 potential noncitizens to a list of about 2,700. It is asking the counties to contact the voters by mail. Those who don't respond within about two months of being contacted could be stricken from the rolls.

A coalition of liberal-leaning civil rights groups complained to the Justice Department and the state about the process, pointing out that it burdens citizens instead of the government.

Cate, the state elections spokesman, said the state will have a full response soon. The agency also seemed to express frustration with the lack of help from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which maintains citizenship data but won't share its database with Florida.

Detzner asked again for DHS help on Thursday.

"We provided information to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security today in hopes that the federal government would help us identify ineligible voters," Cate said. "While this isn't a response from DHS as to why they haven't provided us access to their data, at least we know the federal government knows we take ineligible voters on the voter rolls seriously. We hope the federal government will recognize the importance of accurate voter rolls and support our efforts."

Family of slain Marine await apology after Air Force mortuary scandal

Thu, 31 May 2012 21:55:29 -0400

By Robbyn Mitchell, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2012

TAMPA

Silently, the Angus family waited.

The mother, father and sister of Sgt. Daniel Angus bided seven months to see what punishment would come for the morticians and supervisors responsible for sawing off the arm of the Marine killed in Afghanistan.

Last week, a reporter — not the Pentagon — called the family with the news.

And they grieved for Daniel Angus yet a third time.

This time, they wanted to be heard.

"More than anything, we deserve an apology that doesn't start with 'I'm sorry, but …' " said his mother, Kathy Angus, in a news conference Thursday. "Everyone involved needs real consequences for what they did."

The Air Force said in a statement last week that Dover Air Force Base Port Mortuary supervisors Col. Robert Edmondson and Trevor Dean were punished for retaliating against employees who complained about the way servicemen and servicewomen's bodies were being handled.

Edmondson received a second letter of reprimand and a $7,000 fine. Dean, the top civilian deputy, got a 20-day suspension without pay.

In March, Quinton "Randy" Keel, the supervisor directly responsible for removing Angus' arm, resigned. During a 2011 investigation, Dean and Keel were demoted and given pay cuts.

"If it weren't for the whistle-blowers, it's very possible that this never would have stopped," said William Angus, the Marine's father.

The Defense Department said the punishment was appropriate.

"Heroes deserve the highest honor and respect, and we are committed to taking to steps to ensure lapses do not occur in the future," department spokesman George Little told the Pentagon Channel.

•••

For this family, the grieving began with a knock on the door in January 2010.

Officials told the Anguses that their son and two others had been killed in a blast in Helmand province.

It was Daniel Angus' third tour of duty since enlisting in the Marines in 2003.

"The Marines shaped my son into a good man," said William Angus, 58, an air conditioning and heating technician. "He loved the Marines and would have made a career of it."

After getting the news of his death, the family lowered the American flag in front of their Thonotosassa home to half staff and left for Dover, Del.

Kathy Angus, 58, said she never intended to view her son's body or have an open-casket funeral.

"I didn't want to remember him that way," she said

The family requested cremation. They chose an urn. Never once did they open the casket.

A month later, they got a call from the Port Mortuary.

"He was asking did we look at the body?" said Tracy Maiville, 32, Angus' sister.

Kathy Angus, a doctor's office manager, didn't know the reason for the call at the time.

"I felt bad because I thought maybe someone had done this wonderful job and we didn't even look," she said.

Then in November 2011, she got another call.

Officials said Daniel Angus' arm had been fused perpendicular to his body in the explosion, so a mortuary official ordered it to be cut off and stuffed into his pants leg.

The grieving began again.

"No apology was made. They stood by their actions, claiming they did what they needed to do," Kathy Angus said.

During the ordeal, not one military official, politician or mortician apologized, the Angus family said.

Their attorney, Mark J. O'Brien of Tampa, said they aren't out for money and haven't filed a lawsuit.

"It will all depend on how much more sacrifice the family is willing to be put through. Lawsuits are difficult. And they'll have to relive this incident again," he said.

The Angus family only has the things Daniel Angus left behind: 4-year-old daughter Kaitlyn, an ATV, an old Chevrolet Silverado with a lift kit, and 28 years of memories.

"Daniel gave his life fighting for our freedoms and we are going to fight for justice for him," Kathy Angus said.

They are hoping to add an apology and permanent changes at the mortuary to that legacy.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

Deadline extended to apply for Florida Polytechnic University board

Thu, 31 May 2012 20:47:22 -0400

Times staff
Thursday, May 31, 2012

LAKELAND — The deadline to apply for the board of directors for Florida's newest state university has been extended to Monday.

Ultimately, 11 people will be seated on the board overseeing what will be Florida Polytechnic University.

Several dozen people have applied to Gov. Rick Scott or the Florida Board of Governors, including a late flurry of applicants. A Board of Governors spokeswoman said the deadline is now 4 p.m. Monday.

