|
Coe makes second visit to grand juryBy SUE CARLTON, DAVID KARP and RICHARD DANIELSON © St. Petersburg Times, published November 18, 1998 Two of Coe's felony prosecutors, who also said they were voluntary witnesses and not subjects in the federal public corruption investigation, also spent time before the grand jury during its daylong session Tuesday. At issue in the investigation into allegations of impropriety at the county courthouse is the trial of Stephanie Tanner, convicted of shooting her girlfriend dead after an argument. During Tanner's trial, state prosecutors looked at allegations of evidence tampering. The allegations centered on a defense expert's testimony about whether Tanner could have thought the rifle used in the shooting was unloaded. Prosecutors brought the expert witness to the State Attorney's Office under subpoena and questioned him about conversations with defense lawyers Eddie Suarez and Bennie Lazzara, concentrating on whether evidence had been manipulated. The expert denied any impropriety, and the trial proceeded. Tampa lawyer John Fitzgibbons, who reviewed trial testimony and evidence while representing Tanner on appeal, said Tuesday that there was "not a single thing in the record that would show there was any impropriety with anyone within the trial." Fitzgibbons has been questioned by anti-corruption prosecutors regarding the case but is not a subject in the investigation. What may now have the interest of investigators is the connection between Suarez and Curt Morgan, who during the trial was a high-ranking prosecutor in Coe's office. According to court records, Suarez' firm represented Morgan in a civil case at that time. Morgan did not try the Tanner case but was consulted by trial prosecutors when they wanted to subpoena the defense expert. Neither Suarez nor Morgan, now a Polk prosecutor, could be reached for comment Tuesday. Appearing before the grand jury Tuesday were Kim Seace, a trial prosecutor in the Tanner case, and Ed Schmoll, who helped question the defense expert. After his testimony Tuesday, Coe spoke of "the honesty and integrity" of his current employees and emphasized that they had done nothing wrong. Asked if he would say the same of former employees, Coe replied, "That's for the grand jury to say." Asked whether he thought there was any wrongdoing in the Tanner case, Coe repeated, "That's for the grand jury to decide." Also Tuesday, the Florida Bar opened an investigation into Suarez in a separate case involving the same anti-corruption prosecutor who has appeared in the recent grand jury proceedings. In that case, a member of a stolen car ring accused Suarez of soliciting false testimony in a 1993 sworn statement. Bar officials said no investigation has been opened regarding Morgan. Tanner, who was charged with second-degree murder but convicted of the lesser charge of manslaughter, is serving a maximum 17-year prison sentence. Her current attorney, Bruce S. Rogow of Fort Lauderdale, said he has not yet filed any motions for post-conviction relief but is "waiting and watching" the grand jury proceedings in Tampa with interest. Rogow said he could not say whether investigators or prosecutors have been in touch with him and would not discuss Tanner's reaction to the investigation. "Obviously something's afoot, and it relates to events involving Miss Tanner's trial," he said. "And so we are sitting and waiting to see how these events unfold." William Malloy, father of the victim in the Tanner case, said Tuesday he "can't imagine" what a grand jury might be looking at. "We'd be very interested," Malloy said. "Because we thought we'd put this whole thing to bed."
Business |
Citrus |
Columnists |
Commentary |
|
AMPA -- Calling himself "a procedural witness," Hillsborough State Attorney Harry Lee Coe appeared for the second time in a week before the federal grand jury that is scrutinizing a 1997 manslaughter case.
