Lamberti praises agency’s work to reduce hate crimes in last news conference as Broward sheriff

In his last news conference as Broward’s top cop, Sheriff Al Lamberti praised his agency’s efforts to reduce hate crimes in the county — a finding reflected in the 2011 Hate Crimes in Florida report issued by the state attorney general’s office this week.

But Lamberti, one of the most visible Republican elected officials in Broward, declined to say if he would ever run for office again, or to divulge many details about his plans once he steps down next week.

“Effective Tuesday, I’m going to be back where I was when I started: a citizen of Broward County,’’ said Lamberti, who was first elected sheriff in 2008 but lost to Democratic challenger Scott Israel by about 45,000 votes in November’s general election.

“I sacrificed ... a lot of time with my wife and my son,’’ he said. “So, I’m looking forward to catching up on lost time.’’

A 35-year veteran of the Broward Sheriff’s Office who began his law enforcement career working in the county jail, Lamberti rose through the ranks to be appointed sheriff by then-Gov. Charlie Crist in September 2007.

Broward voters elected Lamberti for an additional four years in 2008, choosing him over Israel, who is a former Fort Lauderdale police officer and North Bay Village police chief.

Lamberti took office at a time when the agency was in desperate need of stability after former Sheriff Ken Jenne went to prison on charges of fraud and tax evasion.

“I think we steadied the ship and got it going in the right direction,’’ Lamberti said, “and we accomplished a lot.’’

During Lamberti’s tenure, the sheriff took on Broward’s rampant pill mills and pushed to have lawmakers make attacking the homeless a hate crime — an accomplishment for which Lamberti expressed particular pride.

Flanked by local representatives of organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League, the Pride Center and the Broward Coalition for the Homeless, Lamberti spoke Friday of the potent partnerships his agency forged with these groups and elected officials such as former Florida Rep. Ari Porth — who also was in attendance — to enact legislation in 2010 that made attacking the homeless a hate crime.

Lamberti said one of the first things he did as sheriff was to create a Hate Crimes Task Force, in response to annual state reports that found Broward led all Florida counties in hate crimes for several years.

“It has worked wonders,’’ Lamberti said of the task force, which is led by Capt. Richard Wierzbicki, who will be leaving the agency as well.

Ron Gunzburger, who has been named general counsel and senior advisor to the sheriff-elect, said BSO will continue to make it a priority to fight hate crimes.

“Sheriff Israel intends to keep the task force,’’ Gunzburger wrote in an email. “The sheriff sees hate crimes as serious incidents requiring prompt arrests and appropriate prosecutions.’’

Holding copies of Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi’s latest hate crimes report, and another issued by the National Coalition for the Homeless citing Broward as a national leader in preventing hate crimes against the homeless, Lamberti presented them as evidence of the task force’s effectiveness.

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Clearwire investor seeks to block sale to Sprint

(Reuters) – A large Clearwire Corp shareholder on Friday stepped up its campaign against the planned sale of the wireless service provider to its majority owner, Sprint Nextel Corp, saying it plans to ask the U.S. telecoms regulator to block the deal.

Crest Financial’s general counsel also said on a call with reporters that it will ask the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to block Sprint’s plan to sell 70 percent of itself to Softbank Corp of Japan for $ 20 billion.

Going to the FCC is a new line of attack on the Sprint deal by Crest, which has also filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of Clearwire investors. Dave Schumacher, Crest’s general counsel, said the fund said other minority investors told Crest they did not support the Sprint deal, but he did not provide details.

The investment fund, which owns around 8 percent of Clearwire, has said Sprint’s offer of $ 2.97 share for the roughly 50 percent of Clearwire it does not currently own, “grossly undervalues Clearwire.” Sprint’s offer is worth about $ 2.2 billion, but Schumacher said Crest had not done its own valuation and was basing its criticism of the price on estimates by analysts.

