Florida Sentinel Bulletin

BY LEON B. CREWS
Sentinel Staff Writer

During the second budget hearing of the Tampa City Council, several citizens and activists addressed the need for officials to look into lowering the fees at city parks, especially where it impacted seniors.

City of Tampa Chief of Staff, Santiago Corrada, said he met with Parks and Recreation Director, Karen Palus, then later with Michelle B. Patty and Jarvis El-Amin.

“I came out of the meeting with Karen Palus and told Mrs. Patty and Mr. El-Amin that we had come up with a new fee scale. We will not charge $25-per-hour for seniors to ride the van anymore. We also reduced the requirement for renting the park for activities from a 4-hour minimum to a 2-hour minimum during the week. We currently have a 25% discount in place for non-profit groups, and now that could go as high as 50%. Those were the major issues.”

Councilman Frank Reddick said he addressed the issue with Corrada and Palus after listening to seniors and others in his district complaining about the high fees.

Mrs. Patty said this is proof of what can happen when people use their voice and speak out.

U. S. Postal Produce Station on East Hillsborough Avenue

In July, Patrick Donahoe, Postmaster General for the U. S. Postal Service, announced possible closures of more than 3,700 post offices in the country. Two of those locations were the Produce Station, 2810 E. Hillsborough Avenue, in Tampa, and the second was the Morris Milton Post Office, 1750 16th Street, South, in Midtown St. Petersburg.

However, during a press conference Wednesday morning, U. S. Rep. Kathy Castor and St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster announced that both locations had been removed from the list of possible closures. The conference was held at the Morris Milton Post Office, 1750 16th St. S in St. Petersburg.

Rep. Castor said, “The credit for this goes to the entire community. The people made the case to the Post Office early in the process. “The Produce Station is valuable, well used, and the majority of its boxes are rented. It just doesn’t rise to the level as some of the others. It is also valuable to everyone in the community, especially small businesses and our older neighbors,” she said.

Pictured: From left to right: Jarvis El-Amin, Santiago Corrada, and Michelle B. Patty.

City Editor Iris B. Holton can be contacted at (813) 248-1921; or emailed at iholton@flsentinel.com.

BY IRIS B. HOLTON
Sentinel City Editor

For nearly twenty years, a Tampa woman served as an advocate for families residing in a public housing complex. She died on Monday following a lengthy illness.

Mrs. Loujean “Ms. Jean” Williams, 68, became an employee of the City of Tampa Police Department March 23, 1970, and assigned to the Crime Prevention Bureau. Under the leadership of the late Mrs. Patricia Pierce Coleman, Mrs. Williams worked in the Robles Park Public Housing Complex.

After Mrs. Pierce Coleman retired, Mrs. Williams became the Crime Prevention Coordinator. Although she was assigned to the Robles Pond area, she worked with others in other housing complexes.

Said Her Goodbyes
Mrs. Debbie Brown, Mrs. Williams’ daughter-in-law, said Mrs. Williams was diagnosed with congestive heart failure several years ago. But, she handled the illness well until about a month ago.

She was admitted to the University Community Hospital for tests after complaining of not feeling well. “She decided she needed rehabilitation and was admitted to John Knox Rehabilitation Center. She was supposed to come home on Monday, but she died at 1:48 p.m.

“Friday night, she had me to hold the telephone to her ear and I called several people for her. She told them goodbye and that she wouldn’t be able to be there for them anymore.

“On Sunday, she talked to her son and each of her grandchildren and told them what she wanted them to do. When she was finished, she told the nurse she was ready for the morphine drip,” Mrs. Brown said.

Funeral services for Mrs. Williams will take place on Saturday. Ray Williams Funeral Home is in charge of handling arrangements.

BY IRIS B. HOLTON
Sentinel City Editor

On Tuesday, the Florida Supreme Court declined to review the case of former Tampa Police Captain Marion Lewis. City attorneys had requested the court hear the case.

The decision not to hear the case means that the earlier ruling by the Court of Appeals in favor of Lewis stands. The Court of Appeals ruled that Lewis did not have to resign in order to qualify for mayor. The battle began in 2007, after Lewis qualified for mayor and challenged then Mayor Pam Iorio.

