A few days ago West Boca’s longtime political godfather, Burt Aaronson, made a prominent appearance on the Florida political scene. Above you can see him pictured with Governor candidate Charlie Crist.
The picture appeared in an article by the Post on Politics about Crist naming his running mate. Annette Taddeo is a businesswoman and party insider who has never been elected to any office – though some may view the latter as a good thing.
Her LinkedIn profile has her name as Annette Taddeo-Goldstein, and lists her as: Member of the Executive Committee, Democratic National Committee.
Taddeo ran for Congress in 2008, losing 58-42 to Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, despite spending over $1.1 million dollars. While Ros-Lehtinen spent more, challengers who spend over $1M tend to do well regardless.
This photo is not the first time Aaronson has made a splash in Crist’s campaign.
Disclosure: West Boca News doesn’t like Charlie Crist. But we don’t like Rick Scott either.
Category: Politics
John Hartman: School Board Candidate
We had lunch yesterday with John Hartman at It’s All Greek on Clint Moore near 441. He is one of three candidates for Palm Beach County School Board. District 3 runs mostly north of Clint Moore and west of Military Trail. We previously interviewed candidate Dave Mech, and hope to meet with incumbent Karen Brill as well.
A teacher, Hartman sees a number of things wrong with the current school system and he demonstrated a clear understanding of it from the inside. He presents an interesting contrast to Mech, who seems motivated more by his pending lawsuit against the school district and less aware of practical concerns we’ve heard from many parents.
See Hartman’s campaign website.
Hartman is particularly focused on Common Core, corruption in the school district, and charter school abuses. He recognizes that the Somerset Academy charter school near the Canyon developments is popular and does well, but feels the current charter system fails on accountability. We’re not sure the regular public schools are much better on that, but he is persuasive.
The real race seems to be between Hartman and incumbent Karen Brill. He notes two key distinctions. First, Hartman is an educator, while Brill is a real estate agent. He feels that having a background in education makes him more qualified to serve on the school board. We aren’t sure about that but he certainly seems qualified.
Second, Hartman is opposed to Common Core. He describes Brill as leading the charge for it and points to her involvement in the “Greater Florida Consortium of School Boards” as evidence of that. We hope to ask Brill to clarify, but the evidence is compelling:
The full pdf of that document is at bottom.
We would also note a third distinction – Hartman is clearly a political outsider. You can read more about Brill on her website, but it appears she is well-connected within the establishment.
On the politics, this looks like a big climb for Hartman. While he does have a strong message, he doesn’t seem to have a clear plan for communicating that message to voters. We hope to meet with Brill next.
[gview file=”https://westbocanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/GFCSBGoals.pdf”]
Town Center Nightie Arrest – Questions
The Sun-Sentinel has an interesting story about an arrest in one of the parking garages in Town Center. The salacious details are that the woman is supposedly wearing lingerie and sleeping in her car. When confronted by police she eventually tries to drive off and they accuse her of aggravated assault.
I looked at the facts as described in the article and have some questions and thoughts. Here’s some excerpts from the article:
Officers found Suzanne Morales, 45, sleeping in the car. They knocked on the car window …. Morales woke up and locked her car doors. Officers asked her to step outside the car, but she refused ….
Police also said they could smell alcohol and suspected she might be drunk ….
They told Morales if she continued to refuse, they would knock out her window.
As a defense lawyer it looks like the police violated her rights.
First of all, it is not illegal to sleep in your car.From the facts in the article, she had every right to lock herself in the car.
Second, they smelled alcohol from outside the car? With the windows closed? I’m sorry folks, but I’m a defense lawyer and that sounds like a routine police lie.
And even if it were true, it’s not illegal to be drunk in your car when you’re parked.
Third, they threatened to knock out her window? That sounds like excessive force and there’s a federal case on it – Deville v. Marcantel.
Officers may consider a suspect’s refusal to comply with instructions during a traffic stop in assessing whether physical force is needed to effectuate the suspect’s compliance. … However, officers must assess not only the need for force, but also “the relationship between the need and the amount of force used.” …
Taking the facts in the light most favorable to plaintiffs, a jury could reasonably find that the degree of force the officers used in this case was not justifiable under the circumstances. A reasonable jury could infer from Deville’s deposition testimony that Marcantel engaged in very little, if any, negotiation with her — and find that he instead quickly resorted to breaking her driver’s side window and dragging her out of the vehicle.
Morales is actually in a better position than Deville was. Deville had been stopped for a traffic violation. Morales had done nothing wrong – and note that she is not charged with any offense for what happened before the police threatened her.
In our opinion, based on the facts we’ve read, the case should be dismissed and Boca PD needs to take a look at how they handled this incident.
We followed up with Sun-Sentinel writer Kate Jacobson on Twitter. She wrote back to us:
KJ: She was on private property & manager complained. Surprised she didn’t get a trespass charge but owner just wanted her out.
WBN: Not trespassing if she wasn’t told to leave.
KJ: According to the [probable cause report] that’s what the cops were there to do. Then she tried to run one of them over, allegedly.
