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Wouldn't you think that Charlie Crist as Florida's Attorney General would be familiar with the law, particularly campaign finance law considering the $17.6 million that he has in his war chest in his campaign for Governor?
Wouldn't you think that Anthony S. Battaglia Sr. as the founder and shareholder of one of the oldest law firms in West Central Florida and former member of the Republican National Committee would be aware of Florida's campaign laws?
With Charlie Crist outdistancing his opponent Democrat Jim Davis with donations of more than three times the $5.6 million collected by Davis, why would both Crist and Battaglia seemingly violate state election law for $1,000?
Is it pure arrogance? Is it simply that Crist thinks he's above the law and can selectively comply with the law? Does he know the law? Or is an embarrassing oversight but yet violation by the state's chief law enforcement officer?
According to the financial disclosure statements filed with the Division of Elections, Crist and Battaglia too appear to be subject to criminal sanctions for the excess contributions.
Crist has agreed to participate in a second debate with Davis, this one to be broadcast live on Oct. 30 at 7 p.m. on Florida's NBC stations. It will be held in Tampa. Perhaps they could compare alleged elections law violations as The North Country Gazette is aware that the Davis campaign may have violated the law too.
 Past Chief Justice Barbara Pariente of the Florida Supreme Court stated last year that "election violations are misconduct that this court will not tolerate and not only does the "violator suffer consequences but the entire judiciary suffers the consequences of election violations".
She was addressing his comments at violations in judicial campaigns, but the same is applicable in all campaigns.
Under Florida Statutes, in particular FS 106.08, Florida restricts contributions to individual candidates to $500 per election. Individuals may make unlimited donations to political parties but can't earmark those contributions for a particular candidate.
FS 106.08 (1)(a) specifically reads that except for political parties, no person, political committee, or committee of continuous existence may, in any election, make contributions in excess of $500 to any candidate for election to or retention in office or to any political committee supporting or opposing one or more candidates. Candidates for the offices of Governor and Lieutenant Governor on the same ticket are considered a single candidate for the purpose of this section.
DOE records indicate that on Sept. 28, Anthony S. Battaglia, using an address of 430 72nd St., in St. Petersburg and an occupation of attorney, donated $500 to Crist's campaign. The next day, Sept. 29, Battaglia, using an address of 10622 Park Place Dr., in Seminole and an occupation of mortgage broker, donated another $500 to Crist. At virtually the same time on Sept. 29, another $500 donation was made to Crist by Battaglia Enterprises of 980 Tyrone Blvd., in St. Petersburg, the address of Battagalia, Ross, Discus and Wein law firm, listing an occupation of real estate. The thing is, however, that that corporation of which Anthony S. Battaglia is listed as the registered agent, sole director, president, secretary and treasurer, was administratively dissolved and became inactive as of Sept. 15.
If Anthony Battaglia signed the check for the inactive corporation Battaglia Enterprises, then it appears that the Battaglia is yet another individual contribution, indicating that he contributed $1,500 to the Crist campaign in two days, a violation of law.
According to the record of expenditures for the Crist campaign, the excess money hasn't been returned to Battaglia, indicating that Crist may be in violation of Florida Election Law.
FS 106.08 provides that any person who knowingly and willfully makes or accepts more than one $500 contribution from an individual or who knowingly and willfully fails or refuses to return any contribution as required commits a misdemeanor of the first degree.
The law further provides that any officer, partner, agent, attorney or other representative of a corporation or other business entity or of a political party, political committee…….who aids, abets, advises or participates in a violation of any provision punishable under Section 106 commits a first degree misdemeanor. An individual who knowingly and willfully makes or accepts two or more contributions in excess of the $500 limit per election per candidate commits a felony of the third degree as is any corporate officer or representative of a business entity who participates in the violation.
Reliable sources have advised The North Country Gazette that a formal complaint against Crist and Battaglia has been filed with the Florida Elections Commission.
  
The Battaglia and Crist team are part of the good ole boy Republican network of Pinellas County where Crist has his roots and where Republicans Judge George Greer, state attorney Bernie McCabe and public defender Bob Dillinger hold the reins of "justice".
Several members of the Battaglia firm have connections back to the case of Terri Schindler Schiavo as does Crist who steadfastly refused to become involved as attorney general despite the allegations of abuse, neglect and exploitation of a vulnerable adult, alleged civil rights violations and alleged Medicaid fraud involving the Hospice of Florida Suncoast.
