Attorney Mitchell J Burnstein Pegged as Lead Con Man in Florida Land Grab Racketeering Scandal

July 24, 2010 - PRLog -- Attorney Mitchell J. Burnstein has quite the reputation in the Broward County Florida Courthouse for being a manipulator of the legal system, with attorneys like Suzanne M. Driscoll of the Shutts and Bowen Law Firm saying he has “the judges in his back pocket” and numerous law firms declining to be involved with him on cases reportedly because of his deceptive and dirty tactics. Now, with the further examination of the Pompano Beach Community Redevelopment Agency land grab fraud scandal, disrepute may be the least of his worries. Add the retirement of his mother, the Broward County Court Judge Miette K. Burnstein, now a mediator / arbitrator for hire with Mediar Inc. as is Mitch’s father Myron H. Burnstein, and the once cajoling golden boy of Florida's powerful legal family may just have to fend for himself.

Mitchell J. Burnstein is a private attorney of the Weiss, Serota, Helfman, Pastoriza, Cole & Boniske Florida firm retained to represent the so-called Pompano Beach Community Redevelopment Agency in its land grab cases with the City Attorney Gordon B. Linn. The decade-long land grab scheme involves the Community Redevelopment Agency’s seizures of private properties from citizens, churches, organizations and businesses without any legal right to do so with the aims of flipping properties over to big developers. Mitchell J. Burnstein was named counsel on a majority of these grabs, and now eyes are on him as to his knowledge of the illegal status of the CRA and his and his firm’s involvement in its subsequent unconstitutional and illegal takings of private property.

The Supreme Court of Florida recently convened the 19th Statewide Grand Jury on Public Corruption, and thanks to FBI stings, many involved in fraud, bribery, and land grab schemes have started to be arrested. A hand-appointed member of the Advisory Board to the Pompano Beach CRA, Vincente Thrower was arrested for bribery and unlawful compensation for misusing his position and making deals with developers and money lenders. Now the clock may be ticking for the rest of the players, and nepotism and Florida’s good ole boy network may not be enough to save everyone. Add to this the irony of Mitchell J. Burnstein's history of being a Lead Prosecutor in the State Felony Trial Division and his father's past position as Assistant Attorney General and you have the makings for another Godfather film.

The case that first shed light on the Community Redevelopment Agency’s fraud was the Pompano Beach Community Redevelopment Agency v. Derriek Phillips case whereby the CRA was found to have been created illegally and have no authority to even exist, and certainly no authority of eminent domain to seize Phillips’ property. Mitchell J. Burnstein was the attorney for the CRA in that case along with City Attorney Gordon B. Linn, and even though he had first hand knowledge of this ruling, and the ruling was again upheld in the District Court of Appeal, this gave him no pause in continuing to seize lands from private citizens and businesses on behalf of the CRA, and he is still doing it.

An examination of these land grabs reveals an extensive litany of questionable if not wholly illegal tactics to ultimately block the public from ever defending against the seizures that apparently should have ever been allowed to occur in the first place. One such tactic has been the use of The Urban Group private property acquisition firm to stage the illegal takings for the CRA. Once the taking is underway, Mitchell J. Burnstein completely divorces from The Urban Group and any arrangements The Urban Group has made with property owners, going so far as to deny the existence of The Urban Group in court proceedings, saying he’s never heard of them.

A well-known tactic of Burnstein as reported by Florida’s large law firms and victims alike is that he will facilitate false and fraudulent offers to property owners in bad faith, that he will not let an owner accept, only to have the offer on record to impair the property owner’s ability to obtain counsel to fight the illegal taking, as attorneys’ fees are calculated on a contingency basis above the first offer.

Another reported scheme is to use real estate appraisal “mistakes” and a lack of real estate appraisals when appraisals are legally required, in an effort to set up the position that the property owner owes the Community Redevelopment Agency money even though the CRA has taken the owner’s property. Mitchell Burnstein has gone back on his “good faith” deposit many times in court proceedings, saying he overpaid so that the property owner will face the possibility of a judgment against them at trial. Intimidation, bait and switch, lies, diversions, delays and blockades are reported to be among the many tricks to keep property owners reeling and unable to defend themselves in the land grab scandal.

Compounding the issue is that while at least one land grab case is still open, most of the cases were adjudicated under the fraud, and the properties taken, destroyed, and some built over. With no going back, class action seems to be hot on the minds of many, and could result in billions of dollars of claims. Perhaps the old adage of “crime does not pay” will prove true as the land stolen from Floridians for pennies on the dollar may now become very costly, in more ways than one.

At the very least Mitchell J. Burnstein’s role as attorney and Weiss Serota Helfman’s government contract may well be in jeopardy, and further investigation and delineation of the land grab crimes may lead to more arrests. One thing is certain however, the City of Pompano Beach’s history of corruption has been uncovered and victims are demanding long overdue justice.

For more information on the Pompano Beach CRA illegal land grabs visit
http://www.wojspubs.com

For more information on the 19th Statewide Grand Jury on Public Corruption visit
http://myfloridalegal.com/19thstatewidegrandjury

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