A state ethics investigation into former Mayor Andrew Gillum's trip to Costa Rica and accepting tickets to the Broadway hit musical "Hamilton" — both arranged by former friend and lobbyist Adam Corey — comes to a head next month.
The Florida Commission on Ethics will hold a probable cause hearing Jan. 25 to decide on a recommendation from the state prosecutor assigned to the case, said Tallahassee businessman Erwin Jackson, who filed the complaint against Gillum. He informed the Tallahassee Democrat Monday after receiving a notice from the commission.
Barry Richard, Gillum's attorney, confirmed there is a hearing Jan. 25, "not because they found probable cause but to determine if there is probable cause."
Gillum and his attorney will be at the hearing and will be given an opportunity to comment. Richard said he has received the recommendation but refused to comment on it.
"I'm not going to do anything until they make a probable cause determination," Richard said.
Once the Ethics Commission makes its determination, the decision and case material will become public.
The complaint centers around a May 2016 trip to Costa Rica arranged by Corey that included Gillum, his wife, and lawyer/lobbyist Sean Pittman, and a trip to New York City several months later when Corey arranged for Gillum a boat ride and tickets to see "Hamilton."
Who paid for those outings and whether they amount to a violation of state law is the focus of the Ethics Commission, which subpoenaed the records from Corey and his attorney, Chris Kise of Tallahassee.
Kise shared those records with the public in late October, two weeks before the general election. Many political analysts think the release of the documents, which link Gillum to three men later identified as undercover FBI agents, may have cost him the governor's race.
Under Florida law, public officials such as Gillum are required to report gifts valued over $100, though there are exceptions for certain gifts, including those given by family members. Gillum never disclosed any gifts from his trip to New York.
Officials are barred from accepting any gift given to influence a vote or other official action. They also can’t take gifts over $100 from a vendor doing business with their agency or a lobbyist who has come before their agency over the preceding year. The statutory definition for gifts include tickets to events and lodging.
Gillum released receipts and bank records showing he paid for his and his wife's airfare, food and beverage costs, and their share of the hotel accommodations in Costa Rica.
“Mayor Gillum and his wife paid cash for their portion of the group lodging … and paid by credit card for other outings,” the campaign said. If pro-rated equally, their share should have been about $935 for the two of them.
During that trip, Corey sent a calendar invite to Gillum scheduling a May 16 introduction at the Edison between himself, Gillum and "Mike Miller," an undercover FBI agent posing as a developer from Atlanta.
Corey’s text messages show that he and Miller were planning out-of-town trips with Gillum at the same time city and county commissioners were considering expanding the Frenchtown/Southside Community Redevelopment Agency.
It was something Miller wanted to see done. Expanding the CRA lines would help him potentially get millions of dollars in building grants and tax credits for a development he was floating on South Monroe Street.
On July 8, 2016, Miller texted Corey to discuss arrangements for trips with Gillum. They discussed the possibility of going to Las Vegas. After getting available dates from Gillum, they settled on a trip to New York City in mid-August.
Five days later, on July 13, 2016, city commissioners, Gillum included, voted unanimously to expand the boundaries of the CRA to the east side of South Monroe Street. Six days after that, on July 19, 2016, Miller again reached out to Corey.
The text messages also show that Gillum asked Corey for a hotel room for Aug. 11, 2016, his last night in the Big Apple. When Corey told Gillum that Miller and his “crew” had tickets for him to go see the musical “Hamilton,” the mayor responded by saying, “Awesome news.” Gillum, Corey and Miller also toured around the Statue of Liberty on a boat ride that included catering and cocktails.
Gillum and his attorney said Gillum got the “Hamilton” tickets from his brother, Marcus Gillum, who was along during the New York City trip. They also say the mayor stayed only one night at the downtown Millennium Hotel, and it was in his brother’s room.
“I don’t think there was a violation of anything,” Richard said.
Contact Schweers at jschweers@tallahassee.com. Follow him on Twitter @jeffschweers.
