F R I DA Y , A P R I L 1 9 , 2 0 1 3

Miami Beach Supermanager Jimmy Morales to Address Inflammatory Allegations

City of Miami Beach Mayor Matti Bower and Commissioners Michael Gongora and Deede Weithorn were asked if any further action would be taken or recommended in response to fired fire inspector David Westons' rebuttal to the report Interim City Manager Kathie Brooks and City Attorney Jose Smith filed with the Commission in response to an inflammatory article appearing in the Miami New Times that asserted misconduct within the Fire Department and Building Department. Weston alleged that he had uncovered evidence of millions of dollars of "missing monies" in Building Department fees, and that he was fired as a consequence. He opined that several city departments are RICO operations. In their report to the Commission, the interim city manager and city attorney asserted that Weston had been fired for unethical conduct, a charge that Weston has

disagreed with, asserting it was merely a pretext for getting rid of him. His response addressed several of the alleged misrepresentations. We asked the officials if the issue would simply be shelved without formal comment since the parties had their say. Neither Mayor Bower nor Commission Weithorn responded to our request for a status report. Commissioner Gongora, however, who is running for mayor, did answer when we followed up and asked for the "straight poop" on the matter as to whether the issue will be "shelved or swept under the rug." Gongora referred the matter to Jimmy Morales, the new city manager. Morales replaced involuntarily retired Jorge Gonzalez subsequent to the F.B.I. arrests of several city employees. Expectations are so high for radical reform on his watch that some people have dubbed him Supermanager. We informed Morales and Gongora of our editorial opinion, that the dismissal was defamatory due to mismanagement, and the defamation is maintained in the city's public personnel records as well as the public statements of Brooks and Smith. We reported that Weston said his wife was an attorney, yet he has insisted that he wants to be part of the so-called Morales Solution. "I have received a copy of this," said Morales in an email to Commissioner Gongora. "Frankly, in the 2 1/2 weeks that I have been on the job, I have not yet had a chance to review these items and determine what, if any, follow up is required. Nothing is swept under the rug. I will get to this

and report back to you and the Commission accordingly. Thank you." We understand: eventually Supermanager will approach the Speed of Light and Catch some Sleep. He must deal with first thing first. The Weston Affair is past history, but it should be addressed as soon as humanly possible because something will then be learned that will be useful for future guidance. Especially, be sure to get all the facts before taking action, and make sure that action is reasonable.