Miami police confirm a man who was shot Monday night was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital in critical condition.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue and Florida Forestry crews continue to monitor two brush fires burning in west Miami-Dade County. Officials believe the fires were caused by lightning.

The fires were burning near Northwest 140th Avenue and Northwest 41st Street, west of Florida's Turnpike and east of Krome Avenue.

More than 422 acres have been burned in the first fire and 100 acres burned in the second.

No homes or businesses are being threatened at this point, but fire officials said they continue to closely watch the fires to make sure the winds don't spread them even further.

Some roads were hazy from smoke and fire officials urged drivers near the Florida turnpike to drive with caution.

Crews said they are hoping storms moving through will help them put out the fires.

Forestry officials expect to return to the scene Tuesday morning.

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In honor of Twitter's ninth birthday on Wednesday, take a look at the 30 most followed users on social networking service, as according to TwitterCounter.com.

Nacho and Roxy are waiting at the Humane Society of Broward County, along with all the other fabulous friends in this slideshow looking for a family to call their own.

A Deerfield Beach man was arrested Saturday after a woman said she found him cooking food inside her parents' house.

Michael Pardon faces charges of grand theft and burglary to an unoccupied structure.

According to a Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office probable cause affidavit, the woman told deputies she was watching her parents' house in Wellington when she "heard voices inside" the home.

"She immediately walked back to her car and called 911," the affidavit said.

GALLERY: South Florida mugshots

Deputies said a Nissan Pathfire with New York license plates was parked in the driveway. It had been reported stolen from Suffolk County, New York, in June.

The woman said she found Pardon, a woman and two children making a meal with her pots and pans, ABC affiliate WPBF reported.

When deputies arrived and made contact with Pardon, he told them that he was renting the home, the affidavit said. Pardon said the SUV in the driveway was his that he had purchased from a friend, who is a car dealer, but he couldn't provide any proof of sale, the affidavit said.

Pardon, whose last name was also spelled "Padron" in the report, also faces a grand theft charge in New York.

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A devoted swimming instructor from Fort Lauderdale is fighting for her life after she was struck by a car while riding her bicycle Monday night.

Colleen Berzok, 37, works at the United States Swim Academy in Coral Springs.

Berzok has been with the academy for three years, getting in the water five to six hours a day to teach babies and toddlers how to swim.

Berzok was struck by a car near the Sunrise Boulevard bridge near A1A.

Doctors fear she may not survive the night. Right now, her friends and family are asking for prayers.

"It's just tearing us up," said Karen King, the owner of the swim academy. "I mean, we're a family here. We work super hard. We clean this place together, we work together here and it's just like not having somebody from your family -- having somebody from your family get very badly hurt.  And we just pray for her and we want things to go well."

It's unclear whether the driver of the vehicle was cited in the crash.

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Miami-Dade firefighters extinguished a house fire that was possibly sparked by lightning Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.

The fire was reported in the area of Southwest 123rd Street and 99th Avenue.

Fire Rescue officials said no one was inside the home at the time and no injuries were reported.

The incident came as Florida Power & Light reported thousands of power outages due to stormy weather in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.

It's unclear how much damage the home sustained.

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slideshow

Those in attendance at Tuesday's County Commission meeting heard some impassioned pleas from animal activists to fund the Pets' Trust and stop killing strays at the shelter.

"Here it is at the very end," said Michael Rosenberg, of Pets' Trust, while showing the 2012 ballot with the straw poll for pets. "What did they do this time? They took the most dangerous weapon in the world -- a pen -- and they marked it."

This time -- the head of the Pets' Trust, who once lived in a cage to focus attention on animal services, led the crowd in red to demand commissioners honor that non-binding 65 percent vote to raise the tax rate to fund a no-kill shelter.

"(We need) a vote to stop the killing, a vote that the community was willing to pay," said Beth Fishman.

"We destroy our animals because we don't have the means or the space to care for them?" Kathy Moore said.

Lisa Heller said arguments that the voters didn't know what they were voting for is a failed argument.

Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez said the budget continues to hold the line on property taxes.

The mayor and an almost unanimous commission support a budget plan that spends more on services, including the animals and a no-kill goal, but with no raise in the tax rate.

