News You Should Know

ICYMI: Groundbreaking Project in Miami, Slain Woman Identified After 46 Years

Here are some of the top stories from the past week from NBC 6 News:

NBC Universal, Inc.

Here are some of the top stories from the past week from NBC 6 News:

Groundbreaking Project May Be Carvalho's Last Hurrah in Miami

It’s exactly the kind of innovative, public-private, multi-governmental agency project which has become a hallmark of Miami-Dade County Public Schools during Alberto Carvalho’s 14-year run as superintendent. 

The county, the school district, the federal government and private developers are collaborating to build a seven-story addition to Southside Preparatory Academy, which used to be known as Southside Elementary and is now a K-8 school. The building will include apartments to allow some teachers to live where they work at affordable rates, because the cost of living is so high in the Brickell area. The groundbreaking ceremony was held Friday.

“This is a first-of-its-kind and it’s actually been a dream come true,” said Annette Degoti, the school’s principal. “To not only give our students an opportunity to flourish in a K-8 center but to also give families in the area and our teachers who drive often very far to school, a chance to live where they work.”

“Promise made, promise kept,” said Carvalho at the ceremony. 

That’s one of his favorite expressions about a project coming to fruition, and there was a sense here Friday that this might be the last time Carvalho will be able to say that in Miami-Dade County. He announced Thursday that he’s leaving to become the superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District. 

Neighbors in Miramar's Silver Lakes community are outraged over the killing of multiple geese "for being a nuisance."

Miramar Neighbors Outraged After Multiple Geese Killed

Neighbors in the Silver Lakes community in Miramar were shocked after seeing dead and dying geese.

 “It was horrible to think that they died such a gross death,” resident Rose Carlo said.

“Getting rid of them is not the right answer,” neighbor Julio Diez said. “Not the way they did it and I’m very sad about that.” 

Diez lives in Coconut Bay and says he loved seeing the geese around the lake behind his house as did many of his neighbors. 

“We are very upset because we found out that Pines Management apparently called this company who came here and killed over 20 geese," Diez said.

NBC 6 reached out to Rolando Calzadilla, the owner and manager of Pest Wildlife Pro who said he was hired by the association’s management company.

After the past year, many people are considering holiday parties this year, but many people have been sued after hosting parties with alcohol and someone got hurt in a crash. NBC 6's Alina Machado tells us whether more insurance can help.

Do You Need Extra Insurance If You are Hosting a Holiday Party?

Many of us are eager to get together with family and friends this holiday season but you may want to talk to your insurance agent before hosting a holiday party at your home.

If you own your home, you already have a homeowner’s insurance policy, so you may be covered if someone slips and falls at your home or gets hurt in some other way. But does your homeowner’s insurance policy offer enough protection if you’re hosting a holiday gathering?

NBC 6 Responds spoke with Mark Friedlander of the Insurance Information Institute about this topic.

He says you may want to consider adding what’s known as Umbrella Coverage, which will give you at least a million dollars of extra coverage.

“You can start at a million but you can add much more. For example, say you bought a million dollars of umbrella coverage to give you further protection for liability, that costs on average about $200 to $250 per year. 

Friedlander says it’s not unusual for a homeowner to be sued after hosting a holiday party.

”We have many cases where they’ve been sued by relatives, the homeowner’s been sued by their best friend they’ve known for 20 to 30 years. Don’t make any assumptions. If somebody gets in a serious accident and racks up say a million dollars or more of medical expenses or other related bills, they’re going to come after you,” he said.

A woman who was murdered 46 years ago in Davie has been identified. NBC 6's Alyssa Hyman reports

Slain Woman Whose Body Was Found in Davie Canal in 1975 Identified

A woman who was likely murdered and had her body dumped in a Davie canal in 1975 has remained unidentified for nearly 46 years, but now cold case investigators say they've identified her.

The woman's body was discovered in a canal in the 2600 block of Southwest 154th Avenue on Dec. 23, 1975.

At a news conference Tuesday, Davie Police said they identified her as Carolyn Dunn Moudy, of Indianola, Mississippi.

Moudy's daughter, Edna, spoke briefly at the news conference to thank investigators.

"I just thank God that I got courage and know now, cause all these years I was just trying to search for her but I'm just thankful," Edna Moudy said. "She's in my heart."

Last year, police had released a digital composite of the unidentified woman. Officials said advances in DNA technology helped identify her as Moudy.

A genetic genealogist was able to use the DNA to track down family members, who said Moudy had gone missing in July 1974.

"I really had to work hard to piece this family tree together," said Cece Moore, the chief genetic genealogist with Parabon. "I built dozens of trees and I was able to narrow it down to a specific county in Mississippi. We knew she had to have deep roots there on both sides of her family -- and then I identified an extended family I thought she must come from."

No, you will not be hypnotized when you're going into labor, but hypnobirthing can help manage the pain so many women fear during childbirth. NBC 6's Amanda Plasencia has more.

What is the HypnoBirthing Method?

Many expectant mothers have heard about the Lamaze method of childbirth, but a lesser-known technique, called HypnoBirthing, is starting to get more popular

NBC6 reporter Amanda Plasencia is now over 8 months pregnant and after doing some research online about pain management during labor, she signed up for HypnoBirthing classes offered at the Family Birthing Center through Memorial Healthcare System.

"It’s an amazing program that teaches you to relax, let go and to let birth flow through you and not fight it," said Hypnobirthing Practitioner, Luisa Shulruff, RN LCCE. 

Shulruff, who had been working as a nurse and certified Lamaze Childbirth Educator for years, decided to become certified in the Mongan Method of Hypnobirthing and brought it to Memorial Healthcare System. So what exactly is Hypnobirthing?

“Truly being able to relax and have faith in your body and to know how the hormones work. Knowing all the different ways to get to that relaxed state," said Shulruff.

By practicing HypnoBirthing, expectant mothers can learn about syncing up their mind, body and emotions to release their fears by trusting that their bodies know how to give birth. 

NBC 6's Ari Odzer is principal for the day at iPrep Academy in Miami. What could go wrong?

One of Our Own Is Principal for the Day. What Were They Thinking?

Sometimes, you just have to wonder, what were they thinking?

Tuesday was one of those times, as Miami-Dade County Public Schools invited NBC 6's Ari Odzer to be the principal of the day at iPrep Academy, which is a pre-K through 12th grade school.

What could go wrong?

The district calls the initiative Principal Today, which is basically an invitation for hundreds of community and business leaders to serve as the principal of a school for one day.

What’s the point? It creates synergy between the school district and the community at large.

“And as a result, there’s increased awareness of what education’s all about, there is increased goodwill, there is the exchange and the interaction with students, and we often get internships for students, we get mentorships for students,” explained superintendent Alberto Carvalho.

Carvalho says the goodwill generated by the program is priceless, and often leads to jobs for students beyond internships. 

Those who serve as principals don’t make any real administrative decisions, of course, but they do get to see and experience what happens in classrooms.

Carvalho says the more people who get that first-hand look inside schools, the better it is for the district.

Contact Us