The United States District Court ordered prosecutors to disclose the name of the confidential informant in the bribery case against St. Johns County Commissioner Tom Manuel last week.
Judge Howard Snyder granted two motions by Manuel’s attorneys including one to disclose the confidential informant. Snyder gave the prosecution five days from the Nov. 4 ruling to comply. The other was a motion for particulars.
The Jacksonville Division of the United States District Court said no new motions have been filed since.
Manuel said this week he believes once the informant is known people will understand the politics involved in his prosecution.
"I think this entire [investigation] was designed and executed to minimize my political influence during this political season," said Manuel. He speculated that had he been able to campaign in favor of the St. Johns County Homerule Charter it would have passed.
On Nov. 5, Manuel’s attorneys filed a motion to delay the trial, which was set to begin on Dec. 1, stating the quantity of discovery was too large to be reviewed and understood by the trial.
The court agreed and set the trial date for Jan. 5. A status conference will be held Dec. 15 to determine if the case will go to trial or if another option, such as a plea bargain, should be explored.
Manuel’s attorneys also filed a motion asking the court to reconsider ordering prosecutors to immediately release discovery materials. On October 28 the court denied Manuel’s attorneys request for immediate release and ordered prosecutors to release the materials five days before the trial. In his motion, attorney William Sheppard wrote that the discovery items "must be produced in a sufficiently timely fashion in order that the defense have an opportunity to make proper use of such material."
The judge has not yet ruled on this motion.
Manuel was indicted by a federal grand jury on two charges of allegedly accepting bribes totalling $60,000. He maintained his innocence and took a leave of absence on Oct. 15. Gov. Charlie Crist suspended him from office later that same day.
The District 4 commission seat remains open. Sterling Ivey, Crist’s spokesperson, previously said the governor would only consider filling the empty spot if Manuel resigned from his position or was permanently removed from the position, creating a vacancy.
