MDW South Beach Arrest Pick'em

[V. Barbarino]

Police say 2 men fatally shot near popular South Beach cafe

Associated Press

Posted May 28 2007, 9:56 AM EDT

MIAMI BEACH -- Two men were fatally shot early Monday in front of a Cuban restaurant on South Beach, police said.

The men were shot around 5:30 a.m. in front of David's Cafe II, a popular spot with both tourists and locals at 1654 MeridianAve. near Miami Beach's famed Lincoln Road, according to restaurant manager Bertha Handevadt.

LocalLinks

One man died at the scene. The other died shortly after being taken to a hospital, police said. Both victims were in their 20s.

Four people were taken into custody after police caught up with their car on the MacArthur Causeway, which links Miami Beach with downtown Miami.

No other information was immediately available. Messages left for a Miami Beach police spokesman were not immediately returned Monday.

[Guest macboy]

We have our first two homicides of the year in Miami Beach. Also, about 600 arrests through Sunday.

http://www.miamiherald.com/459/story/120987.html

2 men fatally shot in South Beach

BY DAVID OVALLE

dovalle@MiamiHerald.com

Two men were shot dead early Monday morning in South Beach, marking the city's first two homicides of the year and marring what had been a relatively uneventful holiday weekend.

Miami Beach Lt. Charlie Weaver heard shots ring out about 5:45 a.m.

He found a crowd -- and two men shot in the parking lot outside David's Cafe II, 1654 Meridian Ave.

One man, shot multiple times, was rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he died, said Miami Sgt. Robert Hernandez, a police spokesman.

The other man, shot once, died on the sidewalk underneath a stop sign for the municipal parking lot next to the popular Cuban eatery.

A black Cadillac Escalade, its headlights still lit, was left at the scene just feet from where one man died.

Authorities were still working to identify the men, described as in their 20s. They carried no IDs.

Detectives and officers launched a massive investigation. Four people claiming to be friends of the dead men were detained in the parking lot. Their stories, Hernandez said, soon changed and they claimed not to know the men.

''We know they're not being truthful,'' Hernandez said.

Detectives also found a bloody T-shirt less than a block from the shooting scene, although they are not sure it is related.

Meanwhile, several other people were detained after Miami Beach Officer Jenny Velasquez spotted a man crouching down on an embankment on Intersate 395 and Interstate 95.

He matched the description of a man with a striped shirt believed connected to the shooting. But even that's not for sure.

''He may not be involved at all. He may have been doing something illegal but that may not be related to this,'' Hernandez said.

The man was detained, as were several people inside a silver Mercedes parked beside him.

The shooting comes as police officers continue a massive presence as thousands of revelers have flocked to South Beach for festivities.

At least 600 people have been arrested since Thursday morning, police said.

With one day left in the holiday weekend, the total will be considerably less than the 1,010 people arrested last year.

Civil rights groups criticized police last year as heavy-handed and prone to racial profiling. Memorial Day festivities on South Beach draw a sizable black crowd.

[Guest Mattivi]

yet some people on these boards say these "animals" are unfairly targeted. and sure as the sun rises in the east, they continue to perpetuate their own stereotypes time after time after time. :-\

[Guest jbit]

more blacks are in jail than whites so they are inherently more violent

Numbers dont lie

[Guest addictedtospace]

Black or white, if you fuck around on my watch, I do advocate police actions.

If this were true then 90% of your Space buddies would be ticketed every weekend as they jaywalk all over downtown, peddle drugs in plain sight, and drive off in their cars shit-faced drunk. (Obviously, this applies to all nighclubs.) So, you cannot claim that you are for strict policing.

In any case, the point some folks here are trying to make is that the policing is *much stricter* during MDW - that is, the police will arrest "urban beach week" partygoers for indescretions that would otherwise go unpunished. I'm not talking about the violence, nobody is claiming that that should be let go. But arresting or ticketing people for minor crimes that are allowed the rest of the year *is* discriminatory.

So how many EDM clubbers got shot to death with semi automatic weapons this weekend in Downtown?

[Guest djcarlosf]

none because theyre all pill poppers, and as we all know, thats not a drug that makes you violent....

