City uses legal muscle to gag Coral Gables activist

City uses legal muscle to gag Coral Gables activist
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The city of Coral Gables wants to silence a North Gables activist who asks too many questions, so it sent him a threatening “cease and desist” letter from an attorney who used to be a county judge.

Oh, and it cost taxpayers $5,000.

Ariel Fernandez, a vocal North Gables resident who ran for office two years ago, got a letter from former Miami-Dade Judge Israel Reyes — who is outside counsel for the city an on behalf of Assistant City Manager Frank Fernandez — that wasn’t necessarily an official cease and desist letter, perse, but obviously had the same function and intent. And that is to shut him up and shut him down.

“This correspondence is intended as an intervention tool to deescalate the hostilities toward Director Fernandez, while at the same time ensuring that your absolut First Amendment Constitutional right to petition your government so as not to deprive you of any access to city officials,” the letter states.

Read related story: Don’t ask, don’t tell! Coral Gables policy is golden silence

“The city welcomes and encourages your participation in the governance of the city of Coral Gables, as it does to all its residents. However, as you are aware, the First Amendment does not protect potentially libelous statements when made with reckless disregard as to the falsity of the statements or with knowledge that said statements are false.

“It is the city’s sincerest desire that you refrain from this type of conduct in the future,” Reyes said in the letter offering to set up a meeting with the assistant city manager to discuss the issues in person.

Ariel Fernandez is adamant about getting the answers in writing. “I’ve been at this for a year and a half and some of the questios have been answered but he always says ‘Let’s sit down and talk.’ He refuses to put the rest of the answers on paper. I don’t want to talk. I want written answers.”

Answers he still has not gotten.

Because rather than answer them, City Attorney Craig Leen says City Manager Cathy Swanson-Rivenbark asked him to look into stopping the email barrage. Leen turned to Reyes, a respected attorney who has done a lot of work for the city as outside counsel. “I thought it was best to get someone independent,” Leen told Ladra, adding that the letter is not a violation of Fernandez’s first amendment rights.

“The constitution does not protect libelous speech,” Leen said, adding that “factually incorrect and damaging” remarks in emails the email, citing the words Reyes used “potentially libelous.”

Read related story: Coral Gables picks Cathy Swanson as top administrator

And therein is the keyword, ladies and gents: Potentially. Which means not really. Which means that this little $5,175 exercise in futility was, in fact, something other than a legitimate legal maneuver. Like maybe a third-world strongman tactic to gag and intimidate an active and vocal citizen who has the electeds’ ears.

What’s more, it could be interpreted as witness tampering, seeing as how Ariel Fernandez was there at City Hall and took a picture of Gables Police Maj. Theresa Molina taking a picture of a resident’s cellphone while she was texting (more on the progress of that investigation later). It would be easy for a logical mind to connect these threats with that case and hear the words “shake down” whispered in your head.

“I feel intimidated,” Ariel Fernandez said. “They want me to stop raising the issue.”

The issue is the shortage in police officers, which at last count was at 22 or 23 or something — the highest number of vacancies the department has ever had. Frank Fernandez, director of public safety and the defacto police chief, has hired security guards and championed closed caption television and his idea of police recruiting is putting a old-timey sign on U.S. 1 saying “Police Officers Wanted.” He was brought to Coral Gables from the city of Hollywood by Swanson-Rivenark soon after she came back to the City Beautiful as top administrator in 2014 and has been a controversial figure since the beginning. Ariel Fernandez is certainly not the only one “trash talking” him.

In fact, nothing in those emails seems that far-fetched. Not that Frank Fernandez is undermining Police Chief Ed Hudak — especially since he originally tried to make him co-chief with someone else until the city attorney stopped him because the charter won’t allow it. Not that he’s trash-talked Hudak and urged others to trash-talk him. Not that he’s spying on residents like in Castro’s Cuba — not when we still don’t know what exactly happened with that police major who took a photo of the residents phone at City Hall (more on that later).

