Norman's Got A Side Hustle

Remember back when registered strip club lobbyist, Norman C. Powell, took the job as North Bay Village Attorney and demanded a record breaking $204,000 per year, plus a full year's totally illegal severance payment not to sue the Village if ever he is fired?  

When our Commission was shamed into questioning this shockingly generous contract for a completely inexperienced municipal lawyer, Norman got serious, narrowed his eyes and looked the commissioners up and down, leaned forward and said "I'm all in."  And he is.  Of course he's "All In" with El Portal, a number of side jobs, and now this one has come to light.  

Norman C. Powell - Not just a strip club fixer, defender of the mayor, prosecutor of sitting commissioners, incompetent counsel, but get this - a friggin' judge.  

Yep, that's right.  Turns out Norman's making singles add up by sitting as a magistrate in Miami-Dade Traffic courts hearing traffic cases including cases from North Bay Village where he has been the chief legal officer since the November coup.  This is to a normal person a shocking conflict of interest.  The lawyer for your prosecutor is also the judge?  That's more of a Cuba thing, isn't it?  

Well, Norman did not see it that way and he didn't bother to report it.  The Commission on Ethics was asked for an opinion and protector and friend of the Mayor, one Michael Murawski, CoE Advocate and Candidate to replace Let 'Em Go Joe, Miami's Second Greatest Enabler of Municipal Corruption, was forced to conclude "Gee, Norm, it just don't look right so let's get you moved over to another jurisdiction where you might not meet as many cops who report to you."   

Here's the opinion Michael Murawski issued.  Commission on Ethics Finding 

Here's the list of all the tickets Norman heard in the time between his taking the job as North Bay Village Attorney and June 7 when the opinion came out.  He sat on a total of 35 cases from North Bay Village, 1 from El Portal, and 39 preconference pleas.   If yours was one of them, I'm just saying, you got a good case if you want to fight it.  

In the meantime, Judge Norman C. Powell ruled that only Ana Watson does not require a village permit for work on her unit.  

Mayoral friend, Ana Watson, who is a subject of interest along with Mary Kramer and Mayor Crazy Eyes Kreps in the extortion of Doug Hornsby, and who is facing four criminal counts of forgery from her co-op, hit a coding snag.  She and several of her neighbors at the Bayswater had to fix their air conditioners.  

In spite of the fact that at least on paper, code reports to the police who reports to the village manager who reports to the commission, Norman C. Powell put on his Judge Judy drag outfit from last Halloween and ruled that Ana Watson was uniquely exempt from the coding requirement and no this has nothing to do with Ms. Watson's refusal to provide evidence to the State Attorney's office on the Hornsby matter.   Nothing at all.  

In the meantime, Norman's hustling it at North Bay Village, El Portal, Miami-Dade Traffic courts and keeping his fingers in the side development deals.  

I was about to say "You gotta admire the work ethic" but no, no you don't.  It's not a clean hustle.  

In the meantime, the mayor is continuing to build her case against Marlen Martell.  I don't know what specific pissed her honor off but she is fighting this hard and nasty.  

Kevin Vericker

June 26, 2018