 Kelli Hanley Crabb, a shareholder and attorney with Battaglia, Ross, Dicus and Wein law firm at 980 Tyrone Blvd., St. Petersburg, is the past chair of the Board of Directors for the Hospice Foundation of the Florida Suncoast, past member of the Executive Committee and currently serves on the Foundation Board. She has been with the Battaglia firm since 1984 and currently serves as the secretary of the firm and a member of the firm's executive committee.
Terri Schindler Schiavo was a resident at the Woodside Park Hospice in Pinellas Park, a facility owned and operated by Hospice of Florida Suncoast and where the attorney for her husband who wanted her dead was chairman of the board of directors.
Crist consistently avoided the Schiavo case as did former Pinellas sheriff Everett Rice and McCabe although they should have been front and center in the protection of the disabled woman's civil rights. Less than four months after she died a horrific death, Crist had the audacity to call judges in the Schiavo case "heroes", breaking his silence, saying that he was proud of Pinellas County Court Judge George Greer and U.S. District Court Judge James Whittemore. While he claimed he wasn't endorsing the court rulings against reconnecting Terri's feeding tube which led to her death, others didn't see it that way.
 Crist said that Gov. Jeb Bush shouldn't have gotten involved in the Schiavo case. Strange position for the Attorney General to take, saying that Gov. Bush shouldn't have made at least the appearance of performing the duties of his office. Bush was statutorily and constitutionally empowered to take the incapacitated woman into protective custody and although he obviously didn't have any real intent to do so because he stupidly called a news conference to announce it, at least be gave the appearance he was trying to do something. That's more than Crist did.
Apparently as a reward for his pat on the back to Greer for his role in the Schiavo case, Greer's wife, Gail Patricia Greer, contributed $200 to Crist's campaign on Aug. 18.
Mrs. Greer was selective in who she financially supported in this year's election. She also donated $250 to the campaign of Sen. James King of Jacksonville although she lives outside of his district, across the state in Clearwater. She listed her occupation as an interior designer for both contributions and used a post office address instead of her and the judge's address at 200 Dolphin Point, Unit 201 in Clearwater. She also donated $500 in separate $250 donations to former Pinellas County Sheriff Everett Rice's failed campaign for Attorney General.
Rice, the former employer of the mother   of Michael Schiavo's 10-year live-in lover, now wife, hired Michael Schiavo (left) prior to leaving the sheriff's office to become a member of Florida's House of Representatives in District 54, the same seat previously held by John Carassas (right), former assistant attorney general in Crist's office and now a judge in the Sixth Judicial Circuit, appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush at the same time that Bush appointed Edwin Jagger to the bench, another Battaglia law partner.
Prior to Carassas being tapped for the bench, both he and his wife donated the maximum possible to Crist's campaign on May 28, 2005.
By the judge's wife selectively contributing to principals in the Schiavo case, it smacks of impropriety and appears that Greer is indirectly greasing the palm of Crist and rewarding King for helping ensure that Greer's death edict in the Schiavo case was upheld by King who blocked legislation in the Florida Senate during the spring of 2005 which would have caused Terri's feeding tube to be reinserted and would have saved her life.
Crist blatantly told the public in a televised statement that there had been no complaints of abuse made to the state Department of Children and Families (DCF) a week after a DCF file in the matter was acknowledged in the Schiavo case. He lied to the public.
In one of his newsletters to the public as attorney general, Crist said that "one of the greatest features of our system of democracy is the role government can play in protecting private citizens. Florida's government has a number of safeguards built into it, many of them designed to protect consumers for exploitation".
Crist didn't employ those safeguards to protect Terri Schiavo.
Perhaps in the Schiavo case, as in the case of these suspect campaign contributions by Battaglia, it's because Charlie Crist, even though he's in the office of attorney general, simply doesn't know the law. If he isn't capable and competent enough to properly perform the duties of the office of attorney general, he certainly couldn't handle the office of governor. After all, it took Crist three tries to pass the Florida Bar exam and he seems to have a problem with ethics too, coming under scrutiny of the Florida Elections Commission for allegedly using his office of education commissioner to campaign for the position of attorney general.
The investigation of the alleged Medicaid fraud in the Schiavo case was also within the scope of his AG duties, policing what has become Florida's $12 billion per year Medicaid program, but he turned his head to that too.
