Orlando Mayor indicted and suspended in election case
Special election will be held to replace him
Posted March 11 2005
In a day of swift and stunning developments triggered by four grand jury indictments, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer was charged with violating state absentee ballot law during last year's mayor's race and quickly removed from office.
Florida Gov. Jeb Bush suspended the mayor this afternoon, issuing an executive order prohibiting Dyer "from performing any official act, duty, or function of public office."
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Dyer, Sharp and Apte are each accused of "providing pecuniary gain for absentee ballot possession or collection," according to their arrest affidavits. Thomas -- who was hired by Dyer's and Apte's campaigns -- was charged with "accepting" payment. A 1998 state law prohibits paying someone or being paid for collecting absentee ballots.
"The charges are without merit and are totally politically motivated," Dyer said this afternoon, relying on a "vague Florida statue that has never been applied." Dyer, a Democrat, was first elected mayor in 2003. Brad King, the special prosecutor who conducted the investigation, is a Republican.
Gov. Bush, also a Republican, was visiting the University of Central Florida campus this morning, and said it is his policy to suspend public officials under indictment.
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Dyer showed up at the jail at 8:35 a.m., accompanied by his deputy chief of staff, Joe Robinson, a captain with the Orlando Police Department. Agents from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which investigated the case, arrived at the same time in separate vehicles.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/florida/orl-asec-dyerstory031105,0,7150.story?coll=sfla-news-florida
"If Jeb can issue executive orders when someone's indicted, to remove them from office, why aren't they investigating another judge, Greer?"
I read the article.
No judges were mentioned as being indicted. Or did your comma go in the wrong place? Perhaps you mean, why aren't they investigating another, Judge Greer?
At any rate, Jeb and most government executives and legislators seem terrified of judges. They cowtow to them when they would cowtow to no others. Not defending that at all, just stating what appears to be fact.
Also, I'm assuming Jeb has a policy of automatically removing anyone who has been indicted, pending their adjudication. Greer has not been indicted, and it looks like everyone is scared to take him on.
So, if Greer were to be indicted, Jeb would remove him. But Greer won't be, so that makes the discussion point MOOT.
Until the other branches of government act to check and balance judges, we are COOKED.