Son of Bicyclist Who Died in Traffic Crash Last Month Has Questions, Allegations

COPS: INVESTIGATION IS STILL
ONGOING

DRIVER MAY HAVE BEEN SPEEDING
CITY QUICKLY CHANGED SIZE OF
STOP SIGN ON 11TH STREET AT
FLAGLER

MAN’S FAMILY HAS NOW RETAINED
AN ATTORNEY

by Dennis Reeves Cooper

Back on the afternoon of
April 27, 75-year-old Richard
Lionel Clements reportedly ran
a stop sign on his bicycle and
was killed when he was struck
by a car being driven by a 32-
year-old Big Coppitt woman.
Clements was traveling south
on 11th Street. According to
the preliminary crash report
released by the police last week,
a witness said that Clements
attempted to cross Flagler
Avenue “without stopping or
looking.”

But Clements’ son, Jonathan
Clements, said that his
father may have died because
the stop sign on 11th Street may
have been hard to see and because
the driver of the car may
have been speeding.

Alyson Crean, the spokeswoman
for the City and the Key
West Police Department, told
Key West the Newspaper this
week that the investigation of
the crash is still ongoing and is
therefore still confidential. But
Jonathan Clements said that the
source of his information is the
investigating officer.

After 60 Years of Separation, Three Brothers Reunite in Key West

KWTN Team Report

EDITOR’S NOTE: Critics of
Key West the Newspaper say
we rarely publish good news.
Well, for fans of good news, this
story is about as “feel good”
as it gets.

The three Deer brothers
have spent the past week
together, on vacation here
in Key West. This wouldn’t
normally be much of a news
story— except for the fact that
they have not all been together
in 60 years, since, as babies, they
were taken from their father
by child protective services
in Ohio, split up and sent to
orphanages or foster parents,
pending adoption.

They are:

• Jim Shultz, 62, born
Terry Lee Deer in January, 1946.
He worked in the security business
and is now retired, living
in Whittier, California.

Ken Davis: Letter From Baghdad

Only Her Hair
Dresser Knows

EDITOR’S NOTE: Ken
Davis’ Letters From Baghdad
are scheduled for publication
every-other-week. They are
excerpts from his book-inprogress
“Road To Baghdad.”
Davis is the former head of the
U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency
here in the Keys and was a candidate
for sheriff in last year’s
county elections. “The Road To
Baghdad” chronicles the tales
and stories of the women and
men in Iraq, written as seen
through Davis’ eyes. the story
is based on solid truth and written
with a humorous license.
The names are changed to
protect the guilty and confuse
the innocent.

by Ken Davis

When it comes to hair
styles in Iraq, women are challenged.
Up in a tight bun or cut
short if you’re in the military;
pulled back and tied up if
you’re a civilian. Not a lot of
style. On Fridays the barber
shop turns into a beauty shop,
women only. There are no fashion
magazines for the women to
look at. No chatter and gossip.
No choosing color and getting
pedicures. Style is not in style
in Baghdad. Until . . .

After you’ve been here
awhile nothing seems odd. Issues
that would be pointed out
at home are common place and
part of the acceptance of social
change in a hostile environment.

“Your momma wears
combat boots!” A great insult
as a kid, is a reality to be proud
of if your mother is serving in
Baghdad.

A catty remark such” Isn’t
it nice how she dies her roots
dark?” would not gain you
laughs here, it will get you a
glare. They all have dark roots,
or gray roots, or, they have
gone back to their natural hair
color out of desperation and
disastrous results from color
in a box.

Police Stepping up Drug Enforcement in Bahama Village

Stepped up drug enforcement in the Bahama Village area
is sending a clear message to users and sellers alike: Keep the
drug deals out of the neighborhood, according to a press release
sent out by the Key West Police Department this week. Over the
past four weeks nearly 50 people have been arrested for drug related
crimes.

“We’re combining the TIF officers and specials ops for a
two-angle approach,” said Detective Sgt. Pablo Rodriguez, who is
spearheading the new push to stop drug sales in Bahama Village.
“By using uniformed officers in conjunction with undercover officers,
the Key West Police Department has a constant presence
in the community – a presence that helps deter drug activity.”

Free Stuff for Locals

June means Locals Month and free admission to all residents
of Monroe County at the world-famous Conch Tour Train, the
Harry S. Truman Little White House, the Key West Aquarium,
Flagler Station Oversea Railway Historium and the Key West
Shipwreck and Treasure Museum. All you have to do is show
proof of Monroe County residency with a drivers license, voters
registration, utility bill or lease. This promotion is for individuals
and families; no groups, please. More info: http://www.historictours.com.

It’s Turtle Nesting Season: Stay off the Beaches after 11pm

Key West’s beaches are
closed to the public each night
at 11 p.m, and this time of year
it’s vital that people heed the
law. It’s turtle nesting season
– that time of year when these
magnificent creatures crawl up
out of the sea to deposit their
eggs in the sand.

