50 State Security Guard Steals Camera

MetroRail needs to fire their security company, 50 State Security, before they get the county sued.  Over on CarlosMiller.com, Carlos miller reports that guards provided by 50 State Security seized his camera, and then assaulted him and tried to take his iPhone when he started filming with that.


The bad news for MetroRail and 50 State Security; it's all on tape.

Two things to be aware of:

• First, the public is allowed to take video and photographs on MetroRail property.  Miller was not doing anything wrong, according to the law, or to MetroRail itself. 50 State Security has been informed of this repeatedly. 
• Second, MetroRail security guards do not have the right to seize property, period.  Not for any reason.  No one is allowed to do that; not ushers in a movie theatre, not waiters in a restaurant, not even the police.  Seizure of personal property, under any circumstance, requires a court order.

Make no mistake; Miller's property was stolen.  It was ripped out of his hands. The 50 State Security guards committed a felony.  And even if Miller decides not press charges, MetroRail better fire these bozos pronto.  Our government has no business employing criminals.

No one is safe while 50 State Security is on the job.

The MetroRail Photo Protest.

South Florida photographers held a "shoot-in" photo protest at the Douglas Road MetroRail station on Sunday.  The protest was arranged by photographer Carlos Miller, who has been actively lobbying for photographer's rights.

The protest was in response to several incidents of 50 State Security employees hassling photographers, and in one case they went so far as to seize a camera.  They gave it back, eventually, but the mood was ugly.  In each case, photographers had ascertained that the kind of shooting they were doing was allowed without a permit.  In each case, the security guards demonstrated a dismal awareness of the law.  Sunday's event was designed to change that.

The day went just as it ought.  We bought our tickets, we passed through the gates, we waited for our train, we rode the train, and we took loads of photos.

Carlos Miller asking if the guards have any problems with him entering the station with his camera.  They did not.

Carlos Miller as unfailingly polite and respectful, a professional in every way.  So were the guards.  I'm pretty sure they were briefed ahead of time: after all, the protest wasn't a huge secret.  So the guards worked very hard at not harassing us.  And there were extra guards on, so when you've got six guards not harassing you, that's a lot of harassment not happening.

Two of the guards at the Douglas Road MetroRail Station.

This is the only time I caught a guard expressing anything remotely negative.  And it's a crop from a zoom.  His partner seems OK with it.

Participants ride the escalator to the Platform

Photography is a right protected under the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States.  Just as we are allowed to voice disagreement with our elected and appointed officials, we are allowed to record their actions, and the results of those actions.  The law permits photography in public places, and permits you to take pictures of anything you can see from those public places.

A man videotaping his MetroRail trip from the train.

Sunday, all the guards we met were aware of our rights.  Will they remember them tomorrow?  Next week?

Only time will tell.

But for now, I have a batch of photos to sift through... feel free to peruse the set on my Flickr photostream.

Why hasn't 50 State been fired yet?

For the umpteenth time, 50 State Security has erroneously decided that it must stop photography in and around Miami MetroRail stations, even though the county has very clearly written policy that permits it.  Worse, the idiots in uniform assaulted photographer and civil rights activist Carlos Miller, according the Miami New Times.

Make no mistake; in the United States, photography is permitted in public places, and that specifically includes train stations.  There are no laws that restrict one's right to take photos in or around train stations.  Not one law.  The county has confirmed this on numerous occasions. You can even access the law online, and it's very clear that photography is permitted.

Worse, 50 State Security knows this.  They should have gotten the message in the wake of the incident where they illegally seized private property.

It is long past time for Miami Metrorail to fire these cretins and replace them with a reputable company that adheres to the actual law.  The citizens of Miami-Dade county deserve better than the clowns employed by 50 State Security.

I Stand Against Braman; It's the PRINCIPLE.

Norman Braman once again stands against actual progress that would drastically improve the quality of life for residents of Miami and Miami-Dade County.

"Principle is the most important factor in our lives.''
Norman Braman, Miami Herald, January 26, 2008

And he starts wielding his principles by LYING. He claimed that the moneys being used to fund the "mega-project" would be using property tax money intended to help the poor. But the TRUTH is that not one dollar is coming from property tax proceeds.

