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2AKeysInfoNet.com KeynoterSaturday, April 12, 2014NEWS BRIEFSIN THE COURTSLaTorre scheduledfor Friday releaseAnother delay for Zecca sentencingAfter serving more thanthree years in state prison forparalyzing a woman whiledriving drunk, a former director of Monroe County SocialServices is scheduled forrelease this coming Friday.In 2008, a jury convictedLouise LaTorre, 66, of drunkdrivingcausing bodilyharm.MonroeC o u n t yCircuitCourt JudgeLuis Garciasent him toLaTORREprisoninJune 2011, fed up with whatprosecutors called LaTorre’sbaseless appeals.In the April 15, 2006,crash, LaTorre was drivingsouth in the northbound laneof U.S. 1 at mile marker 8 at2:45 a.m. His pickup struckNadezda Bowman’s northbound sport utility vehiclehead-on, causing it to rollover and come to rest on itsside. Florida Highway PatrolCpl. Gary Dunick testified attrial that he feared Bowmanwas dead when he reachedthe scene.Two separate tests showedLaTorre’s blood alcohol levelto be .101 and .102. Drivingwith blood-alcohol levels of.08 or higher is illegal inFlorida. Cocaine also wasfound in LaTorre’s system.Bowman, like LaTorrethen a Big Coppitt Key resident, was left paralyzed andwheelchair-bound. She hassince returned to her nativeCzech Republic.LaTorre left the countyjob after his arrest.He admittedhe hired manto kill SchmittKeynoter StaffA former U.S. CoastGuard commanding officerwho admitted to trying tohire a hitman to kill a MiddleKeys Realtor has had hissentencing pushed back asecond time.Dennis Zecca, facing 10years in federal prison, isnow scheduledforsentencingbefore U.S.DistrictCourt JudgeJ o s eMartinez at1:30 p.m.ZECCAJuly 2 inCourtroom 1 at 301Simonton St., Key West.The sentencing was previously set for Mondaymorning. Before that, it wasset for March 25.Zecca, a former com-Probation forlobster suspectsFWC: 200 sea-cucumber limitThey alreadyserved timein the jailKeynoter StaffTwo men caught withdozens of illegally harvested lobster in August 2011have been placed on morethan two years of probationafterspendingthreemonths in the MonroeCounty jail, authoritiessaid Wednesday.Carlos J. Infante, 43, ofMiami and Angel Vigoa,61, of Palm Beach Countywere arrested after beingfound with 53 undersizedlobster and 49 wrung tailson the water.They were aboard a boatseen running without lightsat night, according to thearrest report filed by Lt.Ryan Smith of the FloridaFish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.The men were notcharged with robbing lobster traps but officersnoted the defendants werenot licensed trappers anddid not have any dive orbully-netting gear aboardthe boat to catch lobster.Infante and VigoapleadedguiltyinNovember 2013, a fewdays before a scheduledtrial. A third defendant hassince died, the FWC noted.Infante and Vigoareportedly completed their90-day sentences. InFebruary they were sentenced to more than twoyears of probation andordered to pay 5,308 each.PREDICTED TEMPERATURESCops: Texas Womanforsook kids for beerLOW75767777Forecast: Expect partlycloudy skies with a chanceof showers.For the extended forecast visitKeysInfoNet.com/weatherBEACH ADVISORIESThe Monroe CountyHealth Department testsKeys beaches every twoweeks for the presence ofenteric bacteria. The currently are no beaches witghealth advisories againstswimming.CONTACT USUpper Keys91655 Overseas HighwayTavernier, FL 33070Newsroom . . . .(305) 852-3216Advertising . . .(305) 852-3216Fax . . . . . . . . . . . .(305) 853-1040Fax . . . . . . . . . . . .(305) 852-0199Marathon3015 Overseas Highway(P.O. Box 500158)Marathon, FL 33050-0158Newsroom(305) 743-5551Advertising . . .(305) 743-5551Fax . . . . . . . . . . .(305) 743-6397Fax . . . . . . . . . . .(305) 743-9586E-mailkeynoter@keynoter.comMissing your paper?We no longer offer same-dayredelivery for missing or wetpapers. Customers canrequest a credit or next-dayredelivery by calling743-5551. After hours, calltoll-free (800) 843-4372.FLORIDA KEYS KEYNOTER (ISSN8756-6427, USPS# 0201-620) ispublished semi-weekly by FloridaKeys Keynoter, P.O. Box 500158,Marathon, Florida 33050-0158.Subscription rates are 54.23 inthe Keys. Your Keynoter homedelivery subscription includesthe Sunday edition of TheMiami Herald. Keynoter mailsubscriptions: 64.84 in Floridaand 60.32 out-of-state. Pleasecall for all other rates, includingoverseas mail. Periodicals PostagePaid at Marathon, Florida andadditional mailing offices.POSTMASTER: Address changesto FLORIDA KEYS KEYNOTER,PO BOX 500158, MARATHON, FL33050-0158.Federal authorities saythe murder plot had “associates and co-conspirators inthis offense” but have notsaid