Not even the assumption that the city managers are colluding to keep information from the public. Know why? Because it’s happened before. We’re still traumatized by the ghost of Pat Salerno, the former city manager who resigned abruptly only after he was caught lying to commissioners about safety on Ponce de Leon Boulevard. Last week, several commissioners were shocked to learn that a former city employee had stolen $85.000 from false alarm fees without anybody noticing. So maybe Ariel’s statments — the ones that aren’t just a matter of opinion — aren’t that false, after all?

Read related story: Gables city attorney: ‘There can only be one police chief’

“Everything in there can be corroborated,” Ariel told Ladra about his emails. Even the one about Frank Fernandez telling a citizen to trash-talk the chief. He said he can name that citizen “if push comes to shove” and can prove every other allgation that he has made.

Sure, Ariel Fernandez can be pesky pain in the ass. His demanding emails may seem overwhelming all at once, but here’s the rub: his first email was rather friendly, telling Frank Fernandez that he was taking advantage of his “open door” policy and invitation to ask questions. And the second one was after he got no response — three weeks later. He got increasingly upset as he got ignored in what amounts to a political runaround. Y se puso un poco fresco. Ladra would have growled a little, too.

But here’s the most  important part, he’s a resident. Ariel Fernandez is a taxpaying property owner. He is a voter. He has been the direct victim of crime in his neighborhood. He has every right and pre-requisite, if there were any, to ask questions of the city managers or any employee — and he deserves to have these very questions answered.

So do we.

Ariel Fernandez’s original 25 questions for Assistant City Manager Frank Fernandez:

  1. How many vacancies do we currently have for uniformed Police officers?
  2. Data-wise, what direct effect does each vacancy have on the number of committed crimes?
  3. How many vacancies do we have for first responders in the Fire Department?
  4. How many vacancies do we have for support personnel in the Police Department?
  5. How many vacancies do we have for support personnel in the Fire Department?
  6. To what factor or factors do you attribute these vacancies?
  7. How many recruits do we have in the Police Academy?
  8. When initiatives do you currently have in place in order to fill these vacancies?
  9. By what date do you expect for all vacancies to be filled?
  10. What steps will you take to increase interest and applicants for these vacancies?
  11. In how many crimes have your Public Safety Aides intervened?
  12. Are the Public Safety Aides properly trained to intervene in the event of a crime in progress?
  13. Are the Public Safety Aides properly equipped to intervene in the event of a crime in progress?
  14. What is your relationship with the representatives of the company providing CCTV for the City?
  15. Do you/or have you ever had a personal relationship with any City vendor who is currently under contract for services to the Police or Fire Department? If so, who and what is the relationship?
  16. The condition of the Public Safety building continues deteriorating. When we first met you told me this was your top priority. What is the status of the replacement of the Public Safety building?
  17. Why was the company that was asked to prepare the RFP for the City also allowed to submit a bid? Isn’t this a conflict of interest?
  18. We all know the immediate action taken by Chief Hudak following the incident at City Hall where Major Molina was spying on a resident. What actions have YOU taken to ensure the privacy of residents is not violated by Majors who directly answer to you and not Chief Hudak?
  19. This incident has left a very bad impression of your ability to serve in your post. What assurances do you give residents who believe you are not fit to do your job?
  20. How many private security guards are still patrolling our streets?
  21. When can we expect actual certified Police officers to replace them?
  22. How much (exactly) is this program costing the City?
  23. Where is the funding coming from?
  24. Who authorized for this funding to be used for this reason?
  25. Due to the high amount, didn’t this requ.ire Commission approval?

It is important to note that the answers that did come, came from the city attorney’s office. The ones in bold are still unanswered.

But Ladra is working on it now.

21 Responses to "City uses legal muscle to gag Coral Gables activist"

  1. Can’t we all just agree that this Ariel guy is a dick for crying out loud!

  2. Excuse me ignorance, out-of-towner here –

    But isn’t there a forum for these kind of things during their legislative session(s)?

    When they pass the city budget, don’t they call every agency into a public hearing (committees in this example) and ask them all these hard questions? It should be a concern for the Mayor if Fernandez questions aren’t being answered.

    It should especially concern the Coral Gables City Commissioners – they’re the ones who should make sure municipal agencies are doing their jobs, when the Mayor can’t do it!

