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Probation ends for Coats' friend

By JOSE CARDENAS
Published December 7, 2006

In a case where Sheriff Jim Coats wrote a letter that he later had second thoughts about, a businessman Wednesday succeeded in getting his probation on a felony traffic charge ended early.

Coats used Sheriff's Office stationery for a letter he wrote on behalf of his close friend and political supporter Robert D. McIntyre, the founder of Ditek, a multimillion-dollar Largo company that makes electronic surge protectors.

McIntyre, 60, of Belleair, had sought an early end to his three years of probation on a charge of leaving the scene of an accident in 2004.

Coats' letter did not address the case directly but said McIntyre "is a man of integrity, professionalism and an upstanding citizen of our community."

After the Times wrote that the sheriff's letter raised questions about the relationship between politics and justice, judicial officials in Pinellas had the case transferred to Hillsborough County.

On Wednesday, Hillsborough Circuit Judge Wayne Timmerman agreed to terminate McIntyre's probation after less than two years.

But Timmerman said the sheriff's letter had no impact on his decision.

"These matters routinely come up before the court," Timmerman said, adding that such defendants are typically granted early termination if they have met certain criteria. "I see no reason to treat this case any different."

McIntyre and Coats have known each other for about a dozen years, serving on the boards of several nonprofit organizations. Coats, who was elected in 2004, rented space for his campaign headquarters at Ditek.

On Aug. 16, 2004, McIntyre was driving a Jeep on Island Way when he ran a red light and hit a Chrysler van broadside at Windward Passage, according to a Clearwater police report.

The driver of the Chrysler, 84-year-old John D. Carey of Clearwater, was taken to Morton Plant Hospital, where he was treated for a hematoma on his spleen.

A cab driver who saw the crash followed McIntyre about 7 miles to Indian Rocks Beach, where Pinellas sheriff's deputies pulled over his Jeep.

Though the crash caused major damage to both vehicles, McIntyre told authorities he had been in a "fender-bender" and the other driver had left the scene, an arrest report states. He was charged with leaving the scene of an accident involving injury, a charge to which he later pleaded no contest.

In April, Coats wrote his letter on McIntyre's behalf. He said he offered to write the letter, the only such correspondence he had written since taking office. The letter was presented to Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Linda Allan on Sept. 29.

Asked by the Times about the letter, Coats initially defended it. Shortly after, he said he would be hesitant to do it again and said the fact that McIntyre was a political supporter could create a "misperception" about his involvement.

A consultant on police standards called the letter "an eyebrow-raiser."

In an order signed Oct. 11, Allan noted that along with the Times story, "previous claims of favoritism and bias have been made as to the actions of certain public officials in this matter."

She also noted that the circuit's elected public defender, Bob Dillinger, was expected "to personally support McIntyre's early termination as well." Dillinger said Wednesday that he too wrote a letter on behalf of McIntyre because he knows him as a friend and as someone who does a lot of good for the community.

While Allan added in her order that she believed she could hear the case fairly, she recused herself, saying "it is essential for the integrity of the judicial system that there be not so much as the appearance of impropriety, bias or partiality by the presiding judge."

After that, Pinellas-Pasco Chief Judge David A. Demers contacted the Florida Supreme Court, which reassigned the case to Timmerman.

In court Wednesday, Pinellas-Pasco assistant state attorney William Loughery was neutral on whether early termination should be granted to McIntyre.

But Air Force Lt. Patrick Carey spoke on behalf of his father, John Carey. He urged that the request be denied.

"There is documented proof that the sheriff attempted to influence the first probation hearing with a personal letter to the court," said Patrick Carey, who is stationed at MacDill Air Force Base. "Only after this grossly inappropriate influence became public did the sheriff withdraw his letter."

John D. Carey, now 87, said he had many complaints about the investigation and the legal process. "I don't know whether (the letter) had an impact or not," Carey said. "This case right from the beginning is collusion."

Outside the courtroom, defense attorney Jay Hebert said he respected the Pinellas court's decision to transfer the case to Hillsborough but said he did not think there was a conflict of interest.

"This is something that Mr. McIntyre was clearly entitled to," Hebert said about the early termination.

Contacted Wednesday, Coats simply said McIntyre deserved "consideration for early termination."

Times staff writer Jose Cardenas can be reached at (727) 445-4224 or jcardenas@sptimes.com.

[Last modified December 6, 2006, 22:45:53]