Civil Trials

Mega-Builder Dan Catalfumo, Broward Banker Alan Levan in Capitalist Legal Combat

Ever see that photo of the python that tried to swallow an alligator-- and the gator explodes out the python's side as it's being digested? Or watch animal combat videos on YouTube, with great predators of the planet going at it tooth and claw? That's how we feel reading about local lords of the cap ... More >>

Did Police Women of Broward County Wrongly Taser Man? Federal Lawsuit Says So. Watch Video

By now, you've surely seen Police Women of Broward County, the Cops-style TV show authorized by past Broward Sheriff Al Lamberti. The show had its share of problems when defendants claimed that they'd been unfairly arrested for pure entertainment value. The public defender's office handled 11 such c ... More >>

Casey Anthony Files for Bankruptcy

Last week, we told you about an appeals court throwing out two of Casey Anthony's remaining convictions of lying to police during the investigation into her daughter Caylee's disappearance. Well, it appears that as soon as the appeals court was done making its ruling, Casey walked over to federal c ... More >>

Slain Keiser University Dean's Family Sues Sketchy Tow Company

The widow of a Keiser University dean who was run over by his own car while trying to stop it from being hauled off is suing the tow truck company, which has been accused of being overly aggressive while towing cars in the Lauderhill neighborhood. Calls to Superior Lock and Roadside Assistance, the ... More >>

New Times Broward Palm Beach Sold; Looks a Lot Like the Old New Times Broward Palm Beach

A quarter century ago, my old, good buddy Mike Lacey came to Miami and decided to start a weekly paper. He wanted to move here, but a mugger and a prudent wife convinced him cocaine-fueled Miami wasn't the place to raise a family.Today, Lacey bowed out. Along with his partner -- and another guy I co ... More >>

Sunrise Labor Accused of Brutal Practices Against Migrant Workers: Four Horrific Allegations

The sugarcane fields of Belle Glade have long been a stopover for migrant workers who earn measly wages in exchange for weeks of backbreaking labor in oppressive conditions.A new lawsuit filed against Cape Coral-based Sunrise Labor Corp. provides a detailed portrait of physical a ... More >>

Prosecutors Accused of Hiding Crimes of Fort Lauderdale Trump Tower Developer

Try as they might, the federal courts are failing at keeping developer Felix Sater's shady criminal past a secret.Sater was a key promoter in the Fort Lauderdale beachfront Trump tower and helped rake in millions to fund the now-abandoned project. A petition from investors to the U.S. Supreme Court ... More >>

Restaurateur David Mainiero Files Counterclaim Against Ex-Partners John Rosatti and Lee Goldberg

There are new battles being fought this week in the continuing war between David Mainiero (better known as David Manero, the name under which he conducts business) and former business partners John Rosatti and Lee Goldberg. Mainiero -- who had his hand in projects like The Office in Delray Beac ... More >>

Barry "Bear" Silverman Is a Fake Navy SEAL, Says Lawyer Representing Real Navy SEAL

Assuming you, like most of our dear readers, are a lily-livered sissy who has never made it through a "Hell Night" or advanced Navy SEAL training, here are a couple of things you may not know.1. There are former Navy SEALs who teach classes on how to be like a Navy SEAL, like this guy:2. There are o ... More >>

Mavericks High Schools Hope to Profit From Education – But at What Cost?

Florida Attorney General's Office Investigates 411-PAIN

​Florida's attorney general is investigating the 1-800-411-PAIN Referral Service, looking into allegations of "deceptive and misleading advertising" that echo the complaints made in a civil lawsuit filed against the Lauderdale Lakes company last year. 411-PAIN -- whose billboards, TV commerci ... More >>

Pizza Polemic: Florida's Pizza Time Calls 'Foul' on Washington's Pizza Time

Hungry for legal action.​Well, here's a food-oriented legal proceeding that's more Big Lebowski than Law & Order. Coral Springs-based Pizza Time, Inc., claims that a Washington-based pizza chain -- that's also called "Pizza Time" -- has stolen its name, according to a lawsu ... More >>

