Blogs

Scarberry

Another morning, another day of Hollywood fallout. First came the news last week that four veteran officers in the Hollywood P.D. had become ensnared in an FBI sting. The four believed they were protecting a mob family from New York and helping it run heroin when really the wiseguys were federal agents. Then came the news that the Bureau was none too pleased about an apparent leak in the department that blew the investigation. Who was the leaker? None other than Hollywood Police Chief James Scarberry, who admitted to the Miami Herald that he told at least eight city officials about the investigation.

The FBI is now investigating Scarberry's actions. The chief meanwhile is defending the leaks and his department is rallying around him.

That's where we stood this morning when I chatted with Jim DeFede on his 940-AM radio show about the scandal. Jim pointed out that either Scarberry either intentionally exposed the operation (which would be illegal) or he

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Cat305

Rahming Before The Takedown

A photojournalist working for the online pub Category 305 was knocked to the ground and arrested by police last week after taking he refused to leave a corner of Biscayne Boulevard in Miami where he was reporting a story. Cat305 editor Rebecca Wakefield has the story of the arrest of freelancer Carlos Miller, a veteran police reporter who spent four years covering crime for the Arizona Republic. Here's the guts of it:

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Miller, who estimates he was about 20 yards from the officers, began to shoot. Immediately, a female officer he identified as Officer Reid turned to him and said, "Sir, may I help you?"

Miller identified himself, by name, as a journalist. Reid apparently was not impressed and, according to Miller, said, "You need to keep moving. This is a private matter."

"This is a public road," Miller responded.

Reid repeated her command. Miller argued that he wasn't breaking any laws and was just doing his job.

Suddenly, Miller said, the officers lost interest in the man they had been questioning, and focused on him. The commanding officer at the scene, a Sgt. Rahming, walked over to him and took him by the elbow. Rahming escorted him across Biscayne Boulevard, to the sidewalk on the east side.

Miller then made the decision that probably got him thrown in jail. He reached up with one arm and

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Pearlman

The New York Post has broken a story about our lovely governor, Charlie Crist, that looks fairly damning, if not indictable. The allegation is that Crist, while serving as Florida Attorney General, received $11,000 in "illegal" campaign contributions from Orlando sleazebag, boy band impresario, and all-around fat fuck Lou Pearlman while his office should have been nailing him for rip-off schemes. Today, Pearlman is hiding in Germany while the feds investigate millions in missing funds.

First impression is that those contributions, which s

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Barba (Read The Jump)

Here's a message that came in my Pulp box from a reader who doesn't feel the love for the Sun-Sentinel. Make of it what you will. I have nothing to add, except that there's a whole slew of people who might buy the Tribune company, so I wouldn't confine the speculation only to Gannett.

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"Well, well, well... the buyouts being offered by Earl "How Can I Help You With A Useless 'Help' Team?" Maucker aren't going so well. On the one hand, who can imagine staying at this wrectched place, which denigrates journalism and insults the reader (i.e. the Help(less) Team) on a daily basis? One can only come to the conclusion that the offer isn't sweet enough.

The word from the Las Olas ivory tower is that less than half of the needed people have agreed, making one wonder if there's cuts coming to the Pulitzer-winning (oops, I mean the largest newspaper in the USA that's
never won a Pulitzer) paper.

Could it be that the Editor Of The Year is simply trimming the staff to make the paper more appealing to, oh, GANNETT?"
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After the jump: A Throwdown On The American Idol Pics

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It's an annual Academy Awards ritual; after watching the overhyped event that you sense is dictated by some nameless eminence grise in a backroom (perhaps an inscrutable wheelchair-bound dwarf) you get the morning coverage regurgitating it in listless fashion with nothing new or remotely interesting to add at all.

And so goes it this morning in the Miami Herald and Sun-Sentinel. Don't take this as a knock on Rene Rodriguez and Phoebe Flowers, who provided the brunt of coverage for the two newspapers, relatively. It's just that a reporter sitting in front of a TV and taking notes has little to no chance of bringing forth a memorable piece, unless the reporter is, say, Thomas Pynchon. Because that's what you get these days in the Sentinel and Herald, reporters writing off the TV. So neither Rodriguez's story nor Flowers' report brought anything new to the table. It's classic morning letdown material (the single two-word comment under Flowers' story -- "Who cares?" -- says it all).

Tom Jicha's armchair effort made a bit more sense -- he critiqued the show, which he found "slow as a

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Michael Koretzky's 2nd Annual Short-And-Sweet Media Job Fair went off swimmingly at the Jazziz bistro in the Seminole Hard Rock plaza Saturday. Personal highlight was knocking down screwdrivers while alternatively listening to the photographic exploits of freelancer Ralph Notaro (who purports to have shot the last known pics of Anna Nicole Smith at the Hard Rock and looks to be sitting on a pile of gold) and the endlessly fascinating Hollywood tales of former child actress Lisa Lucas, now a student journo at FAU.

