Two "releases" were emailed to Escambia Commissioners today--purportedly newsworthy.
One was a ridiculous piece of garbage, more suited to a publication like "The Onion" or the "Babylon Bee" than anything newsworthy. It was authored by Commissioner Doug Underhill and sent out as a press release "From the Desk of Doug Underhill" (as if that carries any weight or means anything...)
Essentially, it was a rant about how "mean" Commissioner Bergosh was at the previous day's meeting. Boo hoo.
The fact of the matter is Commissioner Underhill knows not what he's talking about, and his ideal redistricting process and vision would pull a sitting elected official out of her district against her wishes, and would also pull 3 schools out of School Board District 1 to the chagrin of the current School Board Member for D1, Kevin Adams, who does not want that. In short, Doug's blabbering about mice in his pocket and his ill-informed, ignorant, and disjointed vision of what he hopes his district will look like post redistricting was embarrassing. It was ill-advised, uninformed and out of the gate will be a non-starter. I totally debunked his idea this morning in a blog post that's getting crushed with hits and also on Rick Outzen's podcast. Here's the way this works: Doug's ideas about what he wants carry no weight whatsoever with the three elected representatives from District 1. And after his stinging, public rebuke via censure by his peers a few weeks back, Doug looks to be just about fresh out of friends on the board of county commissioners as well. So there was his release. Anyone who got it, after they were done with a good belly laugh if they actually read it, were probably a.) tripping over themselves to slam dunk it into the nearest trash can they could find as quickly as they could or b.) dislocating their index finger by too-quickly hitting the "delete" button on their computer to "86" this written heap of rancid, gibberish-laden, opinionated nothingness.
The second release, however, was no laughing matter. Nope, for Doug Underhill, this second release signals big problems ahead--as it is/was a legitimate, bonafide press release from the Florida Commission on Ethics--and it's newsworthy because it points to some alleged conduct by Underhill for which the ethics commission has now made findings of probable cause. In fact, it is so significant--it has already been covered by multiple Pensacola news outlets already --- here and here. No doubt it will probably be on the 6:00 news tonight as well. Your can read this actual news release here. Unlike Doug's feeble, failed attempt at creating a "press release" about me----this real press release about him was cutting. And Legitimate. And Serious. From the release:
"The Commission considered a complaint filed against Escambia
County
Commissioner DOUGLAS UNDERHILL. The Commission found
probable cause to
believe that Mr. Underhill misused his position by publicly
sharing or publishing
confidential transcripts, including minutes from Escambia
County Commission
meetings. Probable cause also was found to believe the
information he disclosed was
only available to him as a public officer and gained by
reason of his official position.
Probable cause was found on three allegations that related
to Mr. Underhill soliciting donations through a GoFundMe page including
soliciting donations from a vendor,
lobbyist or principal of a lobbyist of the County, accepting
prohibited donations to his
personal legal defense fund from a vendor, lobbyist or the
principal lobbyist of the
County, and failing to disclose reportable gifts in excess
of $100 on a From 9, Quarterly
Gift Disclosure. Regarding two additional allegations
relating to the reporting of gifts,
probable cause was found to believe Mr. Underhill failed to
report on a Form 9,
Quarterly Gift Disclosure, free personal legal services,
provided by a law firm, as well as
travel and shipping expenses provided to him by a non-profit
organization."
How much do you want to bet pnj won’t cover the story? The real power behind pnj needs their redistricting desires for downtown to go through and Douglas is their key to making that happen. You’re in their way though.
ReplyDeleteIf recent experience is any indicator, I'm pretty sure this is what it looks like when the walls start closing in on a bad actor.
ReplyDeleteIt's heartening to see that Studio 850 covered it. Hopefully people--everybody but the Escambia Rose War Room--will finally get what's going on. For those of us who have been determined to expose Doug's malfeasance, it has never been about politics, except in the sense that Doug and his dwindling cohort is a cancer on the community because of his waning political power, and that cancer needs to be excised from policy making and his bully pulpit so our community can move forward.
While it's sad, I guess it's no surprise whatever that, rather than do the smart thing and plead guilty and take the settlement, Doug has instead stated that he looks forward to an investigation of all the findings.
I'll bet you do, bud. Good luck with that.
Here's what I don't get: why don't his lawyers finally put an end to this? I have to believe they don't understand that he has been lying to them--or, more properly said, that he has been representing his own insane fantasy world to them, and they unfortunately have believed it. Perhaps while they are going unpaid, they are unaware that he signed on for a lucrative government job making 160K a year in June, just a couple of months before he closed on 35 acres up near the Alabama border that were appraised at 40ish K but that he purchased for over 400. Yet he won't pay his attorneys.
