showdown at high noon - miami beach city attorneys v. special masters

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MIAMI MIRROR – TRUE REFLECTIONS

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SHOWDOWN AT HIGH NOON

Miami Beach City Attorneys versus Special Masters

Unexpurgated and updated version of article featured by the SunPost Weekly Updated: 6 September 2012

By David Arthur Walters

There was a showdown at high noon on Wednesday August 22 between the City Attorneys andthe Special Masters. The feuding parties dueled before the legal oversight committee in the CityManager’s meeting room. It was a steamy day, the only relief inside, besides the air conditioningthat failed to cool the hottest heads, was the ham sandwiches, sweets, and sodas from the Publix.Alas, a can of Coke exploded and there was no mustard!

Special masters are city magistrates who constitute a quasi-judicial tribunal that hears anddisposes of local code enforcement cases. The special magistrate system is an alternative tomunicipal code enforcement boards, relatively autonomous boards of citizens authorized by thestate legislature. It was believed that autonomous boards or tribunals would go easier on accusedcode violators provided that they promptly and faithfully comply, or the violation is not graveenough to warrant the amount of fine imposed, or the fine is too high compared to the equity inthe property at stake. In the event that special masters did not mitigate enough, City Attorney




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Jose Smith drafted an ordinance approved by the commission that allows someone in the citymanager’s office to reduce the fine if it is under $100,000, or the commission to do so if it is$100,000 or more.

Aggrieved folks believe there has been too much mitigation or there has not been enough of it.

Statistics on the amounts of mitigation in comparison to totals fined over the last few years byspecial masters, the city manager’s office, and the commission, were unavailable at press time.

I first got wind of the feud from the SunPost after the City Commission took up the CityAttorney Jose Smith’s proposal to fire Chief Special Master Abe Laeser and replace him withSpecial Master Enrique Zamora, who would then fire Special Masters Joe Kaplan and Babak Movahedi. A chief special master is appointed by the city on advice of the city attorney, and thechief hires the others. Mr. Laeser said that a subordinate special master job was secured for himbecause Mr. Zamora liked him and would keep him on as a subordinate. Mr. Zamora was not atthe meeting because he was away in Cuba handling estate cases, explained Mr. Smith, who alsohails from Cuba. Mr. Smith, in his August 22 Commission Memorandum, which was handed out

again to members of the legal oversight committee, noted that there had never been a complaintabout Mr. Zamora. He attached several complaints about the others.

A resident had accused Mr. Laeser of allowing cases to drag on and on. Another said vigilantismagainst party house operators was contemplated by residents because of the delays. The presidentof a condominium association complained that Mr. Kaplan was forgetful due to his age, but shehad “heard very good things about Mr. Zamora.” Unbridled rancor was reserved for Mr.Movahedi, and it came mostly from the city lawyers, particularly Mr. Smith and his assistant,Alexandr Boksner, and one private practitioner, who was somewhat embarrassed by a formalinvestigation into his complaint.

Mr. Movahedi, an international corporate lawyer licensed to practice in the District of Columbia,was born in Tehran and raised in the United States. He obtained his MBA from the prestigiousGeorge Washington University, and his JD and LLM degrees from Georgetown University. Hewas elected a neighborhood commissioner in D.C., where he was involved in Democratic politicsfor many years, and owned and operated a famous gay bar called the Mova Lounge. He movedto South Beach in 2007, and opened another Mova Lounge, on Michigan Avenue right off Lincoln Road. Mayor Matti Herrera Bower appointed him to chair the Miami Beach LGBTBusiness Enhancement Committee in 2008, and he was applauded by the community for leadingthe city’s first Gay Pride event—he was dubbed “the Pied Piper of Miami Beach Pride.” He wasappointed special master on March 10, 2010, by Chief Special Master Abraham Laeser, who saidMr. Movahedi had the requisite “knowledge, skills, and abilities” for the job.

