FOP: Mayor Can't Control Miami Beach's 'Nightlife Chaos'
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MIAMI BEACH (CBSMiami) -- The Miami Beach Fraternal Order of Police is seeking a vote of no confidence in Mayor Philip Levine.
Of the 264 ballots that were cast, only 15 were in support of the mayor.
"It's an overwhelming mandate from our membership that they don't have the confidence in the leadership of the mayor leading the city, leading the workforce," said FOP 1st VP Kevin Millan.
The FOP cited a lack of control in Miami Beach's "nightlife chaos" as a major issue of contention, among others.
"After many attempts to establish dialogue with Levine have failed, the board feels that this vote is the FOP's last resort to express concern over the Mayor's lack of leadership, communication, and support for officers, in addition to making poor policy decisions," the organization said in a media release.
Chief complaints include refusing to meet with FOP leadership, staffing issues to address the rise in crime, an unavailability on Memorial Day weekend and ignoring residents and business concerns "in favor of his own political ambitions."
Millan said members met on Wednesday for the first time since Memorial Day Weekend and things came to a head.
"After such a high-impact weekend, such as Memorial Day with the Air and Sea Show and, you know, the burden of public safety that was placed upon us, and that's just where everything happened and how it went down," he explained.
"The only council meeting Mayor Levine has missed in his nearly four years in office was due to the death of his father," a spokesman for Levine told CBS4's Oralia Ortega. "This is nothing more than an eleventh hour political stunt and residents see through it."
This weekend at Miami Beach's Fontainebleau Hotel, the mayor, a possible 2018 gubernatorial candidate, hosted the U.S. Conference of Mayors, a gathering of more than 250 mayors in an assembly for progress.
His spokesman added: "Under Mayor Levine's leadership, 17 new officers have been added to the police force. Further, the latest labor agreement with the police union was passed unanimously by the Commission and supported by Mayor Levine."
The FOP hopes the vote prompts the mayor to meet with them and hear their thoughts and ideas.
"We would like to sit down with him," said Millan. "We've tried to sit down with him for nearly four years now and we haven't had that opportunity yet."