And yes, Jacqueline: Discovery is indeed a bitch. As I told Edler she would find out, and as she did. Don't think you know for one minute what Doug has been up to. While you hide the lesser of his crimes, he has hidden from you the worst ones. Remember when you were so sure I lied on the DOH complaint? For once, you ought to just quit while you're way, way behind. You've been out-researched, out-smarted, and outer limits for a long time now.
Doug, please just recognize you're at the end of the line this go. You've had a damn good run, I'll hand it to you. But as you and I and a lot of other people are well aware, you've got a lot more serious problems pending off that contracting "license" of yours. Ethics findings are one thing, and these are serious, and some of them rise to the level of criminality. Possible felonies and potential fraud across state lines are quite another.
When I signed off on my individual battle to expose you in taking a break from Facebook, you should have known that it's a wrap--as you said to Grover that night on the dais, "enemies accumulate." You can't even send out a press announce from your cubby without it getting leaked in a hot minute. Rise and Fall should have taught you better than this. Your nature is to create enemies where there weren't any, and you unfortunately sure know how to pick them. When I started battling you on bad policy like the Navy Point shell disaster and the roundabout on the Beach, I thought I was just dealing with a jerk who lied a lot.
In the end, you trained me up to be a better citizen advocate. And because of you, a lot of us got stronger, smarter, and faster. So in a weird way, your tenure was worth something. All those false exhortations over on ECW did nothing to pull down the innocent people you were playing your war games on. But they did in fact do a lot to train up a community on having the courage and wherewithal to learn how to demand transparency, obtain documents, see clearly, and as a result take care of a problem in the ranks such as you are. If you end up behind bars where you belong, maybe you can at least take comfort in that.
Here’s a prime example of Pino’s sick obsession with Underhill and Rogers. She had little to nothing to do with this complaint yet she’s more than willing to hold FB parties the night before and take a victory lap today. What’s more disturbing is we have county employees that are more than willing to hand private and personal information over to Mel. Wouldn’t that be against county policy? That’s not much different than what Underhill is accused of doing. Oh, Mel you didn’t win your case against Edler. She dropped her lawsuit. That’s hardly a win and if she had continued, I believe you would be more inclined to keep quiet. Speaking of lawsuits did you ever pay your attorney? The one thing we can look forward to when Underhill finishes this term is Mel will fade away. She’ll still be chasing him around the north end of the county, but we won’t have to listen to her nonsense every meeting. I was always taught when people are talking about you it’s because they’re jealous and you’re ate up with that Mel.
DeleteDoug told Ray in a PM to call somebody a carpetbagger that'd shut them up.
ReplyDeletePretty astonishing which media outlets cover which stories--and which stories and what news gets ignored....I thought this was mainly a national media phenomenon until I was elected locally. But it's not. William Reynolds at NorthEscambia shoots it straight, and he knew this was news when he saw it, and he went with it. Rick Outzen published it. Crickets from PNJ (not surprisingly) and WEAR (somewhat surprising). So yes, he is entitled to due process and to make his case before a judge, we all know this. But the sheer fact that this is so uncommon makes it newsworthy--therefore the lack of coverage by two big outlets is disappointing. Put another way--if it was me that was facing these charges--PNJ would put it on the front page, with a follow-on editorial the subsequent Sunday, and at least one cartoon. And here's the thing: I'd probably deserve it (if I had this list of issues for which a state commission found probable cause). Again, the local media, particularly the print media are totally conscripted by special interests. Why they put a halo over the head of some public figures like Doug Underhill (with more lawsuits, ethics complaints, and censures than any other County Commissioner in the 200 year history of the Escambia County) and demonize others (Me, with no ethics complaints nor lawsuits--only strong opinions some dislike)is something to really ponder. If PNJ's "Patron" says "ignore it"--they obey. They are very obedient. So much so, that in my opinion if certain public figures were caught in a compromising position, on Palafox street, with a farm animal--PNJ wouldn't cover it if the Patron said "nah, we don't need to do a story on that." It really is pathetic. But here is an interesting nugget, a factual event that happened. At a recent, very high-profile murder trial over which my brother presided, the irresponsible PNJ printed something prematurely, something that created chaos in the courtroom, potentially biasing the jury and necessitating the judge and the attorneys query potential jurors prior to the commencement of the trial--to ascertain who may have become biased over what PNJ printed. Of over 50 citizens questioned----the vast majority stated they get their news from TV and about 10 of them said they get their news from NorthEscambia.com. Only two (2) of the 50 even mentioned the PNJ. But hey, who cares right? The white, liberal cartoonist makes money for Gannett, uses the "N-Word" in cartoons, Rooms to Go spends big money advertising, and they all carry on as frauds. That's what they all are.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like PNJ did, in fact, do a story on this. It posted this morning after my original comments were made. Good. Glad to see this. It's newsworthy.
