Revised lawsuit filed against Scott and Cabinet; Times joins suit

A broad coalition of Florida news organizations and First Amendment advocates filed an amended lawsuit Monday against Gov. Rick Scott and three elected Cabinet members, accusing all four officials of violating the open meetings law in the forced dismissal of FDLE Commissioner Gerald Bailey.

The revised lawsuit lists most of the state's major media outlets, including the Tampa Bay Times. The Miami Herald was previously listed as a plaintiff, as were The Associated Press, Gannett, Gatehouse Media, Morris Communications, Orlando Sentinel Communications, Palm Beach Newspapers, Scripps Media and the Sun-Sentinel Company. Plaintiffs also include St. Petersburg lawyer Matthew Weidner; Citizens for Sunshine, a non-profit advocacy group; the Florida Center for Investigative Reporting and the Florida Society of News Editors.

Sarasota attorney Andrea Flynn Mogensen wrote in an introduction to the complaint: "This action seeks a declaration that the governor and members of the Florida Cabinet, acting in their capacity as head of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), are subject to the Sunshine Law when aides seek to act for and exchange information among defendants as to decisions about hiring and firing the head of FDLE. Plaintiffs allege that defendants violated the Sunshine Law by using conduits to engage in polling, discussions, communications and other exchanges regarding the decision to force the resignation of the FDLE commissioner and appoint a replacement without any notice to the public, without any opportunity for the public to attend, and without any minutes being taken. Because the governor appears to justify this conduct by claiming it is part of a longstanding convention and tradition, plaintiffs also seek injunctive relief."

The lawsuit follows a series of reports by the Times/Herald about the circumstances of Bailey's forced ouster after a highly regarded three-decade career at FDLE, including eight years as commissioner. Bailey contends that Scott's former general counsel, Pete Antonacci, came to his office on Dec. 16 and told him he was to retire or resign by 3 p.m. that day, and that he was acting with the concurrence of all three Cabinet members. Scott and the Cabinet never publicly discussed removing and replacing Bailey. The change was made public in a Dec. 16 news release by Scott's office announcing his appointment of Rick Swearingen as interim commissioner. The four officials voted to confirm Swearingen as commissioner on Jan. 13.

The lawsuit asks Leon County Circuit Judge George Reynolds to declare that the Sunshine Law was violated, to issue a permanent injunction to prevent Scott and Cabinet members from engaging in future conversations about agency appointments outside of official meetings, and to pay plaintiffs' legal fees and costs.

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Revised lawsuit filed against Scott and Cabinet; Times joins suit