In going to the FCC, Crest will argue that the Clearwire deal artificially undervalues the company’s spectrum holdings, Schumacher said. That in turn potentially devalues future revenue for the U.S. government when it auctions off spectrum licenses.

“The merger is therefore a bad deal all around for Clearwire shareholders and also for the public at large,” said Schumacher.

Sprint spokesman Scott Sloat said the deal with Clearwire was the right one for Sprint, Clearwire and American consumers. He said the class action lawsuit was baseless.

A spokesman for Clearwire, Mike DiGioia, declined to comment on Crest’s intention to go to the FCC. He said a special committee of the board conducted a rigorous evaluation of the company’s options before agreeing to the Sprint deal.

Clearwire’s chief executive, Erik Prusch, has said the company does not have attractive alternatives as it seeks funding to continue to upgrade its own network and could risk bankruptcy if the Sprint deal does not succeed.

Crest has sued Clearwire in the Court of Chancery in Delaware, where the company is incorporated, to permanently block the deal.

The Delaware court will hear arguments next week on Crest’s request to expedite the case and Schumacher said Crest hopes to move to a trial in April.

The deal needs approval by a majority of Clearwire’s minority shareholders and Sprint has said it has the support of three large Clearwire investors – Comcast Corp, Intel Corp and Bright House Networks LLC – which hold 13 percent of Clearwire stock. Schumacher said the fund would try to prevent the three from voting because of their affiliation with Sprint.

As Clearwire’s fight with its shareholders heats up, Sprint has its own shareholders to contend with.

A Kansas court on Friday declined Sprint’s request for an early dismissal of a lawsuit by a union pension fund that holds Sprint stock.

The lawsuit alleged that Sprint’s chief executive, Daniel Hesse, rushed merger talks with Softbank and did not get a fair price.

The ruling by Thomas Sutherland, the judge for the District Court of Johnson County, Kansas, will allow the pension fund to begin to demand documents and witnesses as it tries to prove its case.

Sloat, the Sprint spokesman, said the ruling only addressed the technical adequacy of the pension fund’s pleading and did not address the merits of the case. He said Sprint continued to believe the case was without merit.

(Reporting By Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware and Sinead Carew in New York; Editing by Bernard Orr and David Gregorio)

Tech News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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Michael Douglas and Matt Damon Talk Behind The Candelabra

Matt Damon has already revealed that he will reveal quite a lot of himself to play Scott Thorson in Behind the Candelabra, HBO's Liberace biopic. But Damon went more than skin deep today when he was joined by Michael Douglas in talking about the hotly anticipated project at The Television Critics Association in Pasadena, CA. A project that was over a decade in the making.

RELATED - Matt Damon Gets Naked For Liberace

Douglas admitted, "I can't believe this is true, but [director Steven Soderbergh & I] were doing Traffic 12 years ago, and somewhere early in the shoot, Steven said, 'Have you ever thought about Liberace?' That's how early the idea was going on." The project finally came together once Richard LaGravenese's screenplay came into the picture.

"You don't get this many chances to have a great script and a wonderful actor like Matt to work with," Douglas said, adding with a laugh, "We obviously worked together closely." And after watching Candelabra's trailer -- luxe looking and filled with passionate kissing, coupling and heartfelt emotions -- I can tell you that Douglas was speaking the truth.

PHOTOS - Matt & Michael Go Behind Liberace's Legacy

Getting to the truth of Liberace was of utmost importance to Douglas, who had only met the performer in passing. "I met him briefly two or three times when my father had a house in Palm Springs and Liberace had a house nearby. You couldn't miss his car. I never had an evening with him, but heard ... that he was an extraordinarily gracious guy."

Candelabra co-star Debbie Reynolds, however, had spent quite a lot of time with Liberace back in the day. Although Douglas wouldn't reveal the stories she shared with the room. "Most of Debbie's stories I really can't tell," he laughed. "She had some very spicy stuff to say.

VIDEO - Who Is Scott Thorson?

