St. Pete City Council candidate opens up about decades’ old arrest record

St. Petersburg City Council candidate Beth Connor was arrested twice when she was younger for incidents involving alcohol consumption.

Connor was arrested in Cocoa Beach when she was 19 on charges of disorderly intoxication in a public place and resisting arrest without violence.

The arrests occurred in 1983. The case was later dropped. 

Connor, who is running for District 5 to replace Steve Kornell, notified Florida Politics of the past arrests saying it was important to her “to be honest with the voters” about her past.

“I fully admit that I made mistakes in my life, and I have learned from them,” Connor said.

Recalling the arrests, Connor shifted in her seat and admitted she was a little embarrassed to talk about it.

The 1983 arrest happened during a trip with friends when Connor was barely even an adult in the eyes of the law. There was drinking involved and, Connor admits, she might have been a little too confrontational with police officers who were asking her to leave.

Connor’s second arrest happened in 1994 for petty theft in a case that also was ultimately dropped. Connor was 30 at the time. She said she and some friends entered a store about five minutes before midnight to purchase alcohol. Stores weren’t, and still aren’t, allowed to sell alcohol after midnight.

Connor said she had a disagreement with the clerk who claimed he couldn’t sell to her because of the time. She slammed a $20 onto the counter and left, booze in hand.

That was 25 years ago.

Now Connor is older. She’s worked a career as a paralegal and has made civic duty part of her daily life, contacting city staff and members of City Council frequently to discuss issues.

One of them affects her district and raises a potential safety issue.

The exit ramp from Northbound Interstate 275 to 31st Street South has just one left-hand turn lane and during peak travel times that lane backs all the way up the exit ramp and onto the highway.

“If someone who is distracted or maybe a tired semi-truck driver comes barreling through there, that could be a really bad situation,” Connor said.

Connor said it wasn’t easy to talk about her past mistakes, but she knew they’d come up when she decided to run for office.

Now, Connor said, she hopes she can put the issue behind her.

“I look forward to running a campaign focused on the issues and how we can make St. Petersburg a better place for everyone, especially the residents of District 5,” Connor said.