Things may be looking up for former St. Johns County Commission candidate Randy Brunson.
According to Brunson and his attorney, his troubles with the Florida Elections Commission are over.
Brunson said after speaking in front of the nine-member board on Nov. 12, the Elections Commission decided there was no probable cause to charge him, effectively ending the case against him.
Brunson’s lawyer, Mark Herron, said the commission’s final order will be available on Monday, and confirmed the case was dismissed. "That’s what no probable cause means," he said.
In May, community activist Ed Slavin filed a complaint with the Elections Commission alleging Brunson received an excessive in-kind contribution he failed to report. The commission started an investigation, which was completed in October. On Oct. 2, General Counsel for the Commission Charles Finkel submitted a recommendation to the board that there was probable cause to charge Brunson with two counts of violating the Florida election statutes.
The first count alleged Brunson had certified the correctness of a campaign treasurer’s report that was incorrect, false or incomplete. The second count alleged he had accepted a contribution in excess of the maximum legal limit.
The charges stemmed from theheadquarters Brunson’s campaign used during his unsuccessful run for the St. Johns County Commission District 5 seat in August. Brunson moved into his campaign headquarters at 1800 Ponce de Leon Blvd. in St. Augustine in January. In May, Slavin said he noticed that Brunson had not reported paying any rent on the space and Slavin filed the complaint with the Elections Commission.
In July, after he had been notified about the complaint and investigation, Brunson filed a report showing he had recently paid $800 rent for the year, through Aug. 31. He also sent a notarized copy of a lease requiring him to pay $100 per month for the property, payable at the end of August.
Brunson and Slavin both said the property was valued at $2.7 million, but Brunson argued the space was un-rentable because of termites and generally poor building conditions.
The building space is now occupied by a retail store.
The Election Commission’s investigator determined "fair market value" for the office space was higher than what Brunson paid in rent, and told the board that effectively meant Brunson had accepted donations from the landlord exceeding the legal limits.
According to Brunson and his attorney, the board found those charges lacked merit.
Florida Elections Commission Executive Director Barbara Linthicum refused to comment. The commission is restricted by law on commenting on investigations prior to the release of its final orders.
Brunson, who told The Recorder he believes the report it published about the investigation in August cost him the election, said that in two years he plans to run again — for the District 2 Count Commission seat currently occupied by Ron Sanchez.
December 3rd 2008 - 5:03PM