Aside from personal anecdotes, Douglas also worked from the tremendous amount of clips available of Liberace. "Those certainly give you a sense and idea [of who he was]," he said, adding that the key to his performance is repetition. "

"It's basically ... finding the balance between knowing you're not an impersonator and [finding] what makes you comfortable and [finding what] makes me attractive to Matt." Damon was quick to add he found Michael "very, very attractive" as Liberace.

Behind the Candelabra premieres later this year on HBO.

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Former parole officer cops to kiddie porn charges

A onetime-senior state parole officer – who oversaw parole officers who supervised sex offenders – pleaded guilty on kiddie porn charges in Brooklyn federal court today, authorities said.

James Leone, 50, was arrested at his Long Island home in September after federal law enforcement agents searched his computer and found graphic photos and videos of children being abused, according to court documents.

Leone pleaded guilty to accessing child pornography with intent to view, confirmed Robert Nardoza, a spokesman for the US Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn.

He faces ten years in prison.

Before he became a parole officer, Leone worked as a New York City child abuse investigator, according to court documents.

The images Leone downloaded depicted girls ten or 12 years old being sexually abused by their parents and brother, according to court documents.

Leone remains in home detention on $500,000 bond, court documents and Nardoza said.

A woman who answered the phone at Leone’s home in Bethpage said he wasn’t there and said, “I don’t think he’s going to be talking to any reporters today.”

jsaul@nypost.com

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Former Marlins player Edgar Renteria sells Miami Beach home for $8.3 million

Former Marlins’ baseball player Edgar Renteria sold his sprawling Mediterranean-style Miami Beach home for $8,325,000, a record for Allison Island.

The 7-bedroom, 7-1/2 bath home at 6633 Allison Road, was sold in an all-cash transaction to MG Brown Co. LLC, according to One Sotheby’s International Realty, which represented both the seller and buyer.

The home, which boasts an expansive 200 feet of waterfront on Biscayne Bay, was custom built for the Colombian-born ballplayer, according to One Sotheby’s vice president Kevin Tomlinson, who represented the buyer.

Amenities include an infinity pool, a wine cellar, a movie theater, and an elevator. The house is on a 25,682-square-foot lot with a private dock. Closing on the property, originally listed at $8.9 million, was Dec. 21, 2012.

“It’s a record sale for that island,’’ said Mayi de la Vega, owner of One Sotheby’s, who was the listing agent. “We’re finding the trophy properties are really performing the best.’’

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Report: Crashes at red-light camera intersections are down

TALLAHASSEE --
Crashes are down at Florida intersections equipped with red-light cameras, according to a new state report.

A report of accidents compiled by the state from 73 different law enforcement agencies found that more than half of Florida agencies, 41, say accidents are less frequent at intersections using red-light camera technology. Crashes were more frequent in just 11 of the 73 jurisdictions while the rest saw no change or didn’t have enough information.

The five-page report from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles contains data from Hillsborough County, Tampa, St. Petersburg, Fort Lauderdale and Miami and includes accidents between July 2011 and June 2012.

In that time, Miami issued 98,062 violations while Fort Lauderdale issued 19,544. Accidents at intersections with cameras were down in Miami but up in Fort Lauderdale, according to officials. The cities were not asked to detail how much accidents are up or down.

Most agencies also reported that traffic safety had improved throughout their jurisdictions “as drivers were more cautious when approaching all intersections.”

The statistics have been delivered to the Legislature, and are likely to influence debate on whether red-light cameras are in Florida to stay. Lawmakers have tried to outlaw the cameras in years past.

“The report provides information to lawmakers they can use to help them make decisions about red light cameras, if necessary,” said Kirsten Olsen-Doolan, a highway safety spokeswoman.

Although Florida legalized red-light cameras in 2010, the issue is constantly at play in Tallahassee. Camera companies employ dozens of lobbyists and pay big money to ward off lawmakers who want to halt what they see as government intrusion.