[Guest kmix]

interesting replies.....first off ...pod,unless you are some kind of police,FBI etc. there is no "your watch"...And if wanting laws applied equally is "liberal bullshit" the i would like to see your reaction when you become the object of persecution..it is really sad that most off your rant had no logic to it and you had to resort to ad hominem arguments to make your case. As for the argument about race.. i know i did not mention any either but your assumptions point squarely to your mind set so IF THE ROBE FITS ..WEAR IT!!!!!! as forJB ...numbers can and do lie ...one merely has to manipulate the parameters . any statistician will tell you this...back to pod...if you are getting off because i bothered to reply thininking you must be important...dont....i wrote the replies because too often some young impressionable mind will come across these kinds of rants and take them for gospel without knowing or even hearing the truth...they need the counterpiont...and as to doing business ..well you are right , WE WONT ,I DONT DEAL WITH ASSHOLES

[Guest addictedtospace]

wrote the replies because too often some young impressionable mind will come across these kinds of rants and take them for gospel without knowing or even hearing the truth...they need the counterpiont...and as to doing business ..well you are right , WE WONT ,I DONT DEAL WITH ASSHOLES

But Rap music lyrics are gospel?

[Guest OT]

There is no point in arguing it, we all know the truth and numbers don’t lie..

They are what they are, its just unfortunate for us they come to Miami beach and kill, shoot and have a general lack of civility towards anyone including there own people.

Now, less than a 1000 arrests and only two killings out of 300k + I guess you could say isn’t that bad, but don’t try to justify the fact that we are stereotyping the people who attended the beach this last weekend, they do it to them selves...

I remember last year, walking down Collings Ave and seeing a large truck being pulled over and the police pulling 4 black guys out of it along with a lot of Ammo and automatic assault riffles.

There is a reason the majority of residents of Miami avoid the beach during this particular holiday weekend.

[V. Barbarino]

By Sunday morning, nearly 692 people had been arrested, mostly on misdemeanors, down from 864 in that time period the year before. Of the 692, Miami Beach police records showed that 506 were black.

We still have Monday's numbers to add in.

[Guest coach]

Look, I don't mean to be mean, but you guys should really stop saying "numbers don't lie." It's just a dumb and pointless statement. Of course, number don't do anything, they are just inanimate objects. You might as well say "rocks don't lie." Technically it is a true statement, but it is nonsensical.

However, humans *do* lie. And they may use numbers to present those lies. People can absolutely manipulate numbers, just the way some people manipulate words, to mask the truth.

[Guest sobe2004]

Man held in killing of 2 on Miami Beach

BY DAVID OVALLE

Miami Beach police Tuesday morning arrested a felon they say shot and killed two men near Lincoln Road on Memorial Day.

Jermaine Chamberline, 24, was charged with second-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Police say he shot and killed two men from out of town during a ''verbal altercation'' in front of David's Cafe II, 1654 Meridian Ave.

The two men, one from Tampa, the other from Orlando, have not been identified yet.

Chamberline and his friends had gotten into a brawl with the two victims and their friends.

''As the two groups began punching and kicking each other, [Chamberline] reached into his right front pocket and pulled out a 9mm handgun,'' according to a police report released Tuesday morning.

One man was shot once and died on the sidewalk. The other, shot three times, died at the hospital.

The shooting came as hundreds of police officers were deployed to the Miami Beach during Urban Beach Week, an unofficial string of hip-hop parties.

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking_dade/story/121906.html

[Guest addictedtospace]

Here is a number for you TWO dead.

But I guess it's the police's fault for being stereotypical.

Man held in killing of 2 on Miami Beach

BY DAVID OVALLE

Miami Beach police Tuesday morning arrested a felon they say shot and killed two men near Lincoln Road on Memorial Day.

Jermaine Chamberline, 24, was charged with second-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Police say he shot and killed two men from out of town during a ''verbal altercation'' in front of David's Cafe II, 1654 Meridian Ave.

The two men, one from Tampa, the other from Orlando, have not been identified yet.

Chamberline and his friends had gotten into a brawl with the two victims and their friends.

''As the two groups began punching and kicking each other, [Chamberline] reached into his right front pocket and pulled out a 9mm handgun,'' according to a police report released Tuesday morning.

One man was shot once and died on the sidewalk. The other, shot three times, died at the hospital.

The shooting came as hundreds of police officers were deployed to the Miami Beach during Urban Beach Week, an unofficial string of hip-hop parties.

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking_dade/story/121906.html

[Guest mr.miami]

Were there any racially motivated crimes reported?

[V. Barbarino]

I have a couple observations about all of this.

1. Young black kids die every summer in the slums of west Miami, yet they barely make the news, yet if little Jenny and her blond hair and blue eyes, scraps her knee it's national news. When I say kids, I mean kids, young kids 5 -6 years old. It's horrible, yet no one cares. However on the flip side, it's so common it's not news any more. When did we stop caring about small kids dying in gang violence because they are black???

