Sansom attorneys want prosecutor removed for 'vindictiveness'

Attorneys for former House Speaker Ray Sansom and two co-defendants are in court today trying to throw State Attorney Willie Meggs off their case for "prosecutorial vindictiveness."

They were apologetic about it. The lawyers said they don't like accusing a fellow attorney of prosecutorial misconduct, but that Meggs committed a misdemeanor by releasing some grand jury testimony and making prejudicial statements to the news media.

Sansom, former Northwest Florida State College President Bob Richburg and Jay Odom, a Destin businessman, face charges of grand theft in connection with a $6 million budget item for an airplane hangar. The state alleges that the hangar, which was never built, was a political reward for Odom's financial support of Sansom and the Florida Republican Party.

"This is really hard for us, professionally, to bring this evidence to the court," said Jimmy Judkins, representing Odom, in his opening statement. "We have never brought a motion like this before."

But Judkins said, "he made statements that have the effect of outraging public opinion against the defendants here."

He told Circuit Judge Terry Lewis that Meggs "upped the ante" and retaliated against the defendants for exercising their right to get an initial indictment dismissed. That one involved charges of official misconduct and perjury against Sansom and Richburg and only official misconduct against Odom.

When an appeals court upheld the dismissal, Meggs filed felony charges of grand theft and conspiracy, with tougher criminal penalties. Judkins said that amounted to "actual vindictiveness" and a "presumption of vindictiveness" on Meggs' part.

Meggs was the first witness called. He testified that he amassed some 16,000 documents and put them on a computer disc. He said grand jury transcripts were on the disc and were inadvertently left on it when a public records request was made.

Defense lawyers asked Lewis to dismiss the charges, officially sanction Meggs and bar him from any further involvement in the case.