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PINELLAS COUNTY--A key player in the Terri Schiavo right-to-life case, heard in the Pinellas County courtroom of Sixth Judicial Circuit Court Judge George W. Greer, will now be sitting on the bench in that same courthouse, having been appointed to a new judgeship earlier this month by Gov. Jeb Bush.
John Carassas , 39, of Palm Harbor, who was serving as a deputy to Attorney General Charlie Crist, was the former state representative from House District 54 from 2000-2003, a seat now held by former Pinellas County Sheriff Everett Rice (R-Treasure Island) who is now seeking the office of attorney general. District 54 covers parts of Belleair, Largo, Clearwater and St. Petersburg as well as the Pinellas beaches.
What a tangled web they weave in the Republican Party in Pinellas County.
Carassas' position was newly created earlier this year by the Florida Legislature.
Carassas had resigned his seat in the Florida Legislature in July, 2003, to assume his position in the attorney general's office where he served as the regional deputy for Central Florida which included the St. Petersburg area.
Rice and Carassas were 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 threatening 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.
Crist and the Attorney General's office had been provided information regarding the alleged ongoing abuse and neglect of brain injured Terri Schiavo but chose to do nothing and had publicly stated that he would not get involved in the case although the attorney general is statutorily required to protect the civil rights of Florida citizens. As sheriff, Rice also quashed repeated attempts by the Schindler family and others to open an investigation into the Terri Schiavo case.
Michael Shiavo's concubine's mother, Eleanor Centrone, worked in the civil division of the sheriff's department under direction of Rice, and Rice, a 20-year personal friend of Greer, hired Michael Schiavo to work as a nurse in the county jail prior to leaving the sheriff's job for the state Legislature.
After Greer refused to recuse himself during the fall of 2003 and had signed the second death judgment for Terri, ordering the removal of her feeding tube, the Florida Legislature passed Terri's Law which restored her nutrition and hydration. Terri's Law was eventually found unconstitutional by the Florida Supreme Court and despite efforts that reached to the White House and Vatican, Greer's death order was eventually executed, causing the death of the incapacitated woman on March 31.
Another player in the Schiavo case, Kelly McKibben, regional counsel for the Division of Children and Families' Orlando office, is among the finalists for two new judgeships in the 18th Judicial Circuit comprised of Brevard and Seminole Counties. http://www.northcountrygazette.org/articles/101905JudgeMcKibben.html
10-22-05
© 2005 North
Country Gazette
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