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No charges in resort controversy

By TImes staff writer
Published January 27, 2007

YANKEETOWN - Now it's official: This town's top prosecutor has announced that his office will not file criminal charges in the Yankeetown municipal scandal.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement began investigating in May. It had received numerous letters and phone calls from residents who accused town leaders of Sunshine Law violations and conspiring with developers who want to build a resort hotel on the Withlacoochee River.

The agency finished its work in mid December. A prosecutor based in Bronson said he didn't find sufficient probable cause that would warrant prosecution.

But the final decision rested with Bill Cervone, the state attorney for the 8th Judicial Circuit, which includes Levy County. (Citrus County is in the 5th Judicial Circuit.)

In a letter dated Monday and addressed to an FDLE official, Cervone wrote that he had reviewed the FDLE's report and determined that "there is nothing to substantiate or warrant a criminal prosecution."

Alleged Sunshine Law violations: The evidence shows that town officials "were properly advised and did their best to follow the advice of counsel in avoiding inappropriate discussion of the matters at issue," Cervone wrote.

Anything that "might arguably be a violation" was "technical and inadvertent and lacked any criminal intent," he wrote.

FDLE agents determined that former Mayor Jimmie Wall and former Town Attorney Clark Stillwell had held preliminary discussions with the developers regarding the legal format for the submission of their proposal to the town.

"At the advice of Attorney Stillwell, this information was not discussed with other Town Council members," the summary reads.

Alleged misuse of office: "I see no evidence establishing that any town official has engaged in such, either from town records or records privately held and obtained during" the FDLE investigation, Cervone wrote.

Though Helen Ciallella sat on the Town Council and planning board while she had her property under contract to the developers, investigators determined that this had not led to any direct conflicts of interest.

Cervone further noted that he found no evidence that original official records from the town had been destroyed.

FDLE agents conducted interviews with more than 50 people. Thirty-one incident reports were generated and hundreds of pages of documents reviewed. Three special agents and one analyst logged more than 400 hours of investigative time.

[Last modified January 26, 2007, 20:47:44]