The Florida Commission on Ethics has rejected a complaint filed against Gov. Charlie Crist by a Marion County man who said articles about Crist's plane trips "demands an investigation."
In a ruling made public this week, the commission rejected the complaint by Anthony Wiseman of Umatilla as legally insufficient, saying he had done nothing to show that Crist may have violated the state's ethics laws by his use of private jets that was detailed by the Sun-Sentinel.
The Sun-Sentinel raised questions in March as to who was paying for dozens of trips taken by Crist, many of which the paper said appeared to be paid by Harry Sargeant and Dr. Steven Scott. Some of the trips, however, were reported as donations to the Republican Party of Florida.
The commission also rejected allegations that Crist's high-profile trip last summer to Europe - also dissected by the Sun-Sentinel - was in violation of law. The commission noted that it had previously ruled that Enterprise Florida can pick up the tab for the governor and it's not a gift.
The commission noted that it does "not have the authority just to examine innuendo or speculation not grounded in factual allegations." Yet the report by the commission does note that the way Enterprise Florida handled Crist's airfare to Europe was legal because the economic development agency credited the ticket toward a sponsorship for a Miami travel agency.
Read the commission ruling here: Download Commission ruling
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