Mr. Movahedi’s high education was rounded out locally when his lounge was cited for a dozenviolations during an annual fire inspection. He protested that different inspectors had not citedhim for the same conditions on previous visits, complained of inconsistent inspection reports andmisinterpretations of law, and threatened to take the matter to court. The inspector tried toappease him, telling him that positive improvements had been made to the inspection processincluding better training, but he was not satisfied. Fire Marshall Sonia F. Machan interviewedhim and found him “very agitated and frustrated, but respectful.”




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To provide our coverage of the showdown between the city attorneys and special masters withbetter balance, we contacted Mr. Movahedi’s archrival, Alexandr Boksner, and asked him aboutthe legal pretext he had referred to during the meeting for his dispute. We also made a suggestionfor improving the system, and asked him for some biographical information since his bio was the

only one missing on the city attorney’s web pages:

“Alex, at the special master oversight meeting yesterday, you mentioned a case you had foundgiving a judicial opinion on the constitutional powers of the special master alternative to the codeenforcement board. Would you please email me a copy of the full text of that case? Mind youthat I do not access to a good legal research mechanism. I would really like to know if the specialmasters are real judges sitting in a real tribunal. For what it's worth, I noticed some time ago thatan information sheet handed out with a violation notice stated that defenses can be made at lawand in equity, so I supposed equitable estoppel would be included as an "it's not fair" defense.However, I also noticed that the information sheet differed from the municipal code provisions insome respects. And I noticed from a file in hand that the technical constructive notice provisions,

which seem to follow the state statute, does not seem to be followed carefully—if they were, itwas not evidenced in the file.

“My take on the technical discussions at the meeting is that the city attorney office incollaboration with special masters and clerks should sit down with the statutes and ordinancesand documents and describe the correct process to follow in detail, with examples of course, andmake sure that everyone is crystal clear about the right way to do things technically speaking. Inother words, rewrite the manual to accord with the law.

“I personally do not think anyone has to be fired to resolve the human nature issue. Spaniardsbecame extraordinarily courteous to one another after their Civil War.

“By the way, may I also have a copy of your biography? I do not see one on the City AttorneyOffice's page.

“Thanks!”

Mr. Smith replied in his stead, stating that:

“Mr. Boksner will not provide you with legal advice or discuss legal theories. As a former Stateprosecutor and Police Legal Advisor, his biography and other personal information is exemptfrom public disclosure. And for your edification, special masters are neither judges nor

magistrates. They only have the authority granted by Chapter 30 of the city code.”

Since we had had previous difficulties obtaining public records from the city attorney, wechecked with City Clerk Rafael Granado about Mr. Smith’s refusal, only to find that publicrecords law only precludes information of the type that would never appear on any cityattorney’s web page anyway. Since permitted biographical information was not forthcoming, weturned to the Internet, to discover that Mr. Boksner lived in Surfside, Florida, where the day afterthe legal oversight meeting, on August 23, proceeding at 10:00 AM, he was scheduled to preside




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as a “special magistrate” himself, for “10 cases pertaining to Town of Surfside Code Of Ordinances.” A subsequent review of his outside employment reports filed with the City of Miami Beach this year reveals that he anticipated four hearings each year as Surfside specialmaster, and that he is also employed by the City of Coral Gables, by and through the CoralGables Police Department, handling legal work from his home in respect to a half-dozen

forfeiture cases each year. On May 15 he stated that his outside employment would continueuntil further notice, would not conflict with his employment at the City of the Miami Beach norinterfere with his hours of employment there.

