Man on the lam prompts Miami Beach mayor to want own judges to handle crime
MIAMI - A Miami Beach commissioner is upset because he says a man who pointed a gun at him and was given house arrest is now a fugitive from justice.
Now, the mayor of Miami Beach wants his city to elect its own judges to handle crime. This comes as police search for Christoper Pitre who escaped house arrest Tuesday.
Miami Beach Police arrested Pitre for an alleged crime spree that involved pulling a gun on a city commissioner four months ago.
"To various legislators in Tallahassee, to the governor, this is time that in Miami Beach we had our own Miami Beach elected judges," Mayor Stephen Meiner said during a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
He and others blame county courts for allowing violent offenders to leave jail and hurt new victims.
"There is something very wrong," said Jo Manning, a resident. "Let's leave the forgiveness to Jesus, okay. Let's put these people where they belong."
In April, Magazine opened his car door and found Pitre inside, police said. Pitre pointed a gun at the commissioner, according to investigators.
"I always replay that situation in my head and it breaks my heart," Magazine said.
Pitre's past includes crimes in Texas, Alabama and 10 open felonies in Miami-Dade County, including burglaries and assault in Miami Beach, police said.
"What you're looking at is an engine of crime, a person that when he walks the streets free he's victimizing folks," Miami Beach Police Chief Wayne Jones said.
State attorneys did not want Pitre released from jail until his trial. However, a judge let him leave with a court-ordered ankle monitor.
"Due to Christopher Pitre's 10 open felony cases filed by the State Attorney's Office, our prosecutor adamantly objected to the Court regarding him being released into our community," the Miami-Dade County State Attorney's Office said in a statement. "Despite our objections, the court granted the motion for release. It is our point of view that the extensive list of charges and prior criminal history, the defendant merited remaining in custody."
Tuesday, Pitre removed the tracker and left a treatment center in Homestead. Now, police are trying to find him again.
"It's a constant battle," Mayor Meiner said.
The mayor said he will push state leaders to allow Miami Beach voters to elected their own judges. He pointed at recent cases of violence involving released offenders. A man beat Andrea Dos Passos to death as she slept outside the Miami Ballet in April. Her attacker was on probation for other crimes.
"Mister Mayor I appreciate the effort you want to make in giving us our own judges in Miami Beach and it's a strong idea but who is going to elect them," State Representative Fabian Basabe of District 106, which includes Miami Beach, asked during the press conference. "Does that further push the problem to the next city?"
For Magazine, it is simple. He wants Pitre caught and someone held accountable in his case and others like it.