Also became acquainted with Palm Beach Post online editorial editorial director Jon Glass. During a panel discussion, Glass told the students they need to

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Reuniting Soon

Does Anna Nicole Smith corrupt everything she touches, even in death, or is she just a magnet for sleaze?

Everybody who crossed paths with the late pin-up and reality TV star seems to want to make a buck on her celebrity. Personal attorney Howard K. Stern is looking for a cut of the Marshall fortune, probable baby-daddy Larry Birkhead cashed in on her photos, mother Virgie Arthur is selling out to the tabloids, and Broward Circuit Judge Larry Seidlin was apparently auditioning for his own TV show last week during the burial hearings.

But what about Dr. Joshua Perper (or "Dr. Pepper," as Judge Larry misnomered him during the hearings)? Is the esteemed Broward County Medical Examiner whose candor and willingness to answer questions endeared him to the nation during the ANS soap opera trying to cash in on the case, too?

Last week, while Anna Nicole's corpse cooled in a refrigerator in his office, the Boca Press released Perper's new book, "When To Call The Doctor ...". Here's how the press release starts out:

"Dr. Joshua Perper, expert Broward County Medical Examiner, performed the autopsy on Anna Nicole Smith. Dr. Perper is available for interviews about the autopsy he performed on the body of Anna Nicole Smith and his new book, "When To Call The Doctor..."

It concludes: "Due to the recent sudden deaths of Anna Nicole Smith and her late son, the timeliness of this book makes it an invaluable resource for everyone."

So it certainly appears the good doctor is angling for Anna to give him a bump in book sales. But when the Pulp questioned him about it today, he immediately denied that was the case...

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This tribal sovereignty thing is totally out of hand. It's obvious that the Seminole Tribe is becoming a monstrous force beyond the scope of all but the most brilliant (and devious) imaginations. Our closed society of rich and lawless Indians, as it stands now, will come to no good, of that we can be sure. I haven't been as certain of a horrid outcome since the first American bombs exploded on Baghdad in 2003.

I refer you now to Dianna Smith's front-page story in the Palm Beach Post about the death one Mark Grosso at the Hard Rock. Despite Smith's attempt to transform Grosso into a storybook boy in the beginning of the story to try to hook the reader (she literally uses the word "storybook"), she later makes it obvious he was on a collision course with Thanatos long before he expired in a room in the big Hollywood casino on January 14.

No, Grosso isn't a character that moves you (even if he was "young" and "beautiful" just like Anna Nicole Smith, a strained comparison in every way). And the death isn't all that mysterious. His stepmother, adoption attorney Charlotte Danciu, reports that there was a syringe found in the heroin addict's room. (You might remember Danciu from last week's post about Daniel Scott Merkel, who was shot in the chest after bursting through a classmate's door. She was quoted in that story, too, since she's Merkel's aunt and lawyer. That equals a very bad month for the extended Danciu clan).

What gets you is the arrogance of the Seminole

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It looks like the Sun-Sentinel disabled the Comments under Ira Winderman's Tim "Hate" Hardaway story. I'd seen that a lot of it -- and there were 408 comments already when checked this morning -- was supportive of Tim this morning and it was getting ugly, but for all I know it's just a technical problem.

Tim Chapman/Miami Herald

Kathleen McGrory goes Edna in this Miami Herald story about a car crashing through a bakery. Her lede:

"Cigarettes saved Betty Conley's life this morning."

You can't not read on. And it's worth it, since McGrory describes a rather surreal, almost Lynchian scene: --------------------------------------
Police and witnesses said the truck came barreling through the gas-pumping area about 9:30 a.m. and rammed into the wall of the restaurant, ending up in the kitchen.

''He was coming so fast you'd have thought the police were behind him,'' said Joyce Brinson, who was pumping gas.

The four occupants staggered out of the pickup. The two little girls in matching pink dresses were

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Any Questions?

Tim Hardaway, who said "I hate gay people" on Dan Le Batard's radio show yesterday, has since not only issued an apology but a just-issued confession in the form of a press release that has been obtained by the Pulp:

"I need to say that my statements yesterday, which have caused such a furor in the media, were prompted by deep-seated tension rooted in a secret I have been carrying for many, many years. To put it bluntly, I love penises (or penii, as I like to say). Big ones, little ones, fat ones, skinny ones, you know, a veritable potpourri of penii.

"Having been in locker rooms filled with men all my life, I've had to painfully suppress the sheer joy I feel when I'm in a roomful of

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Frank Frazetta

Broward County Circuit Judge Larry Seidlin seems to be on something of a power trip regarding his control over the (allegedly decaying) corpse of one Anna Nicole Smith. From today's Miami Herald article by Nikki Waller and Roberto Santiago on the court battle over the body: ------------------------------- "Although Broward Medical Examiner Dr. Joshua Perper has urged release of the body so that it can be embalmed and be presentable for an open-casket viewing, Seidlin said he is in no hurry to do so.