We also found that Mr. Boksner had applied for a job with Osceola County on May 5. Hispublished application listed Mr. Smith as a reference as well as Miami Beach CommissionerJonah Wolfson, whom he stated he had known since 2001. He graduated from the ToledoCollege of Law that year, after obtaining his AA degree from Ohio’s Cuyahoga CommunityCollege and his BA from University of Cincinnati. He obtained a license to practice from theFlorida Bar in 2001, and, according to his Linked In page, worked as assistant state attorney inMiami-Dade County for three years, until August 2004. That job was not listed on the Osceola

application, which starts with his employment in February 2005 as assistant attorney withCharlotte County, leaving there in December 2008 at a monthly salary of $7,291, for a job aschief assistant county attorney for Marion County until March 2009, at an ending salary of $7,916. He took a job with the City of Miami Beach that month, and his 2011 job applicationwith Osceola County shows his Miami Beach salary to be $9,167. His application also lists aTennessee license to practice law, and states that he speaks Russian fluently.

Mr. Smith, by the way, received his BA from the University of Florida in 1971, and his JD fromsame in 1973. He was engaged in the private practice of law with two firms from 1983 to 2006,also serving as Miami Beach commissioner 1997 to 2005, and was appointed city attorney in2006.

Now the attorneys and judges were ganged up at opposite ends of the conference table at thelegal oversight conference. The SunPost had mentioned “bad blood” between the city attorney’soffice and Judge Movahedi. It was indeed evident that Mssrs. Movahedi’s and Boksner’s bloodwas at the boiling point.

Mr. Laeser maintained judicial decorum: he was quite reserved and reasonable, reining in Mr.Movahedi, who was as girded for battle as Mr. Boksner. Mr. Laeser, who also practices privatelyand is currently an adjunct professor of trial advocacy at the University of Miami, obtained hisBA in History from Christian Brothers College in 1969, his JD from the University of Miami in1973. He was senior trial counsel, assistant state attorney from 1973 to 2009, prosecuting capital

felonies, with emphasis on high profile cases, homicides of police officers, and multi-murderdefendants.

Mr. Kaplan was calm and remote except when he shouted “liar” a couple of times—the lawyerson the other end of the table threatened to produce transcripts.

The affair reminded me of the Hatfield and McCoy dispute over the ownership of a McCoy pigthat had wandered onto Hatfield land, where the Hatfields laid claim to it. Of course the famous




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Hatfield and McCoy trial was really not about the pig, but was about the relative dignity andhonor of the feuding families that wanted justice, i.e. vengeance. They were divided by Big Fork,a tributary of the Big Sandy River. This reporter can certainly understand Irish ire since he isremotely related to the Hatfields, not to mention kings and traitors.

The city attorneys and special masters were divided by the conference table instead of a creek,and they had more than one pre-textual pig. The pigs in the poke were named Statute of Limitations, Discovery, Ordering Inspections, and Equitable Estoppel.

Someone mentioned that a special master had ruled that the city should not be able to takecurrent action on a violation that had occurred many years ago unless that violation put thepublic in danger.

Even worse, Judge Movahedi believed that due process should allow a defendant to discoverwhatever information the city might have that would help his case. But the law implementing thespecial master agency states that the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure governing discovery did

not apply to it—yet the statute was silent on what sort of discovery could be ordered by thequasi-judicial agency. Assistant City Attorney Rhonda Montoya Hasan sympathized with the judge’s wish for adequate due process, but the means to it remained a point of contention. Shesuggested making public records requests. Ms. Montoya Hasan, incidentally, has been practicinglaw with the city since 1997. She holds a BA degree from Duke University, and received her JDfrom the University of Miami in 1996.

Furthermore, Mr. Movahedi had dared to “order” an inspection of structural damage to see if itendangered the public, when he should have merely “requested” it because he had no statestatutory authority to order a building inspector to do anything at all. However, although thetranscript did have Mr. Movahedi “ordering” an inspection, his order was really a “request,” as

we can see from John Austin’s Lectures on Jurisprudence, which aptly drew the semanticaldifference between and order and a request long ago: “A command is distinguished from othersignifications of desire, not by the style in which the desire is signified, but bv the power and thepurpose of the party commanding to inflict an evil or pain in case the desire be disregarded. If you cannot or will not harm me in case I comply not with your wish, the expression of your wishis not a command, although you utter your wish in imperative phrase.”

