Personal injury attorneys

Published on: March 17, 2026

Travelers in Miami Can Snooze in Nap Rooms. What to Know.

Anyone who has set foot in an airport has seen the lengths that weary travelers will go to get some good shuteye.

Somnolent passengers spread out across chairs, drape jackets over their heads and even stretch out on the floor in desperate attempts to sleep while they wait in bustling airport terminals. For those visiting the Miami airport, this struggle will be a thing of the past, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.

At least 15 rooms with beds were opened earlier this month in the north terminal, near Gate D15 near the Admirals Club, the newspaper reported. These rooms, operated by Wait n’ Rest, will be available to passengers 24/7.

Published on: February 23, 2026

Pastor Accused of Sexually Abusing Minor at Miami Church. How Leesfield & Partners has Represented Victims and Survivors for 50 Years.

By Leesfield & Partners

A pastor at a church in Northwest Miami-Dade County is facing charges after police say he sexually abused a 15-year-old member of the congregation.

Elco Vallier, 50, of Loxahatchee, Florida, was charged with lewd and lascivious molestation and lewd and lascivious conduct with a minor.

At around 8:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 9, the minor told police that Vallier sexually assaulted her on several occasions at the church, according to a Feb. 18 press release from the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office. The girl’s mother told deputies that she found “inappropriate text messages” on her daughter’s phone that she alleges are from Vallier.

Published on: October 28, 2025

Everything You Should Know About Florida Gun Laws Following Netflix’s ‘The Perfect Neighbor’ Documentary.

By Leesfield & Partners

The story at the heart of Netflix’s new documentary, “The Perfect Neighbor,” is one that has taken the internet by storm.

The film, which is comprised of the bodycam footage of responding officers in Marion County, Florida, shows the real-time incidents that lead up to the death of 35-year-old Ajike “A.J.” Owens.

Since its premiere on the streaming platform on Oct. 17, the film ranked as the top movie being watched on the app and hit 16.7 million views in its first three days. Users on TikTok and other short-form video platforms have made hundreds of viral videos with thousands of commenters weighing in on the devastating shooting.

Published on: September 4, 2025

Four People Rescued from Water After Boat Capsized Over Labor Day Weekend in Miami, officials say.

By Leesfield & Partners

At least four people were pulled from the water Sunday afternoon after their boat capsized near Haulover Inlet in Miami, according to reporting from local media.

All four were found sitting on the overturned hull of their 25-foot boat around 4 p.m. The boat was found nearly seven miles short of Haulover Inlet.

No Injuries were reported in this incident though Miami-Dade Fire Rescue teams have taken this as the opportunity to remind boaters to check the weather conditions before setting out on the water, according to reporting from The Miami Herald. Additionally, boaters should ensure they have a VHF radio on board that is turned to channel 16 — the quickest way to radio for help if in distress on the water.

Published on: July 7, 2025

Five People Aboard Boat Need Rescue off Key Biscayne. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

At least five people were rescued from a boat that caught fire Sunday morning off Key Biscayne, U.S. Coast Guard Officials said via social media.

The incident happened at 10 a.m. about eight miles off Key Biscayne. A passing Good Samaritan rescued the five people who were on board after the boat’s operator used a radio to report the fire. All five people involved were brought to shore.

No injuries were reported in this incident.

Published on: July 7, 2025

Minor Drowns in Backyard Pool of Miami-Dade County Home. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

A family in Miami-Dade’s El Portal neighborhood is living every parent’s worst nightmare after their 4-year-old was found floating in a backyard pool Friday morning, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.

Emergency responders were called out around 3:40 a.m. to the home near the 100 block of Northwest 90^th Street. The girl was transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital where she died.

The person who reported the incident saw the child in the pool — which allegedly had no safety fence around it — but was unable to help her, according to reporting from CBS News Miami.

Published on: May 29, 2025

A Boat Carrying 15 People over Memorial Day Weekend Exploded in Fort Lauderdale. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

At least 11 people were injured when a boat exploded on Memorial Day with 15 people on board, according to reporting from local media.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission told reporters Tuesday that the vessel was a 39-foot Sea Ray. The incident happened in the Intracoastal Waterway around 5:45p.m. near the New River Triangle sandbar. Among the injured were two children, including a 5-year-old.

Many of the injured had burns and were taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s burn unit in Miami.

Published on: March 13, 2025

Elementary School Substitute Sicks Mob of Children on Classmate in Florida, Now She Faces Criminal Charges.

By Leesfield & Partners

A substitute teacher is accused of asking multiple students in her elementary school’s classroom to hit another child, then allowing the beating to take place.

Geanene Che’rrie White, 57, was charged March 1 with one count of child abuse and four counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. White’s child abuse charge is a third-degree felony that, if convicted, could result in a five-year prison sentence and/or a $5,000 fine. Contributing to the delinquency of a minor is a first-degree misdemeanor that can carry a penalty of up to one year in jail, a year of probation and/or a $1,000 fine.

The incident happened while White was subbing for a class at YMCA Tiger Academy, an elementary school in Jacksonville, Florida, on Feb. 12. As she was asking the class to separate into small groups to complete their work, one student did not cooperate.

Published on: March 13, 2025

Medical Examiner Concludes Detroit Children Found Dead in Frigid Van Died of Carbon Monoxide.

By Leesfield & Partners

A Detroit medical examiner concluded that two unhoused children found dead in their family’s van died from carbon monoxide and not the cold, as authorities initially believed.

The official cause of death for the children, 9-year-old Darnell Currie Jr. and 2-year-old A’millah Currie, was certified Wednesday. On Feb. 10, the children were found unresponsive in the family van by their mother after the vehicle stopped running. The children, their mother, their grandmother, two siblings and their mother’s sibling were allegedly living in the van at the time, according to reporting from The Detroit Free Press.

The five children in the van ranged in age from 2 to 13 years old.

Published on: February 26, 2025

Miami Jury: Founder of Haitian Orphanage Guilty of Sexually Abusing Minors. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

The three-week-long trial in the case of an American orphanage founder accused of sexually abusing multiple boys in Haiti ended Thursday with a guilty verdict.

Michael Geilenfeld, 73, of Colorado, was found guilty on six counts of engaging in illicit sexual contact with minors in a foreign place and one count of traveling from Miami to Haiti for that purpose Thursday in Miami federal court. He faces up to 30 years in prison on each of the charges, according to reporting from the Miami Herald.

Geilenfeld was previously offered a plea deal to shorten his sentence but rejected it.