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

Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam’s headline-grabbing criticism of fellow Republican Rick Scott over expanding Medicaid highlighted just how much the governor flip-flopped on government spending and entitlement programs.But Putnam has a more extensive record of supporting expensive entitlements and big-government spending.As a member of Congress from 2001-2011, Putnam...

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Near-record warm winter for South Florida

Winter won’t officially be over for a few weeks but it’s already been a near-record warm one in South Florida – not including the cold front rolling through this weekend. From December through February, Miami recorded the third warmest winter on record, the National Weather Service’s Miami office reported Friday. The average temperature of 72.3 degrees was 2.7 degrees warmer...

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Knights Arts Challenge seeking grant applicants

Miami-Dade County Schools students diagnosed with physical, developmental and intellectual disabilities learned a new dance last year and performed it for their peers.Florida Grand Opera sopranos and tenors performed in new locations.And artists who worked with clay at The Ceramic League of Miami received new kilns and other studio tools. These were some...

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Jurors deliberating in money-laundering trial linked to South Florida ‘Ponzi scheme’

One-time Fort Lauderdale executive Steven Steiner and his former live-in partner, Henry Fecker III, had a taste for the finer things in life.They owned multimillion-dollar homes on the waterfront in Fort Lauderdale and Camden, Maine, along with a Manhattan condo.Now, a federal jury in Miami is deliberating whether the former partners laundered millions of dollars in ill-gotten...

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Jurors to decide fate of Miami imam accused of aiding Pakistani Taliban

For two months, federal prosecutors portrayed Miami imam Hafiz Khan in the worst possible light: terrorist sympathizer, Taliban supporter and pathological liar.“His whole defense is a lie,” Assistant U.S. Attorney John Shipley told 12 jurors Tuesday during closing arguments.The 77-year-old Khan, with his hunched shoulders and flowing white beard, testified that he sent about...

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Citizens Property Insurance strains to pull in belt on spending

The Maryland insurance executive charged with cleaning house at Citizens Property Insurance has had trouble sticking to the tighter travel expense policy he put in place.Since Barry Gilway became Citizens CEO in June, he has stayed in a hotel at nearly twice Citizens’ room rate cap, charged liquor to a corporate credit card in violation of company rules, submitted expense...

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Cessna crashes into Biscayne Bay; four people rescued off Bayfront Park

A Cessna carrying four people crashed into the waters of Biscayne Bay Sunday afternoon within view of busy Bayfront Park.The crash occurred at around noon. Four people onboard were rescued from the water by Miami-Dade fire rescue workers,” said U. S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Jon-Paul Rios.“We understand the crash happened at the water entrance to the park,” Rios said. ...

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Miami police union challenges officer’s firing for fatal shooting

The Fraternal Order of Police filed a lawsuit against the city of Miami on Friday, asserting that an officer who fatally shot an unarmed motorist in 2011 was improperly fired from the police department.Officer Reynaldo Goyos shot and killed Travis McNeil as he sat in a car at a Little Haiti intersection. It was one of a string of seven deadly shootings of black men in the...

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Florida task force says no major changes needed to Stand Your Ground law

TALLAHASSEE -- A 19-member task force commissioned by Gov. Rick Scott to review Florida’s Stand Your Ground law has put out its final report, largely voicing its support for the law.The task force made a handful of recommendations for the Legislature, but began the report by stating that, at its core, the self-defense law is fine as it is.“All persons who are conducting themselves...

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Kids being bullied via calls and text messages? There’s an app for that

As you know, bullying and the prevention of it has become a major focus in our schools. But bullies are no longer limited to just verbal or physical bullying. Text bullying has become a serious problem among adolescents and teens. Almost 9 out of 10 teens have a cell phone and about 1 in 5 will be victims of a text bully. About 1 in 10 teens engage in text bullying. Many...

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Health Foundation gives $1.8 million

Health Foundation of South Florida announced Tuesday the awarding of grants worth a total of $1.8 million to 21 organizations.Among the awards in Miami-Dade were $197,000 to the Miami-Dade County Health Department, $200,000 to Open Door Health Center, and $107,000 to the University of Miami. Other Dade grants included $20,000 to the Banyan Community Health Center, $45,000...

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Tough gals: Roller derby players enjoy contact sport

For Danielle Shaffner, 33, raising three children with another on the way and having her husband patrol the streets on his police vehicle could be stressful.That’s why she counts on a sport on wheels for relief: women’s roller derby. “I let loose and become a little maniac on the rink,” said Shaffner, who is four month pregnant and goes by the name of Pree-T-Manik. ...

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Hawkins withdraws his name from Jackson Health System board post

In a kerfuffle with echoes from political battles almost two decades ago, former Miami-Dade commissioner and state legislator Larry Hawkins announced Monday he was withdrawing his name from nomination to the Jackson Health System board.Hawkins, 68, who had been nominated to be the unions’ representative on the seven-member board, sent a letter to the clerk of courts saying...

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Presidents' Day is observed Monday. Here is what will be open and closed

Holiday schedule Federal offices: Closed Miami-Dade County offices: Closed Broward County offices: Open Miami-Dade and Broward courts: Closed Public schools: Closed Garbage collection: Varies; check with your municipality Banks: Most are closed Stock markets: Closed Post offices: Closed Miami-Dade and Broward Transit: Regular schedule Tri-Rail: Regular...

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

The Escobar Barber Shop is more than a place to get a shave and a haircut.For decades, it’s been a place to hear stories and see the occasional celebrity. Comedian Leopoldo “Tres Patines” Fernández has been here. So have legendary boxer Roberto “Mano de Piedra’’ Durán and former Sen. Mel Martínez. And now, the shop at 803 SW Fifth Ave. in Little Havana,...

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Glades plan could siphon water from county wells

For years, Everglades restoration engineers and scientists have been working on ways to control the ripple effects when they finally start returning healthy water flows to the marsh.Increased suburban flooding has long been the big concern from raising water levels in the Everglades but a critical plan now on the fast track surprisingly poses the opposite problem.Initial...

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Crime Watch: Steer clear of these latest email scams

Today I want to share with you some interesting scam emails shared by readers. We truly need to be super-careful and not open or respond to any of them.I personally got the one from Kabul and had to laugh because this was a new one for me. I am not showing the email address, but trust me it looked very official especially when I do have friends that are stationed in Kabul....

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

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

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Jackson Health System board member resigns abruptly

Joaquin del Cueto, secretary of the Jackson Health System board, has resigned abruptly in what appears to be a union-inspired maneuver to put a new person on the board.Del Cueto, a retired Miami-Dade firefighter who announced his resignation Monday, was the union-named representative to the seven-member Financial Recovery Board, which sunsets at the end of May.He did not...

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

The Carnival Triumph, a Galveston, Texas-based passenger cruise ship with the theme “Great Cities Around the World,” might have been better off sitting at port, as a court initially ordered. As of Monday morning the 14-year old ship was going nowhere, operating on emergency generator power after a fire Sunday in one of the diesel generators killed its propulsion. The fire...

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