ANDREW GILLUM BEATS RAP ON LYING TO FEDS

John McDonald

Andrew Gillum, the ex-Tallahassee mayor and former CNN analyst, who came within a whisker of becoming Florida governor, was acquitted of lying to the FBI on May 4.

A federal jury in the Northern District of Florida found Gillum, 43, not guilty of lying to the FBI. The jury deadlocked on 18 other charges against Gillum, prompting the judge to declare a mistrial, attorneys said.

Speaking to reporters outside of the courthouse with his wife, R. Jai, by his side, Gillum said he was grateful for “second chances” and relieved by the verdict, while also calling for reforms to the system.

have enough Democrats that are registered that will vote and we can start stemming that tide.”

No Good Choices

The city had few choices and none of them were good. To take a principled stand and blatantly allow the law to be broken with the city’s permission could result in political upheaval in the city.

Gov. Ron DeSantis has the right to remove elected and appointed officials if he deems they are not enforcing state laws. It is possible the entire city commission and other positions could be filled with lackeys who would blindly do the governor’s bidding.

Before the vote, Mayor Scott Newton said people marginalized by the law are still welcome to be part of the event.

“We’re proud to have drag queens and the transgender community come and walk and ride in floats down Wilton Drive. And that’s not going to change, not on our watch.”

The permit language puts the onus on Stirling, who says decisions are still being made about who will be allowed in the parade. He is open to the idea of a float or delegation of drag entertainers, since that is not a performance. In the end he wants Stonewall and the city to live to fight another day.

“There are no good answers. We’re trying to get by and fight again.”

Gillum was indicted in June of 2022 on 21 felony counts. Prosecutors alleged he and co-defendant, Sharon Lettman-Hicks, committed conspiracy, wire fraud and lied to investigators between 2016 to 2019. At issue were tens of thousands of dollars meant to be campaign donations that were, allegedly, funneled through Lettman-Hicks’ company and into their own personal bank accounts. Gillum, a Democrat, maintained from the start the indictment was politically motivated.

“They’ve quite literally tried to take everything from us,” Gillum said. “And the beauty is, in our system, the powers that be don’t always get to decide. Everyday people like you and me sometimes get our swings at the ball and today the jury took it.”