2. The black community who are normal law abiding citizens get unfairly grouped in with these thugs. I feel bad for them.

3. We can't have a conversation about race without being called racist, no matter what the numbers state or the fact state.

[Guest Sela V]

Full Moon Murder -

Violence is dropping on the Beach, but some nights, well ...

By Lyssa Oberkreser

Published: May 25, 2006- MIAMI NEW TIMES

Just before dawn on May 13 — a full-moon Saturday — John Williams, a popular 31-year-old bouncer at the Washington Avenue nightclub Mansion, was stabbed in the heart while trying to break up a fight. He died at 5:26 a.m. on the sidewalk — the sidewalk where he had stood in his black suit, behind a red velvet rope for years.

Lyssa Oberkreser

Arrested development: José Luna bows to The Man and the moon

Subject(s): First murder in Miami Beach in 2006 It was Miami Beach's first homicide of 2006.

Two other young men were seriously injured. Marco Gomez and Edwin Eshesimua, both 27 years old and of Miami Beach, had been at Mansion all evening, chillin' and dancing to hip-hop and pop music. Gomez received four stab wounds: two in the back, near his kidney; one in the stomach; and another in his throat. The fight left Eshesimua with a severed pinkie, which was successfully reattached.

The weekend marked the popular club's second anniversary, and the young men had just left when the fight erupted. "We were just waiting for the valet to bring our car around," Gomez says of the moments leading up to the deadly fight. "There was just this random fender bender [in front of the club]."

After the accident, a passenger in another vehicle became frustrated. "One of [them] gets out of the car and starts yelling, 'Move this fucking car!' and starts throwing punches at the other driver," Gomez reports.

"It happened really quick," Eshesimua adds. "We have no history with them, we didn't know the guys. I never even saw the knife."

Gomez and Eshesimua say they had no beef with the men; they simply wanted to go home. "I started getting stabbed and I didn't even know it," Gomez says. "There were three of them and two of us."

Then Williams — who had completed his shift at 5:00 a.m. but was still hanging around — stepped in to try to calm the melee.

"The bouncer did not throw a single punch. He had his arms out to break up the fight," Gomez says. "The way he went down was the scariest thing I had ever seen. I think a lot of people, including the police, were in shock." The entire knife-fight was recorded on a witness's Treo cellular phone.

The attacker, police say, was Trevor Grant, age 33, a cook from West Palm Beach. A public-records search shows Grant has a history of misdemeanor crimes — possession of cannabis and minor traffic infractions — but nothing that indicates he's capable of murder.

After the scuffle, Grant jumped into his friend's car and then — when cops stopped that vehicle — fled on foot. After a police K-9 cornered him, he grabbed the dog by the neck and tried to choke him. The four-leg officer shook himself loose and bit Grant on the right arm.

Grant later confessed to "holding the knife and swinging it at the victims," and was charged with second-degree murder, attempted murder, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, injury to a police dog, and resisting arrest without violence. He was taken to Miami-Dade County jail.

Also arrested were Glenn Walker, who told police he is a 24-year-old model from New York, and Elbin Castro, age 30, who said he works at a New York recording studio. Both men, who were in the car with Grant, were charged with being accessories to the murder.

Mansion spokesperson Vanessa Menkes pointed out that the incident did not happen in the club and that Williams, whose shift ended at 5:00 a.m., was not on the clock at that time. "What John did it was so heroic." Menkes said, her voice heavy with grief.

Both Gomez and Eshesimua say Williams wasn't like the other bouncers; he didn't have the attitude that usually goes with the job title. "John was superfriendly. It sounds cliché, but he was the nicest guy," Gomez says. "I don't hesitate to say that he saved my life. My heart goes out to his family."

Adds Eshesimua: "A lot of the bouncers there are assholes, but he was not one of them. Some of the other men in black [suits] were out there that morning, but he was the only one to step in."

Murders are rare on the Beach these days. The city went four and a half months without a killing this year, and in 2005 there were only four. That's down from the more violent days of the late Nineties — fourteen people died violently in 1997. The drop is likely attributable to increased police patrols, more affluent citizens, and decreased crime throughout the region.

Which makes the violence that followed the May 13 event even more significant. At 3:15 a.m. Sunday, May 14, José Luna, age 28, and BG Aguirre, age 21, were charged with aggravated battery after Luna swung "an unknown sharp object" at another man, puncturing his stomach. The place: Mansion.

