The Boca Raton City Council on Tuesday will consider repealing an ordinance it passed in August that prohibited the feeding of nuisance wildlife—iguanas, rats, mice, and pigeons.
The ordinance came about from a dispute between neighbors. One neighbor stated that the other’s feeding of pigeons caused damage to his property from the pigeons’ waste. The ordinance was approved by a 3-2 vote, with Councilmembers Michelle Grau and Yvette Drucker voting against it, as well as a separate resolution that imposed a $100 fine per offense.
In voting in favor of the ordinance, councilmembers brought up the unsanitary conditions caused by animal waste, as well as the fact that pigeons are a non-native species. Feral cats were not included in the ordinance.
A new ordinance to repeal the last one will go before the council at the request of Councilmember Stacy Sipple, who voted in its favor. In a memo from the City Manager’s office, Sipple “has requested that the City Council reconsider the adoption of that ordinance and has advised that, based on information learned after its adoption, she would vote differently if the matter were presented again.”
There’s no mention of what this additional information is. During the meeting that the initial ordinance was approved, Sipple raised concerns about birdfeeders, which were not included in the ban.
An accompanying resolution would likewise remove the $100 fine imposed for offenses. If councilmembers vote as they did for the last ordinance—with the exception of Sipple—the ordinance and resolution will be repealed.
During discussions for approval of the nuisance wildlife ordinance, Drucker expressed frustration and what she perceived to be a misuse of the council’s time.
“We should not enact policy for one party or for neighborly fights,” she said at the time. “We have to be better with our governance.”
We’ll likely find out what new information Sipple was presented with at Tuesday’s city council meeting. One has to wonder why such information was not considered (or received) in the month between the ordinance’s introduction and its approval.
Lawsuit against the Carneys moves forward
A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge ruled that a lawsuit against Delray Beach Mayor Tom Carney and his brother, Peter Carney, related to a Ponzi scheme that defrauded hundreds of millions of dollars from investors, will move forward.
Among the myriad allegations in the lawsuit, Mayor Carney and his brother are accused of having “aided and abetted, substantially assisted, and profited from” a Ponzi scheme orchestrated by National Realty Investment Advisors, LLC.
In a statement to Boca magazine, Mayor Carney said, “Carney Stanton, Crystal Title, Peter Carney and Tom Carney deny the material allegations of the complaint, believe the claims are without merit, and state that the Plaintiff has omitted or disregarded certain material facts relevant to this matter. Defendants intend to vigorously contest this litigation and to assert all available defenses, claims, and rights.”
In May, the Carneys filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit. That motion was denied, meaning the judge finds the accusations plausible enough for the case to move forward.
The pro-Commissioner Juli Casale and anti-Carney newsletter The Delray Gazette highlighted the ruling in a recent newsletter. Then the pro-Carney and anti-Casale Delray Guzzette delivered a retort: “YAWN! Are we really still beating this dead horse? In every CIVIL court proceeding there is always a motion to dismiss entered and in almost every case, they are denied. Big Deal! In this complaint, the trustee is trying to get money from any source possible.”
We’ll have more details as the case moves forward.
Juli Casale running for mayor
Expect to hear much more about the lawsuit involving the Carneys as Casale ramps up her mayoral run. In a Facebook post, Casale said, “Now, more than ever, we need strong leadership to guide Delray Beach in the direction residents want it to go. You can count on me to be on your side.”
Casale’s term as city commissioner ends in March 2027. Nick Coppola, who ran against Casale and lost in 2024, will be running for her seat as she runs for mayor. City Commissioner Thomas Markert has also filed to run for re-election.
Over the past two years, Casale has butted heads with Carney on countless occasions, most notably over Carney’s issues with the Downtown Development Authority. It’s likely that there will be many more spats as we get closer to the election that will spill into our inboxes thanks to the Gazette and Guzzette.
Man accused double murder, attempted murder in Boca Raton is acquitted
De’Vante Moss, who was accused of double murder in Boca Raton in 2024, was acquitted by a jury last month.
Per a probable cause affidavit from September 2024, Moss was reported to have allegedly stolen a purse from a woman and was attempting to escape into a vehicle as the victim was punching him two bystanders also got involved in the struggle. Moss allegedly shot all three, killing the alleged robbery victim and one of the bystanders. Moss was later detained in Georgia.
As the case proceeded, Moss requested an independent inspection of the evidence, which was granted, and filed a motion to dismiss the case on the basis of self-defense, which was denied.
Last month, a jury declared Moss not guilty on two counts of first-degree murder with a firearm and one count of attempted first-degree murder with a firearm. Moss was also accused of being a felon in possession of a firearm. The case for that charge will resume with a status check on Oct. 19.
The alleged murders were captured on surveillance video and details were confirmed by witnesses. How then, was Moss found not guilty? While we can’t know what the jury discussed, court documents show that there was some confusion among jurors over whether Moss may have acted in self-defense.
“Presuming self defense does [Moss] have a legal responsibility to call 911?” read one question from the jury to the court.
Jurors also requested clarification on instruction provided by the judge, specifically details on elements of a burglary of conveyance. A burglary of conveyance is the unlawful entry or remaining in a vehicle with the intention of committing a crime. The crime, presumably, would be assaulting Moss as he was in the vehicle.
What I glean from these questions and clarifications is that the jury could not determine beyond a reasonable doubt that Moss was not acting in self-defense when he fired at the three individuals.
Bond was set at $50,000 for Moss’s charge of possessing a firearm as a felon. Bail was not posted so he remains incarcerated.
Republicans abandon Caruso
Mike Caruso, who is running for reelection as Palm Beach County Clerk and Comptroller and is accused of kidnapping and sexual abusing an underage relative, has been removed from the Republican Party’s voter guide.
Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended Caruso from his position in August when the accusations came to light. DeSantis also criticized the Palm Beach County GOP for initially including Caruso in its voter guide. By law, however, they didn’t have a choice. Every Republican candidate had to be listed. In a statement on social media, the Palm Beach County GOP said, “As soon as we were permitted to remove the nominee running for a constitutional office, we did.”
Caruso maintains his innocence and will face off against Yvette Drucker, since he didn’t drop out of the race in time for a replacement candidate to be selected.