who they are. Thatinformation could come outat sentencing.Zecca was arrestedafter the informant, whowas wearing a wire for thefeds, showed Zecca a doctored photo of Schmittlying in a pool of bloodand as Zecca was going toget 5,000 of the 20,000payment for the hit.OUR FISHERIESCRIME FRONTHIGH85868686firearm to a convicted felon.After 26 years with theCoast Guard culminatingwith his Islamorada post,Zecca became part-ownerof the Marathon Marinaand Boatyard.He was arrested Dec. 21,2012, for attempting to payan employee — a federalinformant who is a convicted felon — 20,000 or akilo of cocaine to murderSchmitt. No one has eversaid what the incentivewas, and Schmitt says hehas no idea.IN THE COURTSKEYS WEATHERDAYSAT.SUN.MON.TUES.manding officer of CoastGuard Station Islamorada,admitted in federal court inNovember that he tried tohire a hitman to killMarathon Realtor BruceSchmitt (he was not injured).The hired gun turned out tobe a federal informant.In return for his guiltyplea to murder for hire, theU.S. Attorney’s Officedropped charges of conspiracy to possess with intent todistribute cocaine, attempt topossess with intent to distribute cocaine, and transfer of aShe’s chargedwith felonychild neglectKeynoter StaffA Texas woman wasarrested Wednesday in KeyWest after allegedly kicking her two children out ofher vehicle on Duval Streetin Old Town.Suzanne Simon, 38 ofSugarland, Texas, is chargedwith felony child neglect.Friday, she remained in theMonroe County DetentionCenter on Stock Island inlieu of 5,000 bond.The children, a 12-yearold boy and 8-year-old girl,were handed over thestate’s Department ofChildren and Families.Key West police responded to the Inn at Key West onNorth Roosevelt Boulevardaround 9:30 p.m. Wednesday where an apparentlyintoxicated Simon was in thelobby,accordingto a policereport.T h ekids, atthis point,had beenreunitedSIMONwith theirmother. But they toldOfficer Bradley Lariz that“Suzanne wanted morebeer and cigarettes andkicked both [children] outof the car, driving away,leaving them,” accordingto the report.The girl eventuallyfound the car and got backin, while the boy asked twowomen he met on the streetfor a ride back to the hotel.The little girl told Larizthat “Suzanne continued todrive around yelling at herand slapping her on theforehead. Suzanne kickedher out of the car two moretimes to find beer and shepicked a beer up off thesidewalk to give Suzanne.”THE PORTER-ALLEN COMPANYINSURANCEElizabeth M. Freeman David W. Freeman, C.P.C.U. 294-2542In Florida Call Toll-free 1 (800) 292-2542513 Southard Street, Key WestBusiness ownersays that wouldkill his companyBy KEVIN WADLOWSenior Staff Writerkwadlow@keynoter.comThe fate of a Lower Keyscommercial sea-cucumberbusiness could be decidedWednesday, says the FloridaSea Cucumber corporatepresident.That’s when a decision onsetting daily or trip limits forthe bottom-dwelling invertebrates goes before the FloridaFish and Wildlife ConservationCommission board, meetingnear Tallahassee.“This will pretty muchdecide which way it’s going togo,” said Eric Lee of FloridaSea Cucumber, a firm thatwants to sell processed seacucumbers to China as a foodand nutritional supplement.FWC staff says in a background report that it will holdto an earlier recommendationto create a daily trip limit of200 sea cucumbers for people holding a commercialmarine-life license with aspecies endorsement.“The proposed rule wouldallow the established traditional fishery that suppliessea cucumbers alive to theaquarium trade to continue tooperate under its currentpractices and could be carefully expanded later, if appropriate,” says a summary byFWC biologists MelissaRecks and Mason Smith.Lee said the 200 dailylimit “would put us out ofbusiness” at the firm’sRamrod Key processingfacility, now largely dormant.Florida Sea Cucumber willask the FWC to choose a secondary alternative offered byagency staff: A commercial triplimit of 500 sea cucumbers perday per vessel until the annualharvest reaches 150,000 seacucumbers. After that annualharvest is reached, the limitwould drop to 50 cucumbersper day for the rest of the year.