But that’s not what they did. They didn’t order her to leave the property, and it’s not clear that they would even have the authority to make such an order. It’s not their property. State law says they have authority only if they have written authorization from the right entity. That’s the requirement under Florida’s trespassing statute, § 810.08(3).
Don't Be Scared of Sandalfoot
A reader moving into one of the neighborhoods near West Sandalfoot (aka the Sandalfoot Trailers or Watergate Estates) asked about the perceived crime problem. Here are some excerpts of our conversation, with reader in italics.
I really like the area from what I’ve seen but today a co-worker of mine has told me that there is a lot of crime close by in Sandalfoot. I did a search on Sandalfoot crime and I have read a few articles that you recently posted. Is it safe to move a family into the [omitted] community off of 441? I am starting to second guess my decision. Any insight would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks for asking. Sandalfoot would not discourage me from living nearby.
While there is higher crime in Sandalfoot, not much of it affects nearby communities. A lot of it is domestic violence (i.e. stays in Sandalfoot) and drug possession (again stays in Sandalfoot).
Our zip code (we also live in 33428) does have an overall higher crime rate than the rest of West Boca, but it’s still lower than at least one part of East Boca and much lower than the county average.
You might want to read our two articles about the crime rate here:
https://westbocanews.com/2014/05/12/how-bad-is-crime-in-west-boca
https://westbocanews.com/2014/05/21/9-zip-codes-crime-rates-in-boca-raton/4878
Being off 441 is convenient with a lot of restaurants and shopping nearby. My favorite plaza is right by Sandalfoot:
https://westbocanews.com/2013/12/28/northwest-sandalfoot-plaza
The elementary school is A-rated. I drive through Sandalfoot all the time. I’ve shopped at their Publix (and donated blood there), and I go to the plazas there including Sandalfoot Square. I’ve never had a bad moment there.
Thank you for the summary and the links that you sent over. I feel better about my decision to purchase. Hopefully Sandalfoot will eventually weed out all the wrong-doers over time.
One more question, is the bad area of Sandalfoot east or west of 441 or a little bit of both?
A little of both. West of 441 is a community called Watergate Estates, commonly referred to as the Sandalfoot trailer park. Also west of 441, but further south, is an apartment complex near SW 18th where we’ve seen some arrests as well.
East of 441 is a large area called Sandalfoot Cove (from Palmetto to the county line and from 441 to the Turnpike).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandalfoot_Cove,_Florida
There’s variety within Sandalfoot Cove, with senior condos and one or two nice gated communities. There are also a bunch of apartments, townhouses and other lower end housing and we’ve seen some crime in there.
Of course, we’ve seen people arrested from the expensive communities all over Boca as well.
While there are some problems in Sandalfoot, a lot of those families move there so they can get their kids into our schools. That’s a good thing. It’s why we moved here too.
Palm Beach County has less crime than Broward or Miami-Dade. From our own statistics within Palm Beach County, Boca has less crime than most of the rest of the county, and West Boca has less crime than East Boca.
West Boca Dragons Football League on Cutting Edge of Safe Football Practices
Making America’s most popular sport a better, safer game for West Boca’s youth
The issues of how safe football is and would you let your child play has made its way all the way up to the White House. Yet football remains the most popular sport in the country. Florida especially is known as a hot bed of youth football and many future NFL stars start their careers on the gridiron fields of our area. But not every youth football player is destined for the NFL. No parent wants to endanger their child unnecessarily. Is youth football a safe option?
The West Boca Dragons tackle football league has been providing the youth of West Boca a quality tackle football and cheerleading experience for over 8 years now. Part of Boca Flag Football and Cheerleading (BFFC), which has been serving the West Boca community for over 25 years.
With all of the discussion around football safety, the Dragons are determined to lead the way in terms of making youth football a better, safer game. Part of that commitment is being an active member of USA Football’s Heads-up football program. Dragons board member Alan Shimel is the league’s Player Safety Coach. He has just completed an intensive program and is once again certified as the league’s PSC, as he has been ever since USA Football launched the program.
“The NFL and USA Football have literally put millions of dollars into researching and promoting the best ways to make football better and safer. We are proud that our league has been one of the most vocal and early supporters of these efforts,” said Glenn Remler, VP and co-founder of the Dragons. “While other Boca Raton area football leagues pay lip service to supporting this important program, the Dragons have adopted the tenets of Heads up football as our own and integrated them into everything we do.”
The USA Heads up program has several areas through which they seek to make football safer:
1. Concussion awareness and prevention
2. Safe tackling techniques
3. Dehydration and heat exhaustion education – very important here in South Florida, this is the newest area of Heads up football.
4. Proper equipment fitting
5. Educating and certifying coaches, parents and players
USA Football is going to be adding to this agenda as more research is completed. But already the program is starting reap benefits. A survey commissioned by USA Football found:
Nearly 90 percent of youth players did not sustain an injury that resulted in missing a game or practice
Of the 22.4 percent of players who reported an injury, 70 percent returned to play the same day
Of the 11.9 percent of players who missed a game or practice because of injury, 60 percent returned to play within seven days.