Eshesimua was not completely surprised to hear of the second attack. "We saw three or four arguments before us," he says. "It was a full moon, and I remember saying to Marco, 'Man, these people are crazy tonight.'"

[Guest coach]

I have a couple observations about all of this.

1. Young black kids die every summer in the slums of west Miami, yet they barely make the news, yet if little Jenny and her blond hair and blue eyes, scraps her knee it's national news. When I say kids, I mean kids, young kids 5 -6 years old. It's horrible, yet no one cares. However on the flip side, it's so common it's not news any more. When did we stop caring about small kids dying in gang violence because they are black???

2. The black community who are normal law abiding citizens get unfairly grouped in with these thugs. I feel bad for them.

3. We can't have a conversation about race without being called racist, no matter what the numbers state or the fact state.

Jeez, who are you and when did you kill Barbarino? That was very well said.

[V. Barbarino]

I have a couple observations about all of this.

1. Young black kids die every summer in the slums of west Miami, yet they barely make the news, yet if little Jenny and her blond hair and blue eyes, scraps her knee it's national news. When I say kids, I mean kids, young kids 5 -6 years old. It's horrible, yet no one cares. However on the flip side, it's so common it's not news any more. When did we stop caring about small kids dying in gang violence because they are black???

2. The black community who are normal law abiding citizens get unfairly grouped in with these thugs. I feel bad for them.

3. We can't have a conversation about race without being called racist, no matter what the numbers state or the fact state.

Jeez, who are you and when did you kill Barbarino? That was very well said.

Last summer in Miami, so many small kids playing got shot and killed in violence, It made me upset, but what was worse, was practically zero coverage of it. Sharpton rails against Imus, yet he didn't do shit for these kids who were dying just playing outside.

Look at this picture, it upsets me, but not Sharpton and his scum bag hustlers.

picture and article here!

"Witnesses said the 1-year-old was shot in the face and relatives said he died at the scene."

[Guest Mattivi]

Sharpton and jesse jackson are race hustlers, and race oppurtunist. the only time they are of any relevance is when some overblown racism story hits the national media. these guys could give a shit less about impoverished urban neighborhoods and gun violence. yes i agree its a sad story, that should have drawn national scrutiny :-[

[Guest stryke303]

agreed. this is probably the most "real" thing i've ever read from you nick. kudos. and as far as having a conversation about race w/out being perceived as a racist, it's 100% possible. your last couple of posts on this thread proves that. when words are used to represent their true intent and meaning, and not something else, dialogue works. i for one agree with you, certain people use race to further their own twisted agendas and platforms. regardless of ethnicity, this is a deplorable practice. it's most important to look at the entire picture, not what works for a politically charged push. sharpton lives his entire life that way, and i for one, think it's pretty sad.

my 2 cents...keep the change.

[Guest Buck White]

Look, I don't mean to be mean, but you guys should really stop saying "numbers don't lie." It's just a dumb and pointless statement. Of course, number don't do anything, they are just inanimate objects. You might as well say "rocks don't lie." Technically it is a true statement, but it is nonsensical.

However, humans *do* lie. And they may use numbers to present those lies. People can absolutely manipulate numbers, just the way some people manipulate words, to mask the truth.

lol. True Coach... we need a few more semanticists in the house. I was going to say that letters don't lie....but I didnt want to use any "big" words.

[Guest sobe2004]

Police want to talk to rapper Fat Joe about shooting at popular SoBe cafe

Associated Press

May 30, 2007, 1:50 PM EDT

MIAMI BEACH -- Police want to speak to rapper Fat Joe because he may have seen a fatal shooting outside a popular South Beach restaurant, authorities said Wednesday.

Witnesses told investigators that Fat Joe was riding in the same black Cadillac Escalade as the two victims of a Memorial Day shooting outside David's Cafe II, police spokesman Sgt. Bobby Hernandez said. Police believe Fat Joe, whose real name is Joe Cartagena, was an acquaintance of the two victims, Hernandez said.

``If he's a witness, we'd love to speak with him,'' Hernandez said.

Fat Joe spokeswoman Aimee Morris did not return a telephone message.

Lessli Paz, 25, was shot once and died at the scene. Hernandez said investigators originally thought Paz was from the Orlando area, but later determined he was from New York. Homestead resident Joey Navarro, 26, was hit three times and died shortly after being taken to a hospital. Hernandez said both men were shot in the upper torso.

