Cuban Lawmaker accused of racial slur

Schools chief Rudy Crew said a state legislator called him racial epithets, and four public officials said they heard the lawmaker use such language.

TALLAHASSEE - State Rep. Ralph Arza, a top education leader in the Legislature, has repeatedly used racial epithets in English and Spanish to describe Miami-Dade's African-American schools superintendent, according to the schools chief himself and four public officials from the Miami-Dade area.

''They were very disparaging remarks made in a very, very ugly ethnic tone'' for more than a year, Superintendent Rudy Crew said Wednesday. Four other sources, both elected and appointed officials, some of whom are Republicans like Arza, told The Miami Herald they had heard the lawmaker use the language when talking about Crew.

Crew, who did not hear the remarks but relied on what he called ''a number'' of reports, and the four officials said Arza has repeatedly used the word ''nigger'' in English to refer to the schools chief. In Spanish, for which there is no direct translation, they said Arza called Crew a negro de mierda, using a word for excrement.

The four officials said they heard Arza's comments individually at different times over the past year, the most recent a few weeks ago in Tallahassee.
Crew said he is considering filing a complaint against Arza with the House Rules Committee, which governs lawmakers' conduct.

Arza, of Hialeah, denied using any disparaging language to describe Crew. He said he had ''no idea'' who would have said he made those statements, but added that he had heard ''rumors'' that Crew and others claimed he used the language.

''I'm shocked by it. I'm shocked. I have not spoken publicly against him. I have supported him publicly. He has a lot of good ideas,'' Arza said.
''In Spanish, the word negro is black. But it's not disparaging. I never said anything disparaging,'' Arza said.

Arza, chairman of the House's Pre K-12 Committee, and Crew say they're both dedicated to schools. And both agree on one thing: Neither feels the need to speak with each other about it. ''It's a rumor. It's false. There's nothing more to say,'' Arza said.

Said Crew: ''I really don't think that conversation would have been productive.'' And when he first heard of the alleged slur a year ago? ''I did not want to be confrontational about that,'' Crew said. "I thought the work itself was the greater part of valor and that it would fall by the wayside.''

Two of the sources who said they heard Arza use the ''N-word'' believed Arza was not really bigoted, but that he likes to ``talk tough and intimidate.'' Crew said he knew the job in Miami-Dade was tough. But he was surprised by Arza. ''I'm basically a street kid. But I know, there are some rules you never break,'' Crew said. "You don't ever cross that line, not in our schools, not in our government, not from our elected officials.'' (exerpt of story by MARC CAPUTO)

Court Croney Controls Judge

Another complaint against Juan F. D'Arce Jr., judicial assistant to Miami-Dade County Judge Ivan Hernandez. Criminal defense attorney Philip Reizenstein says D'Arce refused Wednesday to schedule a court matter for a client.

Reizenstein says there's a story behind that story: D'Arce, he says, displayed ''inappropriate'' behavior by showing up at his house Feb. 26 -- uninvited on a Sunday -- demanding to speak to him.

Reizenstein's wife and law partner, Jacqueline Woodward, talked to D'Arce but did not let him in. Reizenstein says D'Arce was upset that he hadn't returned two phone calls. Reizenstein, furious about the surprise visit, called D'Arce at the courthouse the next day and chewed him out.

D'Arce says Reizenstein threatened him, saying: ''Look, mother fucker, if you ever come to my house, I'm going to put a bullet in your head and drag you out in a body bag.'' That, D'Arce says, is why he didn't calendar Reizenstein's motion. "I'm fearful of my life.''

Reizenstein, 43, denies threatening him. ''I chose my words carefully.'' He says he warned D'Arce that if he "came to my house again I would take it as a threat and I would defend my family.''

Reizenstein says D'Arce has no right to refuse to calendar a case. ``I don't know what makes this judicial assistant think he can interfere with the administration of justice. I don't care if he doesn't like me. This guy is a self-appointed king.''

D'Arce, 34, is under investigation for allegedly running a consulting business on court time, and using bullying tactics to solicit clients. Prosecutors have seized D'Arce's courthouse computer.

D'Arce says he went to Reizenstein's home to talk about who is authoring an anonymous blog on courthouse goings-on. Says D'Arce: ''I kept on hearing rumors that people thought I was writing that stupid blog.'' He says some people told him they suspect Reizenstein is the blogger. ``I just wanted to ask him if he knew who the blogger was.''

D'Arce says Hernandez's bailiff, Josh Estevez, heard Reizenstein's alleged threat via speakerphone. ''I told Juan to file a police report,'' Estevez says. D'Arce did not: "I don't want to ruin his legal career.''
(excerpt from Miami Herald; by JOAN FLEISCHMAN)

Corrupt Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, Joe Arriola, Johnny Winton?

Miami Herald Editorial Opinion:
DIAZ, ARRIOLA, WINTON PARTNERSHIP A CONFLICT

Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, City Manager Joe Arriola and City Commissioner Johnny Winton saw nothing wrong in forming a business partnership that conflicts with their duties as city officials.

But there is plenty wrong with the deal, starting with Mr. Arriola's failure to disclose his involvement in the partnership, apparently in violation of city law. If Mr. Arriola is found to be in violation of the law -- and in view of his handling of the fire-rescue fee settlement -- it will be time for the mayor to ask him to step aside.

With the real-estate partnership and the lack of disclosure, Messrs. Diaz, Arriola and Winton put personal enrichment above their public duties. We're not alone in saying so.

Here's what the International City/County Management Association says about such conflicts in its Code of Ethics: 'Members should not invest or hold any investment, directly or indirectly, in any financial business, commercial, or other private transaction that creates a conflict with their official duties. . . This guideline recognizes that members' official actions and decisions can be influenced if there is a conflict with personal investments. Purchases and sales that might be interpreted as speculation for quick profit ought to be avoided.''

A quick profit is exactly what Messrs. Diaz, Arriola and Winton will realize if they sell the 1.3-acre property in Coconut Grove for anything close to their asking price of $5.7 million. They paid $3.1 million for the property last May.

Since the purchase, Mr. Diaz and Mr. Winton have made decisions as public officials that prove the wisdom of ICMA's warnings and demonstrate why there is a conflict. Mr. Diaz has refused to heed calls that Mr. Arriola be fired for incompetently managing the fire-rescue fee settlement.

In that debacle, Mr. Arriola steered the city into a $7 million deal with seven plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit, which, as a result, denied compensation to thousands of other city residents with similar claims. Mr. Arriola testified that he did not know the settlement benefited only seven plaintiffs -- but he should have known.

Mr. Winton introduced a ''pocket item'' resolution to the commission in December that gave Mr. Diaz a $53,000 raise in pay, pushing his salary to $150,000 per year. As a ''pocket item'' the resolution never appeared on the meeting agenda and no notice was given to elicit public discussion. Mr. Winton later apologized.