The applicants so far include the president of Broward College, J. David Armstrong, and others mostly from Polk County, including business leaders, lawyers, retirees, elected officials and an instructor from the campus formerly known as University of South Florida Polytechnic.

Mitt Romney campaign ramping up in Florida to enthusiasm of Republicans

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:57:33 -0400

By Adam C. Smith, Times Political Editor
Thursday, May 31, 2012

As Mitt Romney ramps up his campaign in must-win Florida, he faces a daunting reality.

For 10 months, President Barack Obama has been steadily building a voter mobilization army here and now has about 100 paid staffers, 27 field offices and thousands of volunteers working almost every day to deliver Florida's 29 electoral votes. A click on Romney's Florida campaign website Thursday found no upcoming events in the state, while Obama's site showed 194 events within 40 miles of downtown Tampa.

Even in the face of that Obama campaign juggernaut, however, optimism abounds among Republicans across Florida. Veteran activists see the start of a Florida campaign operation far more robust than John McCain's anemic effort four years ago, and they see a Republican electorate fired up to defeat Obama.

"We've got volunteers everywhere, and I'm not blowing smoke,'' said Cindy Graves, a Republican activist in Jacksonville who leads the Florida Federation of Republican Women. "The difference between 2008 with (John) McCain and 2012 — I could cry with relief. The people running the Florida campaign today are professional, they're sharp, they're disciplined. It's like we have grownups in the room, people who know what they're doing and lots of enthusiasm from volunteers."

In a departure from past presidential campaigns in Florida, the Romney campaign and Republican National Committee are basing their headquarters for turning out voters in Tampa, rather than in Tallahassee with the state GOP. The "Victory" headquarters on Harbour Island just opened and is a two-minute drive from the Tampa Bay Times Forum, where Romney will accept the nomination in August.

"Placing the office in Tampa makes it easier to focus on the all-important I-4 corridor," said Molly Donlin, director of Romney's Florida campaign. "It also shows a willingness to think outside the box and not just do what every other presidential campaign in Florida has done."

Obama won Florida by less than 3 percentage points in 2008 after mounting the largest statewide campaign operation ever seen here. The effort promises to be even bigger in 2012, but Republicans are banking on a turnout operation more like George W. Bush's formidable 2004 campaign than McCain's.

The latest Florida polls show a dead heat, and both sides understand that if Romney loses Florida it's next to impossible for him to win the White House.

"President Obama is going to have unlimited cash and resources, but we're not going to be outworked or outhustled. We've carried over a lot of enthusiasm from our primary win, and we're going to build a smart, capable and efficient campaign," Donlin said.

By Sunday, the campaign expects to have 23 "Victory" offices open across the state. These are opened by the Republican National Committee to coordinate voter mobilization efforts with the Romney campaign and state party. At least another 20 should be up and running by July, when roughly 40 Romney and Republican National Committee staffers should be on the ground in Florida.

"He's got a ways to go before it's a fully functioning organization, but he's doing all the right things," Hillsborough Republican chairman Art Wood said of the Romney Florida campaign, noting that he already sees far better coordination between the campaign and the state party.

In Polk County, GOP vice chairman Steve Maxwell said campaign offices already are open in Lakeland and Winter Haven and another is coming soon in Lakes Wales, with volunteers phoning tens of thousands of voters every week.

"We have people coming in off the streets every day. I'm confident you're going to see an equal, if not greater, number of people volunteering for Romney as for Obama,'' Maxwell said. "The grass roots is beginning to surface now, but we've been working at building up our local infrastructure for several years now and we're just now implementing our plan. It's a much more unified effort this time and we've got three years of Obama's record motivating people."

Romney overwhelmingly won Florida's Republican primary in January, mainly by burying his rivals with negative TV ads. The campaign's grass roots effort largely consisted of mailing absentee ballots to supporters, rather than the kind of person-to-person communication the Obama campaign is focused on.

"President Obama's supporters across the Sunshine State are taking action every day to make sure their friends and neighbors know about the president's record of fighting to build a fair economy for the middle class," said Eric Jotkoff, press secretary for Obama for America Florida.

Now that the primary is behind him, Romney's campaign will focus on organizing supporters.

"Republican enthusiasm is through the roof in Florida. We cannot keep up with the demands for literature, bumper stickers, yard signs and offers to volunteer," Donlin said. "Our biggest challenge right now is catching up the organic support that has been building throughout the state at the grass roots level, but it's a good problem to have."

Adam C. Smith can be reached at asmith@tampabay.com.

Army specialist surprises sister at Sickles High graduation

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:53:45 -0400

By Patty Ryan, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2012

TAMPA

The Singleton sisters consider themselves twins.

Big twin: Sara, 22.

Little twin: Lindsey, 18.

