Arthur Teele

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Art Teele as Miami County Commissioner

Art Teele was an American, Republican County commissioner in Miami, Florida who was under suspension when on July 27, 2005 he walked into the Miami Herald newspaper building and shot himself in the head. He was still conscious on the way to the hospital and reportedly responded to commands that he blink his eyes, though he was pronounced dead two hours later.

Teele has faced numerous problems in the past, including federal charges for money laundering, mail and wire fraud, helping a minority company win more than $20 million worth of electrical contracts at Miami International Airport where the work was actually undertaken by a larger and non-minority company, and a conviction for threatening a police officer in March of 2005. Teele faced a possible 20 years in prison if convicted for the federal charges against him.

Teele had campaigned for Bob Dole in the 1996 presidential primaries. This was raised as an issue in the African-American community when Teele ran for mayor of Miami-Dade County later that year. Teele was one of two candidates to emerge from the general election, but was defeated in a runoff election by Alex Penelas.