NASSAU COUNTY, Fla. — Nassau County Attorney Mike Mullin will step down after an investigation found he violated public records law.
According to a 10-page memo released by the State Attorney’s Office, Mullin knowingly allowed the destruction of public records in the form of text messages. The criminal charge is a misdemeanor violation of state laws requiring government agencies to retain and provide access to public records.
The memo says “The evidence supports criminal violations of Florida public records law” and that Mullin “has disqualified himself from service as county attorney.” It says the State Attorney’s Office agreed to forgo criminal prosecution in exchange for his resignation.
According to the memo, “The evidence supports that Mullin’s acts rise above simple strict liability. Mullin not only committed public records violations as a public officer, but did so knowingly by overseeing the County’s systemic failure to preserve text messages, failing to truthfully and timely respond to … public records request, and allowing the deletion of text messages constituting public records. As noted previously, a public officer who commits a knowing violation of Chapter 119 is a criminal offense.”
It continues, “While Mullin may contend that his conduct amounts to only a civil violation of the public records laws, what is indisputable is that through his actions, Mullin has disqualified himself from continuing to serve as County Attorney. Thus, in order to achieve the necessary result of separating Mullin from his position as the County Attorney; by agreement and to avoid protracted litigation in criminal courts, and in acknowledgment of Mullin’s lack of any prior criminal record, the State of Florida has agreed to forego the initiation of formal prosecution and resolve the matter as follows: 1. Mullin will resign as County Attorney effective March 31, 2022. This disposition provides finality and certainty in its resolution and allows Nassau County the opportunity to move forward with retaining new counsel.”
READ the State Attorney's Office memo here.
Mullin's apparent violation of public records law first surfaced in a civil lawsuit filed by timber giant and developer Rayonier. In a battle that erupted over who should pay for recreational facilities in the massive Wildlight development (owned by Rayonier), the company demanded county records. A judge in the case found Mullin and other county officials failed to turn over 147 pages of text messages between Nassau County Commissioners and county employees.
The judge’s order said that although the county said they didn’t have “any” text messages, it did not tell the company that county officials "routinely deleted text messages … or that the county had no records retention policy for text messages." Some employees had their phones set to auto delete texts after 30 days, and some manually deleted messages.
Following the judge’s ruling, Rayonier issued a statement that said, "It has now been proven that County Attorney Mike Mullin and other county officials engaged in a regular pattern of covertly texting with each other about county business and then deleted the messages between them in an effort to conduct government in the shadows.”
Mullin has been a fixture in county politics for decades. He served as county attorney from 1982 to 2007, and returned in 2015, eventually taking on the dual role of county manager and county attorney. In between his stints with the county, he worked for the law firm of Rogers Towers, who has Rayonier as a client.
Statement from Nassau County Attorney Mike Mullin
"My decision to retire and the reasons set forth in my letter of March 14, 2022 stand as stated. I have reviewed the state attorney’s statement released today and with all due respect, I strongly disagree with those findings.
The messages which are the subject of the civil suits, were turned over to the requestors beginning in January 2019 and also provided to the State Attorney’s Office in March of 2019. In addition, I drafted new procedures for maintaining and addressing personal messages on private devices. The procedures are set forth in an ordinance adopted in the fall of 2019.
The ordinance placed all public record requests and maintenance under the County Attorney’s Office. These procedures remain in effect today. While I do not want to be a distraction for the County, I do want to reiterate my appreciation to have represented Nassau County, Florida.
For background, please review:
Statement from Nassau County
"On March 14, 2022, the Board of County Commissioners received Mr. Mullin’s intent to retire as of March 31, 2022. On March 15, 2022, Mr. Mullin indicated he will send an updated letter of retirement effective 12:01 a.m. on March 16, 2022. Nassau County received a copy of a Closing Memorandum from the press this morning, March 15, 2022, at 11:38 a.m., regarding the State Attorney’s Office investigation of Nassau County Attorney, Michael Mullin, related to actions in 2018 and earlier. There has not yet been correspondence directly from the State Attorney’s Office to Nassau County regarding said memo.
As this new information may impact ongoing litigation involving the County, no further statement may be issued at this time"