They're indivisible, except by the Army and war.

Sara, an Army intelligence specialist, deployed to Afghanistan's Kunar Province a year ago. As Lindsey finished her senior year at Sickles High School, Sara learned to sleep with the sound of mortar blasts.

She came home to Citrus Park for a visit in November, but Lindsey hadn't seen Sara since, not even after her April return to Fort Hood in Texas.

On Thursday, without Sara, Lindsey put on an emerald green cap and gown. It was her graduation day.

Lindsey couldn't get excited. People had tried to cheer her up, but only one person could do that.

"I'm really sorry," Sara had told her the day before.

The Sickles band performed. No Sara.

The ROTC presented the colors. No Sara.

Lindsey would be the last of four siblings to finish Sickles. Her father, a retired Tampa police detective, was in the audience, along with her mother, oldest sister and brother Cameron Cortez, 31, an Army recruiter who served in Iraq.

Lindsey, too, intends to join the Army.

The march of nearly 400 graduates began. The teens followed a ramp up one side of the stage and down the other.

First the honor students, then the A's, B's, C's . . . all the way to the S's.

Lindsey Alyse Singleton.

As Lindsey's name was called, as she walked to center stage, a thought crossed her mind.

The principal had telephoned her mom the day before. What was that all about?

Nah, she thought. Too good to be true.

But it was true.

Coming toward her from the other side of the platform was a slender woman in Army camouflage, carrying a red, white and blue bouquet.

The family had conspired. Sara had traveled 1,150 miles from Fort Hood.

Lindsey and Sara stopped in each other's path.

In seconds, everyone knew.

As the two hugged, teary-eyed, onstage, the hall went wild with applause and strangers came to their feet.

Lindsey didn't need a graduation gift, she said after the ceremony.

This one was enough.

"She came through," Lindsey said. "That's my twin."

Patty Ryan can be reached at pryan@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3382.

Hernando Sheriff Nienhuis proposes taking over Animal Services officers

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:52:47 -0400

By Barbara Behrendt, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2012

BROOKSVILLE — The four Hernando County officers who respond to calls concerning abused, abandoned and neglected animals could soon have a new boss: Sheriff Al Nienhuis.

As the county continues to grapple with problems at Animal Services and a fire storm of public outrage, county officials reached out to Nienhuis to see if he could be part of the solution.

Nienhuis responded by offering to take the Animal Services officers under the umbrella of the Sheriff's Office. He has been talking with county officials, county commissioners and, on Thursday, Animal Services workers about the idea.

The offer already is raising questions among those in the animal welfare community who wonder if stripping away the officers will make conditions even more difficult for the small staff at the county's animal shelter.

Nienhuis said the idea of taking on some Animal Services functions wasn't a new concept.

"We are constantly brainstorming here at the Sheriff's Office about ways to do things better and more efficiently,'' he said.

Animal Services officers have been part of those discussions in the past.

"We deal with a lot of animal complaint issues,'' especially nights and on weekends, Nienhuis said. Some of those calls require dispatching a deputy to the scene of an incident to determine whether Animal Services needs to get involved.

"There is a duplication of services,'' and by dispatching Animal Services directly, deputy time could be saved in some instances, the sheriff said.

The officers would not be full deputies but instead would function like the public service technicians "who go out and handle the calls for service that don't call for a badge and a gun,'' Nienhuis said.

Hernando officials are studying how Citrus County handles its animal control officers, according to Mike Nickerson, Hernando's public safety director. The Citrus County Sheriff's Office took over animal officers in September 2009. They handle enforcement of local ordinances and state laws regarding animals, according to sheriff's spokeswoman Gail Tierney.

"We've been very pleased with how it's working here,'' Tierney said.

One big plus, she said, is the ability to serve the public and respond to animal issues as they arise.

"We've been able to extend the hours that the (animal control officers) are on duty,'' she said.

Citrus County Sheriff Jeff Dawsy does not handle the Citrus animal shelter or code enforcement, and Nienhuis said he is also not interested in taking on the tasks of the animal care workers or the code enforcement officers currently working together at the Hernando shelter.

Animal Services has been under scrutiny since a young dog named Zeus was euthanized just 12 minutes after it was brought to the shelter in Brooksville by a relative of the owner in April. One of the volunteers at the shelter snapped a photograph of the dog so it could be posted online in hopes of finding someone to adopt it.

After finding an adopter, the volunteers learned the dog was dead. They then went public with a series of issues they had with the shelter and the shelter staff.

The audit services staff of the clerk of the circuit court is investigating the Zeus incident and related issues. Since that investigation began, a veterinarian and the Maddie's Shelter Medicine Program at the University of Florida have given detailed reports regarding ongoing issues at the shelter, including the protocols used for euthanizing animals.

