A Miami resident and Joe Carollo superfan is now facing a misdemeanor battery charge after she snatched documentary filmmaker and civic watchdog Billy Corben’s phone during a sunshine meeting at Miami City Hall in May.
The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office information packet, dated November 25, obtained by New Times stated that Maria “Beba” Sardiña Mann “did unlawfully commit battery upon William Cohen, AKA Billy Corben, by actually and intentionally touching or striking said person against said person’s will.”
At the May 30 meeting inside the City of Miami commission chambers, Corben walked up and recorded Sardiña Mann talking to activist Thomas Kennedy while they stood in line for public comment.
“She was way too close to me, and I turn around, and she looks at me and says, ‘You guys love to humiliate yourselves,” Kennedy previously told New Times. “I gave her a grin. [Corben] is filming and senses the hostility because he is right there.”
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Mann waved and smiled before shoving her hand into the phone camera. The audio captured Corben’s muffled “Oof.” Kennedy said she then snatched the phone and slammed it onto the dais. Corben filed a complaint with the police department that day after a sergeant-at-arms witnessed the incident.
“It was in front of everyone,” Kennedy said. “It was next to the city manager.”
Following the incident, however, he added that nobody took any action, and she was still allowed to speak at the meeting.
“Imagine if roles were reversed,” he said. “We would be arrested on the spot, rightfully so.”
Mann admitted during her two minutes of public speaking that she did, in fact, take Corben’s phone. And, like her favorite commissioner, the woman called him “Mr. Cohen,” a reference to Corben’s legal name, which the filmmaker says public officials repeatedly use to draw attention to his Jewish heritage.
“I want to put on the record right now that Mr. Cohen, Corben, whatever his real legal name is, put a camera to my face, invaded my space, and he has a tendency, just like he has done here with the chicken and with everything else, to mock people and make fun of them,” she said before the commission. “If he so does desire to do that for me, you guys are witnesses. I will get an attorney and sue him for harassment because this is called harassment.”
She added, “Now to speak, no, that was not assault. Oh my God. I took his camera. I took his camera. That’s not assault.”
Mann continued to call Corben and Kennedy immature and petty.
“You guys are little kids,” she said. “You act like you’re five years old. You are a total joke.”
Once Commissioner Damian Pardo got her back on track, she focused on her prepared public comments. While holding back tears, Mann said Carollo deserves more praise.
“What he has done for us is unbelievable,” Mann said. “He is the only commissioner who has done that. I don’t see anyone here talking about the things that Mr. Carollo does. All I see is the same people speaking, same time, every time, at the commission before it becomes a circus. Beginning with our elected officials that act, appear like immature children. This is a professional post that you are elected to have, not to sit here and completely derail everything for little snaps at each other. Please, let’s all grow up.”
Mann’s attorney, Richard Diaz, emailed New Times a statement regarding the recent criminal charge. “The entire matter is captured on video, and it speaks for itself, and because of that, we are very much looking forward to a jury trial.” Back in July, Mann told New Times that she took Corben’s phone and gave it to the city clerk because she felt threatened.
Corben told New Times in a statement that this wasn’t the outcome he hoped for. He added that he only wanted Mann to take responsibility and formally apologize for her actions.
“For six months, I worked with Miami-Dade chief assistant state attorney (ASA) Stephen Talpins and ASA Jose Rohaidy to avoid charges against Ms. Mann and attempt to resolve the case with fairness and civility,” he said. “All I wanted was an apology from the defendant at Miami City Hall, the scene of the crime, for disrupting a public meeting and committing battery when she took my phone while I was legally video recording. Now more than ever, it is incumbent upon all of us to repudiate political violence of any kind and protect everyone’s First Amendment rights.”
He continued, “Unfortunately, Ms. Mann refuses to accept responsibility for her criminal misconduct, so she’s been rightfully charged. The defendant, a longtime ally of outgoing Commissioner Joe Carollo, was empowered to commit a crime in city hall on camera and then immediately confess on live television because she believed there would be no accountability or consequences. She was right — for a while — as certain members of City of Miami Police Department’s sergeant-at-arms detail and robbery unit failed to take appropriate action.
“If not for their dereliction of duty and Ms. Mann’s recalcitrance, this matter could have been settled half a year ago. I greatly appreciate the patience and professionalism of ASAs Mr. Rohaidy and Mr. Talpins, and look forward to seeing justice prevail.”
Though MPD marks the robbery case as closed, Corben says no one from the department has notified him.
Editor’s note: After New Times published our initial story in July, Mann emailed the following statement:
“I was in line to speak, second in line, when Mr. Cohen jumped out of his seat (front row) and started videotaping me with his phone,” Mann writes. “I didn’t think anything of it, so I gave him a peace sign and made some fun movements. He then launched at me with the phone and put it to my face. I felt threatened and took the phone from him and gave it to the City Clerk….
“As a senior, and a private citizen, I felt threatened by this man when he leaped towards me. His behavior and lack of respect for others has reached new heights. Next time, I hope he thinks twice before provoking a senior.”