A secret Florida Ethics Commission "probable cause" hearing on Mr. Thomas F. Reynolds' ethics complaint on undisclosed income of controversial St. Augustine Beach City Commissioner RICHARD BURTT O'BRIEN is set for tomorrow Friday, October 19, 2018 in Tallahassee' First District Court of Appeals Building.
At issue: Respondent O'BRIEN's alleged nondisclosure of substantial income, revealed by his own admissions (on video) at a March 6, 2018 City Commission meeting where his censure was sought for several instances of unethical behavior.
In the March 6, 2018 meeting O'BRIEN said he "deserved an award" and whined about Commissioner Maggie Kostka wanting to discuss censure of his unethical behavior. During his peroration, O'BRIEN stated that he was paid $200/hour for "consulting" and had "investments" in "properties" in several states. None of that income was ever listed on O'BRIEN's financial disclosure forms.
FEC will neither confirm or deny the "probable cause" hearing that O'BRIEN and counsel will attend in Tallahassee.
No documents will be provided until "Wednesday," October 24, 2018, when FEC issues orders from its October 19, 2018 public and private hearings.
FEC is widely viewed as a toothless tiger, sunk in sloth and torpor, limited by the Florida Supreme Court's opinions that the legislature intended ethics laws as punitive and strictly construed, rather than remedial and liberally construed.
RICHARD BURTT O'BRIEN was fined $250 by Florida Elections Commission in 2016 for advertising himself as the "Republican's choice" in a nonpartisan race where parties are making endorsements despite legal prohibitions.
On December 7, 2016, Circuit Judge Howard O. McGillin dismissed O'BRIEN's illegal stalking SLAPP case against Mr. Reynolds, brought in retaliation for First Amendment protected activity.
O'BRIEN has used City Commission and the Mayor's job to advance his personal economic interests, including alleged stormwater pollution from his hotel properties and approval for two McMansions on F Street.
RICHARD BURTT O'BRIEN was fined $25,000 in 2017 for illegal construction of McMansions on F Street, in violation of his special use permit.
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