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Commissioner’s DUI trial postponed

Manatee County Commissioner George Kruse’s Feb. 8 trial for driving under the influence has been postponed as a state prosecutor has appealed a ruling by Circuit Court Judge Erika Quartermaine to exclude body camera audio from the scene of the April 20 accident.

Quartermaine ruled on Jan. 18 statements made by Kruse and recorded by Lt. Nicholas Pruitt at the GreyHawk Boulevard scene of the accident were inadmissible.

The 12th Judicial Circuit Court judge also ruled that the body camera video, without the audio, could be presented as evidence during Kruse’s trial, as well as an automated 911 call made by Kruse’s vehicle. The trial was scheduled at the Manatee County Judicial Center.

According to documents filed with the Manatee County Clerk of Court, Quartermaine granted the state the right to appeal her previous ruling.

Court documents by Quartermaine cited section 924.071 of the Florida Statutes, which provides the state the right to appeal a pretrial order that suppresses evidence.

Quartermaine had agreed with Kruse’s attorney, Jeffrey Haynes, that presenting Kruse’s audio statements would violate his right against self-incrimination, as Kruse had not been read the Miranda warning prior to being questioned at the scene of the crash.

Darlene Ragoonanan, a state prosecutor, requested the appeal on Jan. 31.

Quartermaine cited the Florida Supreme Court and also wrote that the State Statutes, specifically 316.066, were clear that Kruse’s statements were protected regardless of veracity.

“Had the Legislature intended to protect only true statements, it would have said so, and the reference to self-incrimination would not have been included. Therefore, the court need not look past the plain language of the statute,” she wrote.

No new date has been set until the Second District Court of Appeals makes its decision on Ragoonanan’s appeal.

Vanessa Baugh elected to transportation post

Manatee County District 5 Commissioner Vanessa Baugh was elected as the new chair of the Metropolitan Planning Organization Advisory Council on Jan. 31.

Baugh oversees the Lakewood Ranch area as the Manatee County District 5 commissioner. She has been a member of MPOAC for the past five years and vice chair for the past three years.

The MPOAC is a transportation planning and policy organization created by the Florida Legislature to enhance cooperative transportation planning among local Metropolitan Planning Organizations by serving as a forum for collective policy discussion, according to Manatee County release.

“It is an honor to take on the chairwoman position,” Baugh said in the release. “I look forward to leading the council in a forward direction with its future endeavors.”

The organization is made up of a governing board of 27 members including local elected officials, some of whom serve on a staff director’s advisory committee.

The release said the MPOAC actively participates in the activities of the Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations and the National Association of Regional Councils, and it works with other stakeholder groups.

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