  3. Funny situation regarding the employee stealing the $85,000. Maybe Finance Director Diana Gomez should be properly overseeing her department instead of meeting the city’s letter carrier in out of Gables areas to receive copies of inter-departmental mail that the city’s postal employee delivers to her for her “use”. I wonder who Gomez might be sharing this mail with?

  4. I wonder how this commission would handle Roxy Bolton. We need more citizens like her.

  5. Israel Reyes did the same thing to me, threatening me for communicating with City Officials. He did this on behalf of Frank Fernandez. There is a pattern here, and it must be stopped.

  6. Good article but let me add another reason why the Gables is so short of police officers. Long time ago the Gables was the place to apply at because of the benefits they were offering if you wanted a decent career as an officer.

    Trust me that’s no longer the case. Officers are applying to other places were the benefits have not been gutted by politicians who know nothing about safety and security. This is what you get now.

    It’s going to get worse because amoung law enforcement the talk is to stay away. It’s time to get a new Chief with fresh new ideas and will back the officers. Everyone here is focusing on the wrong issues.

    Let me add the same is happening to Hialeah Police. In the law enforcement community both of these departments are a joke. It’s going to get worse.

  7. I Feel the Same as Ariel But With MIA , I Requested Public Records Request From The Director on “How many Times Uber & Lyft pay to Enter MIA to Drop and Pick up and When Did they Started Paying ” ? Answer by Attorney * Trade Secret* ? Do We have TRADE SECRETS on PRR at MIA? Are They trying to Cover Up Their Lack of Control in this While The Others Are Transparent and The Limos even Paying more than The Taxis?
    Uber Been Entering MIA for FREE since 2014 wile the Others For-Hire Had Pay , They became legal 05/03/2016 ? Remember I am Asking The County ? Sometimes Our Public Officials Can “or” Wont Answer so It Does Not Look That BAD ?

  8. P S to previous.

    Since people are being threatened with defamation suits, I qualify my above remarks by clarifying that I am describing WHAT APPEARS TO ME to be happening. I could be wrong in my perceptions, but those are my perceptions, based upon what I know at the present time. JRH

  9. Dear Publisher DeValle and Political Cortadito Readers:

    I hope you won’t mind my mentioning the following.

    Circa 2014, my apartment in Coral Gables was burglarized by my employer in a part-time job. There was a different Police Chief, not Chief Hudak, at the time. Even though I could prove who had burglarized my apartment, the Coral Gables Police refused to investigate.

    I sympathize with those who want to spare citizens footing the bill for expensive police pensions.

    I don’t know what the answers are.

    However, I personally trust both Chief Hudak and Commissioner Lago.

    And I oppose efforts described in the article preceding this one, by the City Manager, to usurp the power of the City Commissioners, by restricting the flow of information and communication to and with them, both by City employees, and by citizens.

    I would like to see an investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement into the City Hall Major Molina incident, and I will copy this comment to the FDLE.

    Sincerely,

    Jackson Rip Holmes

  10. Ladra,

    There is a connection between Frank Fernandez and the person who oversees Purchasing. Both Fernandez and DIana Gomez worked at the City of Miami. Yes, the very same person who was the City of Miami Finance Director when the SEC founded that she in the city committed securities fraud and fined the city $1 million dollars. The same Finance Director responsible for $85,000 being stolen under her nose. The same person who set up the former Human Resource Director, Elsa Jaramillo-Velez to be fired by Swanson-Riverbank. Don’t believe me? Call Elsa. She works for the City of North Miami Beach.

    Finally, both Fernandez and Gomez are very close to the vendor who wrote the RFP for the CCTV. The person who wrote the RFP is Tony Utset. They all worked at the City of Miami

  11. Ladra. I think everyone agrees that these city tactics are wrong and repressive but everyone also agrees that Mr. Ariel Fernandez is kind of a douchebag.

    • Wait until you see the emails I sent to Frank Fernández

      Ariel’s email I just saw was fine

      I’m quite angry City spent over $5,000 for a letter from an outside counsel?

      Let me clearly state I consider the ex-judge an outstanding attorney but have trouble understanding these events

      Gonzalo Sanabria

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