Recent interviews don't mention his statements about the use of property tax; I guess he realized that such a whopping lie wouldn't slip by. Hey, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and say that maybe he didn't initially know how the project was being funded.

But he knows now.

The Orange Bowl Principle

His next 'principled' argument? $50 million of the money comes from bonds that were originally earmarked to renovate the Orange Bowl to keep the University of Miami's Hurricanes playing there. But the Hurricanes chose not to renew their lease: the renovation wasn't going to bring the Orange Bowl up to the specifications they now require. So what's Braman's principle here? Renovate the Orange Bowl anyway? Waste the $50 million on a project that accomplishes nothing?

You'd think that some citizen's group would be monitoring that money, and you'd be right. A Citizens Advisory committee was created to oversee the distribution of these funds. So what do they say?

''Fifty million dollars is going to be used for basically the same purpose. I didn't see that as a bad thing. In my mind, I saw this as the voters getting what they approved.'' Robin Reiter, chairperson, Citizens Advisory Committee

With the loss of the Orange Bowl's client, renovating it would have been, in Reiter's words, ''throwing away your money.''

It's ironic, because Braman is responsible for the decay of the Orange Bowl. His campaign to prevent the use of public funds in 1982 to renovate the stadium, already in decay. His "principles" moved the Dolphins to the far end of the county, and left the OB a decaying ruin.

Thanks, Norman.

The Community Redevelopment Agency Principle

Braman is also complaining that Omni CRA money is being used to pay down the construction debt of the Arsht Center for the Performing Arts. The Arsht Center IS in the center of that district; and similar projects such as the Broward Center and Palm Beach's Kravis Center absolutely reinvigorated their neighborhoods.

How shocking! The county is actually using community redevelopment money to redevelop the community!

Of course, that frees up hotel bed tax dollars that had been going into the Arsht Center to be used to fund parts of the mega-project such as the Marlins Stadium. And it's the use of public money for the stadium that's his real beef.

The Quality of Life Principle

And let's not forget the last time Braman screwed the people of Miami-Dade County; the half cent sales tax that would have:

• funded the Expressway system and removed tolls, drastically improving traffic flow at rush hour
• Funded expansion of MetroRail, bringing the train line farther south and farther west, and extended operational hours, allowing people to forgo driving their cars and reducing traffic.
• Funded expansion of the bus fleet, which would have resulted in more routes, increased bus frequency, and extended operational hours.
  

And what quality of life issue is Braman screwing you out of this time? The Port Tunnel, which would remove hundreds of trucks a day from downtown streets. This would ease traffic congestions and noise pollution on downtown streets. It's a scary thing, walking on sidewalks just inches from endless overloaded trucks rushing to the port to deliver their cargo.

Not all of us can afford one of your luxury cars, Norman. I'm sure that I wouldn't hear the rumble or smell the diesel ensconced in one of your expensive toys.

The "Principled" Guy

But let's not paint Braman as a villain; he does give money to charities; he's co-hosted Art Basel, and funded a breast cancer center. He was a leader in the No To Discrimination Committee. He's not evil. He's not even deranged. He's just wrong.

He sees his actions as fighting "government corruption;" and yet where was he during the Urban Redevelopment Boundary fiasco? What was he doing while housing money was being flushed down the toilet? Where does he stand on the Thief of Police, who has violated all kinds of principles during his tenure?

I'm not saying that the plan is not without flaws; no plan ever came out of Miami without flaws. Braman and I even have concurrency on many issues: I don't want to spend public money on a baseball stadium, I don't want to put museums in the park.

But I just have to question anyone who claims to be standing on "principle" and yet starts off by lying to me.

What's that about, Norman?

The Democracy Principle

Braman's official position is that he's against the project because it wasn't put before the voters. He states that we, the voters, should have had a say in how this project is put together, and how it's being paid for.