“Given the options of beingout of business or being able tostay in business and get ourmoney back, we hope the commissioners will go with thehigher boat limit,” Lee saidThursday. “Even with that, itwould take a lot longer torecover our investment.”Currently, there is no dailylimit on sea cucumbers formarine-life license holders.The limit on marine-lifelicenses is capped at the current 160. Recreational fishcollectors have a five-cucumber daily limit.The FWC in Novembermoved toward the 200 limitbut then reconsidered andasked staff to review otheralternatives.Many other traditionalfish-management rules, likesize limits, would be difficult to apply to sea cucumbers, staff said.Virtually all of Florida’scommercial sea-cucumberharvest before 2013 was limited to the aquarium trade,which took about 16,000 animals annually. Those numberstripled in 2013 when a fewmarine-life collectors beganselling to the food industry.The Florida Marine LifeAssociation, which representsmany of the state’s professional fish collectors, stronglyendorses the 200 daily limit onsea cucumbers, said groupPresident Jeff Turner.NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARYSanctuary gets plans updateBy KEVIN WADLOWSenior Staff Writerkwadlow@keynoter.comAdvisers to the FloridaKeys National MarineSanctuary face three days ofmeetings in Marathon andIslamorada this week, mostly focusing on a new management plan.ThefullSanctuaryAdvisory Council holds adaylong session Tuesday atthe Islander Resort conference center, mile marker 82.1in Islamorada.Volunteer council members likely will be asked tovote on wording of a resolu-tion calling for more federalsupport of various lawenforcement efforts in the2,900 square miles of sanctuary waters.The panel also will get anupdate on ongoing marinezoningandregulatoryreviews.Members also could voteon a new chairman and vicechairman for a year’s term.Incumbent Chairman KenNedimyerandViceChairman Chris Bergh bothhave been nominated.The 9 a.m. meeting is opento the public, with commentsessions for non-agenda itemsat 11:45 a.m. and 2:15 p.m.The Ecosystem ProtectionWorking Group, a committeeof the sanctuary council,gathers Thursday and Fridayat the Marathon GardenClub, mile marker 50, toreview marine protectedareas in the Middle Keys.Sanctuary PreservationAreas at Sombrero Reef andCoffins Patch are expected tothe primary topic of review.Discussion at the 9 a.m. sessions may include otheraspects of “ecosystem protection recommendations forthe region, providing arationale for proposed recommendations [or] opposition to recommendations.”OUR ENVIRONMENTState: Relax lionfish rules furtherBy KEVIN WADLOWSenior Staff Writerkwadlow@keynoter.comScuba rebreathers andrelaxed spearfishing rulesshould be added to the arsenal in the war against lionfish, state fishery managerswill hear Wednesday.Staff of the Florida Fishand Wildlife ConservationCommission will urge FWCvoting board members totake more steps that allowdivers to kill lionfish, aninvasive species seen as aclear danger to native fishpopulations.“Unfortunately, it is highly unlikely that lionfish willbe completely eradicatedfrom Florida waters,” says astaff report.The state already hastaken several steps toincrease the harvest of lionfish, such as allowing diversto spear or capture lionfishwithout a saltwater fishinglicense. Anglers need a fishing license but can take asmany lionfish as they want.New rules being proposedwould allow divers who userebreathers to spear lionfish.A rebreather basically recycles a diver’s oxygen.Florida law bans the useof rebreathers — which donot emit bubbles, making iteasier to approach fish — forall spearfishing. An exception should be made for lionfish, FWC staff says.The agency cites KeyLargo lionfish derbies asexamples of how allowingthe spearing of lionfish inwaters normally closed tospearfishing proved to be“excellent opportunities tosafely facilitate lionfishremoval.”The FWC meets Wednesday and Thursday in Havana,outside of Tallahassee.Dead man’s family suesIsland Vision Careis now acceptingNEW patients.Dr. John Sheldon'soptometry practice servicesall ages, from kids to seniors.Monday - Friday 9AM to 5PMSaturday by appointment6400 Overseas Hwy.MM 50.5 (next to Herbie’s)743-2020From Lawsuit, 1Acausing him to inhale sand.”They are suing the cityand officers Gabriel Garrido,Gustavo Medina, KathyannWanciak, Gary Lee Lovette,Matthew Johnson, FranciscoZamora, Thaddeus Calvert,Derek Wallis, NicholasGalbo, Janeth Calvert, PabloRodriguez and Todd Stevensfor unspecified damages.Friday, City AttorneyShawn Smith said “to myknowledge, [Mayor CraigCates] has not yet beenserved,” as is customary whenthe city is a named defendant.In the past, local policehave been represented bylawyers affiliated with theDadeCountyPoliceBenevo

Apr 12, 2014 · THE PORTER-ALLEN COMPANY INSURANCE Elizabeth M. Freeman David W. Freeman, C.P.C.U. 294-2542 In Florida Call Toll-free 1 (800) 292-2542 513 Southard Street, Key West causing him to inhale sand.” They are suing the city and officers Gabriel Garrido, Gustavo Medina, Kathyann Wanciak, Gary Lee Lovette, Matthew Johnson, Francisco Zamora, Thaddeus .