Two stories out of the Miami Herald

Oddly enough both are connected.

First is the story about former Miami commissioner Arthur Teele. Out of office and under indictment for corruption, Mr. Teele commited suicide in the lobby of the Herald building.

Former Miami Commissioner Arthur E. Teele Jr. -- politically humiliated and facing two indictments with more to come -- walked into the lobby of The Herald building Wednesday evening and shot himself in the head. He died less than two hours later at Jackson Memorial Hospital.

Wearing a dark blue suit, a light-blue shirt and a crimson tie, Teele walked one block from the Plaza Venetia to The Herald at 5:56 p.m. carrying a green canvas bag. He shook the security guard's hand and asked him to relay a message to Herald columnist Jim DeFede.

Felix Nazco, 35, the security guard, said Teele told him: ``Tell my wife that I love her.''
Teele then pulled a Sig Sauer pistol from the bag, put the gun to his head and watched the street through the lobby's glass doors. As police arrived, he pulled the trigger, security guard Eduardo Pavon said. Teele fell on his back. The pistol clattered across the terrazzo floor.

Miami fire-rescue workers arrived seven minutes after a security guard called 911. A Miami fire-rescue spokesman said Teele had two bullet holes in the back of his head, and Miami police told The Herald he was declared dead at 7:50 p.m. at the hospital's Ryder Trauma Center. He was 59 years old.

During a 15-year political career, Teele became one of Miami-Dade's most influential politicians, serving on both the Miami City Commission and the County Commission. But his life ended in a cascade of arrests and humiliating disclosures that reached a crescendo in recent weeks.

Two weeks ago, Teele was indicted on 26 federal charges of fraud and money laundering -- his third arrest in a year. On Tuesday, a probation officer filed papers seeking to revoke his probation from an earlier conviction and send Teele to jail.

Wednesday brought the latest embarrassment: The New Times weekly published an excruciatingly detailed, 14-page spread describing Teele's alleged sordid relationships with crooked contractors, drug dealers and -- what bothered Teele the most -- a transvestite prostitute. The front-page headline: Tales of Teele: Sleaze Stories.

I'm no fan of corrupt politicians(who is?) but its horrible Mr. Teele felt the need to take his own life. My condolences to his family.

The second story, and it's connected to the first, is the firing of Miami Herald Columnist Jim Defede. The reason? He tape recorded a phone conversation he had with Mr. Teele, without the man's permission.

BY JAY WEAVER

The Herald fired columnist Jim DeFede Wednesday because he tape-recorded a phone conversation with Arthur E. Teele Jr. without his knowledge.

Teele had killed himself in The Herald's lobby earlier in the day without ever knowing that the columnist recorded their conversation.

Both Publisher Jesús Díaz Jr. and Executive Editor Tom Fiedler said they fired the popular Metro writer because it is illegal for anyone to tape a conversation with another person without that individual's consent in Florida.

DeFede told them that during his interview with Teele, he turned on a tape machine to record his conversation as the politician confided in him about his public corruption charges, financial problems and other sensitive issues, according to Díaz.

At one point, Teele told the columnist that he was not speaking on the record -- but DeFede continued to record him anyway without his knowledge, Díaz said.

Díaz said that The Herald had no choice but to dismiss DeFede because his conduct was potentially a felony crime and unethical.

''With all of our sources, we have to treat them with respect and dignity,'' Díaz said. ``I don't think we did that in this situation.''

''The public's trust is at stake as a result of Jim's actions,'' Díaz said. ``We have to make sure that the public understands that trust is the most important value that the community bestows upon us.''

As the article states, recording of phone conversations without a parties' approval is against the law. I feel the Herald's firing was justified and proper. Mr. Defede broke the law and the Herald could be liable. It's a shame Mr. Defede's career at the Herald came to his end, I've enjoyed some of his columns.