What he glossed over is that we DID have a say, and that we DO; in the case of the Orange Bowl bond issue, we voted that we, the voters, were in favor of spending money on a sports facility in Miami. As Ms. Reiter, responsible for the disbursement of that money, points out, the money is being used in a manner wholly consonant with the voters' will. And who approved the rest of the project? Our elected officials, the people we voted for to make exactly these kind of decisions.

Braman's REAL beef is that he didn't have the opportunity to spend massive amounts of money to dissuade the mayor and the commissioners. He wants to do what he did in 1982 and 1999; he wants to persuade the voters to act against their best interests by selecting which facts to present to them while suppressing the core truths of the matter.

Braman supports Art Basel, but he also made sure that you have to stop to pay tolls during rush hour, wasting millions of gallons of fuel and costing you hours a week in commute time.

Braman built a cancer treatment center, but he also ensured that you need a car to get around Miami, at the same time guaranteeing you will sit in massive traffic while you attempt to do so.

Braman fights discrimination, but he also drove first the Dolphins and then the Hurricanes to the far end of the county, and allowed a hallowed sports complex to crumble before our eyes.

Remember this, and let YOUR principles lead you, not HIS.

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The Return Trip

So I found the shuttle from the downtown bus depot to the train station

Getting out from the station is easy; the shuttle is right there. I couldn’t find the stop for the afternoon trip yesterday, so I sprang the $1.25 to take a bus that eventually showed up. I was more stubborn today, and finally someone said that a big white bus sometimes stops at the sidewalk and they think it’s the Tri Rail bus, and in short order, one did, and it was. There were no markings on it. The driver stared at me for a moment when I asked if this was the bus to the TriRail station. He slouched and nodded his head grudgingly. “Yeh. Dis it.” Unlike the morning bus, which was one of those shuttle jobs, this is one of those big lease buses, the kind you’d take a group down to Key West in for a day excursion.

There are six of us on board. Comfortable seats, and a radio. Good thing I like loud rock.

Yesterday I got hung up at work, so I took the 5:30 train. Today, I make it for the 4:30 train. But I make it because it’s late. It’s late because of a CSX train. The CSX train means that everyone waiting at Platform 1 (the ‘southbound’ side) has to run UP the very tall staircase, across the bridge, and DOWN the very tall (and steep) stair case to get to Platform 2, where the train is now going to arrive.

There’s some swearing, but we all make it.

Yesterday’s train was very full, but I was in a lead car, and it was later in the day. Today, I’m in the last car, up top, with the tables. I didn’t realize how much I missed the tables this morning.

Just before we split away from 95, I snap some pictures of the traffic piling up. I don’t miss that. The return trip is certainly faster than the trip up, although the same amount of time elapses.

The train wobbles a bit as it curves away. I realize, after this morning, that it’s actually the suspension on the train cars, and not the tracks. The new trains gave a very smooth ride over the same sections that make the old trains shake and shimmy.

We’ve reduced to crawl for some reason. We lapsed the CSX train miles back, so it’s got to be something else. We speed up again just before they call out “Golden Glades Station!”

The conductor is nagging passengers about getting off; I guess he’s trying to get back on schedule. “Welcome to the Golden Glades! Everyone disembark – these are short stops! All aboard! We are now leaving the Golden Glades.”

Really, he said it just like that.

There’s a lot more to see on The Return Trip, being daylight and all.

We’re now leaving beautiful Opa-locka, passing through the quaint recking yards and their stacks of dead automobiles. Rusting steel and rotting tires combine to create rustic heights around the stagnant drainage ditches. Charming.

Next, we pull into upper Hialeah, and its groves of cranes and personnel lifts.

Metrorail transfer; I used to pass through this station a lot, but now I’m on until the end.

The warehouse districts suddenly spruce up before we get to Hialeah Market. I don’t know why. Proximity to the airport, I suppose. We pass through the mess they’ve made of 54^th Street by Flamingo Plaza; it’s been dug up for months; it’s gotta be affecting businesses.

I’m packing it in now, we’re almost at my stop, and my battery is down to 54% (forgot to charge it at the office).

Yep. This train thing isn’t bad. Not bad a’tall.