A.G. Gancarski
Ask and ye shall receive.
Jacksonville Rep. Reggie Fullwood wanted a “bill of particulars,” compelling federal prosecutors to lay out the list of who was defrauded in his case.
“The Defendant has been made to understand the ‘another’ at issue is not the various contributors whose contributions may have been converted to Fullwood’s personal use. Thus, it is unclear from whom or what the funds were ’embezzled’,” Fullwood contended earlier this month.
That request was granted by the court and fulfilled by prosecution Thursday.
Prosecutors assert that “the ‘someone else’ who the Defendant intended to defraud in the wire fraud scheme set forth in the indictment was: [the] Florida Department of State Division of Elections; and the campaign contributors.”
The bill of particulars reasserts the prosecutors’ contention that Fullwood submitted “false and fraudulent campaign expenditure reports to the State of Florida, which included inflated and/or non-existent campaign expenses.”
The intent of those fabricated expense reports was, say prosecutors, “to hide and conceal the fact that Fullwood had fraudulently and unlawfully embezzled funds from the Reggie Fullwood Campaign Account …”
Fullwood, claims the prosecutors, solicited “individuals and entities” to give money to his campaign, which he used on personal expenses rather than legitimate campaign expenses.
Fullwood faces 10 counts of wire fraud and four counts of failure to file federal tax returns in a trial that, as of now, has been pushed back to August.
Despite his legal troubles, Fullwood has told FloridaPolitics.com he is running for re-election. However, a popular guessing game in Jacksonville involves which Democrat might step up and oppose the vulnerable Fullwood in the Aug. 30 primary, which would take place in the shadow of his federal case.
Perhaps because of these legal issues, Fullwood has yet to raise any money for his re-election bid.
Meanwhile, Republicans sense vulnerability. Despite the district being Democratic by an almost 3-to-1 margin, three Republicans have already filed for the Aug. 30 primary for what typically would be the safest of safe seats.
Jacksonville and Florida Democrats have no intention of losing the seat. Whether this means Fullwood will face a contested primary or will simply go away quietly and not run for re-election remains to be seen.
Tia Mitchell of the Florida Times-Union observed that school board member Paula Wright and former supervisor of elections candidate Tracie Davis might be viable replacements for Fullwood on the Democratic side. Another name to watch: former Jacksonville City Councilwoman Pat Lockett-Felder.
