Then when police arrived, he pulled the trigger
Numbskull death wish.
Posted on 07/27/2005 7:54:20 PM PDT by blogblogginaway
MIAMI -- Suspended Miami Commissioner Art Teele fatally shot himself in the head in the lobby of the Miami Herald building late Wednesday afternoon.
Teele survived the shooting, and was transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center in extremely critical condition.
Teele, 59, had one gunshot wound to the head and before he was taken from the lobby, he had lost a great deal of blood, witnesses said.
According to witnesses, just after 6 p.m., Teele walked into the lobby, spoke calmly with a security guard and shook his hand. Then Teele took a pistol out of a bookbag and held it to his head.
The Herald's Web site says that Teele told the security guard to give a message to Herald columnist Jim DeFede. Teele said that he wanted DeFede to tell his wife that he loved her.
Then when police arrived, he pulled the trigger.
Employees of the newspaper said they heard one shot and the Herald Building was immediately evacuated.
Miami rescue workers said that Teele was conscious while being transported to the hospital, and when asked to blink his eyes, he did so.
About two hours later, at 7:50 p.m., Teele was declared dead. His wife Stephanie was at his side when he died.
The former commissioner faced a series of troubles over the past few years, including federal charges for money laundering and mail and wire fraud.
In the most recent charges, Teele was accused of helping a minority company win more than $20 million worth of electrical contracts at Miami International Airport, when the work ended up actually being done by a much larger, non-minority company.
If he had been convicted on the federal charges, Teele could have faced up to 20 years in prison.
Teele was convicted in March of threatening a Miami-Dade police officer. He was also awaiting trial on other fraud charges in state court.
Local 10 learned that Teele was going to be arrested this week on other state charges.
In the introduction to a cover story that came out in the Miami New Times Wednesday, reporter Francisco Alvarado wrote:
"Art Teele is a man of very big appetites, and because of them he is now in very big trouble ... the once-powerful politician is possessed of a seemingly insatiable craving for all things illicit -- adulterous sex, illegal drugs, bribery and extortion."
He was a bad shot.
May God have mercy on his soul.
WOW! What a story for the Herald.
At least Teele had the good grace not to take anyone else with him.
ping
Who loved who's wife ??
I hesitate to speak ill words about the dead, but it sounds like this guys was a real criminal and about to do some serious jail time.
He emulated Admeeral Booooorda...
Man, That's SAD!
The total absence of any identifying party label suggests that he was a dem. Correct?
Does his wife get insurance?
Of course not.
She's going to have to sue the maker of pistol.
Then when police arrived, he pulled the trigger
Numbskull death wish.
"He was a bad shot."
And I'll bet he left a real mess for someone else to clean.
If you're cowardly enough to do it, do it right.
BUMP. My exact sentiments.
If he was a Dem, whcih I guess he was he would have been scott free and this was all for nothing. Didn't anyone tell him the rules for Democrats? To bad.
Well, "he was a bad shot" would be a proper epitaph for him.
"Well, "he was a bad shot" would be a proper epitaph for him."
LOL. I wonder if that was used in one of the 'Boot Hill' graveyards out west. (I know many of you don't think this is a laughing matter, but I have no respect for suicides, May G-D forgive me.)
Can't be a Democrat,Shot to the head wouldn't do any harm!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.