Despite receiving nearly $600,000 in an insurance settlement and some $750,000 earmarked by a jury to provide rehabilitative services to Terri Schiavo, Michael Schiavo asked Judge George Greer to have Medicaid pay Terri's medical bills. And Greer agreed. Thing is, in that Michael refused to divorce her, how could he own any assets such as he claims he co-owned a house with his concubine and claims in his book that they owned a deli business. Did he declare those assets to Medicaid? If he had assets and was capable of paying for her care, why did he apply to Medicaid and why did Greer allow him to do so.
Thing is, Terri Schiavo was placed in a hospice by Michael Schiavo and his lawyer, Felos who was chairman of the board of the hospice at the time, a Greek compatriot of Crist. In order to be placed in a hospice legally and for Medicaid to foot the bill, there must be a diagnosis of terminal illness by two doctors and the maximum stay is six months. She was in the hospice for five years.
Why didn't Crist investigate this potential Medicaid fraud? Medicaid fraud can take many forms and cost Floridians hundreds of millions of dollars each year, Crist's own website states. So why didn't his office investigate the Schiavo situation? Or was it because he was waiting to assess which way the wind blew in terms of political fallout and he determined it was politically advantageous to stay out of the Schiavo case?
Crist was a participant in the investiture ceremony of John Carassas and Edwin Jagger as judges in the Sixth Judicial Circuit. Among the invited guests was Andreas Psycharis, Greek consulate general assigned to Greece's consulate in Tampa. He was seated next to Crist at the investiture ceremony along with Ken Burke, clerk of the Pinellas County Court; state attorney Bernie McCabe and Pinellas County Sheriff Jim Coats, Rice's successor. See Photo
The Greek Cypriot community held a fund-raiser for Florida's attorney general in St. John's in Tenafly, NJ, last spring and if you couldn't attend, "a monetary contribution will be appreciated", said The Hellenic News. Why did Greeks in New Jersey hold a fundraiser for Florida's attorney general quest to become Governor?
Was this yet another case of hang together or we'll all hang separately---just another good ole boys club---with club members Crist, George Felos, Dr. Peter Bambakidis and Gus Bilirakis?
Bilirakis and Felos are yet additional hospice board members with Battaglia shareholder Kelli Crabb.
 While Michael Schiavo and his attorney, George Felos relentlessly persisted in their quest to cause the death of disabled Terri Schiavo by judicial homicide in consort with Pinellas County probate Judge George W. Greer, Crist stood idly by, allowing federal and state civil rights laws to be grossly violated, failing to protect one of Florida's most vulnerable persons from egregious discrimination.
From the time of March 18, 2005, when Terri's nutrition and hydration was stopped by judicial order of Greer until she died 13 days later, Crist kept a low profile, leading many to charge that he was neglecting the duties of his office.
Just how tight in that Greek fraternal organization are Crist, Felos and Florida Rep. Gus Bilirakis along with Gust Bambakidis, older brother of "expert" witness Peter Bambakidis who was the tie-breaking physician, Greer's choice, in arbitrarily determining that Terri Schiavo was in a persistent vegetative state and should die?
It looks like that the members of that Greek fraternal organization, whose mission is to defeat bigotry and racism and to bring the ideals of ancient Greece---philanthropy, education, civil responsibility, family and individual excellence to the community---instead united to work against family values and civil responsibility, worked together to feather their own political beds and line their pockets.
The Hellenic organization embraces Charlie Crist, raising money for him. Somehow we don't think that the intent of the philantrophic mission of AHEPA includes buying politicians.
 AHEPA is a Greek fraternal organization that counts among its members Gust Bambakidis, chairman of the physics department at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio.
These Greek fraternity "brothers" played a key role in the Schiavo case. At the time that Felos, a former AHEPA governor, sought to amend the state law with House Bill 2131 to change the legal definition of life prolonging procedures to add including artificially provided sustenance and hydration which sustains, restores or supplants a spontaneous vital function", bill co-sponsor, Rep. Gus Bilirakis was a member of the board of directors of the Hospice of Florida Suncoast, the board which Felos chaired. Although Felos was no longer hospice chairman in 1999, during the time that the revisions were being formulated, he was still on the board of the Hospice of Florida Suncoast and so this puts the legality of Chapter 765 into question. These revisions were also applied retroactively to Terri's case.
