UPDATE: At 1:03 pm, I received a press release from the NMBPD. Click here.
———————————————————————————————-
In less than an hour after I posted the column claiming that North Miami Beach is in dire need of a Public Information Officer, I received this email from the Eastern Shores Crime Watch:
Because a burgled car is BREAKING NEWS!
Murder? Not so much.
Just saying.
Stephanie Kienzle
“Spreading the Wealth”
Steph,
Be gracious. You’re making your point, and you’re getting a good result. You’re being heard. Thank your manager instead of rubbing her nose in a lapse that is being attended to.
Fred
And you know it’s being attended to because?
Grace is not one of my strong points.
Neither is subtlety.
Because you got the notice from Ana about the car break-in.
I didn’t get the notice from Ana, but I do want to point something out. Ana sent that email to the EASTERN SHORES CRIME WATCH group. She did not send it to a private individual. I do not fault her for doing so. At tonight’s meeting, she advised that she sent emails to Mayor and Council about both the murder and the break in. The problem I have with the city is that no press release was issued to the media soon enough, i.e., the same day as the murder. THAT was the entire point of this column.
Oh, so it’s your Council about which you’re complaining. I misunderstood and thought you meant the lapse was your Manager’s. As you know, I know Ana. She’s an incredible manager. I have immense trust in her. She’s not at all the kind of person who doesn’t care about the people she refers to as “my residents.” And I’ve seen her challenge her “bosses,” the Commission or Council. You might think, as some of your readers do, that she would kiss up to them. Nope, not from anything I’ve seen of her over four years. And keep in mind that in NMB, you’ve gotten very comfortable bouncing managers. It’s easy to scapegoat them. Ana Garcia is quite a property. As I told Phyllis Smith privately one day, if Ana can’t do it, it probably can’t be done. Am I an Ana apologist or groupie? Yeah, maybe. But I’ve lived with her for four years in Biscayne Park, and I’m telling you, she’s amazing. It was made very hard for her here, because of Commission challenges. But she’s a fighter, she keeps her eye on the ball, and she gets things done. The fact is, as you learned tonight, she did send out bulletins to the Council. And once she learned, likely from you and the blog, that word wasn’t getting out to “her residents,” she sent an e-mail to CrimeWatch. Give her space. Trust her. You don’t have an easy city, but she’ll make it as good for you as it can be made.
I never made this about Ana, or even the Mayor and Council. If you’ve been following this story, my complaint has been with the Public Information Office of the PD. Since I found out about the murder, I’ve been lamenting the lack of communication with the media and the disregard for the public safety of our residents. What others are saying in their comments are their opinions and I do not censor posts. If someone disagrees with anyone else’s opinion, they have the right to rebut and/or defend themselves. I am not a hall monitor or their mother. I will also not take blame, credit or responsibility for comments made by others. I do, however, take full responsibility for my own opinion and my own comments. Anyone is free to criticize or disagree with me. Knock yourselves out.
How is this “lapse” being attended to? Is she going to issue an apology? A retraction? A statement admitting to being a total self-interested brown-noser? Or maybe she could call a town meeting to let us all know we are worth just as much as anyone “a few houses down from Councilwoman Smith’s residence.” SHAME, SHAME, SHAME ON HER!
Isn’t this manager on probation still? This blatant disregard of some areas of the city she is supposed to be managing should be taken into consideration when reviewing her contract. In all of my years here I have never seen such discrimination, no wonder we are becoming a slum. When the manager encourages the unequal treatment of the less affluent areas of the city, we will all ultimately suffer the consequences. This is not a manager, this is an opportunistic person kissing up to her bosses. I don’t want my taxes paying for this leech’s salary.
Fred,
They issued a release about the vehicle burglary because it happened in wealthy Eastern Shores, not because of Stephanie or her blog.
Sorry, Stephanie.
Nothing to be sorry about. I just put the news out there and let it fly. Where it poops is not under my purview.
Understood. I would like to think you’re wrong, but maybe you’re not.
NMB cop – you should know better. It’s not a release they issued. It was an email out of courtesy from one person to another.
What a TOTAL crock of shit! Do you really think the one person (Ana Garcia) would send any “other person” (me) in Uleta a similar email “out of courtesy?” Or did you miss the part where she very courteously happens to mention that this incident occurred “a few houses down from Councilwoman Smith’s residence?” This apartheid treatment of our city is shameful, if not illegal. The manager should be reprimanded for showing such blatant preference to one neighborhood over another. We need to have districts in this city, otherwise nothing will ever change.
Some idiot left their car door unlocked and someone opened it and took 4 DVDs? Oh, the humanity!
Round up the usual suspects.
Does the young black boy who was shot and killed not deserve the same courtesy? Do the people on the other side of the boulevard not deserve the same courtesy? Is this about privilege or racism? There is really something wrong here. M
The manager was just sending it because of the crime watch group email list in ES. Just to spread the word. There is no investigation involved and that is why information like that can be released so quickly. Although a murder is more important and much more serious, taking one minute of your life to send out an email just to FYI people to be more vigilant is just showing that our city manager cares. The fact that it was on Councilwoman Smith’s street was just a reference point. And if Stephanie, our Voters Opinion blogger, would have asked before blogging, she might have known that the email, the manager sent, was altered and not exactly what she sent.
