Congratulations Christy Fitzgerald

It doesn't surprise me. These idiots couldn't convict someone if they pleaded guilty at their hearing. These guys are being charged way too much for their BAR dues. If the dues were based on competence they'd get in for free.

Not guilty does not mean innocent.

MikeH

The jury deliberated for twenty minutes.  The juror who was quoted said simply that she wasn't stealing she was getting ready for a hurricane.  I know Finder thinks that the state attorney's office couldn't convict with a guilty plea, but I'm not sure what he expects the state to do.  The facts speak for themselves.  The state presented its facts and  Ms. Fitzgerald was able to present her side.  The jury obviously didn't think a crime occurred. 

Does Finder have some evidence that the state withheld information from the jury?  Does Finder think Matlock could get a conviction with the same facts?  Does Finder think that the jury was corrupt also?  Maybe, just possibly, what happened was not a crime.  Bad judgment maybe, but not a crime.

I think people resist acknowledging truth because it might burst their "clay county stinks and is the most corrupt in the whole world" bubble.  Life is actually much more pleasant outside the bubble. 

The article I read said that more trials will follow on petty theft charges.  My goodness, how long will this go on.  I don't know where the other cases are procedurally, but I wish they could find a way to wrap them up.  This is an outrageous amount of money to prosecute (and defend) these issues which don't appear to have much sway with the juries.

Whether you steal 1 dollar or a million dollars, its still THEFT!  Arthur and Christy took this County to the Cleaners, St Johns County should have returned the favor.

Steven P Munsey A+, MCP, IASO Orange Park | Green Cove Springs munsey13@comcast.net

How can you steal something that has been made publicly available to any concerned citizen in the county during a declared emergency?  The county made these sand bags available to all citizens that lived on water threatened properties. 

Is this another waste of tax payers dollars by Sheriff Beseler on a prosecution for political headlines or is it an example of his inability to properly investigate a criminal case?

In either case, a jury taking only 20 minutes to render a verdict is a clear indication that they were not convinced the state's case was adequate. 

Sheriff Beseler should know having been a State Attorney's Office investigator that the prosecutor can only present the facts discovered by the police investigation. 

In light of the State Attorney's Office and the fact that we are woefully underserved. That's where Beseler came from as a State Attorney Investigator. We should have known what these 4 years and an important investigation in Clay County would turn out to look like.

How many Chad Heins do you think are losing years off their life sitting in prison for some crime they didn't commit?

What do you think the State can give him back for what they have taken away from him.

Florida has the highest rate of any State of people wrongfully convicted released. Wonder how many have been put to death that didn't have the Innocent Projects for help or DNA.

Time for some serious change in Clay County, the 4th district, and the State of Florida in my opinion.

OK, so according to Angela, we have incompetent people as commissioners, sheriff, superintendent of schools, school board, various principals, state attorney, all prosecutors and judges in the 4th judicial circuit, the entire state government (I assume this means the governor and all senators and representatives), and they all need to be replaced.  Oh wait . . . the only competent person who deserves to be in government is OneMann.  Your blogging buddy.  The way I see it, the blogging community is woefully underserved by your rhetoric.

Ok Mr Skinner and Sheriff Besseler go after the real problem people in clay co, animal control.

Didn't know Mike Mann was my buddy. In that case that would mean you are my blogging buddy too. Do you ever read a newspaper concerning some our elected officials? As a matter of fact one of them was just in the newspaper.

Maybe if you run in there real quick to can catch the news where Shorstein just released the Grand Jury presentment with no indictments for any of the public officials concerning Jax Council Member violating Sunshine Laws with all those meetings in the Shade.

How apropos with Shorstein right on time to further my statements.

I'll agree that she technically didn't steal the sand bags. They were given out to everyone that wanted them for free. Here is the rub and where the stealing part comes in. She didn't have to go get them. Some county workers delivered them and helped place them.

If it wasn't a service offered to everyone (and it wasn't), then it is at least misappropriation of county workers time. In addition, the plywood wasn't offered to everyone.

At trial it is not always what is presented, it is how it is presented and who presents it. 

MikeH

Agree totally with finder.  She expected, demanded, and received additional services from public works beyond the common citizen.  That was her way of operating in all things, not just sandbags.  Queens are that way. 

Even though she was found "not guilty,"  I have a smile on my face every day that I see a BCC meeting and not see her smug 'queen' bee face.  Kind of reminded me of Meryl Streep in the "Devil wears prada" if you know what I mean.

The county purge of her and her sidekick was the best thing that ever happened to this county.  Will we pay for it?  Sure, already have and will in the future - she will likely walk away with a fat back-pay check (no pun intended). 

But, some times you have to go through a little pain to get better. 

Well, I have to say this was not a case that I was excited about telling friends about now that the trial is over.  Petty theft for sandbags and plywood!!  You have got to be kidding me.