Laurie Boynton, the volunteer who first brought the Zeus story to light, said she was concerned about the sheriff's proposal because it would take from the shelter the two officers the volunteers believe show the most compassion to the animals there.

Those officers have been put in charge of making euthanasia decisions while the investigation continues so those responsible for the Zeus case are not involved.

Removing them "would be a disaster for the animals,'' Boynton said in an email to the Times.

Richard Silvani, executive director of PetLuv Nonprofit Spay and Neuter Clinic, also expressed concern about a shift in Animal Services personnel because the department already has been shuffled from one supervisor to another, which he says has had a negative effect on morale.

Taking the officers away from the shelter makes even less sense, Silvani said.

"The road officers need to interact closely with the office staff, and they also perform many functions in the kennel," including making decisions about and performing euthanasia, Silvani told the Times in an email. "The big question is what would the advantage be in splitting the staff that would be worth all the confusion and other challenges?"

Joanne Schoch, executive director of the Humane Society of the Nature Coast, said she saw pros and cons to the idea.

"One positive would be if animal control officers, under the sheriff's department, could have more authority or immediate law enforcement backup'' when an incident involving animals occurs, she said.

"The negative I see is that Animal Services is already extremely short staffed,'' she said, and it's the officers who sometimes help the shelter care employees operate the facility. "You'd no longer have that backup if you need it,'' Schoch said.

Nienhuis acknowledged that the issue of taking staff from the shelter is one of many details that needs to be discussed further.

"Some of the questions are not fully answered yet,'' he said.

The proposal will be part of the 2012-13 Sheriff's Office budget that Nienhuis said he plans to present to the county today.

County commissioners said they wanted to hear more about the idea.

Commissioner Jim Adkins said he wants to know what it will ultimately cost the county.

Commissioner Dave Russell said he would like to explore whether the sheriff's proposal would streamline the Animal Services operation.

"We have outstanding personnel in the field right now,'' he said. "Any proposal should include those officers that we already have.''

Commissioner Jeff Stabins said he was encouraged by the sheriff's proposal.

"His deputies get called out to some of these calls anyway,'' he said. "He said it's going to save some money.''

But Stabins said he was unclear how that would work since both the sheriff's and Animal Services' expenses both come from the county's general fund.

Barbara Behrendt can be reached at behrendt@tampabay.com or (352) 848-1434.

Emergency officials worry about flood of evacuees with special needs during hurricane

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:50:35 -0400

By Marissa Lang and Laura C. Morel, Times Staff Writers
Thursday, May 31, 2012

No matter how emergency managers say it, no matter how grave their predictions, people wait for the last minute to prepare.

Were a hurricane to hit the Tampa Bay area today, the opening day of hurricane season, tens of thousands of individuals with special needs would not be registered for appropriate shelters, local health agencies say.

In Hillsborough County, about 3,000 people have registered for special needs accommodations, a fraction of the estimated 15,000 who may need extra care. Across the bay, 1,500 of an estimated 20,000 have signed up.

This is a recurring frustration for emergency management officials, who fear an eleventh-hour struggle of trying to accommodate vulnerable populations.

"You can't just wait until the storm gets here," said Pinellas County emergency management spokesman Tom Iovino.

All residents are encouraged to establish a hurricane plan that addresses what to do in the event of an evacuation. But procrastination is especially dangerous for individuals with special needs, medical conditions and pets, officials say.

"Relative to the number of people who need these services, there's still a large population we need to reach," said Keeley Smith, the Hillsborough County coordinator for special needs shelters.

Three of the 32 shelters in Pinellas and three of the 48 in Hillsborough will offer services for vulnerable populations. That care includes on-site doctors, nurses and generators to support medical equipment.

Of course, not everyone will need to be in a shelter. And for most it should be a "last-ditch" effort, Iovino said. Staying with family or a friend will be more comfortable. Plus, the shelters lack capacity for every individual with special needs.

Bottom line, officials said, is everyone needs some kind of plan. And that means contacting the right people now.

It's the same story with pet owners.

"During Hurricane Katrina, we saw people who wouldn't evacuate because they were protecting the only family member they had — their pet," said Hillsborough County Animal Services spokeswoman Marti Ryan. "No one wants to see that tragedy again."

Pet-friendly shelters will be established throughout the Tampa Bay area, with three in Pinellas and four in Hillsborough.

Animal owners must register to reserve a spot at one of Pinellas County's pet friendly shelters. So far, fewer than 20 have signed up. In Hillsborough, owners and their pets will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.

The shelters are mostly meant for dogs, cats and rabbits. Snakes and other reptiles will be turned away.

If people choose to take refuge in one of these shelters, they should come prepared with identification, proof of their pet's vaccinations and a cage, Ryan said.

Pet shelters, Iovino repeated, should be a last resort.

Ryan emphasized the importance of not leaving a pet behind in a hurricane-induced frenzy.