This year there is evidence
that females have crawled up on
the beach and returned to the
water without laying any eggs.
Turtle watchers suspect these
“false crawls” may be the result
of human interference.

Although it’s tempting to
try and witness this rare and
wonderful aspect of our ocean
environment, it’s not worth the
consequences. Nesting beaches
have diminished as development
has increased over the past
several decades. It’s crucial that
we do all we can to ensure safe
nesting beaches in Key West.

And while you’re thinking
about turtles, don’t forget
to turn out your lights. Baby
turtles are drawn to light after
they hatch from their sandy
nests. Porch lights can be fatal
to these hatchlings.

Nesting season runs from April 15 through October 31.

Sailing Lessons for Kids

From learning how to sail
to refining sailing skills, the Key
West Sailing Club’s Summer
Youth Sailing Program offers
a summer of fun and educational
activities on the water.

The program is held with the
intention to provide children 8
to 16 years old the opportunity
to learn and practice sailing in a
fun and safe environment.

Each session runs for two
weeks from Monday through
Friday starting on June 15 with
additional two-week sessions
beginning on June 29, July 13,
and July 27.

The beginner classes take
place in the morning from 9 to
12 am, while the intermediate
and advanced level classes are
offered in the afternoon from 1
to 4 pm.

Space is limited so sign
up early. Tuition is $250 for per
child for the two-week course
with discounts available for
multiple sessions or more than
one child enrolled. Scholarships
also available.

Registration will be held
tomorrow, Saturday, June 6,
from 10 am to 2 pm at the Key
West Sailing Club, 705 Palm Avenue
(located behind Spencer’s
Boat Yard at the southwest end
of the Palm Avenue bridge).

Info: Stephanie Watkins
at 305 766 7816 or visit www.
keywestsailingclub.org and
click on Youth.

Rhonda: Crying Shame

by Rhonda Linseman-Saunders

My cousin and dear friend back home, the
family’s prized child psycholigst (although I’m certain
many would rather have a priest or a nun to tout)
recently reminded me about our family’s apparent
“crying gene.” While some of the men in my extended
family are equally afflicted, they don’t talk about the
genetic condition much. The women, however, like to
joke about it and seem to get a twisted charge of our
inherent state of instability with all things the least
bit sentimental. That makes me want to cry.

When genetic predisposition brings lucky things
like good cheek bones or a proportional ears to head
size ratio, it’s great. But when it turns otherwise rational
human beings into blubbering idiots, it feels
more like a curse.

I find the affliction to be very counterproductive
and, against the advice of the family psychologist, I
work hard to convince myself and others that I do not
actually suffer such a deformity of character. I mean,
it’s not that I want to come across as cold— I’m just
not comfortable wearing my emotions on my sleeve.
As of late, though, that discomfort has been all but
worthless as a preventative measure. I think it is related
to aging, but I can’t be sure. Maybe some other
sap, more educated on the topic, will email me with
some answers.

Unlicensed Commerce

From the best of Hal O’Boyle archives, originally
published in February 2005.

by Hal O'Boyle

Falling afoul of the enforcers in Key West’s fatuous
and elaborate game of “Mother May I” put me in
mind of a simpler time when we were not so eager to
saddle ourselves with the attentions of the ethically
challenged. I pine for the good old days when only
the Mob ran protection rackets. The business model
for our self-inflicted departments of licensing and
permitting is the same. People don’t ask for permits,
licenses and inspections because they want them.
They do it for the same reason people pay protection
money to the Mob, to avoid punishment.

It got me to thinking about the relatively unfettered
economic atmosphere of my boyhood, a time
when licensing was much rarer than it is today, and
inspectors thin on the ground.

That was in the 1950s in the slowly withering
coal mining city of Scranton, Pennsylvania. The veins
of silver black anthracite were exhausted. The support
pillars deep underground had been chipped away to
thin sticks. Whole blocks of houses were sinking into
the empty mines. Continue reading here.

Mr. Kenny’s Class Visits the Garden Club

“Mr. Kenny” Knowles is
the well-known and well-loved
director of the After School
Program at the Douglas Gym
sponsored by the City of Key
West.

Students in Mr. Kenny’s
After School Class visited the
Key West Garden Club in May,
learning about tropical foliage
as well as the unique history of
the West Martello Tower.

They were able to smell
the wonderful allspice leaves
and see gigantic breadfruit
growing in trees. The kids
learned that some species of
plants here in Key West were
here when dinosaurs roamed
the earth.

They particularly enjoyed
the butterfly garden and the
amazing fragrance of the nearby
frangipani. The afternoon was
topped off by cookies and
lemonade served by Key West
Garden Club Board members
Kitty Somerville, Cherré
Marchak, Debbie Crowley and
Sue Sullivan.

The After School Program
provides a variety of activities
for up to 150 kids in Key West.
It runs daily from 2:30 until
5:30 and offers many different
activities. Registration, which is
already closed for the coming
year, is first come first serve.

The program began in
1997, and Mr. Kenny has been
its director since then. Some of
the kids he had in those early
years are in this year’s graduating
class at Key West High
School.