Bruises were the most common injuries (34 percent) followed by ligament sprains (16 percent) 1.4 percent of players suffered a broken bone or fracture with 77 percent of these in the forearm, wrist or hand
More than 95 percent of players in the study did not sustain a concussion
No youth player age 7 or younger sustained a concussion at any time during the two-year study
No catastrophic head, neck or heat related injuries were reported among the more than 4000 players during the study’s two-year span
Injury rate and time loss rate goes up with age
– See more at: http://usafootball.com/blogs/heads-up-football/post/8767/our-football-story-should-i-let-our-son-play-tackle-football#sthash.5O67qYQ3.dpuf
“It’s hard to argue with these numbers,” said Dr. Salvatore Romano, President of both the Dragons and Boca Flag Football and Cheerleading. We thought that the techniques and teachings of the Heads up program would help reduce injury and the research is bearing that out. As a result we are stepping up our efforts to ensure that the West Boca Dragons are at the forefront of Heads up adoption.”
The league serves as a feeder program to the local High Schools in the area. By the younger players learning safe football techniques it will stay with them at the local High Schools who are also adopting the Heads up program.
In addition to PSC Shimel, all West Boca coaches (both head coaches and assistants) must take yearly Heads-up certification tests. There are multiple coach’s clinics and training sessions on safety held throughout the year. New this year is a parent’s safety clinic where parents will learn what they can do to make both football and cheerleading as safe as possible. The clinic which is open to all is scheduled for Monday, July 14th and 6:45 at South County Park recreation fields (across from the Water Park).
Dragon players are taught to tackle using the latest techniques to avoid injury. Any dangerous play such as leading with the crown of your helmet results in penalty and immediate suspension. However, despite these new techniques, injuries can still happen. Injuries often can occur with no contact with anyone else, but simply due to how rigorously someone is playing the sport; for example, in teenagers, a back injury called spondylolisthesis is common in footballers due to the hyperextension of the back due to intensity of a game. Luckily, spondylolisthesis treatment is accessible for affected teens, but it puts an emphasis on how injuries can occur with any sport. Regardless, techniques have been put in place in hopes to at least reduce these numbers. Head injuries require a note from a neurologist before a player can return. Upon return just like in the NFL, the league utilizes a 5 step process which a player must pass each one before progressing. All of this in accordance with the best practices dictated by the Heads-up program.
“You have to remember that most of what we know about concussion and brain injury we have learned in the last 5 years”, said Shimel. This year’s course really had some great information that every football organization should be aware of. That is why I was pretty disappointed that with almost 100 coaches at the Heads up clinic in Miami representing over 50 different South Florida football programs, I did not see any of the other Boca area leagues there. They give lip service to child safety but don’t seem to want to go the extra mile that we are here in West Boca.
Besides Heads-up football the West Boca league stands out among other area football programs in its insistence on letting children of the same age play together, rather than rigid weight limits. This trend is actually fast growing in the rest of the country as the research proves out that boys of the same age but different weights really don’t cause any more injuries. This research was originally part of a Mayo Clinic study back in the late 1990’s. Since that time similar studies have confirmed the results, including the most recent USA Football study cited above.
“I have actually heard other leagues coaches boast that their scales are accurate to within a tenth of an ounce and if a young player is 1/10th of a pound over they are not allowed to play”, said Shimel. “Here in West Boca we think that is ridiculous. The idea is to get kids to play, every kids plays in our league.”
There are some filtered weight rules where children of a certain age over a certain weight cannot run with the ball, but otherwise kids of the same age play each other. A reason often give for this is that though a boy may be a few pounds heavier making him play with older children is forcing him to compete with players who are more mature and more coordinated. Younger children don’t interact with the older boys socially as well. For all of these reasons, the Dragons keep boys of the same age and grade together.
As a non-profit, volunteer driven and supported league, it not always easy to access and utilize the latest technology and research. But the Dragons organization has been committed to three things from day one:
1. Providing the safest possible environment for football and cheerleading
2. Creating a league where every child plays, regardless of their size, physical ability or financial situation
3. Being a dependable, upstanding member of the West Boca community
The league uses top quality equipment which is inspected and certified each year by Riddell. They use high school certified game officials at their games. All coaches are also back round checked and at least one coach per team is CPR and first aid certified. In addition to being a USA Football Heads up league, the Dragons are also part of the Orange Bowl Youth Football Alliance. The only member of the Orange Bowl in the Boca Raton area.
In addition to tackle football, the league has a vibrant cheerleading program with teams competing every year in the Orange Bowl tournament’s cheerleading competition.
The league plays their games at Veterans Park on Palmetto Park Rd, just east of State Rd 7, Sandalfoot Park on Lyons and at West Boca High School and Olympic Heights High School. Their season runs from September to November, with championships and Orange Bowl tournaments after that. Pre-season conditioning camp (free and open to all) starts July 7th at South County Park and continues every Monday and Wednesday at 6pm through mid-August. You can find out more at http://www.westbocadragons.com
West Boca News thanks the West Boca Dragons and Alan Shimel for providing this article.