The city took the position that Lewis could not seek office against Iorio because she was his boss.

In January 2011, after more than 4 years in the courts, the Second District Court of Appeals released a unanimous opinion in the case in Lewis’ favor.

City attorneys then requested that the Florida Supreme Court review the ruling. On Tuesday, their decision was posted on their website.

It read: “… The Court having determined that it should decline to accept jurisdiction, it is ordered that the petition for review is denied. No motion for rehearing will be entertained by the Court.”

When contacted by the Sentinel, Lewis said, “The ruling means that all of the appeals process is over and it goes back to the lower court. I am open to settlement and we can agree on a settlement. But, it must be approved by the Court.”

The City Attorney’s Office stated they had no comment on the case pending litigation.

The National Save the Family Now Movement, Inc. a coalition of pastors, publishers and community leaders along with the Florida Association of Black Owned Media (FABOM) will host “A National Save the Family Now! March & Rally” Saturday, November 19, 2011, in historic Eatonville, Florida.

The purpose of the march is to celebrate family and to challenge policies, programs and persons that demean and denigrate the Black family in particular, and all families in general.

Bobby Henry

Additionally, the march will honor community organizations and churches that have developed positive programs for strengthening families. Mr. Bobby R. Henry, of Fort Lauderdale, and president of FABOM stated: “This is a fine opportunity for our community to come together during this FAMU/BCU football classic to uplift our families and deal with issues that negatively impact the family.” Henry is also the publisher of the Westside-Gazette.

The Reverend R. B. Holmes, Jr., of Tallahassee, president of Region Two of the National Newspapers Publishers Association (NNPA), and president of Live Communications, Inc., and event founder and organizer stated, “This movement and march is extremely significant to mobilize and motivate our people to stand up against public policies that will diminish social security, mediocrity, voters’ rights and education.” Region Two of the NNPA is comprised of seven states: Atlanta, Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia. Rev. Holmes is also pastor of the Bethel Missionary Baptist Church in Tallahassee, FL.

The march will be held in the historic town of Eatonville, FL.

Eatonville was the first incorporated African-American community in the nation. Mayor Bruce Mount and Deputy Mayor Eddie Cole are asking everyone to come out and support this family march. “Our families, whether traditional, or non-traditional, are the foundation of our communities. We must do everything we can to reclaim our young people and support their goals and aspirations” said Mayor Mount.

For more information, please visit their website at http://savethefamilynow.com.

On October 12th at 3:12 p. m., the owner of Sam’s Food Mart, 4215 15th Street, came into the store and found his clerk and sister-in-law, Marilyn Tejada, 53, on the floor with a gunshot wound to her upper body. She was transported to a local hospital in critical condition. On October 13th, she was pronounced dead.

No suspects have been identified in the shooting, and detectives are asking the public for help in solving the robbery/murder. Our Sisters/Our Friends, an organization founded by Sheilah Youngblood and Ola Abreu, will be hosting a candlelight vigil Wednesday night in honor of Ms. Tejada.

Mrs. Youngblood said they want the community to come out and join them to show unity and outrage and to pledge their desire to see this kind of senseless violence stopped.

The vigil will be held from 7 p. m. until 8 p.m. at the store.

Aiken’s Funeral Home is helping Ms. Tejada’s family with arrangements for a service.

BY IRIS B. HOLTON
Sentinel City Editor

Dr. Paulette Walker moved to Tampa 22 years ago and mad a life for herself and her family. Recently, she retired from the University of South Florida. She describes those 20 years as being “All in all, a good journey.”

In February 1990, Mr. and Mrs. James (Dr. Paulette) Walker moved to Tampa from their native home of Detroit, Michigan. They planned to raise their two sons in the city.

A former classroom teacher, Dr. Walker began working on a part-time basis with the University of South Florida in August 1990. A year later, she was hired as a full time employee.

Three years after arriving here, Dr. Walker’s husband died, and she suddenly found herself hundreds of miles away from family. However, she had developed a strong support system in Tampa and had no desire to move back to Michigan.

Now that her time is her own, she plans to spend more time with her family. She is the mother of two adult sons. She is grandmother to five granddaughters and three grandsons.