Donald Trump Owes $200,000 After Booting Man From Golf Club for Talking Too Loudly

​Oh, the squabbles between millionaires and billionaires.A Florida Circuit Judge ruled last week that billionaire Donald Trump has to repay 77-year-old Harry Theodoracopulos $200,000 after Trump wrongly gave him the boot from the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach in 2009, according ... More >>

JetBlue Sued After Woman Claims She Was Kicked Off Plane Unfairly

hotelscheap.org​Malinda Knowles says she was about to fly out of LaGuardia Airport last year, headed for West Palm Beach, until JetBlue employees allegedly committed what the New York Post is calling a "panty air raid."Knowles, a 27-year-old financial consultant and former model, says she was wear ... More >>

Dexter Porn Parody Lawsuit Moving Along in South Florida District Court

moviesonfilm.comHm, that sure doesn't look like Michael C. Hall​If you illegally downloaded a copy of Dexxxter -- the porn parody of Showtime's serial-killer drama Dexter -- it might cost you a bit more than your dignity if Pink Lotus Entertainment has its way.Pink Lotus Entertainment, the proud p ... More >>

Son Sues Nursing Home After His Dad Gets Killed by Train

In danger?​A Hollywood man with dementia wandered away from his Wilton Manors nursing home never to return. Richard Morlock was killed by an oncoming locomotive when he sat down on a train track in September, and now his son is suing that nursing home. Keith Morlock claims that Greystone Healthca ... More >>

Hollywood Woman Files Lawsuit After BSO Nabs Her With Backpack Full of Kitchen Herbs

spirit-tomes.comWhat weed apparently looked like when the BSO caught up with Robin Brown​Typically, being caught with a backpack and car full of "herb" would land an easy arrest. But for Hollywood resident Robin Brown, her herb was the cooking variety -- 50 grams of sage.Brown, 49, was arreste ... More >>

Scott Rothstein Saga Continues: Four More Charged in $1.4 Billion Ponzi Scheme

csmonitor.comIt sucks (now) to be friends with Scott Rothstein.​Former Fort Lauderdale lawyer and Ponzi schemer extraordinaire Scott Rothstein is almost a year into rotting away in his 50-year prison sentence, and now four more of his old pals have a chance of joining him in the joint for a few ye ... More >>

In Alleged Sex Assault at Thompson Academy, Polygraph Results Are Murky

​This week's New Times cover story explores allegations of abuse and violence at the Thompson Academy juvenile detention center in Pembroke Pines. One of the most disturbing allegations, outlined in a federal class-action lawsuit, involves a 15-year-old boy who says he was twice forced to have ora ... More >>

Meet Alcee Hastings' Accuser

Winsome Packer with friends​Congressman Alcee Hastings has been hit with a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by a conservative group called Judicial Watch. Hastings​The merits of the case aren't known but the plaintiff is quite a serious person. Her name is Winsome Packer, a Republican who wa ... More >>

Hey, Taco Bell -- Yo Quiero Meat, Not Mystery!

Flickr/The Impulsive Buy Taco Bell - Meat or Mystery?​Taco Bell is the universal staple food of teenagers and stoners everywhere. While no one ever claimed that Taco Bell was good for you, it's been the go-to cheap hangover food for years, and since most people eat Taco Bell only ... More >>

Dirty Developers Sue City; Ritter on Diplomat Tab: "I Don't Remember"

Bruce and Shawn Chait paid off a who's who of Broward County public officials to get government approvals for their controversial housing development on two golf courses in Tamarac. ​The father-and-son team bought since-imprisoned Broward County Commissioner Joe Eggelletion a golf ... More >>

Cafe Martorano Claims To Have a Copycat in Rhode Island

C. Stiles​Tan and muscular Steve Martorano, owner of Cafe Martorano in Fort Lauderdale, is claiming someone stole his restaurant's idea. As The Juice reported yesterday, Martorano filed a lawsuit against Cafe Longo in Rhode Island for "unfairly copying Cafe Martorano's concept."That concept? White ... More >>

Latin American Dictators Love South Florida

Structured Settlement Industry Seeking Distance From Rothstein; Crackdown Coming for "Cash Now" Outfits?

