Tuesday, May 27, 2008, 2:47 pm
Kreegel investigation kicks off
For the first time in recent memory, a panel of House lawmakers will investigate one of their own.
Last week, House leaders agreed to investigate a complaint alleging that Kreegel used a state worker and equipment for election purposes. The complaint was filed by a political foe of Kreegel’s, Robert Anderson of Lehigh Acres.
Anderson’s complaint claimed Kreegel directed a state employee to contact Hodges University in Fort Myers to question the background of Keith Richter, a Hodges employee and Kreegel’s primary opponent this year.
House Speaker Marco Rubio, R-West Miami, said Monday that five lawmakers will form a “probable cause panel” to “look into this matter.”
The five members are Reps. Dennis Ross, R-Lakeland; Loranne Ausley, D-Tallahassee; J.C. Planas, R-Miami; Dick Kravitz, R-Jacksonville; and Curtis Richardson, D-Tallahassee.Four of the five House members are leaving office this year due to term limits; Planas is facing an easy re-election bid this November. Rubio asked the panel to report their findings and recommendations by June 30. Kreegel faces a wide range of outcomes, from exoneration to reprimand to removal from office.
Anderson has also filed similar complaints with the Florida Elections Commission and the Florida Commission on Ethics.
Last year, Rep. Bob Allen, R-Merritt Island, resigned after a nationally-lampooned arrest for solicitation of a man in a bathroom. And Rep. Ralph Arza, R-Miami, resigned in 2006 before lawmakers could investigate his felony arrest for threatening a fellow House member.--
Joe Follick
Pd. Pol. Adv. House Dist 72 Coalition for Better Leadership PAC
