UPDATED: Broward County Medical Examiner Joshua Perper is out of his job as Broward County Medical Examiner, courtesy of Gov. Rick Scott.
In a surprise move, Scott blocked Perper's reappointment to the Florida Medical Examiners Commission, and today Perper told Local 10 he's out of the job. That presumably means the Broward County Commission is going to have to embark on a process to find his replacement for the high-profile and crucial position.
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Perper, who is best-known nationally for handling the Anna Nicole Smith autopsy, has endured some controversy during the past year. He wrongly ruled that Bernice Novack , of Fountainebleu Hotel fame, had died after accidentally falling multiple times in her home when in fact the feds determined she had been beaten to death. His son, Zvi Perper , was also recently arrested for allegedly running a pill mill in Palm Beach County.
It's funny though. Both the Sentinel and Herald aren't headlining the story on the web as "Broward Medical Examiner rejected" but as "Anna Nicole Smith Medical Examiner." It's all about web hits, people.
-- Scott also appointed defense attorney and perennial judge applier Raag Singhal to fill the seat left behind by outgoing Broward Chief Judge Victor Tobin. That means Ari Porth didn't get the seat. No word on whether Porth is reassessing the idea of running against County Commissioner Stacy Ritter.
-- Also reported: Richard Rubin, husband of former County Commissioner Diana Wasserman-Rubin, has started serving his 10-month stint in prison at the Federal Detention Center in Miami.