Whatever Rothstein was selling, it wasn't structured settlements.​With all the scandal and intrigue that followed the fall of Scott Rothstein in early November, it was easy to gloss over the precise instrument he used to commit his billion-dollar-plus fraud. Even for former U.S. Attorneys, like Ke ... More >>

Epstein Attorneys Scolded for Asking Alleged Abuse Victims About Abortions, Sex Positions

Epstein​As trials approach in the civil suits against Palm Beach billionaire Jeffrey Epstein, a legal strategy is beginning to take shape. His high-priced attorneys appear intent on forcing Epstein's alleged victims to relive their most traumatic sexual experiences.Of course, a certain amount of t ... More >>

Dippolito Fraud Victims Get a Pittance for Their Trouble

flickr user: bradipoNemeth lost $20,000 in Dippolito's scam.​Every month, George Nemeth gets a check in the mail from the Florida Department of Corrections. Sometimes it's for $8, sometimes $9.12. Once, the amount spiked to $10.18.At this rate, it will be 167 years before Nemeth recovers the $20,0 ... More >>

TechSqueeze: How to Sue Celebrities on Twitter for Fun and Profit

Courtney LoveIf you haven't seen the recent headlines, rocker Courtney Love is being sued for libel for something she said about someone on Twitter. She is the first official celebrity to get sued over something she tweeted. And you thought Courtney would never be in the record books.This isn't the ... More >>

That's Foul

Hoops hero Rumeal Robinson blew a fortune on strippers, got indicted, and left his mom homeless.

For Howard K. Stern, One Legal Odyssey Ends as Another Begins

Stern and SmithThis whole arrest-on-felony-drug-charges thing came along just when Howard K. Stern's legal life had finally calmed. The attorney ex-boyfriend of Anna Nicole Smith filed a lawsuit in Fort Lauderdale's U.S. District Court in April 2007 against mega-millionaire attorney, John O'Quinn, a ... More >>

Florida Green Party Candidates Were GOP Moles, Suit Claims

Sun-Sentinel Error Temporarily Crashes United Airlines

Lambs to Slaughter

Again and again, local claims of abuse point to one priest, the Rev. Neil Doherty, and the Catholic archdiocese that protected him

Targeting Citizen Lozman

Riviera Beach officials plot a strategy of intimidation — and leave a paper trail

The Art of Piracy

On the high seas, it may be best to resist the urge to buy a masterpiece.

Puppy Love?

Only the dogs are blameless in Broward's strange war over Wizard of Claws

One Way to Skin the FCAT

More Than Wasted Time

The Senses Say

Fort Liquordale Forever

Vested Interests

War has been good for Pompano Beach's Point Blank Body Armor

King's Tarnished Crown

Don King wants to make South Florida a boxing capital. Trouble is, he's on the ropes.

Aftershock

The music industry's ongoing problems continue to affect the local dance community

Jews for Bejesus

This lawsuit is all about how you interpret the Fifth Commandment

United States of Jesus

The folks who are "reclaiming America for Christ" are pushing an agenda for a Taliban-like state where Scripture is law

The Doctor and the Rabbits

A Broward dentist saved hundreds of rabbits and became a national celebrity. Why do so many people fear him?

Peebles Power

When it comes to making deals, developer R. Donahue Peebles has no qualms about filing lawsuits -- or playing the race card

Assail on the Fun Ship

Carnival doesn't just neglect passengers who claim to be victims of sexual assault. It attempts to shut them up.

Undercurrents

You Call This a Safe-Deposit Box?

Money, jewels, and gold coins have a strange way of disappearing from Intervault. We do know a former owner is locked up.

Risky Business

What Happens When the Big Tent Folds?

Broward's ballyhooed new homeless shelter won't clear the streets of all vagrants. But the police might.