Regardless of what words the City Manager wrote, my point was that the fact she sent out any type of notice to any residents at all about an incident only proves that it can be done. There is NO EXCUSE for not getting information out to the general public, either via email, press release, Twitter, even freaking Facebook! THE PUBLIC NEEDS TO KNOW WHAT’S GOING ON IN THEIR BACK YARDS!
Altered?! How so? You mean there was more ass-kissing which has been deleted? The “reference” was totally unnecesary.
So now its Stephanie’s fault?!?!? Wrong!!!! Special treatment is given to council people and it’s WRONG!!! I can remember when the pd had us sitting at Derose’s house for a 24 hour period because it was being fumigated. Do you know what would happen if any other resident called the pd for the same treatment? They would tell you, sure!! It’s $35.50/hr and you have to pay the officer a minimum of 4 hours. When ANYTHING happens in the Eastern Shores area, it’s like the sky is falling at the police department. If anything happens elsewhere in the city, it’s business as usual.
Altered how? Why would you just throw that out there and not be specific? If you’re going to make a claim then make it and don’t be vague.
It must be so nice to live your totally sheltered life. Ignorance truly is bliss!
OK, who is going to stand up at tonight’s council meeting to ask for an explanation?
Me
Those of you whom reside outside of the Gates of E.S. are flat out on your own… They don’t come out and say but believe me when I say that its the reality. Just look into the amount of overtime they paid detectives a few years back when there were a few break-ins to some very wealthy residents. Never mind that the rest of the City west of the Blvd is under siege. It’s a joke and has been going on for years and years mainly because guess where the elected officials reside.
I see A lot of ignorance from many of you. Sheltered because where I live? You know nothing about me and to say something like that shows how stupid many of you are. Altered – yes it was a private email that I sent out and I’m allowed to alter it and do as I please because it was my email to do so. Stephanie you know I love your blogging but you have people who just ASSume things. Anyhow they can continue being negative and accomplish nothing. I wish you all a Happy New Year – you need something positive in your life.
As I responded to someone above, Ana sent that email to the EASTERN SHORES CRIME WATCH group and not to an individual. Fortuna is being unfairly attacked here. Ana’s email was NOT a press release. With respect to the murder, however, a press release should have been issued immediately. Regardless of the spin coming from city hall, I’m sticking to my opinion.
The word may not be sheltered, perhaps a better word is privileged. Peggy McIntosh defines privilege as: “Privilege exists when one group has something of value that is denied to others simply because of the groups they belong to, rather than because of anything they’ve done or failed to do. Access to privilege doesn’t determine one’s outcomes, but it is definitely an asset that makes it more likely that whatever talent, ability, and aspirations a person with privilege has will result in something positive for them.” You, my dear are very privileged, watch this video and maybe you will understand how much so:
Not wasting my time watching a video. I work and take care of family. Maybe you have time to waste. Obviously you know nothing about me and my background. And if you feel like coming up to me one day, I would love to tell you.
What kind of police officer would leak information to a blogger? I can’t understand why this “insider” wouldn’t ask the PIO why he hadn’t released the information? Ana Garcia’s email to a crimewatch group has nothing to do with the NMBPD media release about the murder. There are many crimewatch groups in the area. If you want “insider information”, get involved. According to the blogger’s “sources”, the NMBPD is woefully understaffed and needs the eyes and ears of the citizen militia if they ever want to compete with their brothers and sisters in the NMPD.
You are correct that Ana Garcia’s email and the press release were two different animals. My point was only to show how easy it is to get information out to the public. Ana used an email, which the Public Information Officer is perfectly capable of doing himself. Even if he didn’t want to issue a formal press release, there are other ways to disseminate information to a public that deserves to know what is going on in their own neighborhoods. In addition to email, the Police Department has a website, has a Twitter account, has access to the cell phone numbers of a multitude of residents (for robo-calls and texts), etc. The public didn’t need to sit in the dark for over 48 hours.
The Eastern Shores Crime Watch had every right to be informed that there were car burglaries in their area. I never claimed that they did not or that Ana’s email was inappropriate.
By the same token, the residents in the area of NE 158 Street and 15 Avenue had an absolute right to know that there was a shooting in their area and that a gunman was on the loose. WHAT PART OF THAT EQUATION ARE YOU MISSING???
As for “what kind of police officer would leak information to a blogger,” how about the kind of police officer who knows that the blogger is looking out for the best interests of an entire city and will get the word out. The kind of police officer who also knows that it’s NOT in the best interest of the government to let people know we live in a crime ridden city. The kind of police officer who actually gives a shit about what happens in North Miami Beach, despite the fact that it might jeopardize his position. The kind of police officer who knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that he can trust me not to reveal my sources.
Does that answer your question?
As for the NMBPD, it IS woefully understaffed, painfully demoralized and desperately in need of knowing that they are appreciated, if not by the administration, then by the residents whose lives they protect each and every day. And, no, as of right now they absolutely cannot compete with their brothers and sisters in the NMPD. NO F****ING COMPARISON! Happy now?
If you don’t appreciate what I do for the residents of both North Miami Beach and North Miami, all you have to do is put down that mouse and step away from the computer. I don’t give a crap if you read my blog or not. Your opinion of me is none of my business.
Oh, and have a lovely day.
Aside from the Eastern Shores Crime Watch, which is well organized, can you please let my readers know about the “many crimewatch groups in the area?” Margie Love’s RAPP was disbanded, and that’s the only other one that I knew of. If you know of others, please share the wealth. The “citizen militia” would probably be more than happy to join one of them.