In 2002 when Dr. Peter Bambakidis was assigned by Greer to be an independent examining physician in the Schiavo case, charged with providing an independent medical review, Terri's parents and supporters charged that Bambakidis had a personal relationship with Felos, an allegation which Felos refused to address.
The supporters based their accusation on marketing materials distributed by Felos in which he listed some of the professional and social organizations in which he holds membership. The materials stated that "A member of the Florida Bar and Clearwater Bar Association, Felos served as a member of the Clearwater Bar Appellate Law Committee, as governor of the American Hellenic Education Progressive Association (AHEPA), and as chair of numerous National Association of Securities Dealers arbitration panels".
In his position, not only is it likely that he was familiar with the Bambakidis family, but that fellow board member Bilirakis was familiar with the Bambakidis family. It is yet unexplained how George Greer came to choose a doctor from Ohio was the court appointed physician as part of the five-doctor panel to make a decision as to whether or not Terri Schiavo was PVS.
It was learned that the Ohio chapter of the AHEPA was managed by Gust Bambakidis. He maintained that his younger brother who testified at the Schiavo trial was not a member of AHEPA. Schindler supporters maintained that Felos should have disclosed his membership in the same organization as that of Bambakidis's brother and relationship with the Bambakidis family.
Five doctors testified regarding the cognitive state of Terri Schiavo. The doctors split 2-2 with Bambakidis, the court-appointed attorney, testifying that he knew of no treatments that would improve Terri's condition leading Greer to rule that the brain damaged woman was in a persistent vegetative state with no hope for recovery, a finding that has been disputed by numerous medical professionals.
 During testimony in 2002, Bambakidis was asked repeatedly by Schindler attorney Patricia Anderson if he had any personal relationship with Felos. Bambakidis insisted that he did not know of Felos prior to being appointed by Judge Greer but he could not provide sufficient explanation how he came to be appointed, especially considering he had never testified in any similar court case prior to the 2002 trial of Terri Schindler-Schiavo. He was not an established expert witness, in fact, had never testified before as an expert witness on any issue.
Although removing natural food and water from an individual is against the law in Florida, as Greer did in his final death Schiavo death order, Crist stood idly by and refused to become involved.
Anthony S. Battaglia, a former chief assistant U.S. attorney, served as a member of the Republican National Committee for Florida from 1956-1964 and as a member of the Florida Bar Board of Governors from 1992-1998.
Battaglia has also served as president of the St. Petersburg Bar Association and is past president of the U.S. Attorneys Association of the Middle District of Florida. Battaglia served as chairman of the Federal District Courthouse for St. Petersburg and on the Judicial Nomination Committee of the Sixth Judicial Circuit. 1987-90.
Battaglia's former law partner and former assistant state attorney Walter A. Fullerton III, was appointed a Pinellas County judge in 1987.
The people are supposed to be the ones who choose judges but in cases when a judge resigns or retires and a vacancy is created, the Governor fills that vacancy by appointment after a nominating commission screens and recommends potential candidates.
In September, 1992, and the first year that Greer was elected to the bench, Michael L. Hastings, a shareholder with Battaglia's law firm, was named to the 6th Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission.
Carassas, Crist's long-time friend and former assistant, and Jagger, Battaglia's former law associate, were recommended to Bush for judicial posts by the Sixth Judicial Circuit Judicial Nomination Committee, the same committee of which Battaglia is a former member.
Battaglia, Robert Jagger who is the father of Edwin Jagger and a long-time Pinellas County public defender, and Abry Dicus, another Battaglia law associate, were members of the committee to elect Everett Rice Attorney General. Also on the Rice committee were Barry Cohen, the attorney who represented Greer in the Schiavo case at the time he defied a federal subpoena for her to testify before a Congressional committee; McCabe, Scientology attorney Wally Pope, Louis Kwall, whose wife represented Rice and the Pinellas County Sheriff's office.
Battaglia and his law firm and principal Tim Weber, are at the heart of an attempt to disbar Tampa attorney and judicial whistleblower Mark A. Adams who has charged that principals in the politically-connected, high-powered law firm of Battaglia, Ross, Dicus and Wein of St. Petersburg have allegedly bragged about the influence they wield in the Florida court system.
The Battaglia firm joined with Judge Crockett Farnell, another judge involved in the Schiavo case, to bring contempt charges against Adams and to file complaints against him with the Florida Bar which could result in Adams' disbarment.