Equitable Estoppel was the fattest of all the rather bony pigs in the poke. A government can bestopped from penalizing someone who relies on its word or conduct that there would be nopenalty in that situation. To do otherwise would be inequitable or unfair.

There are several received forms of equity. The classic example of the difference between lawand equity was given by Blackstone: the law states that the last man on board a capsized vesselhad salvage rights, but if the man was last because he was asleep in his bunk, he should not havethose rights. There used to be separate equity courts, but now courts can consider equitableprinciples as well as the strict law. The city’s Notice to Violators – Late Compliance’instructions state that “Legal or Equitable reasons” may be presented in the Special Master court.




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Judge Movahedi had a case before him involving the purchase of property with theunderstanding that the city had allowed or would allow parking on the property, but the cityapparently did an about face after the property was purchased, and went after the new owner.Judge Movahedi asked a city attorney for pertinent case law on the subject, was presented withsame, and then stopped the city from making good on its claim.

That ruling rankled Mr. Smith, who stated in a June 12 email that “This ruling is erroneous andmust be appealed forthwith. The notion of ‘equitable estoppel’ is JUDICIAL remedy, and not thepurview of a Special Master. There is either a violation or not. The Special Master exceeded hisauthority. Abe, I’ve had enough of this nonsense!”

To the best of our knowledge at press time, the judge’s estoppel ruling was not appealed despitethe continued insistence that it was illegal.

As far as the city attorney and his staff are concerned, code enforcement tribunals are not even acourt although we noticed a higher court referring to them as trial courts. Questions of equity, the

city attorneys believe, can only be decided on appeal to a real court, in this situation a circuitcourt. Again, Mr., Smith insists that “special masters are neither judges nor magistrates.” Thespecial masters doubtless disagree despite their “quasi-judicial” status, and feel their tribunalshould be independent of the executive and legislature to a certain extent. In response to furtherinquiry, Mr. Smith acknowledged that the special master ordinance can be repealed withoutreferendum and the city be rid of the special master agency forever.

We recall President Jefferson’s effort to smother the fledgling Supreme Court in its crib,conspiring to impeach judges for political reasons, although there was admittedly afoot mentalinfirmities, judicial errors, and moral turpitude, including a great deal of liquor to boot. Of coursean analogy with the special master court would fail here if it is unconstitutional.

Given that there are two sides to this ongoing feud, one might wonder why the Commissionshould not consider replacing the city attorney and his staff instead of the special masters. Itappears that the case presented to the commissioners was stacked against the special masters.The little “book” of complaints that the city attorney threw at the special masters included a letterfrom an attorney, Martin Wasserman, lauding him as “an honorable, excellent attorney andleader of our legal department,” with “a keen sense of direction that is in the best interests of thecity.”And, he said that Mr. Zamora, the city attorney’s choice for chief special master, “is anexcellent attorney, very highly regarded by the Probate Judges, and would be a credit to theCity.”

Mr. Smith included another letter from an attorney, one Raul Morales, who said that he hadattended his first hearing before Mr. Movahedi, where he discovered that he lackedprofessionalism, common courtesy, respect, and class, that he was aggressive, condescending,and downright rude, noting that he did not even have a license to practice law in Florida. Asubsequent investigation that included listening to the recording of the hearing found that “thereis no discernible evidence of any change of vocal tone, argumentative speech, or inflectionsreflecting any improper disagreement.” In fact there was “no indication of bad feelings betweenany persons.” Mr. Morales “admitted that no bad language or insulting words were used.” In




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fine, Mr. Morales, who regretted that his complaint had resulted in a formal investigation, hadregretfully misjudged the judge’s mannerisms, his rapid speech, his way of leaning forward, andthe like.