ReplyDelete1. Anonymous 10:36 PM, your post is a prime example of someone who has no idea what he or she is talking about.
ReplyDeleteFor years I have been posting publicly, speaking at the podium, and circulating Sunshine emails on the very topics--some in a particular, and some in a general sense--that the Ethics Commission presided over last week. My circulation of documents demonstrating Doug's financial misdoings while in office predates my understanding of the role of the County Attorney, as I thought the proper way to expose these things was to inform her in Sunshine emails with the Commission cc'd. There are emails going back almost four years on that note, and they include me raising the issue of him not properly reporting financials, including on his financial disclosures with the County. I have consistently circulated information in every way possible about far more shady doings than what pertains to the Ethics Committee not just publicly, but to other agencies.
I tried to file a complaint with the state's attorney's office on some of these financials, but was informed by Greg Marcille that the proper venue was the Ethics Committee. At that time, I started working up a complaint to send there, but the Douggite cohort got in front of it by landing a lawsuit on me for trying to expose Dr. Edler's offshoot in this horrible chaos that has been visited on our County for far too long by this nexus of corruption and propaganda. Obviously, I couldn't bring an ethics complaint while having to deal with that mess, and advocating for the innocent EMS people having their lives destroyed by the evil actions of others was far more important than anything having to do with Doug, other than his horrible place in spinning the disinformation machine on them and smearing their good names while he covered for some of the real certificate shenanigans.
Doug being Doug, he of course didn't quit, but continued to churn out violations during that period. This community owes David Bear a huge debt of gratitude for stepping in to finally put the brakes on Doug's runaway freight train, not just through this ethics complaint (which, from my observations, could possibly have multiple other instances added in the time since the original complaint was filed), but through his federal suit against him for violating constitutional rights--something he has done continually and with flagrant hypocrisy. The docket on that makes pretty clear how well that is going for him, while a state suit is apparently in abeyance, perhaps awaiting that outcome.
In the meantime, I was forwarded the transcripts that Doug released from the shade meetings on the Innerarity sewer from multiple residents in Innerarity. I immediately raised the alarm on his potential ethics violation to the County, on social media, and spoke to it at the podium.
On numerous occasions I have spoken to Doug's improprieties concerning his jet ski activities (his transport of equipment for a jet ski event in Perdido concerning one of his probable cause findings), which finally resulted in him being written up by the County for operating a commercial venture in an MDR neighborhood. He lied on the dais and said no such thing happened, when he had publicly advertised a 50 bucks a head scenario for his jet ski school, which is why the County had no choice but to write the violation upon my complaint.
When Doug put up his gift fund, I immediately recognized that he would probably violate off that as well--he seems not to be able to help himself--and encouraged people publicly to make donations so that we could get a paper trail on his activity and ascertain through receipts and other documents that he was indeed running the fund himself. He favored me with a message in my GoFundMe thank you email for my donation that I was the most miserable person he had ever met. (His message to Kevin Wade was "grow up little" boy. David Bear posted his insult as well, but I don't recall what it was.)
2.
ReplyDeleteThat is just a very brief list of the improprieties and constant malfeasance with which Doug has shamed his commission during the entirety of his office.
Of course Doug deserves a fair trial, as does everyone. Anyone familiar with the gravity with which the Ethics Commission takes probable cause is well aware, however, that the reason most people with probable cause findings settle--let alone someone with the number and seriousness of his results--is because they recognize that the Ethics Committee doesn't fling cause around with no reason. If Doug were wise, he would settle. That's a big if, of course. The "party" I held on Facebook before I deactivated for a break from it was mostly because I was so happy to be looking forward to a break from Facebook insanity. But in addition, yes, I am so well aware of everything Doug has been up to, I knew there was very little chance that the Committee wouldn't find probable cause.
