Florida State Government Transportation Contactior Convicted of Felonies

State Attorney General William McCollum's press release dated August 1, 2007
Media Contact: Sandi Copes
Phone: (850) 245-0150

Contractor Found Guilty in Public Corruption Case

~ Orlando woman faces up to 25 years in prison for defrauding the Department of Transportation ~


TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced that an Orange County jury returned a guilty verdict against an Orlando contractor and her company on several charges of organized fraud and communications fraud. Dawn Carter, the president of a contracting business for small construction and maintenance jobs, faces up to 25 years in prison for a fraud scheme perpetrated against the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT). Carter, her company, and her husband, Robert Calhoun, were prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office of Statewide Prosecution.

“Florida taxpayers should never have to pay for someone else’s criminal behavior,” said Attorney General McCollum. “The Office of Statewide Prosecution will continue these endeavors to protect our citizens and our state agencies, particularly when public safety may be at risk.”

An investigation conducted by FDOT’s Office of Inspector General and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) revealed that Carter and her company, Calhoun Enterprises of Central Florida, Inc., submitted a fraudulent certificate to FDOT as a requirement for the contracts held by the company. The certificate indicated that Calhoun, the company’s vice president, had completed a course offered by the American Traffic Safety Services Association, qualifying him to properly oversee the safety of highway workers and public motorists during construction projects. The certificate number submitted to FDOT had already been issued to an individual in Utah and authorities determined that Calhoun never took the course.

At least four contracts held by Calhoun Enterprises required a certified individual to maintain traffic and Calhoun admitted to the court that he had performed the work without proper training. Calhoun Enterprises had additional FDOT contracts with other districts throughout the state, including some involving Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise and others in Hillsborough, Orange and Pinellas counties.

"The guilty verdicts in this case send a strong message of deterrence to those who would attempt to defraud the Florida Department of Transportation and the taxpayers of the state," said FDOT Secretary Stephanie C. Kopelousos.

Carter was found guilty of one count of organized fraud and four counts of communications fraud, as was the corporate entity Calhoun Enterprises. She will be sentenced at a later date. Calhoun pled guilty to the charge of conspiracy to commit organized fraud in September 2004 and will also be sentenced at a later date.