The Cooler

It's pretty much storms and Obama in the mainstream media this morning. Here's a couple other stories I found noteworthy...

A- Herald: The Hurricanes kicked some major butt in Dolphin stadium last night.

But the ''first'' that mattered most to coach Randy Shannon was UM's 52-7 victory against Charleston Southern -- its first of 2008.

''This is a balanced team,'' Shannon said. ``[Thursday night] was no different. A field is a field. The fans were into the game, and it still feels like home.''

B- Herald: Woof, woof.

A Miami-Dade School Board budget workshop erupted into a shouting match Thursday as Miami-Dade Superintendent Rudy Crew yelled at a board member to not treat him``like a dog.''

C- Herald: Man who allegedly murdered federal agent will not face death penalty.

If the man accused of killing a federal agent earlier this month is found guilty, he won't face the death penalty, nor will he spend the rest of his life in prison.

Thanks to the actions of a Broward grand jury Thursday, the most time James Wonder would serve in prison if convicted is about 15 years.

That's because the grand jury downgraded the charges against Wonder from murder to manslaughter, which may suggest jurors think the shooting was indeed a road rage incident -- with both men at fault.

[...]

The grand jury's decision fit the charges for most road rage incidents that end in death, said Mel Black, a veteran criminal defense attorney in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.

''The grand jury saw their way through the natural emotions and worked in a rational and balanced way. They ended with the conclusion that his actions were reckless -- he didn't intend a death, but it was a consequence,'' said Black, who is not involved in the case. ``The concepts of road rage and first-degree murder don't match up. This wasn't premeditation.''

D- Herald: Hot dog tragedy.

Coral Springs police are investigating why a narcotics canine was left in an unmarked cruiser, with its engine off, during the hottest part of a late-August day -- leading to the dog's death.

Hieke, an 8-year-old German wirehaired golden retriever mix, apparently succumbed to the heat about 2:45 p.m. Wednesday afternoon.

The dog's handler, an undercover narcotics officer whose name was not released by police, had left the dog for two hours. Protocol is to leave the car running while a canine is inside, but the 20-year veteran of the force turned off the engine.

E- Sun-Sentinel: Adventures on SoFla roadways.

The BMW driver, whose name was not released, told Florida Highway Patrol troopers that shortly before 1 p.m., he was traveling along Okeechobee Boulevard in West Palm Beach when a white Mercedes-Benz pulled alongside him. When the BMW driver asked the other driver why he was looking at him, the driver brandished a handgun, he told troopers.

It was not clear when the shots were fired into the windshield.

Both cars sped south on the turnpike, the woman said. When the Mercedes exited at Lake Worth Road, the BMW, which was following, struck a guardrail and went out of control, the driver told troopers. The car drove off the road and ended up between two trees in a swale.

The suspect's car got back on the turnpike and continued north, troopers said.

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