''This body belongs to me now,'' said Seidlin, who plans to hold as many hearings as it takes to determine who has the right to bury Smith. 'For the moment, this body is staying right here.''

He also shrugged off any concerns that Smith's corpse may be decomposing.

'That baby is in in a cold, cold storage room, it's not decaying so fast,' he said. 'I'm not rushing -- we're gonna spend a lot of time together.'"
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WTF? Did Seidlin just refer to a rotting corpse as "that baby"? Just what the Smith case needs, an absolutely batshit judge.

After the Jump: Pulp Falls On Face, Emerges Stronger

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Weinberger

Remember the false report regarding "illegal narcotics" being found in Anna Nicole Smith's hotel room at the Seminole Hard Rock? It was included in a first-day report from Scott Weinberger of CBS-2 in New York, who cited unnamed law enforcement sources. Here's what he said in the report, which is no longer available in video form:

"Well Dana and Jim, CBS2 has learned that while searching Anna Nicole Smith's hotel room late this afternoon,
investigators located two key pieces of evidence. First, an unknown amount of illegal narcotics, and also in her room, we have learned, Smith had prescription medications. Now, a toxicology report will determine whether one or a combination of these drugs contributed to her death. ... We're live in Los Angeles, Scott Weinberger, CBS2 News."

The info was repeated by countless news outlets, including the Big Three national cable news stations. Seminole police, however, denied that there was anything but prescription drugs in the room the next day and CBS-2 retracted the report by Weinberger, whose title is "chief investigative reporter" and who lists his reason to be a journalist as "digging for the truth and delivering it."

After receiving a tip, I too started digging for the truth and I found undeniable evidence that Weinberger has a mighty colorful history in South Florida. Back in 1980s, he was a deputy for none other than the Broward Sheriff's Office, which assisted the Seminoles in processing Anna Nicole's room. On the CBS-2 website he even lists the show "Cops" as his first time on TV, apparently while in a BSO uniform (BSO, under Sheriff Nick Navarro, was the first department to cooperate with the show).

But in 1992, he got in some serious trouble. Prosecutors investigated him for trying to cover up a drunken driving arrest for his girlfriend at the time. In a deal, he resigned from BSO rather than face prosecution, according to the Palm Beach Post at

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Dan La Batard had the audacity yesterday to infer in his Miami Herald column that erstwhile Heat coach Pat Riley dumps his team when it's losing and jumps back on when its rising (and Shaq is back on the court). Here's a taste:

"Anybody else with less aura and less credibility and less jewelry would be getting savaged for how selfish and convenient his timing has appeared lately in deciding when to coach and not coach the champion Miami Heat.

Riley doesn't coach when the team is in last place or laboring or even bored. But Riley returns triumphantly whenever Shaquille O'Neal does. Riley suspends James Posey and Antoine Walker for fatness, then leaves poor Ron Rothstein to take the beatings without them. Shaq and Dwayne Wade are healthy? Suddenly, so is Riley."

Those who trudge through the local sports pages on a regular basis might have been invigorated by the column -- tough, unflinching analysis of Pat Riley's worm-like maneuvers has been hard to come by. But Greg Cote, Le Batard's colleague at the Herald, wouldn't stand for such insolence. In his blog, Cote stood up for Riley's honor:

"... I'm not real sure that anyone is suspicious other than, apparently, Le Batard. Dan sees a nefarious, plotting, devious Pat Riley timing his return to the Heat to coincide with Shaq's good health and the team's rising fortunes ... cynicism based solely on scattershot suspicion is some of why a pretty sizable gulf exists between media and fans."

You know what gives that gulf even more girth? Sychophantic sports writers who give "legendary" coaches (as Cote put it) like Riley license to do backstabbing, cowardly things without repercussion. Cote also ate up the infamous dumping of Stan Van Gundy ("I'd rather spend time with my kids this winter than win a championship with Shaq and Wade") like a kid with cotton candy at a carnival stand. It's one thing to be a gutless wonder, but it's another altogether to criticize a fellow writer for failing to be one too.

(Oh, and Cote, there's another sports writer who shares a bit of Le Batard's wacko ideas about Riley. Read Ethan Skolnick's well-reasoned column this morning in the Sun-Sentinel).

After the Jump: Violent Con Man Proves Life Begins At 80

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Remember that exchange between Daily Business Review Law Editor Harris Meyer and Chicago Tribune national correspondent Tim Jones ? Well, the Trib responded appropriately (this actually ran a few days ago, but I missed it):

"A main section story Tuesday on the possibility that serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer may have been involved in the 1981 murder of Adam Walsh neglected to mention that the Miami Daily Business Review published a story on Dec. 4 by Arthur Jay Harris, author of a book that raised questions about the Walsh murder investigation."