"The animal ends up on the streets. . . . They become aggressive and dangerous," she said. "They can't fend for themselves and they become a danger to others."

Because the area has not suffered a direct blow from a hurricane in more than 90 years, authorities can plan based only on estimates and simulations.

A real storm, they said, could change everything.

"You only get so many rehearsals for a disaster before you have to do it for real," Ryan said. "That's why preparation is so key."

Marissa Lang can be reached at mlang@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8804.

Big, temporary entertainment venue to be built for RNC

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:40:12 -0400

By Richard Danielson, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2012

TAMPA — The first glimpse of the entertainment landscape around the Republican National Convention is coming into view, and what's on the horizon is both intriguing and impressive.

Picture an airy, made-to-order building — a temporary building — with entertainment space for up to 3,500 people. It could host a private concert. It could serve as an exclusive pop-up nightclub, complete with an upstairs VIP area.

It's coming, says Regal Tent Productions, a company based near Toronto that's been hired to put up the two-story structure somewhere outside the convention hall.

"It's going to be a spectacular place," said Gregg Chipman, the company's sales and marketing director. The dimensions: more than 210 feet long, 130 feet wide and 38 feet high at the center. It will have a raised mezzanine inside, and, yes, it will be air-conditioned.

"You gotta be in Tampa in August," Chipman said.

The company expects to bring its own team to Tampa and might hire local labor for an installation that could take up to 10 days.

Despite the company's name, Regal Tent's biggest products look nothing like a circle of canvas propped up by a couple of poles. The structure booked for Tampa is a variation of its double decker, which is assembled from 5- by 5-meter modular sections. It looks more like a giant fancy greenhouse than a tent.

Considering that Florida can see tropical storms and worse in late August, are these structures engineered to withstand harsh weather?

"Of course they are," Chipman said. "These structures are put up all over the world."

And what's planned for Tampa is not nearly the biggest venue that Regal Tent builds. In 2010, it created the Molson Canadian Hockey House at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. This weekend, it is putting up a 70,000-square-foot structure for a gas and petroleum expo in Canada.

Here in Tampa, what's not clear yet is what the entertainment will be.

Regal Tent is working with Rob Jennings at American Event Consulting in Washington, D.C., on its plans. Four years ago, according to the New York Times, Jennings produced events at both national political conventions. This week, he declined to discuss details of anything he's got in the works for the RNC, merely saying these kind of events tend to be private, not for the ticket-buying public.

What's normal, though, is for a national political convention to feature entertainment and celebrities of all kinds, organized and sponsored by corporations, interest groups, media companies or other private parties.

So far, the only names that have surfaced as possible convention-week performers are Kid Rock and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Tampa Bay Host Committee president Ken Jones said his organization is not involved in the effort to book those acts, but he's heard about them from solid sources.

"I've been told that these guys are coming," Jones said, adding that private groups are doing the booking. But it's too soon to say when or where they might play. "There are a lot of options on the table. I think they're taking into account a variety of factors: size, time of day, rain, heat. They're looking at several different venues right now, but it's my understanding that the venue has not been confirmed."

Similarly unanswered is where Regal Tent's creation could go. At 8 acres, Tampa's Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park is big enough and is on hold for social events during the Aug. 27-30 convention.

Representatives of a tent company were "out scoping" the park last week, Tampa parks and recreation director Greg Bayor said, though parks employees didn't catch the name of the company.

If a temporary building does go up in one of its parks, the city would require that any necessary repairs be made afterward, including replacing stressed or damaged sod, Bayor said.

Chipman confirmed Regal Tent did check out Curtis Hixon park, but he doesn't think the double decker will be installed there.

"It was going to be there, but it's not," he said. It could go to a parking lot. "We've looked at a whole bunch of different spots, five or six at least."

So far, no one has approached the city for permits. Tampa director of planning and development Thomas Snelling said officials are interested in reaching out to the company to set up a review of its construction plans.

"We're not going to let something like that go up without looking at it" for building safety and fire safety considerations, Snelling said, adding, "no matter where it goes."

Richard Danielson can be reached at danielson@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3403.

Deputies: Man pulls gun on Realtor showing his Largo home

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:37:44 -0400

By Dan Sullivan, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2012

LARGO — Sherry Lowrey had dealt with angry tenants before, but until Thursday she never had a gun pointed at her face.

The Clearwater Realtor had plans Thursday to show a four-unit apartment house at 14924 113th Ave. N to prospective buyers. When she arrived, Timothy V. Lee, the only tenant who was home, said he wanted her gone.

"He was very belligerent," Lowrey said. "He was making all kinds of nasty comments to us. I advised him that we had given him 48 hours notice that we would be showing the units."

Lee, 44, had none of it. Lowrey brushed him off. But when she returned a short time later with her second client, Lee pulled a gun, Pinellas deputies said.