Commissioner Bergosh, I figured that we might see coverage of this from Jim Little. I've come to have a lot of respect for Jim's reporting, and will be forever grateful to him for the fair, thorough coverage he has given the EMS situation in the past year. He might not be as quick on the draw as some other reporters, but I figured he might drop something this morning, as he often posts articles in the morning off of things that have broken the previous afternoon. As far as WEAR goes, I have a lot of respect for locals in that agency (as I know you do), but shared your disappointment they didn't air anything last night. I wish Chorus Nylander was still here to report it--one of the most ethical and caring area media people I've known. As quickly as Sinclair cycles people through--they don't like to let any grass grow, for sure--it's difficult for any beat reporters to have a through-line or history on local current events. That's the way they like it, of course. And there's nothing the local managers can do about the behemoth of Sinclair, an entity that operates with about as high a sense of ethics as Doug Underhill.
I don’t know what Jim Little you are talking about. His pieces on EMS have all been hack jobs. I don’t know if the man has an ounce of journalistic integrity in his body. He definitely needs to take some investigative reporting classes if that’s going to be his angle. If I were in EMS or the county I would have nothing to do with him. His pieces are sensational, sometimes slanderous and completely one sided. He doesn’t even attempt to investigate what he’s been told.
DeleteMelissa- you and I must be reading different articles from Jim Little. His pieces are so biased as to not even pretend to meet any standards of journalistic integrity. He is better suited for the inquirer than a real news source. He might want to take an investigative journalism class if he wants to keep pretending to be some hard nose reporter holding people accountable. He continues to ignore so many details.
DeleteIt’s quite funny how Jacqueline now doesn’t find probable cause a big deal. She had no problem slandering any of the EMS folks who got probable cause. Yes that was proof to her and she ran with it. Her puppet master gets probable cause and it’s no big deal. Just bad guys getting away with hurting the good guys. The woman has no sense of decency in her. What must this woman’s life look like that she is this dark and hateful? It makes you pity her that her life is this sad.
ReplyDeleteDifference is Doug got to make a response, the EMS folks have yet to be able to be interviewed by the investigators. They wanted to have an attorney present and it was denied. Doug’s investigation, findings and his attorneys replies were kept confidential until now. Even the complainant was not given these details.
DeleteDifference is Doug got to make a response, the EMS folks have yet to be able to be interviewed by the investigators. They wanted to have an attorney present and it was denied. Doug’s investigation, findings and his attorneys replies were kept confidential until now. Even the complainant was not given these details.
Deletehttp://ethics.state.fl.us/Documents/Publications/complaint_procedures.pdf
ReplyDelete"Once the Commission makes a probable cause determination, the case becomes
a matter of public record when a written order is filed a few days following the meeting.
A no-probable-cause determination results in the issuance of a public report noting the
finding and dismissing the complaint, at which time it becomes public. If the Commission finds there is probable cause to believe there has been a
violation of the ethics laws, it must decide whether the law actually was violated and, if
so, whether a penalty should be recommended. Either the Respondent can request or
the Commission may order a public hearing (trial) at which evidence will be presented.
These hearings usually are held in or near the geographical location where the alleged
violation occurred and usually are conducted by a Division of Administrative Hearings
(DOAH) administrative law judge. In lieu of a hearing, the Respondent may resolve a
complaint proceeding through a stipulated settlement or consent order entered into with
the Commission Advocate and approved by the Commission.
After the public hearing, the administrative law judge transmits his or her
Recommended Order to the Commission, which then meets to consider that
recommendation for final action. In the case of a public officer, violations of the Code of
Ethics or the Sunshine Amendment may be punished by impeachment, removal or
suspension from office, public censure and reprimand, and/or a civil penalty not to
exceed $10,000 per allegation. A public employee can be dismissed, suspended,
demoted, censured, and/or fined in an amount up to $10,000 per charge."
"Recommended penalties against other public officers, employees, or candidates are
forwarded to the Governor."
Underhill published a statement on WEAR that he plans to fight it.
Rick published the complaints and findings on his blog.
https://ricksblog.biz/the-underhill-investigation-documents/
I guess Doug needed some attention so he posted on Escambia Citizen Watch he had an unnamed pastor hang up on him and said the four of you gave the pastor tax payer money. I would bet he is lying. I guess someone could do a PRR. I'm satisfied to know he is a sick narcissist needing some supply..He said there is a text. So who cares .. what a little sick drama Queenie weinie.
ReplyDeleteHe has to feed his ego.
Here's another for our School Board who so far haven't passed a mask or vaccine mandate:
ReplyDeleteFor some reason, unvaccinated people who speak out loudly in opposition to vaccines and masks keep dying from the virus that vaccines and masks help prevent.
It’s a real head-scratcher, and no state in the country highlights this conundrum better than my home state of Florida, the land of predictable tragedies.
