DOW PUD FALSEHOODS: SAPD CONFIRMS NO POLICE REPORTS OF VANDALISM At DOW MUSEUM OF HISTORIC HOMES -- WERE PUBLISHED TIRE-SLASHING ALLEGATIONS ON JULY 4TH FALSEHOODS BY SPECULATOR DAVID BARTON CORNEAL?

UPDATE: A June 21, 2015 Police report was located, stating that a tire was slashed at the William Dean Howells House, but that the man making the report believed that the slasher was another painting contractor whom CORNEAL recently fired.


DAVID BARTON CORNEAL MADE ALLEGATIONS OF TIRE-SLASHING: NO POLICE REPORTS EVER FILED

Earlier this afternoon, I had a constructive, frank and cordial conversation with the St. Augustine Record's Interim Editor, Mr. Craig Richardson, and sent this confirmatory e-mail.

LIBEL RETRACTION BY ST. AUGUSTINE RECORD URGENTLY REQUIRED: My Open Records Request No. 2015-224: Alleged automobile tire slashing, vandalism, trespass or other alleged crimes at former Dow Museum of Historic Homes (Bridge, St. George and Cordova Streets)

Dear Mr. Richardson:
Thank you for taking the time to address my concerns earlier this afternoon. To summarize:
1. Mr. Korfhage and the Record reported false allegations of tire-slashing on July 4, 2015 -- allegations that were never reported to SAPD. What kind of reporting is that?
2. Please remedy t he Record's group libel against an entire neighborhood, concerned about turning the Dow Museum of Historic Homes into a hotel in HP-1?
3. May I suggest a page one retraction and fair coverage from this day forward? This was libel against people who are not public figures under New York Times v. Sullivan.
4. Also, when reporting what happens in local government meetings, is it the Record's new policy not to report the names of people who score points?
5. Does this policy now apply to sports stories, too?
6. Will there be mere references to a "slew" of players scoring points in sports stories, as in former sports reporter Stuart's Korfhage's story on the July 6, 2015 St. Augustine Beach City Commission meeting referring to "a slew" of angry concerns by "the public," without naming or quoting anyone?
7. Is it the Record's new policy never to offend any potential advertiser or any current government official and to slant reporting against concerned citizen-activists?
8. Is that why Record readers were treated to a page one headline and story on Independence Day:
A. Holding up concerned HP-1 neighborhood leaders to obloquy and ridicule (as if they were vandals and visigoths, slashing tires), based upon the vague, unverified, double-hearsay statements of dodgy State College, Pennsylvania speculator DAVID BARTON CORNEAL?
B. Prominently reporting CORNEAL's imputations and incantations about putative tire-slashing, which were never reported to SAPD, and never happened? (Don't insurance companies require police reports in order to pay vandalism claims? If a tire or tires were slashed, why weren't the events reported by CORNEAL to SAPD?) CORNEAL has a history of dodgy dealings and false statements that we discussed this afternoon and which I have reported.
9. The Record has fired all experienced reporters, possibly an overt act of age discrimination and bad management.
10. The Record has no reporter with the words "environment," "environmental" or "historic preservation" in their beat title, but it has one reporter, Mr. Korfhage whose beat title is "development." Please name any other small newspaper that omits covering meetings while fawning over "developers," whom Florida law does not even require be licensed.
11. Based on his performance to date, Mr. Korfhage appears to show inadvertent bias toward developers and advertisers, more PR man than reporter.
12. This is the same reporter who crudely and rudely referred to our reform Mayor, Nancy Shaver, as an "upstart" in his news story on her Primary Election triumph in August 2014. Stuart Korfhage, "Boles, Shaver, will face off in November for office of St. Augustine Mayor, " August 27, 2014 St. Augustine Record, referring in lede to "upstart Nancy Shaver." "Upstart?" What kind of reporting is that?
13. From this day forward, kindly start covering the news "without fear or favor."
14. Local residents (the O'Connell family) were dissatisfied with the Record's coverup of a September 2, 2010 fatal shooting with a deputy's service weapon: the family was obliged to enlist The New York Times to cover the Michelle O'Connell shooting case because the St. Augustine Record would not report on Sheriff David Shoar. The Record's maladroit response (by the new then-editor Kathy Nelson) was to:
A. Say that three-time New York Times Pulitzer Prize winner Walt Bogdanich "did not make any friends" at the Sheriff's Department,
B. Suggest that the Times "parachuted in" to St. Augustine,
C. Ask Mr. Bogdanich if he had any "regrets" about reporting the news here, and
D. Print a story with a headline stating Mr. Bogdanich had "no regrets."
What kind of reporting is that?
15. The whole world is watching.
16. You will find documented police reports of sign-stealing concerning HP-1 DOW PUD at SAPD -- I suggest Mr. Korfhage report that as news.
17. As to the page one retraction, please state words to the effect that: "The allegation of tire-slashing was false. It never happened. It was reported due to reporting and editorial errors and inadvertent bias. The Record regrets the errors and inadvertent bias, which should never occur again. The Record apologizes."
Thank you.
Cordially,
Ed Slavin
904-377-4998
www.cleanupcityofstaugustine.blogspot.com

-----Original Message-----
Sent: Wed, Jul 8, 2015 9:20 am
Subject: RE: Request No. 2015-224: Alleged automobile tire slashing, vandalism, trespass or other alleged crimes at former Dow Museum of Historic Homes (Bridge, St. George and Cordova Streets)

Mr. Slavin,

The Police Department researched your requests and could not locate any report of vandalism at or near 42 Bridge St. (Dow Museum of Historic Homes) since the beginning of 2015. We did locate other police calls in the area and they are attached.

Cmdr. Perry

From: easlavin@aol.com [mailto:easlavin@aol.com]
Sent: Saturday, July 04, 2015 2:45 PM
Subject: Request No. 2015-224: Alleged automobile tire slashing, vandalism, trespass or other alleged crimes at former Dow Museum of Historic Homes (Bridge, St. George and Cordova Streets)

Request No. 2015-224: Alleged automobile tire slashing, vandalism, trespass or other alleged crimes at former Dow Museum of Historic Homes (Bridge, St. George and Cordova Streets)

Please send any police reports, incident reports, affidavits, criminal complaints, 911 tape WAV files, transcripts, detective reports or any other records concerning veracity of allegations by DAVID BARTON CORNEAL in article on page one of July 4, 2015 St. Augustine Record (claim that there was several weeks ago tire-slashing of worker automobiles, with potentially libelous implication it was neighbors opposed to Dow Museum of Historic Homes Planned Unit Development).
Thank you!