Jagger, 40, of Seminole, has worked for firm principal Battaglia, a member of the Republican hierarchy, since his graduation from Stetson Law School in 1991, reportedly starting out as Battaglia's personal law clerk. He chaired Battaglia's tax, probate, estate and trust department prior to being tapped by Bush to wear a black robe. Jagger began his legal career as a summer intern in college for Pinellas County chief judge Susan Schaeffer.
Schaeffer, who was replaced by chief judge by David Demers, is the judge responsible for having assigned George Greer to the Schiavo guardianship case.
Battaglia was the defense attorney for Republican Congressman Richard Kelly, a former Pasco County Circuit Court judge, in the FBI Abscam sting. Kelly was the only Republican Congressman to be convicted in Abscam.
Battaglia has also represented Straight Inc., now known as the Drug Free America Foundation Inc.. Straight was founded in 1976 by Betty and Mel Sembler, appointed U.S. Ambassador to Italy by President Bush. Battaglia successfully represented Straight when the organization sued the state of Florida giving parents the right to force their children into drug rehabilitation without a court order.
Adams says that Weber and other members or employees of the Battaglia law firm had allegedly boasted that they could influence Sixth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Crockett Farnell in civil litigation in which the Battaglia firm was defending an action brought against Corporate Sports Marketing of Clearwater, their client, by Adams and his client.
Another individual in the good ole boys club, elevated to a judicial position in the Sixth Circuit from Crist's office is John Carassas, another Pinellas County Republican politician/attorney. He is a former Clearwater commissioner (as is Greer) who successfully ran for Florida's House of Representatives, District 54, opposed by Tony DiMatteo who became the chairman of the Pinellas County Republican executive committee in 2004.
After serving three years in the house from 2000-2003, Carassas resigned to head the Tampa office of AG Crist.
 Carassas , 39, of Palm Harbor, with Sheriff Rice, was directly involved in the Schiavo case, having been involved in alleged prohibited ex parte private conversations with Greer concerning the case which resulted in attorneys for Mary and Robert Schindler Sr., the parents of Terri Schiavo, to formally request the recusal of Judge Greer from the case. Greer refused.
Patricia Fields Anderson, former lead attorney for the Schindlers, moved for Greer's recusal in September 2003 after learning that Carassas had privately discussed the Schiavo case with Greer after Gov. Bush had sent a letter to Greer on Aug. 26, 2003, requesting that an independent guardian ad litem be appointed for Terri.
Terri had not had a guardian ad litem since 1999 when the former one, Richard Pearse, was dismissed by Greer in late 1999 after Pearse had recommended that the feeding tube NOT be removed from Terri. The appointment of a guardian ad litem is a statutory requirement, required whenever a conflict of interest arises between the guardian---Michael Schiavo---and the ward, Terri Schiavo. The job of the guardian ad litem is to protect her interest in court. Greer refused to appoint a new guardian ad litem, instead undertaking the role himself despite such a dual role being prohibited by law.
The day following Bush's letter to Greer, Greer allegedly held an impromptu press conference in his chambers during which he stated that he rejected the Governor's action. A judge is prohibited by law and judicial canons from discussing pending cases.
According to Anderson, Greer also spoke to Carassas, stating he was incensed about Bush's letter and said if Bush were an attorney, he would consider it to be an improper ex parte communication which could be reported to the attorney's grievance committee. Anderson said that Greer made similar statements to Rice at a baseball game but Rice later denied it.
While Greer threatened to report Bush for alleged improper ex parte communications if Bush were an attorney, Greer apparently didn't feel that he should report Rice or Carassas for engaging in improper ex parte communications with himself.
Court papers said that after Schindlers' attorneys had filed the original motion to disqualify Greer on Sept. 5, 2003, Rice then sent a letter to Anderson taking issue with her first affidavit filed with the motion, inferring that she had filed a false affidavit. Anderson said that Rice could only have learned about the affidavit from Greer and charged that Greer had improperly attempted to assert his judicial influence. She said that phone calls with Carassas and Rice's letter had the appearance, at a minimum, of having been prompted by Greer---actions prohibited by the Judicial Code.
Both Carassas and Rice had contributed to Greer's 2004 reelection campaign, Rice giving the maximum amount allowed under election law, $500.
According to the Division of Elections, Rice and his wife have contributed a total of $2,000 to Crist. The former sheriff contributed the maximum $500 in each of the primary and general elections as did his wife, Linda. 10-18-06
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© 2006 North
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