"It was non-binding. In essence, it was a clear-push poll, because nobody in community is going vote against something that's humane like that," Miami-Dade commissioner Steve Bovo said. "But there was a different dialog when talk began with folks about tax increase."

The mayor said he will not raise taxes, but said taking action on what they are asking for -- moving to no-kill county -- allocated $4 million last year.

"I am not willing to raise the taxes," Gimenez said. "We're going to achieve the same things without raising taxes. "If you don't have to raise the taxes and get to the same place, why are you going to do that?"

The county has increased the Animal Services budget, is opening a new shelter and officials said euthanasia rates are dropping.

"(The) save rate is 50 percent to 88 percent," said Alex Munoz, the Animal Services director. "We hope to get to 90 percent. Hopefully we'll get there, and then hard part is sustaining it."

The stats show euthanasia rates are dropping, but the voices for animals included stats and accusations that those numbers may be cooked.

Jacquelyn Johnston, a former Pets' Trust employee, said some are "playing numbers games to make the shelter look better."

"What we need is an outside board to oversee the spending," she said.

Tri-Rail maintenance workers are responding to two crossings after the train gates got stuck in the down position.

A Tri-Rail spokeswoman said the incidents were weather-related and two crossings were affected, Hillsboro Beach Boulevard in Deerfield Beach, and Southwest 18th Street in Boca Raton.

Traffic was blocked in both east and westbound directions of Hillsboro Boulevard as workers repaired the gates.

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Broward Sheriff's Office detectives are investigating the death of a North Lauderdale man.

BSO officials said calls were made to 911 at about 10:30 p.m. Monday about a man who was showing odd behavior in the area of Kimberly Boulevard and Southwest 66th Avenue.

Witnesses told deputies the man, identified as Shawn Simpson, 40, was standing in the roadway, banging on doors and trying to get into passing vehicles.

Officials said one of the 911 callers reported hearing Simpson in an altercation and banging on doors and windows at his girlfriend's house before being seen covered in blood.

Deputies said when they arrived to 890 SW 66th Avenue they saw Simpson bloodied at a broken window trying to get inside the home, where he had been staying for less than two weeks.

BSO officials said Simpson's girlfriend was at work when her children called her from the home to tell her something was wrong with Simpson.

A detective said a deputy deployed his Taser, but it was ineffective. Homicide detectives said the Taser was not effective, but that further investigation is needed to determine if contact occurred.

Simpson was taken to Florida Medical Center, where he was later pronounced dead.

The Broward Medical Examiner's Office will determine the cause and manner of death of Simpson, who the medical examiner documented had a deep, self-inflicted wound on his inner left wrist.

No other details were immediately released.

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Miami police Officer Sabine Raymonvil, whose past in porn is under investigation, claims she was not paid for her performances in hard-core tapes and that she was led to believe she needed to do them to further her modeling career, according to her lawyer.

Attorney Adam Horowitz, who is representing Raymonvil, said she did perform on the tapes, which show her having sex with multiple men and women, prior to becoming a police officer and that she considered them private sex videos.

Among those she did scenes with was Emerson Callum, a pornographer who is now serving a life term in federal prison after being convicted of drugging and raping women.

Horowitz said Raymonvil performed on the tapes at the urging of a former manager for her modeling career as a kind of training for the "casting couch."

"She was an aspiring model and he had ties to the modeling industry and he explained to her that a lot of times you have to have sex and you need to be good at sex on what proverbially would be called the casting couch," said Horowitz. "He said, 'We need to practice and we need to critique you on your sexual performance and we need to record you, and I will send it to Ford Modeling Agency.' She went along with it. She thought it was part of pursuing her modeling career and that having sex was going to further her modeling career."

He said Raymonvil did four sex sessions on tape and that she never had ownership of the tapes and doesn't know if they were marketed by Callum or others.

Raymonvil did not reveal the work on her employment history when she applied for the police job in 2008 because she wasn't paid for it, said Horowitz.

Attorney Eric Schwartzreich, who represents police officers, said the story might stretch the bounds of credibility.

