The State Ethics Commission in Tallahassee ruled on Friday that it had found probable cause to prosecute Tampa area Republican Representative Jim Norman for failing to disclose a $500,000 gift made to his wife by the late Ralph Hughes, the conservative Hillsborough County power broker who died in 2009. But the commission did not find probable cause that Norman had exchanged votes or political favors in exchange for the financial gift.
The hearing was held after three men, including Hillsborough community activist George Niemann, filed a complaint alleging that Norman violated state ethics laws when his wife Mearline used the money to buy and refurbish a lakefront home in Arkansas that Norman did not report on state ethics forms.
Last November U.S. Attorney Robert O'Neill ruled that there was no evidence that Norman had broken any federal criminal laws in the case.
After the hearing on Friday, Norman and his attorney Mark Levine hailed the ruling as a victory, but Niemann called it a "mixed message."
This article appears in Feb 2-8, 2012.