Yes, I sat on as a juror and was instantly counting all the dollars that went into this case.  Unbelieveable!  We (the jurors) thought there was more to this case besides Fitzgerald.  It was interesting for me to search "Ivey" on the internet after the trial had ended and finally see why this petty theft was made such a bid deal. 

20 minutes to deliberate?? Actually we were all on the same page the first minute we sat down.  Maybe some shenanagans went on.  But stealing?  No.

Kind of reminds me of an old saying.  Surround yourself with good people and good things will happen to you.  Ivey apparently was not a good person.  Pick um better next time Christie.

 The main charge against her should have been Malfeason and misfeadeason (sp) The grand jury wasn't asked to kook into this and the State ATTY never once mentioned the words

If Ms. Fitzgerald was guilty of Misfeasance (unintential misuse of her public office) then the Sheriff's Office investigation should have clearly documented those facts which support that charge.  If Ms. Fitzgerald was guilty of Malfeasance (intential misuse of her public office) then the Sheriff's Office investigation should have clearly documented those facts which support that charge.

I have no problem with an elected official calling upon a county worker to deliver sand bags that were delivered to any other citizen that asked for the same service and goods.  If she did more than this, where is the Sheriff's Office report to show worse actions?  And if she did worse than this, why can't the Sheriff's Office conduct a better investigation worthy of successful prosecution? 

The Sheriff may need to take his boys back to the State Attorney's Office for some after hours instruction they may have missed when they were working for Mr. Shorstein.

There is no doubt that Clay SO and several other fine agencies botched the case. Was that  intentional merely a co-incident? If I am not mistaken this investigation started with the FBI even before they stumbled onto the dumping and other issues. I suspect this issue merely detracted from the real corruption.

Ex and Sleuth

My sources say the Investigative Report regarding Fitzgerald and Ivey which was done by agencies was extremely well done, crimes well-documented and very damning to the former commissioner and public works director. According to the sources, this is why their lawyers had the report legally sealed until after the trials are over. When reporter Susan Armstrong went to court to try to force the attorneys to release the report because it was public record, the judge stated he sealed it until after all the trials for these two were over because it was very detrimental and indicting to both Ivey and Fitzgerald.

According to those who have seen the report, all agencies did a great job! So we can't judge what kind of investigation was done until we see the report.

As you surely know, just because agencies present a good case to the SA's office that doesn't mean the SA is going to do a good job of prosecuting the case in court. I understand Siegel was less than stellar in his prosecution during Christy's trials. Plus, her attorney separated the cases and has strung the trials out. When cases are separated, there is only a small portion of the evidence that jurors can see or that can be used in court.

Let's wait until the report comes out before we condemn the investigative teams investigating this fiasco.

Innocent until PROVEN guilty - the burden of proof is on the State.

The whole deal stinks to high heaven.  If what we have read in the press is half-way true, both people acted immorally.  It's pretty obvious something hinky was going on.  Both individuals have lost something that is very important, especially to public officials - the respect of the community. 

Clay County is a better place because of the scandal.  It was inevitable.  Now that the cancer has been removed, let's look forward to a quick recovery (it's painfully slow right now), and a brighter future.

Don't forget - OJ Simpson was found not guilty too.  Yeah, right.

I have to agree with ex on their points about the this being a distraction from the real corruption. I could only hope the FBI would come through for the taxpayers in the end.

During Ms. Fitzgerald's first trial her attorney tried to get the charges thrown out after the State presented their information. Well the Judge said I don't see much here at all but I will allow the trial to proceed. I knew then it would be not guilty. Then I wasn't surprised when the jury came back with that verdict. He has also stated the report is filled with innuendos and hearsay. Neither of which are generally admissible in criminal court. 

Then when the report that would have cleared Ms. Fitzgerald goes missing. What else can you say.

I generally think of the evidence that could have cleared Chad Heins and it gets surpressed.

The next thought that comes to mind which I state often on the blogs.

We are woefully underserved in the 4th district.

I'm not certain we will be anymore impressed with the final report which I say we will never get to see.

While I agree Clay County is much better without all those whose were told they should consider if they worthy to continue to serve the people. I believe in justice and that is something apparently we will never see. The taxpayers are always the loser and we continue to lose.

If my source at the Sheriff's Office is correct, there were some serious issues with the credibility of one of the state's main witnesses (i.e. convicted felon).  My source also tells me that there was a missing report.  But, the missing report was of an interview with the state's star witness.  If this is true, I think the FBI should investigate Sheriff Beseler and the crackerjack staff of investigators he brought from Jacksonville.  How can you lose a report from the star witness interview (who said a crime had been committed) and spend thousands of tax payer dollars over several years to convict someone for taking sand bags that were available for delivery to anyone on Black Creek during the time of a storm.  I wish someone would look into this.  Is there a missing report?  How can the Sheriff lose the report?  Would the missing report clear Ms. Fitzgerald?  Would the missing report convict her?  Yes, I want answers.  Our tax dollars have been wasted.  

