Thursday, December 20, 2018

Strip Club Lawyer Attends Christian Retreat, Packs Gun, Turns Out Badly

Former Mayor Connie Kreps sent around a letter around today about yesterday's Herald article regarding North Bay Village Attorney Norman C. Powell's oopsie where he forgot that he was carrying a gun and tried to bring it through airport security at MIA.  

Powell was fined an undisclosed amount but it turns out he did disclose the issue - to former Mayor Kreps according to this surprisingly well written letter to the editor of the Miami Herald.  

Dear Editor
           Your article on Village Attorney Norman Powell contains errors. First, you did not contact me, the Mayor of the Village at the time. I was in fact fully aware of the TSA citation. Attorney Powell was not arrested and taken into custody, but stopped and issued a citation. While he had a valid concealed firearm permit, in his haste to catch a plane for a Christian retreat, he forgot to put the handgun in his under-the-plane luggage. In so doing, he became one of the 3,896 authorized gun holders who were stopped for the same mishap during 2017.*  The regulation at 49 C.F.R. 1540 precluding firearms on board the passenger-area of a plane does not involve the element of knowledge of illegal activity or the intent to commit a morally wrong act. It is a strict liability prohibition that does not reflect on a person’s character.  As for disclosure, there is no relevance between a citation of this nature and the position of Village Attorney. It does not affect his law license or legal abilities. Mr. Powell has served our Village well during difficult times, saving us millions of dollars on Village projects and reinvigorating important enforcement priorities. The only ethical failure revealed by your article is the complete lack of journalistic integrity of reporters that choose to use their position to play silly political games to further the ambitions of their friends and families. Senior Reporter Miller’s spouse works for a law firm vying for two lucrative positions with our Village.
Sincerely,
Connie Leon-Kreps
Past-Mayor, North Bay Village
So you see, it's okay.  

One of Kreps's personalities was well aware of this common, common mistake.  I mean I once tried to go through airport security with an oversized toothpaste tube so I see how you could forget a Glock.  

And Norman was in such a hurry to get to his Christian retreat, where apparently you are expected to be armed,  that he totally forgot he was packing heat.   

Which makes me wonder what caused him to forget.

I must admit, I am surprised to see that this version of Kreps writes so clearly, with actual numbers and figures and verbs.  It seems that having time off the dais has improved her abilities.   With her detailed knowledge of fancy legal terms like "The regulation at 49 C.F.R. 1540 precluding firearms on board the passenger-area of a plane does not involve the element of knowledge of illegal activity..."  surprise and delight me.  This could have been written by a lawyer.  

I do wish she would explore more about the motivations of Mr. Powell in attending the unnamed "Christian Retreat."  Was he perhaps seeking guidance on his history of lobbying for strip clubs?  Because I admit my theology is a bit thin on the subject but I don't recall anything in the New Testament about promoting adult entertainment with its well documented human trafficking implications as a vocation.   Was Mother Teresa a stripper?  Were the Apostles pimps?   

But then, in classic fashion, Ms. Kreps takes it off the rails and explains that the subject is not about:
  • Powell's judgment in keeping arms in his carry on. 
  • Powell's failure to publicly disclose the issue. 
  • Her failure to share the information.
Nope, it's about how "Senior Reporter Miller’s spouse works for a law firm vying for two lucrative positions with our Village."  A question nobody asked but thank Jesus Kreps answered.  

Now that's the Connie we know and well, really would like to see less of.  

Kevin Vericker
December 20, 2018
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4 comments:

  1. Stephanie KienzleDecember 20, 2018 at 5:14 PM

    Clearly you forgot your bible lessons.

    Jesus forgave Mary Magdalene for being a prostitute. Obviously, by being a strip club lobbyist, Norman was hoping to forgive all the ladies of the night for that whole weakness of the flesh thing.

    Or something.

    By carrying a gun, Norman was merely illustrating the lesson of Isaiah 2:4 about hammering their swords into plowshares.

    Okay, so maybe that's a stretch.

    But, the real lesson is that we are such godawful sinners for being criticizing poor Norman, who only wants to make an honest living.

    Oh, wait.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kevin VerickerDecember 20, 2018 at 5:33 PM

      Well, actually Mary Magdalen got a bad rap. The Gospels are filled with Marys and the Magdalen is never actually noted as a prostitute. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/who-was-mary-magdalene-119565482/

      Still, I accept your rebuke. I am not questioning the motives of an armed sinner rushing thoughtlessly through airport security.

      Delete
  2. YAguilarDecember 20, 2018 at 11:02 PM

    Good evening to all and happy Holidays,

    I find myself compelled to comment to the letter issued by the former Mayor, Leon-Kreps (whom I have no respect for) which is clearly used to characterize Mr. Powell and portray him as a good religious Samaritan. It is clear to me as an outsider looking in that this letter was carefully dictated for the former Mayor in an effort to assist in the vindication of the City Attorney who runs the show at NBV. It seems to me that Mr. Powell (whom I do not know or care to know) knows where the bodies are buried (meaning he has the goods on everyone),forced her hand to write this letter on his behalf, or else.... The Mayor and City Commissioners have a difficult task at hand, but the longer they wait to address the issues in a scandal ridden City the worse it will get. I have been in public service for over 35 years and no I am not looking for a job at NBV, but as a lifelong resident of this County I submit to you to take immediate action and put the day to day affairs of the Village in the hands of a good qualified person, someone with integrity who will abide by your Charter and your Code of Ordinances, and you will see how quickly things will change. Your residents deserve better. You need to focus on being accountable to the taxpayers by providing the best service possible. You have so much potential along your commercial corridor, it's time to seize the moment and change the image of the City. There is a simple and inexpensive solution to all of this. Empower an accountable "Interim/Acting" City Manager, a qualified Chief of Police, a City Clerk and a City Attorney who will work together for the greater and common good of your City and prepare your Village for attrition. What happens in NBV affects all local governments because people tend to loose faith in all elected officials and public administrators in general. These scandals have a negative domino effect. All eyes are on NBV because you all have the ingredients to be an exceptional community. You have major projects that need to be addressed and yet much of the time is being devoted to all this negativity which equals to lack of productivity. Public Service is not defined by power. It is defined by people who want to improve quality of life for others and leave legacies for future generations definitely not a power struggle. Start 2019 with a big bang and send a loud and clear message to your residents and the rest of us in Miami Dade County that you will make it better and better in each passing day. Become an attractive place where good people would want to come to live and work. Become an economic engine to ease the burden off of the average taxpayers and use your tax dollars wisely and attract talent from within. Engage your residents, you will be surprised at the good things that start to happen and everything will start to fall into place. Be the change for the better and challenge yourselves. Respectfully, Yolanda Aguilar

    ReplyDelete
  3. RitchDecember 21, 2018 at 7:04 AM

    God n' Guns, baby! Or was that Guns n' Roses? I get them confused. Perhaps with our former Mayor's new-found use of legal jargon in everyday language, she, too, can go Legally Blond.

    ReplyDelete

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