Charles Territo, a spokesman for American Traffic Solutions, a camera company, says the lobbyists are charged with correcting misinformation about traffic cameras.

“The hope is that over time, as reports like this show crash reductions, those who oppose the programs philosophically will at least agree they provide a significant safety benefit,” Territo said. “Drivers pay more attention and drive more safely when they know an intersection is being monitored 24 hours per day seven days per week, and that’s not something many police departments have the manpower to do.”

Red-light cameras came under scrutiny in St. Petersburg last month after city staffers prepared a hefty report for the City Council but left out the fact that accidents at intersections with the cameras had jumped by 10 percent.

Sen. Jack Latvala, R-St. Petersburg, former chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, believes accidents will decrease once people get used to the cameras — because they won’t get nervous and hit their breaks. St. Petersburg installed its cameras in November 2011 and is one of the newer programs in the state.

“I’ve always thought [the cameras] performed a valuable service, but we’ve never had enough data on the effects of them,” he said. “I think these results are more valued because they include the cameras that have been in place longer.”

But Sen. Rene Garcia, R-Hialeah, who filed a failed measure in 2011 to ban the cameras, questions whether the data is driven by financial interests.

The state gets $70 from every violation caught on camera and local governments have also seen big revenue hikes. Law enforcement agencies issued nearly a million violations last year.

“If it was really about safety, then why is the money going toward filling budget holes?” asked Garcia, adding that he’s lost the fight to eliminate the cameras, but will work to alleviate their problems. “Why wouldn’t that money go back into education so we can actually increase safety?”

Some citizens have accused local governments of tampering with the timing on yellow lights to issue more violations. The cameras often don’t account for local rules about right turns on right lights. And sometimes a car owner gets a traffic violation even if someone else is driving the car, he said.

“There are still a lot of issues,” Garcia said. “And I think the Legislature has a right to ask those questions.”

Contact Brittany Alana Davis at bdavis@tampabay.com or 850-323-0353.

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6 takeaways from Google’s antitrust settlement with US regulators

Google Inc. has settled an U.S. antitrust probe that largely leaves its search practices alone. In a major win for Google, the Federal Trade Commission unanimously concluded that there is not enough evidence to support complaints from rivals that the company shows unfair bias in its search results toward its own products.

Below are six of the biggest takeaways from the decision announced Thursday:

— Google promised to license hundreds of important mobile device patents to rivals that make gadgets such as smartphones, tablets and gaming devices, on “fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms,” the FTC said. Google got the patents as part of its $ 12.4 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility last year. The patents cover wireless connectivity and other Internet technologies.

— Upon receiving a request to do so, the online search leader pledged to stop using snippets of content from other websites, such as the reviews site Yelp Inc., in its search results. It had already scaled back this practice before the FTC settlement after a complaint from Yelp that triggered the FTC probe. Under the agreement, specialty websites such as those on shopping and travel can request that Google stop including such snippets in the search results, while still providing links to those websites.

— Google pledged to adjust its online advertising system so marketing campaigns can be more easily managed on rival networks. Some FTC officials had worried that Google’s existing service terms with advertisers make that difficult.

— The FTC’s unanimous conclusion that Google does not practice unfair “search bias” to promote its own properties against competitors is a major victory for the online search leader. It means it won’t have to change its search formula, considered to be the company’s crown jewel.

— Not everyone was happy with the results. FairSearch, a group whose members include rival Microsoft Corp., said the FTC’s “inaction on the core question of search bias will only embolden Google to act more aggressively to misuse its monopoly power to harm other innovators.”

— Next up, European regulators are expected to wrap up a similar investigation of Google’s business practices in the coming weeks.

Wireless News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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Inside Jennifer Lopez's Harper's Bazaar Photo Shoot

Sun kissed and stunning, Jennifer Lopez graces the cover of the latest issue of Harper's Bazaar.

ET was behind the scenes with the Puerto Rican bombshell as she was photographed sexily soaking up some rays in Turkey for the spread, on stands January 8.

