Pasco: Former acting mayor to speak to grand jury

Former acting mayor to speak to grand jury

Bob Leggiere says he is glad he will get a chance to speak about the matter involving the building department.

By MATTHEW WAITE

PORT RICHEY -- Bob Leggiere on Wednesday said he's "thrilled" now that a grand jury has invited him to testify March 22 in its investigation into the Port Richey building department.

A day after the grand jury told a Pasco judge it was investigating "matters in the city of Port Richey," a courier delivered a letter Wednesday morning to the former acting mayor and current mayoral candidate that said the grand jury is looking into "allegations of improprieties affecting the building department."

Also appearing before the grand jury March 22 will be Greg Schneider, who left Port Richey in June after two weeks on the job claiming Leggiere interfered with him.

The letter was the first time Leggiere had heard from an authority on this matter since news of an investigation surfaced in July.

"This is my opportunity to give them my information," he said. "I'm glad it's coming to a head so we can get . . . some solutions to this thing."

What Leggiere and Schneider will be asked still is a matter of secrecy, but it was Schneider's departure that brought the investigation to light eight months ago.

Schneider, in his June resignation letter, said Leggiere interfered with his work as building official. Leggiere all along has denied he ever interfered with Schneider.

Schneider, who now works in Tarpon Springs' Building Department, declined to talk about his invitation but confirmed he has been asked to appear March 22.

What is important in both letters is the terms used. In legal terms, there is a significant difference between an invitation and a subpoena.

"It's called immunity," said J. Larry Hart, a local defense attorney and former state and federal prosecutor.

Hart said someone "invited" to talk to a grand jury has no promise of immunity from prosecution. If someone is subpoenaed, Hart said they do have a form of immunity.

Hart represented three City Council members who were asked to talk to State Attorney's Office investigators in October about the investigation. Hart wouldn't talk about his clients Wednesday afternoon, but the council members have said Hart advised them not to speak with investigators without a subpoena.

Leggiere said he plans to bring boxes of information he compiled in his two terms as a Port Richey City Council member. In his final speech as acting mayor, Leggiere said he had evidence of fraud and missing public records in the building department.

The grand jury heard testimony Tuesday from Port Richey police Chief William Downs, who started the investigation, and two former building officials: Ralph Zanello, now working in Hernando County's building office, and Rune Lero, who works in Pasco's building department.

Zanello was Port Richey's first full-time building official and left under tense conditions in 1999. His tenure was dotted with trouble, including him being linked to overbilling federal agencies for aquatic plants and a 90-day probation for improperly lobbying for a rezoning.

Lero was hired to replace Zanello, but Lero left the city after four months to go back to Pasco County. Between April and June, the city didn't have a building official and rehired Zanello as a consultant -- a move that angered council members.

Schneider was hired to replace Lero. Schneider left in June and was replaced a month later by current building official Bill Sanders.

-- Staff writer Matthew Waite can be reached in west Pasco at 869-6247 or (800) 333-7505, ext. 6247. His e-mail address is waite@sptimes.com.