"I can't believe you're back in here," Lee said, according to Lowrey. He pointed the weapon at Lowrey's client, then at her, she said. Then he chased them out of the home.

Lowrey stood outside and argued with him near the front porch, telling him not to point the gun at her. "I have a right to have this gun," Lee said. "I have a permit."

"You don't have a right to point it at me," Lowrey said she replied.

She and her client quickly left. She called 911 and deputies soon arrived and surrounded the home. Deputies set up a perimeter in and tried to phone Lee multiple times. He did not cooperate at first, but eventually surrendered, officials said.

Lee was arrested on a charge of aggravated assault.

Lowrey heard from her property manager that Lee was about to be evicted. Lowrey said that his girlfriend told her that he drinks a lot and lost his job.

Local businesswoman donates hundreds of purses to Dress for Success

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:33:28 -0400

By Stephanie Hayes, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2012

TAMPA — Kim Washington hauled bag after bag from the trunks of shining luxury cars, lugging them to the floor of the Dress for Success boutique.

"My fingers are going to fall off in a minute," she said.

This was the hefty culmination of a little idea. Of four months spent piling purses in her New Port Richey garage, first a few, then a few more, then a few dozen.

Earlier this week, Washington and friends donated hundreds of purses, clothing items, hair dyes and sticks of deodorant to Dress for Success, which helps disadvantaged women develop wardrobes and interview skills to land jobs.

Purses are the punctuation. They go everywhere. They matter more than you think.

Women referred to Dress for Success for suits might have only backpacks or juvenile totes, old, frayed purses too small to hold resumes. Clients afraid to make eye contact on the way in leave the boutique proud of the leather gem hanging from their shoulder.

"Women love designer purses," said Dress for Success volunteer Sharon Glenn. "For them to come in and shop and know that they don't have to pay for it? Oh, man."

Washington's campaign is called 2nd Chances. In some ways, it's a mirror for her own life.

She worked in corporate America as a call center recruiter. She answered pages and emails during nonexistent lunches, struggled to find time to pick up her children. She was quickly flaming out. When her son got ill and went into the hospital, she quit.

She started selling handbags with a direct sales company called Thirty-One Gifts. The family was making it.

Then her husband got laid off. They spiraled into debt. Washington threw herself into her business.

Within a few years Washington was earning six figures and had a team of almost 4,000 consultants.

"I worked harder," said Washington, 43. "I think that's what really propelled my business for the next couple of years. Too many women get frustrated with a challenge like that and give up. I try not to give up."

She donated to charities, schools and domestic violence shelters, but it felt unorganized and random. She heard about Dress for Success at a Thirty-One party. She loved the idea.

She asked guests at Thirty-One parties to bring a purse in exchange for a discount. Some women forgot. Some brought purses that looked too rough.

But others brought fine-leather bags. Louis Vuitton and Dooney & Bourke. Woven satchels and polished briefcases. Red clutches and animal-print shoulder bags.

Washington and her consultants amassed hundreds of bags, and that was just in Tampa Bay.

Earlier this week, she stood back and admired the pile.

"Wow, ladies," she said. "This is impressive."

A Dress for Success client walked past with her new suits and bag, a dainty white pocketbook she'd selected off the boutique's depleted wall of purses.

Soon, the wall would overflow again.

Stephanie Hayes can be reached at shayes@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8857.

St. Petersburg mayor sets deadline for Pier petition

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:26:52 -0400

By Waveney Ann Moore, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2012

ST. PETERSBURG — Mayor Bill Foster has thrown down the gauntlet and set a deadline for the group trying to force a vote to save the city's iconic Pier.

Foster has told the group voteonthepier.com that it has until June 11 to submit the almost 16,000 petitions needed to get its question on the Nov. 6 ballot.

"It's either put up or shut up,'' Foster said Thursday, noting that the group's leader had turned up at a recent City Council with three cartons that he said were filled with petitions.

"I support the efforts of the people to add this question on a ballot,'' he said. "That being said, it cannot be open-ended. We need to move forward. They have had two years to do it. It's just time.''

Tom Lambdon, the Safety Harbor man spearheading the group opposed to tearing down the current inverted pyramid for a $50 million replacement, is disinclined to be rushed.

"It's unrealistic to assume we can have everything we require within the next few business days," he said.

"It's a deadline for this election,'' he said. "It doesn't in any way affect our dedicated effort to get this petition drive successfully over the finish line in the next couple of months. We are auditing every single petition before we submit them to the clerk and supervisor of elections. It's such an important issue to us that we are leaving zero room for mistakes."

Lambdon said the group has collected a little more than 14,000 petitions.

