Ex-House speaker Sansom’s attorneys try to have criminal charges dismissed
by Post Staff | September 2nd, 2009By KATHLEEN HAUGHNEY
The News Service of Florida
TALLAHASSEE — Attorneys for former state House Speaker Ray Sansom tried today to dismiss charges that the Destin Republican broke the law when he steered millions of dollars to Northwest Florida State College and appeared to benefit from the process.
Sansom, Okaloosa County developer Jay Odom and former college President Bob Richburg have been indicted on official misconduct charges. Sansom and Richburg each face an additional perjury charge for allegedly lying to a Leon County grand jury. They are scheduled to stand trial at the end of this month.
The case hinges on Sansom’s power as budget chairman in 2007-08 to steer millions of dollars to the college.
After the money was appropriated, Sansom got a vice presidency at the college. The post was supposed to include heading a leadership institute created as a part of the funding.
The state dollars were also slated to go to an emergency operations center that would have simultaneously served as an airport hangar for Odom, a frequent contributor to Sansom and the GOP.
“The problem is he wanted the state of Florida to build it for him,” State Attorney Willie Meggs said of Odom. “And he got his cohort Ray Sansom to make that happen.”
Attorneys for the three men said there were no lies in the official documents about the money for the alleged hangar.
Sansom attorney Stephen Dobson said it was impossible for Sansom and Richburg to have even intended for the legislation to benefit Odom given that only the board of trustees had the power to lease the building. He also said the case could set a precedent for prosecutors to check on every law or budget item the legislature approves.
“This is an attempt by the state attorney’s office to veto by indictment,” Dobson said.
Circuit Judge Terry Lewis appeared conflicted over both the state’s and defense’s arguments, peppering Meggs about the potential precedent and whether he had evidence that three men deliberately tried to hide their intention of building a hangar.
Lewis has given the defense until Friday to provide additional information to the court. Meggs will be given a few days to respond, and then Lewis will make his decision.
Separately, a House committee is investigating whether Sansom acted inappropriately. But the committee is waiting until October because many of the witnesses it would like to call are also tied up in the criminal case.
Tags: Bob Richburg, Jay Odom, Northwest Florida State College, scandal, Willie Meggs
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September 3rd, 2009 at 8:22 am
I’m still confused why Herr Willie Meggs didn’t get the grand jury to charge Richburg and Sansom with offering and receiving a bribe.
That seems to describe what happened and to be a straghtforward criminal charge that could well be sustained in a trial.
This official misconduct and document falsification stuff is simply suspect and a bad basis and bad precedent for moving against them, unlike bribery would have been.