"Doing porn for free is sort of like ice fishing in Florida," he said. "It just doesn't make too much sense."

But he said that explanation could possibly save Raymonvil's job.

"If her defense is that I wasn't getting paid for this, that might be something that has meat on the bone or substance to it," said Schwartzreich. "I think it could be a good legal defense."

Horowitz said Raymonvil began a leave of absence this week from her job that may continue indefinitely while the investigation continues.

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Police are searching for a shooter who gunned down a 22-year-old man in Liberty City last week.

Ronald Turner, 22, was shot and killed outside a public housing building July 5.

Turner, known by family and friends as Ziggy, was outside of his apartment when he shot 12 times from the back according to family.

No one has been arrested and police are still searching for the shooter. 

Turner's family is hoping their son's killer will come forward and said they are hopeful that police will continue to search until the gunman is brought to justice.

"I want my son's killer to turn himself in. My son was a good son," said Lameka Walker, Turner's mother. "A lot of people are scared to talk. Now it's my son. It might be your son next."

Walker told Local 10 News that Turner, a father of one, was involved in an argument with another person before things escalated, costing Turner his life.

Turner was a volunteer for the Miami Children's Initiative (MCI), a non-profit group that works with families in Liberty City.

MCI has been working as the liaison between families in public housing and the Miami-Dade Police Department to help control crime.

MCI director, Cecilia Gutierrez said she would like for police to be more responsive in the Liberty City community.

"We need greater coordination between the police and the public housing, and everyone whose role it is to keep our children safe in Liberty City," Gutierrez said.

The Miami-Dade Police Department released the following statement: "The Miami-Dade Police Department Homicide Street Violence Task Force (HSVTF) was conceived as an effort to gather and share intelligence while strategically addressing escalating levels of violent crimes, including homicides. The primary mission of the HSVTF is to reduce violent crime by utilizing investigational and intelligence-led strategic approach in order to identify, arrest, and prosecute violent felons."

MCI said it will continue to work with Miami-Dade police to seek justice for Ronald Turner and prevent future crime in Liberty City.

"I have been working in Liberty City for four years and I have watched countless black boys in the neighborhood get shot and killed," said Gutierrez. "We need greater coordination from our police department."

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS.

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A Local 10 News viewer made a generous donation Tuesday night to a 76-year-old woman after someone stole her central air conditioning unit.

Lois Summers told Local 10 News that she lives on a fixed income and couldn't afford to buy a new one.

"I went to turn it on, and there wasn't no air," said Summers.

The 76-year-old widow said bandits burglarized her home and stole her A/C condenser.

"What can you say and what can you do?" Summers said.

To get by in the hot South Florida summer, Summers was sitting in her living room with two fans, which only blew back warm air because her windows were sealed shut for security.

"Yeah, I'm warm, but most of the time I sit over there under the fan because I don't have the air conditioner going," said Summers.

"I was overtaken by the heat and it felt like it was 100 degrees inside," said Summers' neighbor, Alan Murphy.

"I saw she needed an air conditioner, and I had one, and I said, 'Hey, this is perfect timing, so I gave (Local 10) a call,'" viewer Bill McGuire said.

"I'm happy, and I'm blessed, so it brings a little tear, you know?" Summers said.

Summers said she doesn't hold hard feelings toward the thieves.

"I was going to try to save up longer and longer to get it fixed, but the more I try to save, the more it goes," said Summers. "So I've been just making do the best I can."

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Friends and family gathered to honor the life of a mentally handicapped woman who was targeted, beaten and murdered last week.

Francis Harris would have turned 54 years old Wednesday.

A large group gathered outside the home where she was found dead to pay their respects and pray for those responsible.

"When I found out what happened to her I was devastated," the victim's niece said. "It's like a knife went through my heart, because I couldn't believe that someone could do something like that to my aunt."

Relatives said Harris was kind to everyone she met and had a childlike innocence. She was well known around her neighborhood and liked to take long walks around her home.

Police arrested 16-year-old Jeremiah Williams in connection to her murder.

Detectives said Williams told them he and other young people spotted Harris walking toward the backyard of a vacant home off Southwest 102nd Avenue in Perrine.

