A.G. Gancarski
A new television ad for State Attorney Angela Corey features endorsements from Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams and other public safety leaders.
It’s a spot laden with authenticity, featuring shots that appear to be inside the State Attorney’s Office itself, including a practice courtroom and a hallway.
However, it may have been too authentic, according to municipal code; relevant sections bolded.
Sec. 350.305. Campaigning; prohibited in public work places. It shall be unlawful and a class A offense for any person to engage in political campaigning in a public building in locations where public employees are working. This prohibition shall not apply to a public officer or employee’s support or opposition to a referendum affecting the City of Jacksonville; nor shall this prohibition apply to rooms rented in public buildings for the purpose of political campaigning; nor shall it apply to the city’s senior citizen and community centers.
When asked about this, Corey’s spokeswoman, Jackelyn Barnard, said use of the location was permissible.
“It is the same parameters as for any other public building,” Barnard said.
We then reiterated the question, noting that it looked like the practice courtroom and the hallway of the SAO were used in the ad.
Theoretically, we added, the hallway or practice courtroom could have been rented, but it still seemed to be a “location where public employees are working,” isn’t it?
We also noted this kind of thing, with after-hours filming in a government facility stoking controversy, came up in last year’s Supervisor of Elections race. The Duval GOP castigated Democrat Tracie Davis, a former assistant SOE to former SOE Jerry Holland, for filming her TV commercial in the supervisor’s office after hours without Holland’s permission.
Was this a similar scenario?
Barnard held to her original line: “Again, this was done within the parameters for a public building.”
She did not address our question as to whether the facility was rented, which would have been a permissible use, but would have opened opportunities for Kenny Leigh, Wes White, and Melissa Nelson to likewise rent space in the SAO to film ads.
We reached out to Supervisor of Elections Mike Hogan for clarification on these points.
“I did seek a response from the City’s General Counsel who opined that City ordinances do not prohibit video recordings in areas that are accessible and open to the public. He went on to say that typically, more complex recordings and events are coordinated with the respective building managers to assure a safe and sound process.”
Emails went out to General Counsel Jason Gabriel and Ethics head Carla Miller late Friday, but no response has manifested as of Sunday morning.