OK, I need to back off everyone who thinks Christy was complicite in this whole sand bag scandal. She was not.

Christy was manipulated by a political power bigger than she. And then, they left her hanging.

Insiders know this...

Very nicely said Verb.

Exactly what I've been saying about the depth of corruption in Clay County. Just like the Mafia, gangs, or any other type organized ring of corruption. The corruption needs to be removed and the people involved need to be held accountable. 

I don't think it's stopped by going after some charges for sandbags of a public official.

Political powers behind the scenes are the ones that need to be held accountable.

Corruption is an assault on our democracy no matter what form it takes. It destroys the very fabric of our country.

Anyone who can't see that and laughs this was just a few people who didn't know how to handle trash. All that I can say to those comments, if you're not part of the solution and demanding accountability in our county. Then you must be part of the problem.

Angela, I couldn't agree more that corruption in government erodes our citizens trust in government and democracy. However, you take that very sound statement and turn it into an assault on anyone who doesn't agree with you. You say that anyone who doesn't think that corruption exists to the extent you do is part of the problem, ie. corrupt. In other words, if you don't agree with me, then you're corrupt.

I couldn't disagree more. Democracy isn't founded on badgering people who disagree with accusations of corruption. Democracy thrives when people respect different points of view and allows citizens to freely decide between them. You are obviously very passionate about your government. I respect that. But I don't think you should call people corrupt if they don't agree with your paranoid statement that the entire system and everyone in government is corrupt.

If you are not key you have been hanging around her to long. I never said agree with me I said demand accountability,

If you think the only problems we have in Clay County is some sandbags and plywood. Then you should skip my blog it's not meant for you. You should be in another blog. My opinion of course.

Margo;

I'll leave the corruption part out of this, but I'd sure like to address the other part.

Democracy isn't founded on badgering people who disagree with accusations of corruption. Democracy thrives when people respect different points of view and allows citizens to freely decide between them.

So, is that why we can't sell ligour on Sundays until 1PM or teach evolution in schools or support gay marriage or abortion rights? The right leaning Christians would never think about badgering someone right?

MikeH

I can imagine poor Christy sitting at home this damp weekend, watching the History Channel's DVD about Spiro Agnew over and over.

Vice President Agnew was sacrificed by the Nixon Administration in an effort to divert attention from Watergate.  It didn't work.

But the politics here isn't quite as sophisticated here as in D.C., and there's no Woodward and Bernstein pounding keyboards in Green Cove Springs.  So, when an internal audit of county government points out a pervasive "culture of corruption," we Clay County residents get a couple of sacrificial Spiros put on trial.  Meanwhile, those cultural leaders, the Nixons of local government, didn't even get an official tsk-tsk for their corruption.

Michael S. Mann

michaelsmann@comcast.net

As far as the "missing report", let's set the record straight as to whether it would have "cleared Christy".

This report was a result of the flooding at Ruby Tuesday's on CR220 before Rick Beseler was elected. There were several stories in the T-U and the Folio. The following is what the media said:

Ruby Tuesday's parking lot flooded. Public Works was called. Arthur Ivey, Christy, public works employee William Cercy and his son-in-law responded. There were large drain plugs on an adjacent property that had been left on the ground, flooded the area, then ran over on Ruby Tuesday's property. Cercy and his son-in-law removed the drain plugs, the water receded on both properties. According to the papers, Arthur said he wanted to teach the developer who owned the property a lesson, so he told Cercy to put the drain plugs, valued at $5,000 for both, in his truck ad take them and put them behind one of Arthur's buildings in his property on Knight Box Road. Cercy did what Arthur told him to do.

The owner and developer of the property next to Ruby Tuesday's called the CCSO and reported the theft. A detective named Wolfe was supposed to interview Arthur. Remember that Arthur Ivey and then Sheriff Scott Lancaser are long-time friends who grew up together, and Wolfe was an ardent campaign supporter of Lancaster. Wolfe first said he interviewed Ivey personally, then changed his story and said he just dropped off a statement for Ivey and Cercy to fill out. On the stand Cercy said he was never given a statement to fill out and even told Arthur that he would not "lie to the cops."

Christy was on trial for allowing Arthur to take the drain plugs and not report it. At her 1st trial, Cercy said Arthur said he had talked to the sheriff and everything had been taken care of regarding the report. Lancaster was not re-elected and had a massive shredding party.

Fast forward to the trial. Wolfe couldn't remember what happened to the report about the incident at Ruby Tuesday's. He couldn't remember if it was hand-written or typed. Beseler had his people look high and low for the report, but it was gone. Because it was gone, Christy's lawyer capitalized on this and began saying "these reports could prove my client to be innocent."

