Miami-Dade Commissioner Joe Martinez, who is scheduled to surrender himself Tuesday to the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s office on a public corruption charge, is the victim of a political attack, says his lawyer in a pair of statements that question the timing.
After a five-year investigation, criminal charges will be filed against Martinez Tuesday, Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle confirmed. What charges? We don’t know. Yet. She and Miami-Dade County Inspector General Felix Gimenez will have a joint press conference Tuesday afternoon to provide the details — and soundbites.
A press conference means they have details to share.
Read related: Sources: Joe Martinez will turn himself in on Tuesday after 5-year investigation
The speculation, based on what has been leaked about a “direct payment” for some kind of quid-pro-quo legislation, is that it will either be bribery or, more likely, unlawful compensation.
The commissioner’s position is that this has come forward now only to interfere with his anticipated 2024 run for Miami-Dade Sheriff — even though he said months ago that he was no longer interested in the job. Martinez, seen as the frontrunner in that partisan race, is a conservative Republican. Fernandez Rundle is a Democrat.
Furthermore, the two apparently disagree on how the new sheriff’s office should be funded and run — Martinez wants it to take over all county police operations — and Kuehne hinted that could be a motive for the accusations.
“State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle directed Miami-Dade County Commissioner Joe Martinez to surrender this week based on false allegations arising from his private practice work as a consultant when he was a private citizen and not an elected official,” Kuehne said in a written statement that was slightly different (read: toned down) from the one sent to lobbyists and other campaign donors a day earlier, which mentions reaching out to the governor’s office.
Read related: Elected Miami-Dade sheriff, SOE could curb mayor’s abuse of power
This seems to confirm what sources told Ladra about the “direct payment” being made before he was elected in 2016. Perhaps while working as a security consultant. And sources say he has been in touch with Gov. Ron DeSantis or his people about having the guv suspend him and appoint his former chief of staff, Roni Oves, in his place.
Then Martinez could come back to the dais if prosecutors can’t prove their case. If he has to resign, he would not be able to run again for six years, due to term limits.
This is the rest of the statement:
“The investigation has been ongoing for five years, so the timing of the allegations that do not involve Commissioner Martinez’s time in public office raise questions of a political impact when he is considered the front runner for the newly created Sheriff of Miami-Dade County.
“As an outspoken member of the Commission, Commissioner Martinez has publicly disagreed with the State Attorney on important issues, the most recent of which is the role of and funding for the Sheriff’s Office. Whether this apparent conflict influenced the charging decision is unknown. For now, Commissioner Martinez makes clear that he is innocent of any wrongdoing and intends to aggressively work to clear his name.”
“He has devoted his entire adult life to serving the best interests of the public. He is humbled by the show of support and confidence among his constituents and the people of Miami-Dade County.”
The first version, sent to lobbyists and other campaign contributors, had this sentence, which was removed for the benefit of the rest of us: “Whether this apparent public conflict influenced the State Attorney’s charging decision is a matter that will be presented to Florida Governor DeSantis.”
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