Foster's decision to pressure voteonthepier.com appears to be part of a two-pronged strategy that includes a broad campaign to build support for the new Pier. Speaking at a meeting with the Tampa Bay Times editorial board, Foster expressed concern about "the lack of facts" surrounding the need to replace the current Pier. He talked about a website the city is about to launch and of upcoming sessions to get public input about how the new Pier should be developed. He handed out a brochure entitled, "Get the Facts!"

"When people are armed with the facts, they get it,'' he said later.

Foster said he set the June 11 deadline for Lambdon's petitions by working backward, taking into account the time needed for them to be processed and for the City Council to consider an ordinance to put the measure on this November's ballot.

In a May 24 letter to Lambdon, city clerk Eva Andujar said it could take several days for the petitions to be counted by her office before they are sent to the supervisor of elections. "Signatures must be verified and the number of required petitions must be confirmed before council takes action to place your question on the ballot,'' she said.

Foster said the City Council can consider an emergency ordinance if the June deadline is missed.

Lambdon is not worried.

"There's nothing in (the letter) that says if you don't meet this deadline that this is done," he said.

"We are in no hurry. … If we don't make this deadline … we are fully supportive of putting it on the next municipal ballot instead of burdening taxpayers with a special election."

The primary for the next municipal election is August 2013, with the general election in November. The city has announced that the inverted pyramid will close on May 31, 2013. Demolition is expected to take place in August.

Waveney Ann Moore can be reached at wmoore@tampabay.com or (727) 892-2283.

Pinellas School Board's proposed changes to health coverage bring worries about costs

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:23:12 -0400

By Cara Fitzpatrick, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2012

Facing millions in rising costs, the Pinellas County School Board is considering a new health insurance plan that would dramatically increase employees' out-of-pocket costs in the coming year.

District officials estimate the proposed plan would save about $20 million, which could be used for employee salaries and budget cuts.

Superintendent John Stewart said the district's plan cost $120 million this year; next year, it's estimated at $127 million. The school district pays 80 percent of that, while employees pay 20 percent.

But the proposed plan comes with heavy costs for employees, including:

• A $2,500 deductible for individuals and a $5,000 family deductible. The current plan has no deductible.

•Employees would pay 20 percent of costs after the deductible is met. Employees now have fixed prices for hospital visits, emergency room trips and urgent care.

•Maximum annual costs would be $5,000 for an individual and $10,000 for a family, including the deductible. That's double the maximum costs of the current plan.

"If you go to this, so many of our employees will absolutely not be able to be part of this," said board member Linda Lerner.

Any change would need to be negotiated with the unions. Officials from the teachers union couldn't be reached Thursday.

Earlier in the week, Kim Black, president of the Pinellas Classroom Teachers Association, said negotiations weren't going "as well as we hoped." She described employees as "benefit rich and salary poor."

Board members plan to discuss the proposal again at a workshop meeting Monday. They asked for more information about "gap coverage." With gap insurance, employees could pay a monthly fee to cover their deductible in the event of an emergency.

Cara Fitzpatrick can be reached at cfitzpatrick@tampabay.com,(727)-893-8846 or on Twitter @Fitz_ly.

Detroit Red Wings' Nick Lidstrom pays tribute to former teammate and Tampa Bay Lightning GM Steve Yzerman

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:13:27 -0400

By Damian Cristodero, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2012

When Red Wings defenseman Nick Lidstrom announced his retirement Thursday, the first former teammate he thanked was Steve Yzerman.

When Lidstrom talked about building the foundation for his career, Yzerman — Detroit's captain when Lidstrom joined the team in 1991 and now the Lightning's general manager — was his first reference point.

"Stevie was our leader," Lidstrom said. "What I learned from him over the years was his work ethic. He never took anything for granted. He worked hard, whether it was on the ice in practice or in the gym afterward. When you see a player like that, one of the leaders and one of the best players in the world do that, it's easy for young guys to follow."

"Nick's being very kind, and I appreciate it," Yzerman told the Tampa Bay Times. "But the reality is from the very first day, Nick was the same way: professional, classy, hard-working. He never changed for 20 years."

Yzerman, who played 14 seasons and won three Stanley Cups with Lidstrom before retiring in 2006, called his former teammate who succeeded him as captain one of the NHL's greatest players regardless of position.

"The consistency that he played with over 20 years from such a high level, from his very first game in the NHL, puts him among the all-time greats," Yzerman said.

"I don't know that people realize or appreciate how skilled he was. He was a tremendous athlete, but because he was such an intelligent player, it wasn't obvious. Everything he did was subtle. I always compare him to Roger Federer. He plays hockey like Roger Federer plays tennis."

Hernando property value estimate paints worse picture than expected

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:09:43 -0400

By Barbara Behrendt, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2012

BROOKSVILLE — Hernando County's financial picture grew darker Thursday when Property Appraiser Alvin Mazourek announced a likely drop of 8 percent in property values this year for tax purposes.