As we all know, just because a lawyer says something, doesn't make it true. Realistically, it is more likely that Ivey filled out Cercy's part of the report and signed it or had someone to sign it. These reports could have proven that Ivey lied, not that Christy Fitzgerald is innocent.

What's in the reports we will never know. The massive shredding party is a crime according to the FSS.

Who's been punished for those crimes?

Adding to my post. The Judge made the statements at the trial. The missing reports were of more substains than anything he had read in the report presented to him.

I think he should know he was in the position to make that statement.

OneMann, Good point that Christy was the sacrificial lamb.  Fast forward to today. Four of the five commissioners are new and we have a new county manager.  Is the new cast of characters a part of Watergate too? Or can we recognize that progress has been made? 

Clay county didn't deserve the events of the past, but the County also don't deserve to wallow in it forever either.

Those who say oh well most of them are at home drawing that big retirement check we the taxpayers pay. Oh wait let's not forget all those nice benefits too. Let's just move on we are going forward. That's the problem right there I was talking about in Clay County.

This is why it will happen again. No accountablility.

Until then they will select our Commissioners, tell us the hit the ground running statement and behind the scenes they still run the show.

After all McGovern over there at the CCCOA hasn't gone that far. No I think some nice prison somewhere would make me feel more comfortable.

In this case there were not any missing reports.  Just missing witnesses...the state did not use the sheriff's deputy (former sao investigator), due to the fact he ; threatened witnesses, made false statements, saidit was personal and a number of other factors. If that is good police work, heaven help us all.

 You and I paid for an FBI agent to fly in from Texas to testify due to the ineptitude of our very own.  We paid for the flight, his time, his missed time.  Makes me proud to be a clay county citizen  for a misdemeanor charge.

Let me say about the missing reports. Which have been determined by the Judge as more important and brought him more concern than the charges against Ms. Fitzgerald. However, not before he announced that the State Attorney had very little to go on but he would allow the trial to continue. Of course we all know she has been cleared of all charges to date that have been filed against her by the fine upstanding State Attorney's Office. Yes the one we are woefully underserved by in our County.

What I found interesting was if as stated on the blogs the reports would have proved Ivey lied and not found Ms. Fitzgerald innocent. But then we have no way to know because the reports are gone and she's been found innocent.

Well if the reports just disappeared it had to happen somewhere over in the Sheriff's dept because it was their report. Maybe the Officer was negligent in his duty and didn't file the report. I wonder if he was punished for his negligence if that happened.

Well it concerned me a little to find out that Aruthur Ivey's daughter worked in the records dept of the Clay County Sheriff's Office. I was thinking to myself boy that sure looked funny.

You know with the apparent depth of corruption in this county it's no telling what was going on. I was concerned in Mike Price's report about the illegal dumping, which I didn't read about in there.

In the 5/13/97 BCC minutes the whole group voted to illegally dump stuff in the landfill which you can research to find:

Approval to dispose of items not sold at Public Auction through Florida sheriff’s Boys Ranch, other charitable organizations, or place in landfill

Why was Arthur Ivey charged for dumping and not the Commissioners if they authorized them to illegally dump stuff in violation of the laws?

No need to worry Clay County Taxpayers we paid in that same cycle for:

Partial payment to Jones, Edmunds & Associates, Inc., for landfill compliance monitoring, in the amount of $10,076.28, invoice number 16061, from the Environmental Service Fund, C/N 92/93-171

Why didn't these people have to pay for non compliance for all the stuff that was in there? Probably because the Commissioners authorized them too.

No need to worry we still have them under contract today.

Clay County we are blessed to be so underserved by our elected officials. While they diligently pursue Ms. Fitzgerald for sandbags and plywood on the taxpayers money. To me this looks like adding insult to injury to the hardworking taxpayers of Clay County.

Ms Fitzgerald could become the Queen people call her on here if after this was over she told on all of them. You know the political powers that left her out to hang for sandbags. Now that would be a story to capture.

The FBI case is still open on Christy Fitzgerald.

If the SAO office of the 4th Judicial Circuit doesn't convict anyone from this travesty...I think you'll see the FBI come back and render its own case against Christy.

I hate that....Christy was a friend to me. But once the 4th Judicial Circuit has a say, it's all over.

Mr. Ivey needs to copy the minutes from 5/13/97 where the Commissioners voted to put the stuff in the landfill and has been a practice of the County under the direction of the Commissioners. After all they make the laws/policies not Ivey. Tell the jury he was doing as instructed by the county. I don't see how a jury can convict him for doing his job that he was instructed to do. His failure to act as instructed by the Commissioners would have resulted in insubordination.

Ivey walks taxpayers.