Native Floridians like myself take great pride in knowing we are likely the reason oscillating fans come with warning labels. And I know the state where I was born and raised is now run by a fine and competent man, Gov. Ron DeSantis, who I’m sure earned the nickname “DeathSantis” because of some old Halloween prank and not because Florida has lost more people to COVID-19 than U.S. soldiers killed in the entirety of the Vietnam War.
But I keep seeing headlines like “Florida radio host who called himself ‘Mr. Anti-Vax’ dies of Covid” and reading stories that tell me things like “a Florida county Republican committee that had opposed measures to prevent COVID-19 informed the Federal Election Commission that the group may not be able to submit a filing because its bookkeeper died from the virus.”
So I reached out to my cousin, Gator. (If you’re born in Florida, your name, for at least a portion of your life, is “Gator.” Most of us grow out of the name, but with my cousin, it stuck. When he was 11, an alligator took a bite out of his rear end and “Gator” was the only nickname we could come up with that didn’t sound mean.)
Part 2
ReplyDeleteAnyhoo, Gator told me things down there are a bit more upside down and backward than usual, and he passed along the following transcript of a recent meeting of the Florida GOP Committee on Health Policy. I have to believe this might be authentic, because I’ve never known Gator to lie unless the police are poking around his shed.
Here it is:
Hello everyone, and welcome to this meeting of the Florida GOP Committee on Health Policy. We’re meeting today in this parking lot behind the Hooters in Lakeland because Dale, our treasurer, died of COVID-19 last night and he had sole access to the accounts, so we couldn’t rent out our usual conference room space in the Best Western Plus.
Apologies for any inconvenience and thoughts and prayers to Dale’s family members. At least those who have not also died of COVID-19.
My name is Tad Horkington, and I’m honored to have been named president of the committee following the tragic death of Thomas Bilgenut, the interim president who last week died of COVID-19. Tom had, of course, replaced Hugh Frank, our previous president who died two weeks ago of COVID-19, along with his entire family and the adult football club he coached in Tampa. You’ll always be in our memories, Fightin’ Anti-Vaxxers.
We will not read minutes from last month’s meeting, as our committee secretary, Henry Sanford, is presently hospitalized with COVID-19. We wish him and his loved ones well, send our thoughts and prayers and commend his courageous work on the “MASKS ARE TYRANNY!” float that appeared in the Labor Day parade in Tarpon Springs. Hopefully we can honor Henry and his team at our next meeting, assuming they’re off their ventilators or out of quarantine.
Getting down to business, we need to sign off on the anti-vaccine-mandate statement that was put together by Belinda Thompson prior to her death from COVID-19. Thoughts and prayers to Belinda’s family, all of whom were infected by Belinda at the vaccine protest she organized in a sealed tent outside the Granada Plaza Publix in Dunedin.
The statement, which Belinda composed using her iPhone’s voice dictation feature, reads: “The Florida GOP Committee on Health Policy hereby denounces Sleepy Joe Biden’s TYRANNICAL attempt to COUGH mandate vaccines for anyone COUGH anywhere or at any COUGH time. We encourage all righteous COUGH Americans to stand up against this COUGH COUGH COUGH unlawful government overreach.”
I would propose we vote to approve that fine statement, but unfortunately, due to COVID-19 illnesses, we do not have a quorum.
Sam and Babs Holland both took ill shortly after recording the latest installment of their popular “COVID-19 Is Fake and I’ll Be Healthy Forever” podcast, and the Harrison brothers, Stanley and Margaret Jones, and Phil and Vanessa Dixie all got sick from an outbreak at the Polk County Republican Party’s “No Fauci-Ouchie For Florida” square-dance and rattlesnake festival.
As fate would have it, I’m the only person in attendance today, and even I barely made it as I’m feeling a bit under the weather. Jan Dodson, who is the only committee officer allowed to change the rules on voting, is unfortunately visiting her husband Zeke, who is in Tampa General Hospital’s COVID ward.
They won’t let her in because she patriotically refuses to wear a mask, so kudos to Jan for standing in the parking lot holding a sign that reads “STAY STRONG, ZEKE AND DON’T LET THEM MICROCHIP YOU!!”
Part 3
ReplyDelete(Please use the ARP to bail out the school board if DeSantis fines them)
COUGH! Excuse me. I’m sure it’s just a cold.
I will now conclude this meeting of the Florida GOP Committee on Health Policy. COUGH! I feel a bit feverish, so I’m going to go into the Hooters without a mask to get a beer and some wings and yell in people’s faces about freedom.
God bless COUGH! America.
Sign up here to receive Rex Huppke’s columns by email as soon as they are published.
rhuppke@chicagotribune.com