County budget manager George Zoettlein had been building a 2012-13 spending plan based on a 5 percent drop in property values, which directly relates to the amount of property tax revenue generated to provide county services.

Countywide taxable values for all properties would fall from $7.7 billion to $7.1 billion, the lowest it has been since 2004, according to Mazourek's estimates.

Taxable value is the value after all exemptions have been deducted from the assessed value of properties.

For the county, that means a projected $6.7 million shortfall in property tax revenue would grow to $8 million, and that figure does not consider a Medicaid billing backlog that could cost Hernando another $3 million.

"The value is going down because of (home) sales,'' Zoettlein said.

The good-faith estimate from Mazourek's office considers values in 2012, but does not include an estimated $65 million in the value of new construction. That figure will be added before the appraiser certifies the tax roll formally on July 1.

But Zoettlein said that with so little new construction last year, he didn't expect the additional value to do much to help with the county's revenue deficit.

County commissioners will meet at 9 a.m. Tuesday to discuss the 2012-13 budget. At 1 p.m. Tuesday, the commission will hold a public hearing and special meeting to consider establishing separate taxing districts for libraries and for parks.

By Tuesday, Zoettlein expects to have received the 2012-13 budget proposals from the county's five constitutional officers, which are due today. With the good-faith estimate and the budgets, he expects to present commissioners with their best look yet at how much will need to be cut from next year's budget, unless tax-rate increases are approved.

"I'm going to be asking them to give me some guidance,'' Zoettlein said.

The time line is tight from this point. The next budget workshop for the board is July 10, and by July 15 Zoettlein must submit a balanced budget to the commission. By its last meeting in July, the commission must approve the 2012-13 tax rate.

Zoettlein said he hoped that "this is the last bad one'' and that property values will begin to rebound for the 2013-14 fiscal year.

The early estimate for 2012-13 also shows that property values in the city of Brooksville fell by 4.5 percent, from $398 million to $380 million.

Brooksville City Manager Jennene Norman-Vacha said the estimate is not out of line with what city officials have been expecting.

And the figure may even signal that property values in the city are stabilizing, she said.

"It's not as devastating as years past," Norman-Vacha said. "Our hope is that we'll be able make up any shortfalls without too much difficulty."

Information about the impact of the good-faith estimate on the Hernando school district's revenues and budget was not available Thursday.

Staff writer Logan Neill contributed to this report.

Glorioso rules out Senate run, stays in Hillsborough elections supervisor race

Thu, 31 May 2012 18:08:40 -0400

By Stephanie Wang, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, May 31, 2012

TAMPA — State Rep. Rich Glorioso said Thursday he will remain in the campaign for Hillsborough County elections supervisor, bypassing an unexpected state Senate race to replace Ronda Storms.

"It was a tough decision that we had to make," he told the Tampa Bay Times.

But Glorioso, R-Plant City, said the role of elections supervisor fits in with his experience in the military and Florida House.

"It's a circle," he said. "You've defended the Constitution, you've served under the Constitution, and now you go right to the basics of the Constitution."

Glorioso, 68, took several days to consider his options. A former Plant City commissioner, he reached his term limit in the state House this year after serving since 2004. He filed to run for elections supervisor in October.

He had set aside ambitions of being elected to the state Senate, thinking Storms would hold her seat. But Storms, R-Valrico, last week abandoned her re-election campaign to challenge Rob Turner in the Hillsborough County property appraiser's race.

Turner admitted to the Times last week that he sent dozens of pornographic emails to his human resources director, whom he later fired.

Other politicians quickly stepped in to run for Storms' Senate spot, a district that was recently reconfigured to include the University of South Florida area, Brandon, Plant City and Sun City Center.

State Rep. Rachel Burgin, R-Riverview, and former state Senate President Tom Lee, a Brandon Republican, have both declared they are entering the race. State Rep. Shawn Harrison, R-Temple Terrace, is considering joining but said Thursday that he was still undecided.

Glorioso is staying away from what's shaping up to be a highly competitive primary in that race.

The current elections supervisor, Earl Lennard, is not running again. The job pays more than $126,000 a year.

Democrats Craig Latimer and Thomas Scott have announced they, too, will run for the elections supervisor seat.

Records show Glorioso's campaign has raised more than $30,000. Glorioso said he wants to encourage high school students to register to vote and better understand the elections process.

He also targeted voter fraud as a concern, saying he would look for preventative measures to keep voter records clean of people who are deceased or not legally allowed to vote.

In the House, Glorioso advocated for foster children and passed bills giving rights to unaccompanied youths and grandparents caring for grandchildren. He also pushed in his first two years to mandate civics lessons throughout elementary, middle and high school.

Times staff writer Alex Zayas contributed to this report. Stephanie Wang can be reached at swang@tampabay.com or (813) 661-2443.