According to the arrest affidavit obtained by Local 10 News, they followed her. She ran and tripped. The teens then allegedly kicked and dragged her, then raped her multiple times before leaving her to die.

"It's a community loss. We (are) all devastated," Harris' sister said. "We lost someone. They don't know what they took from us. They don't know."

Relatives said they're praying for Williams, who's mother turned him in after learning about the crime.

Miami-Dade police are still investigating the case and other arrests are possible.

Relatives and neighbors said they believe the brutal crime was part of a gang initiation.

Harris' viewing is set for Friday at Jay's Funeral Home off Homestead Avenue. Her burial will take place Saturday at 11 a.m.

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The nation's capital is founded, the world gets its first parking meter, Joltin' Joe sets an unbreakable record, and man heads to the moon, all on this day.

July is National Ice Cream Month. Check out some of the weirdest flavors from around the world.

Jackson Memorial Hospital was the site of a wedding Wednesday for a couple who were almost torn apart by a disease that can be fatal.

The couple were living abroad when the groom came down with meningitis. The bride brought him directly to JMH and now they're living in wedded bliss.

James Brown was Skyping to friends in Honduras who couldn't be there for the hospital wedding.

"I'm numb. This is incredible. What the hospital did for us in so many ways," Brown said. "I came here in a coma."

A sudden case of meningitis knocked the business owner off his feet and left him in a coma, until his longtime girlfriend, Eva Meiningsih, decided to have him flown to the U.S. for treatment.

"Thanks to God and our blessings and people praying for us," Meiningsih said.

Of course, Brown is now on the mend, yet still in a wheelchair, but his big wish was to marry his sweetheart right away.

"I took them to the courthouse last week and we got the marriage license, and I said, 'Why don't we do it? Let's all get married,' and we did," said rehab therapist Kelly Messett.

And so they pulled it off -- nurses and doctors turned a hospital conference room into a wedding chapel. Meiningsih walked down the aisle, cherishing the moment that almost didn't happen.

"I feel very, very happy because it's my wish come true," Meiningsih said.

At one point, the bride was serenaded with a song from the groom, a token of their love that's lasted 10 years.

Follow Terrell Forney on Twitter @TVTerrell

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A Molotov cocktail was thrown on the front porch of a home in southwest Miami-Dade County early Wednesday morning, a day after the homeowner reported multiple vehicle burglaries in his area, neighbors said.

Police said the house fire was reported about 5:30 a.m. at 11400 SW 43rd Lane and is being investigated an an arson case.

The home suffered significant damage to the front of the residence where the Molotov cocktail was thrown.

Miami-Dade police have not released the identity of a suspect in the arson case but arrested Bryan Aneiros, 23, Tuesday after the homeowner, William "Billy" Franco, 51, called 911 to report that a man had been breaking into vehicles in the area.

"There was a vehicle that was pulling out to different residences in the neighborhood and a gentleman (was) bouncing out of the vehicle and going from car to car, removing items from each vehicle and making his way down the street," Franco told Local 10 News. "I was concerned and I called the police."

Neighbors said they are grateful that Franco looks out for their community.

"He's always worried about us, our neighborhood," said neighbor, America Rodriguez.

"He's always (the) neighborhood watch dog," said Sam Parano, whose car was broken into. "He always knows what's going on in our neighborhood. Thank God for Billy."

Police said no one was inside of the home at the time of the fire.

Anyone with information about this case is asked to call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS.

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The Miami Wordcenter was a hot topic amongst city leaders Wednesday, who say taxpayers will not be footing the bill for the development.

A man accused of fatally shooting a neighbor after his dog attempted to defecate in his son's yard has been indicted on a charge of first-degree murder.

Omar Rodriguez, 66, was indicted Wednesday by a Miami-Dade County grand jury.

Miami-Dade police said Rodriguez admitted to shooting Jose Rey during a June 21 argument.

According to a police report, Rodriguez said Rey's dog tried to defecate in Rodriguez's son's lawn.

Police told Local 10 News that complaints about Rodriguez had brought officers to the neighborhood 90 times over the past five years.

Rodriguez is being held without bond.

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