Commissioner Michelle Spence-Jones has been charged with bribery. She is accused of accepting a bribe from developer Armando Codina.
Prosecutors have to prove that Armando Codina expected a favorable vote in exchange for his $12,500 check to her charitable cause. Ricardo Glas also wrote a $12,500 check.
If there is a case of bribery, then Armando Codina, and Ricardo Glas should also be charged. This seems like a case of selective prosecution or discrimination. Of course, I am not surprised that discrimination exists in America. Discrimination that has existed since the conception of the United States. One would think that the powers to be would try to eliminate discrimination, but it seems as if there is a lesson in the past. Just as some leaders of the past were perpitrators of discriminations, some leaders of today are perpetrators of discrimination. Just as there were victims of discrimination in the past, there are current victims of discrimination.
Bribery prosecutions hinge on the idea of quid pro quo, meaning someone paid money to a public official anticipating something of value in return.
Codina, says he "never intended to pay a bribe". He believed that the donation to Spence-Jones in March 2006 was simply for a gala honoring former County Commissioner Barbara Carey Shuler. "There was no expectation of a favorable vote from Commissioner Spence-Jones", according to Codina spokesperson Bruce Rubin.
Armando Codina asked Ricardo Glas to split a $25,000 contribution to Spence-Jones' nonprofit agency, Friends of MLK Trust. As a result, Codina and Ricardo each cut a $12,500 check.
As a matter of fact Spence-Jones never voted on the article in question.
Spence-Jones, declared that she had "no access to the Friends of MLK account".
Governor Charlie Crist seems obsessed with prosecuting Michelle Spence-Jones.
Even today, 2010, African Americans can be prosecuted with a total disregard for justice. Even today, 2010, African Americans can be unjustly prosecuted in their face. Even today, 2010, African Americans can be unjustly prosecuted, as they watch. Even today, 2010, African Americans can be unjustly prosecuted, and the accuser can have total immunity from falsely accusing an African American. It is historical racism, traditional racism, and inherent racism. It is historical discrimination, traditional discrimination, and inherent discrimination.
It seems as if the dream has not been realized; African Americans still "are not free".
Frederick Bryant
March 31, 2010
Politics