Although ethnic differences and cultural values are being discussed as a legitimate concern

during the current presidential campaign, we might risk being politically incorrect to say thatBabak Movahedi was misperceived because of his energetic temperament, partly due to hisphysiognomy, as well as his cultural background, which includes hatred for grand ayatollahlawyers, and compare his temper to the stereotypically fiery Latin temper, and the stereotypicalaloofness of Jewish intellectuals. We certainly do not wish to aggravate the bad blood andgroundless hatred of the human race itself here with an elaboration of the issues includingoriginal sin and the conduct of Abel and Cain.

Ms. Montoya-Hasan said the situation had become so troubling that certain cases were beingreassigned to other special masters. Of course, selecting compatible judges is nothing new to thelegal profession.

Mr. Movahedi was most incensed by a statement that Mr. Boksner had made in open court, to theeffect that he had no right to interpret Florida law because he did not even have a license topractice in this state. Mr. Boksner replied that he was simply making the objection as a groundfor appeal. Furthermore, he did not appreciate Mr. Movahedi acting like a circuit court judge.

“The special master is supposed to apply the facts to the law,” Mr. Boksner said.

“My job is to apply the law to the facts,” Mr. Movahedi retorted.

Commissioner Ed Tobin, who acted as a reasonable arbiter, said that Mr. Boksner’s comment

about licensing was out of line because a special master does not have to have a Florida licenseor any license at all for that matter. Commissioner Tobin is a former prosecutor and a recentgraduate from the police academy. He observed that Mr. Boksner was an aggressive prosecutormaking his case, perhaps too aggressively. Anyway, he said, he did not see why he should haveto dismiss a special master simply because the city attorney disagreed with him.

“Babak is raising the bar,” he said, and should be valued for that.

Mayor Bower, from the very beginning of the committee meeting, noting that the disputes wereabout a small number of cases, viewed the matter as a personality clash. She was tired of thelawyerlike quibbling. It was an HR issue rather than a legal one. She advised the disputants to

have more respect for one another.

Mr. Boksner then held his peace. However, as the meeting adjourned, a duel nearly broke outbetween Mr. Smith and Mr. Movahedi.

“You are not a circuit judge,” Mr. Smith said. “You cannot legislate! You must abide by thelaw.”




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“That is what I did! You, sir, have an opinion on what the law is, but that is not necessarilycorrect. If you do not like a ruling, then you can appeal.”

Lacking seconds for the fray, the imminent duel was quashed, leaving a Mexican Standoff.

# #



TOWN OF SURFSIDE

SPECIAL MASTER HEARING AGENDAThursday, August 23, 2012

10:00am

Commission Chambers9293 Harding Avenue

Surfside, Florida 33154

1. Opening

A. Call to Order

Special Magistrate: Aleksandr Boksner

Staff Support: Joe Damien, Code Compliance DirectorSarah Johnston, Counsel for the Town

B. Action Items: 10 cases pertaining to Town of Surfside Code Of Ordinances

Special Master Case # SM1200014Property Address: 9544 Harding Avenue

Named Violator: Cine Citta Café I, LLC and/or 9544 Corporation

Violation Summary: Resort Tax (Non-payment of Tax, Penalties & Interest)Type: Appeal / Judgment and Lien

Department Violation # (CE) 12-58

Inspector: Joe Damien

Special Master Case # SM1200015

Property Address: 9472 Harding AvenueNamed Violator: Food Gang LLC and/or F & T Real Property, LLCViolation Summary: Resort Tax (Non-payment of Tax, Penalties & Interest)

Type: Appeal / Judgment and Lien

Department Violation # (CE) 12-57Inspector: Joe Damien



SPECIAL MASTER HEARING AGENDA

Thursday, August 23, 2012, 10:00am

Page 2 of 3

Special Master Case # SM1200016 Property Address: 9440 Bay Drive

Named Violator: Ursula Hoeber De Lopez-Avila

Violation Summary: Property Maintenance (Exterior)Type: Judgment and Lien




Property Address: 9040 Collins AvenueNamed Violator: 9040 Collins Ave, LLC (Yasmina Surfside, LLC)

Violation Summary: Property maintenance (minimum housing, interior/exterior)

Type: Judgment and Lien



Property Address: 9459 Harding AvenueNamed Violator: Moncheese Pizza Corp.