Police arrested Miami resident Jermaine Chamberline, 24, on charges of second-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He was taken into custody Monday afternoon and was jailed without bond.

Chamberline shot Paz and Navarro when a ``verbal altercation'' between two groups escalated into punching and kicking, according to a police report.

``They were walking through the parking lot, and we don't know exactly what was said, but it wasn't interpreted right by either of the parties,'' Hernandez said.

Fat Joe has spent more than a decade making rap records and gaining mainstream success by pairing up with R&B stars.

Miami Beach has recently drawn large crowds of hip-hop music fans for concerts and other events over the Memorial Day weekend. More than 700 people were arrested over the long holiday weekend, Hernandez said. More than 1,000 were arrested during the same weekend last year, mostly for misdemeanors.

Copyright © 2007, South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Source: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/miami/sfl-530sobeshooting,0,2235508.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines

[Guest Dj_Peace]

Okay...so here it goes...(deep breathing)

On the few occasions that I come onto this board, I gernelaly try to stay out of the fray when these types of commentaries are posted. However, against my better judgement, I will add my two cents.

With regards to MDW and "urban week", the problem is not so much about race as it is about the hip-hop culture. To be honest, and fair, there are stratifications within the hip-hop culture. The overwhelming majority of folks that enjoy hip-hop music and are involved in hip-hop culture are law abiding, educated and gainfully employed citizens. To be certain, ther is the other element - a small percent I might add - that are the dregs of humanity. This latter segmetn is usually the population that garners the lion's share of the media focus.

Another observation if I may - in America, we codify things in order to maintain a sense of "us" versus "them" -in a very elitist way. The term urban over the years ahs come to be synonymous with black and brown skinned people all across this country. However, if we really look into the dempgraphic composition of the hip-hop culture, you will see a good number of white, asian and other ethnicities in the mix.

So what is the real problem -it is the culture of intimidation, gangsterism and rebellion that comes out of the hip-hop culture through its lyrics and graphic images that distrubs us. However, isn't hiphop just a microcosm of our greater society at large. We have a very violent, rebellious , disconnected government that uses decption and disingenuity instead of diplomacy and dialogue to get what it wants. We have a government that uses profane and vulgar images and manipulates the media in order to influence the minds of Americans. Waht organization on the planet promotes more gun violence and use of force / thug mentality than our current administration?

I know this is a rant -and beleive it or not -this is not partisan because the above staement is applicable to both dems and republicans . So, my question to all of us is what can we do to improve race relations in this city? What are each of us prepared to do to build bridges instead of burning them? What are we as taxpaying citizens prepared to do so that NONE of our children -regardless of color or culture -are killed needlessly? To me, these are the mroe improtant things to ponder.

You may now reassume control of these boards! (sorry for the rant )

Asante' Sana!

[Guest Dj_Peace]

anybody have any thoughts on how we begin the process of building bridges here in south Florida?

[Guest pod]

Call up Turner Construction?

In "our" clubs, I don't necessarily see a racial divide. On any given night out, I'll see blacks, whites, and Latins out in the same clubs on the same dancefloor. So it goes with house music. Like I rant to music elitists all the time, wasn't the original purpose of all this to bring people together to have fun and dance around?

That being said, what I think really goes on here, as I know most of the people posting here personally, is that it isn't a racial issue, but more of an "interests" issue. Yeah, we've all made fun of the thugs wandering around and driving with 32" rims and so forth, but at the end of the day, it's their money, let them spend it on rims if they want. Or whatever.

The other issue is that as of late, "our" parties have been canceled or scaled back in the name of "their" parties, with "their" parties being mostly hip-hop. Nobody likes to see their favorite good time taken away.

And yes, I think you will agree with me that the majority of the popular hip-hop music out there does convey a negative message. I know plenty of dance music aficionados who will gladly go to a show by The Roots or Talib Kweli, but will understandably turn their noses up at a 50 Cent concert.

And if you really think about it, it's one weekend out of the year when the thugged-up crowd rules the beach. There's 51 other weekends where it's essentially fair game.

But anyways, about that building bridges part, I think that everyone really needs to be more accommodating at their parties, be it VIPers, thugs, rock n' rollers, dirty emo kids, house heads, trance crackers, and the breaks SWAT team. It's not a bad thing if new people show up. Think of it in economic terms, they're spending money at the bar and helping to keep "your" scene alive, whatever that is.

Me, I'll be in the corner with my imaging device and a vodka tonic.