Two years ago, Miami-Dade County closed the ninth floor of its Pretrial Detention Center, which held mentally ill inmates awaiting trial in putrid, dangerous, and obscene conditions. For years, CBS4 had dubbed the ward the “Forgotten Floor,”and the U.S. Department of Justice called the conditions there unconstitutional. But although the county is…
Almost, but no cigar. The Dolphins pulled a magic trick on their fans yesterday in their 31-24 loss to New England; they managed to lose twice on the same day. The Dolphins dug themselves a 31-3 hole that had everyone on social media cursing their existence. It was over. Same…
In just over a month, naled has gone from a largely unknown pesticide to the most hotly debated issue in Miami’s fight against the Zika virus. The controversial organophosphate pesticide, which is banned in the European Union and could harm infants, has been the county’s main weapon against Zika virus-carrying…
On Wednesday, New Times reported that the city of Coral Gables, which obtained two mine-resistant, ambush-protected armored military trucks (MRAPs) from the U.S. Department of Defense, was “graciously” donating one of the tank-like vehicles to Miami Beach. That city said it needed the truck to drive through flooded areas and protect…
Miami’s Third District Court of Appeal yesterday declined to put a citizen-backed campaign-finance reform bill up for a public vote this November, according to documents published by blogger Al Crespo. The decision likely ends a summer-long fight between a union-backed group pushing the county to get money out of politics,…
Dear Stoner: Why does smoking weed make you hungry? Like, does science know why? Stewie Dear Stewie: The munchies are real, man. Although no one could definitively point to a brain reaction and say “There it is” for a long time, by 2015 marijuana’s ability to increase appetite was already…
Aprille Hinnant thought WEDR 99JAMZ radio host Maestro Powell was protecting her from the belly of the beast of the industry,” she says. He told her not to talk to anyone else at the station. Don;t mention the training, he said. As the program director and main personality of 99JAMZ’s Sunday morning…
One of two things will happen in Downtown Miami tonight. One: Donald Trump, who is leading an impromptu, 6 p.m. rally at the James L. Knight Center, and Kanye West, who will host his first of two Saint Pablo Tour shows at the American Airlines Arena at 8 p.m., will…
When the Zika virus hit Miami Beach in August, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Tom Frieden speculated that pregnant women might want to avoid the entirety of Miami-Dade County for a few months. “If you’re concerned about Zika, you may consider postponing all non-essential travel to all…
Since classes started this year, Miami Dade schools have tried desperately to keep kids away from the deadly Zika virus. They’ve handed out bug spray, encouraged long pants and shirts, and monitored for mosquito breeding grounds. So it was curious to see a proposal from school board member and county…
The stakes were high this year when Ralph Echemendia, a technical supervisor tapped by Hollywood director Oliver Stone, fought off daily attacks from malicious hackers on the set of Stone’s latest film. After all, the movie was a biopic on Edward Snowden, perhaps the nation’s most prominent computer systems analyst,…
The Dolphins 12-10 loss in Seattle this past weekend was certainly a kick to the junk for Dolphins fans hoping to see them get off to a fast start, but believe it or not, there were actually some positives that came out of the defeat. It’s too early to have…
Just after 11 a.m. today, a former Columbia University professor, who now serves as dean of Florida International University’s Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work, stood in front of a packed crowd at Miami Beach City Hall. Opening his speech, Dr. Thomas R. Guilarte thanked everyone in attendance…
Miami is in the midst of the most spirited debate it’s had regarding campaign-finance reform in years. Barring the results of legal appeals and a counter-suit filed this week, a group of activists has forced Miami-Dade County to let its citizens vote on a measure that would cut political donations…
This summer, after a heated discussion about crime, shady business practices, and general seediness on Ocean Drive, Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine asked Commissioner Ricky Arriola to meet with business owners and residents and come back with a plan of attack. Today, at its first meeting since the summer break,…
In the two years since the Ferguson riots, local police departments have come under fire for buying needless military equipment and using it to crack down on peaceful protesters. Departments, including many in Miami-Dade County, have been lambasted for wasting tax dollars on surplus grenade launchers, anti-aircraft weapons, and armored…
Cars skid down a sun-baked road, jockeying brutally for position. Some drivers scream and others laugh maniacally as they hang out of windows. Then one pulls out a flamethrower and blasts sizzling columns of fire at the tailgaters. Another hurls a spear with an explosive tip, blasting the back of…
Roughly a year ago today, U.S. News and World Report, the oft-criticized college-ranking news magazine, booted the University of Miami from its list of the top 50 national universities for the first time in six years. Until then, the school had been neck-and-neck with the University of Florida in the…
In a video making the rounds online, a man toting a pair of pruning shears rushes up to people posing for selfies and cuts their selfie sticks in half, running away as their cellphones crash to the ground. Some scream; others chase after him. Filmed in New York City, the…
Perhaps the most cliche thing you can do in this town is stick your head through a hotel-room window or luxury-car sunroof and scream something dumb, like “I love Miami!” or “Here’s to the life!” into the warm night air. It’s pretty much a rite of passage in South Beach, and…
Sixteen years ago, hanging chads sent the nation into a spiraling constitutional crisis. For a month after the November 7, 2000 election, America panicked. Would Texas Gov. George W. Bush or Vice President Al Gore become the new commander-in-chief? Election night ended in a virtual tie. Bush had the edge,…
If Miami’s going to stop the spread of Zika, residents have to trust that the government knows what it’s doing. That’s why it’s all the more concerning that the Florida Department of Health last week published an outright lie in a Q&A on the virus and the pesticides being used to combat…