Violation Summary: Certificate of Use (failure to obtain appropriate CU)

Type: Judgment and LienDepartment Violation # (CC) 12-03



Property Address: 9459 Harding Avenue

Named Violator: Moncheese Pizza Corp.

Violation Summary:Local Business Tax Receipt(Appropriate LBTR not obtained)Type: Judgment and Lien

Department Violation # (CC) 12-04



Property Address: 1413 Biscaya Drive

Named Violator: Mario A. Arber Revocable Living TrustViolation Summary: Property Maintenance (Deteriorated Dock and Roof)





Property Address: 9364 Bay DriveNamed Violator: Gabriel Reboh and Nathalie Cohen

Violation Summary:Property Maintenance (Fallen Fence/Vegetation Overgrowth)

Type: Judgment and LienDepartment Violation # (CE) 12-53




SPECIAL MASTER HEARING AGENDA

Thursday, August 23, 2012, 10:00am

Page 3 of 3

Special Master Case # SM1200022 Property Address: 9265 Carlyle Avenue

Named Violator: Wilfredo and Barbara Montejo

Violation Summary: Property Maintenance (Hedge Overgrowth/Encroachment)Type: Judgment and Lien




Property Address: 9500 Harding AvenueNamed Violator: Emil Franc, Inc. / Shilldev (US) Inc.

Violation Summary: Failure to Obtain Permit (Air-Conditioner Installation)




Property Address: 9435 Harding Avenue, Surfside, FL 33154Named Violator: Vittorium Enterprises, LLC

Violation Summary: Failure to obtain a Certificate of Use and/or License (LBTR)

Type: Mitigation of FinesDepartment Violation # (CE) 12-22



Property Address: 9472 Harding Avenue

Named Violator: Food Gang, LLC d/b/a Cine Citta

Violation Summary:Property maintenance (failure to maintain awning/electrical)Type: Judgment and Lien (Progress Report)

Department Violation # (CC) 12-25


2. Adjournment

+

Non-English speaking alleged violators: The code compliance division cannot guarantee the

availability of a translator for the hearing scheduled of this notice. Nor can the division

guarantee the accuracy of any translation should a translator be provided for you. Therefore, it is

recommended that you make arrangements to bring your own translator to the hearing.

Americans with disabilities Act of 1990: Persons needing special accommodation to participate

in these proceedings should contact the Town Manager no later than 5 calendar days prior to theproceedings at (305)861-4863. TDD users, please phone via the Florida Relay Service at 1-800-

955-8771.




Page 1 of 2

4 September 2012

Rafael E. Granado

City Clerk

CITY OF MIAMI BEACH

1700 Convention Center Drive

Miami Beach, FL 33139

Email: [email protected]

Email: [email protected]

REQUEST: Alexandr Boksner’s Annual Outside Employment Report

Dear Mr. Granado:

Good Day, Sir. I hope you had a pleasant Labor Day!

This is a public records request brought under Title I Section 24 of the Constitution of the State

of Florida and Chapter 119 Fla. Stat. for the latest July 1 Annual Outside Employment Report of

Senior Assistant City Attorney Alexandr Boksner, as required, if I am not mistaken, by Miami

Dade County Ordinance Sec. 2-11.1 The Conflict of Interest and Code of Ethics Ordinance

(below). He also serves the town of Surfside as Special Magistrate, according to a recentlypublished Special Master Agenda (attached). No doubt everything is in good order, but I want to

show the evidence to whom it concerns.