Related: J.Lo Dishes on Her Infamous Grammy Gown 13 Years Later

In the magazine, Lopez showcases her killer bod in designer duds like Giuseppe Zanotti, Tom Ford, Jimmy Choo and Balmain amid the picturesque backdrop of Istanbul.

Watch the video for an inside look at the gorgeous photo shoot, plus get ET's inside scoop into J.Lo's plans for the Golden Globes. Hint: we've confirmed a certain handsome someone will walk the red carpet with the 43-year-old actress and singer!

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Off-duty cop shot in Bronx during apparent car dealership robbery

An off-duty police officer was shot in the leg tonight while chasing a suspect in the Bronx , police sources said.

The officer was running after the perp on Boston Road in Bronxwood, around 6:32 p.m., when the gunman hid behind a parked car, according to a witness.

As the officer ran by, the assailant popped up and shot the cop, the witness added.

The shooter then fled through a used car lot.

The NYPD officer was rushed to Jacobi Hospital and is reported in stable condition, sources added.

The suspect remains at large.

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The return of the cranes: Miami-Dade construction projects on the horizon in 2013

The cranes are coming back to Miami.

The battered construction industry is going higher in the new year after showing strong signs of life in 2012. Will Miami feel more like Manhattan in a few years? It just might.

So far, there has been more talk than action, fewer shovels in the ground than grand announcements. Even so, construction is underway on a dozen new condominiums in Miami-Dade County — something that seemed beyond the realm of possibility not so long ago.

Commercial building is picking up, too, particularly in Miami’s hot new urban core.

The construction sector, which posted 62 consecutive months of job losses in Miami-Dade as of November 2012, is expected to finally begin adding jobs in 2013.

By far the centerpiece project to date is Brickell CityCentre, a $1.05 billion shopping and mixed-use project that broke ground in June 2012 and will span three blocks just west of Brickell Avenue to the south of the Miami River.

The 5-million-square-foot mega-project by developer Swire Properties will include a department store, luxury shops, restaurants, a hotel, office towers and condominiums. It is expected to be connected with bridges and covered walkways and to cement downtown Miami’s emerging image as a trendy place to work, live and play.

In Brickell alone, three new condominium projects already are under construction: Jorge Perez’s Related Group is building Millecento, a 42-story tower with 382 units, and MyBrickell, a smaller project with 28 stories and 192 units shoehorned onto a 0.4-acre site. Newgard Development Group is building BrickellHouse, a 46-story, 374-unit project.

More building, much more, is coming.

“We’re going to see a lot of cranes popping up in the first and second quarter, and a year from now, we’re going to see cranes all over the skyline,” said Tom Murphy Jr., chairman and CEO of Coastal Construction, a large Miami builder that is involved in various projects, from hotels to condominiums. “I believe we as a community — South Florida, especially Miami — will build more in the next 10 years than we did in the last 15.”

Among a long roster of projects, Coastal was tapped by developer DACRA for a major renovation project in the Design District, which in 2012 marked the arrival of luxury fashion retailers such as Cartier, Hermes, Louis Vuitton, Celine, Christian Dior and Prada, adding a new dimension to an area already known for home furnishings and restaurants.

DACRA president and CEO Craig Robins has a broader plan to bring in 40 to 50 luxury brands to the Design District by 2014. The area will have a pedestrian promenade, rooftop gardens and public plazas, in keeping with Miami’s emerging urban scene.

The focus on commercial development in Miami’s urban core, is all about providing more services to cater to the new residents who want everything within walking distance.

Spanish developer Espacio USA will break ground in 2013 on the first phase of a $412 million mixed-use project at 1400 Biscayne Boulevard. Starting with one 103,000-square foot office tower, the project will eventually include retail shops and residential units.

“It’s becoming much more of a New York lifestyle, and we’ll continue to see that,” said Ron Shuffield, president of Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell Realtors in Coral Gables.

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