George Niemann is a Daily Loaf contributor, R-LAND, UCAN and FSP activist.
The views expressed are my own and not necessarily the same as the organizations to which I belong.
State Senator Jim Norman will have to face the Ethics Commission at a Probable Cause Hearing in Tallahassee on February 3, 2012. Numerous ethics complaints were filed by citizens following the discovery that Norman’s wife purchased a vacation home in Arkansas using money given to her by the late Ralph Hughes, a politically connected business owner tied to land development in Hillsborough County.
Previously the Feds looked carefully at the details of the $500,000 that changed hands in 2006 for possible criminal violations. In November of 2011, the feds decided not to indict Norman. As is often the case, prosecutors factor in their chances of winning a conviction when making a decision to charge criminally. Hughes’ son claimed that the money his father gave Norman’s wife, Mearline, was a loan. Hmmmm…a loan made six years ago with no arrangements for paying it back??? Oops, I think I just saw a pig fly by!!! The fact that there were no friendly witnesses probably factored heavily into US Attorney O’Neill’s decision not to indict.