Your predecessor often extended to me the common courtesy of providing small amounts of

information free of charge, via email to save me the long walk in the hot Sun to City Hall. I hope

you will continue to do so even though the city’s representative apparently considers me as an

enemy of the state, or traitor who has “attacked the city,” despite the fact that my recent pro bono

efforts to help the city have saved the city tens of thousands of dollars. The consequences to me

thus far have been considerable expenses, hearsay about personal threats, and a libelous per se

statement to a prominent local editor.

Sincerely,

David Arthur Walters

CC Joe Centorino, Director

Miami Dade County Commission on Ethics and Public Trust

Re: Public Disclosure Law




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“Mr. Walters: As a former State prosecutor and Police Legal Advisor, his biography and other

personal information is exempt from public disclosure.” Jose Smith (August 23, 2012)

“Mr. Boksner, May I have a copy of your biography? I do not see one on the City Attorney

Office’s Page.” David Arthur Walters (August 23, 2012)

Mr. Walters. Did you see the Dade ethics committee (Mr. Centorino) come to the podium to make their sales pitch to commissioners to spend $45k on an ethics class for city employees? Tobin was sarcastic, he said something like, how am I to trust you to train our employees when I called you to report an ethics violation and you said you could not investigate, you said I had to do the investigation, and that I had to prove what I am reporting by providing pictures of what I saw. Tobin said, "So I should have taken off my job and investigated the case for you?” “Bide the time and sharpen a stake, being careful not to awaken the one‐eyed monster until it is

ready, and

we

shall

have

the

sheep

anon.” Nobody

Sec. 2-11.1 The Conflict of Interest and Code of Ethics Ordinance

(k) Prohibition on outside employment.

(1) No person included in the terms defined in Subsections (b)(5) [departmental personnel] and (6)[employees] shall receive any compensation for his or her services as an officer or employee of the County,from any source other than the County except as may be permitted by Section 2-11 of this Code of

Ordinances.

(2) All full-time County and municipal employees engaged in any outside employment for any person, firm,corporation or entity other than Miami-Dade County, or the respective municipality, or any of their agenciesor instrumentalities, shall file, under oath, an annual report indicating the source of the outside employment,the nature of the work being done pursuant to same and any amount or types of money or other consideration received by the employee from said outside employment. Said County employee's reportsshall be filed with the supervisor of elections no later than 12:00 noon on July 1st of each year, includingthe July 1st following the last year that person held such employment. Municipal employee reports shall befiled with the clerk of their respective municipalities. Said reports shall be available at a reasonable timeand place for inspection by the public. The County Manager or any city manager may require monthly

reports from individual employees or groups of employees for good cause.




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IS ALEX A SECRET AGENT, HIS IDENTITY A STATE SECRET?

David Arthur Walters <[email protected]>________________________________________

Alexandr Boksner Biographical Secrets Are Displayed by The Florida Bar________________________________________

David Arthur Walters <[email protected]> Thu, Aug 30, 2012 at 11:38 AMTo: "Granado, Rafael" <[email protected]>

Cc: "Kenneth L. Marvin" <[email protected]>, Matti Bower Bower

<[email protected]>, "Tobin, Ed" <[email protected]>,

"Centorino, Joseph (COE)" <[email protected]>Mr. Granado,

Mr. Smith has implied that Mr. Boksner's identity is a state secret as if he were some sortof state police officer. The Florida Bar has displayed some biographical information on

its website, so perhaps it should be advised to remove it; therefore I am alerting the Bar.

Is the City's personnel file on him locked tight?

David Arthur Walters

Smith, Jose

Aug 23 (7 days ago)

to Aleksandr, Ed, me, alexboksner, Matti

Mr. Walters:

Mr. Boksner will not provide you with legal advice or discuss legal theories. As a former

State prosecutor and Police Legal Advisor, his biography and other personal informationis exempt from public disclosure. And for your edification, special masters are neither

judges nor magistrates. They only have the authority granted by Chapter 30 of the city

code.