Dr. Walker is the only child of the Mrs. Helen Felton and the late Otis Felton. Dr. Walker, 63, is a member of Mount Olive A. M. E. Church, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and several professional, civic, and social organizations. She enjoys reading and sewing.

He gained fame in the late 1970s as one of the area’s top disc jockeys, and that fame carried on into the 1990s.

Roosevelt Moore, Jr., known on the radio waves as J. Moore, passed away Sunday at his Progress Village home. He was 60.

Moore was the oldest of 10 children, and grew up in the College Hill area before relocating to Progress Village. He is a 1968 graduate of Middleton High school, and family members said his radio skills date back to 1979.

Moore would have celebrated his 61st birthday November 3rd.

Moore spent a lot of time in the hospital since 1997, and had surgery last Tuesday. His mother was at his side when he passed away.

Ray Williams Funeral Home is meeting with the family to assist with arrangements and the details will be released at a later date.

A 30-year-old Tampa man is facing up to 40 years in prison on drug charges. A jury found him guilty last Friday.

According to the U. S. Attorney Middle District of Florida Office, Maurice Lavon Johnson was found guilty of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana. The trial lasted three days before United States District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington.

Johnson was indicted on November 17, 2010, with co-defendants Joel Christopher Williams, and Rajeev Pherwani. Williams and Pherwani pled guilty and will be sentenced on November 22, 2011.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, Johnson served as an enforcer and marijuana quality expert for a group which met with undercover officers from the Tampa Police Department and Drug Enforcement Administration last October, and attempted to purchase several hundred pounds of marijuana.

Johnson has a sentencing date set for January 26, 2012.

Last week, three members of the same family pleaded guilty in federal court to cashing IRS checks and drug dealing. The defendants entered their pleas on Tuesday, October 4, and Friday, October 7, respectively.

Tarranzton Barr, 36, entered a guilty plea to conspiring with other persons to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine on October 4th.

His cousin, Patrick Shaw, 32, entered a plea on October 7th. Both men are facing a mandatory minimum term of 10 years to life in prison, a fine of up to $8,000,000 in fines, at least 8 years of supervision after being released from jail, and a special assessment of $100 per felony count.

According to court documents, on May 2, 2011, Barr’s cousin, Patrick Shaw, 32, contacted a cooperating witness (CWI) “seeking assistance in cashing fraudulently-obtained U. S. Treasury checks that Shaw had in his possession.”

Patrick Shaw

The witness met with Shaw at the direction of law enforcement, two other cooperating witnesses, and Barr, at Shaw’s place of business. During the meeting, it was agreed that the checks would be exchanged for cocaine and it was agreed that the witness would provide Shaw and Barr with ½ kilogram of cocaine for approximately $24,000 in checks, court documents stated.

Shaw and Barr negotiated with the witness for exchange of $39,500 worth of checks for one kilogram of cocaine, to which the witness agreed. Shaw left the meeting and the witness provided one kilogram of “sham cocaine” to Barr. The witnesses left the area and Barr was arrested. He admitted to his role, and said that he and Shaw intended to purchase the cocaine.

Pleads Guilty To Filing $126,000 Fraudulent  Tax Claims
According to the court documents, beginning in 2006, Ms. Patricia Shaw, 35, who is Shaw’s sister and Barr’s cousin, agreed with at least two other individuals to engage in a scheme to defraud the U. S. government. Ms. Shaw and her co-conspirators obtained personal information about individuals, including social security numbers, and used the information to file dozens of false income tax returns.

Patricia Shaw

In some cases, the individuals were unaware tax returns had been filed on their behalf. In some instances, the individuals willingly provided the information in exchange for a fee.

Law enforcement has identified fraudulent tax returns filed by Ms. Shaw that totaled more than $126,000.

Ms. Shaw pleaded guilty to one count of making a false, fictitious, or fraudulent claim. She is facing up to 5 years in prison, a fine of at least $250,000, 3 years of supervision after being released from jail, and a special assessment of $100.

Sentencing dates the three has not been released.

City Editor Iris B. Holton can be contacted at (813) 248-1921; or emailed at iholton@flsentinel.com.