David Arthur Walters [email protected] 23 (7 days ago)

to alexboksner, aboksner, Jose, Ed, Matti

Alex,




Page 2 of 4

At the special master oversight meeting yesterday, you mentioned a case you had foundgiving a judicial opinion on the constitutional power's of the special master alternative to

the code enforcement board. Would you please email me a copy of the full text of that

case? Mind you that I do not access to a good legal research mechanism.

I would really like to know if the special masters are real judges sitting in a real tribunal.

For what it's worth, I noticed some time ago that an information sheet handed out with a

violation notice stated that defenses can be made at law and in equity, so I supposed

equitable estoppel would be included as an "it's not fair" defense. However, I also noticed

that the information sheet differed from the municipal code provisions in some respects.And I noticed from a file in hand that the technical constructive notice provisions, which

seem to follow the state statute, do not seem to be followed carefully -- if they were, it

was not evidenced in the file. My take on the technical discussions at the meeting is thatthe city attorney office in collaboration with special masters and clerks should sit down

with the statutes and ordinances and documents and describe the correct process to follow

in detail, with examples of course, and make sure that everyone is crystal clear about theright way to do things technically speaking. In other words, rewrite the manual to accord

with the law.

I personally do not think anyone has to be fired to resolve the human nature issue.Spaniards became extraordinarily courteous to one another after their Civil War.

By the way, may I also have a copy of your biography? I do not see one on the CityAttorney Office's page.

Thanks!

FROM FLORIDA BAR WEBSITE

Aleksandr Boksner

Member in Good Standing

Eligible to practice in Florida

ID Number: - 526827

Address:Office of the City Attorney1700 Convention Center Dr

Miami Beach, Florida 331391819

United States

County:Miami-Dade




Page 3 of 4

Circuit:11

Admitted:10/18/2001

Sections:Government Lawyer

10-Year Discipline History

None

Law School:

The University of Toledo College of Law

Occupation:

Government attorney

Federal Courts:

U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida

Florida Middle District Bankruptcy Court

State Courts:

FloridaTennessee

Granado, Rafael <[email protected]> Thu, Aug 30, 2012 at 2:32

PMTo: David Arthur Walters <[email protected]>

Cc: "Kenneth L. Marvin" <[email protected]>, "Bower, Matti H."


"Centorino, Joseph (COE)" <[email protected]>, "Smith, Jose"<[email protected]>, "Inguanzo, Ramiro"

<[email protected]>

Good afternoon Mr. Walters,

Pursuant to Florida Statutes Section 119.071(4)(d)1.d., the following information isexempt for current or former state attorneys , assistant state attorneys, statewide

prosecutors, or assistant statewide prosecutors:

1. Home addresses, telephone numbers, and photographs; and




Page 4 of 4

2. Home addresses, telephone numbers, photographs, and places of employment of the spouses and children of such personnel; and the names and locations of schools and

day care facilities attended by the children of such personnel.

Regards,

MIAMIBEACHRafael E. Granado, City Clerk CITY CLERK'S OFFICE

1700 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach, FL 33139

Tel: 305-673-7411 www.miamibeachfl.gov

We are committed to providing excellent public service and safety to all who live, work and play in our vibrant, tropical, historic community.

David Arthur Walters <[email protected]> Thu, Aug 30, 2012 at 4:10 PM

To: "Granado, Rafael" <[email protected]>Cc: "Kenneth L. Marvin" <[email protected]>, "Bower, Matti H."


"Centorino, Joseph (COE)" <[email protected]>, "Smith, Jose"

<[email protected]>, "Inguanzo, Ramiro"<[email protected]>

Rafael. Thank you. Gee I just asked for the info other city attorneyshave on the city attorney webpage but as you can see counsel declined.

Is he violating the public records act? David

NO RESPONSE TO ABOVE

showdown at high noon - miami beach city attorneys v. special masters

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