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To Whom it May Concern:
On March 31 a letter was handed to my wife at our home by a process server. The author is a lawyer with oEices in Tallahassee, Coral Gables and Washington, D.C.
The letter accuses me of publicly representing through text messages and other communications that my opponent, Vicki Lopez, was “convicted of a felony commonly referred to as ‘misprision,’ and that the only reason she is not a convicted felon today is because she received a pardon” and separately accuses me of telling voters she is “a pardoned felon.” I did not say those things. I did not even know the meaning of the word “misprision” until I spoke with a lawyer after receiving their letter.
The letter demands I “cease immediately, retract publicly, and correct the record” while threatening to sue me. Through this open letter to you I hope to correct the record.
The history of my opponent’s legal journey is complicated and ended when the Middle District of Florida vacated her conviction, meaning that from a legal perspective it is as if she was never convicted. She can now vote, run for oEice, own a gun, and do all the other things that felons cannot do.
Here are the facts:
While she was a Lee County Commissioner, Ms. Lopez encouraged her colleagues to support the bids of her lobbyist boyfriend’s clients while she concealed that relationship and did not disclose the conflict of interest. She was arrested and convicted at trial for a federal crime commonly referred to as “honest services fraud.” At that time the crime of honest services fraud was used to prosecute
public corruption. Ms. Lopez spent time in federal prison until the remainder of her sentence was commuted by President Bill Clinton. Several years later, the United States Supreme Court was asked to consider whether the honest services fraud statute was unconstitutionally vague. The Court held that it was and limited its application to cases where bribery or a kickback scheme was involved. Because Ms. Lopez’s case did not involve bribery or a kickback scheme, the Court vacated her conviction.
If I mis-spoke or at some time said something that was misinterpreted, I apologize. This scenario is complicated and I am not a lawyer. It was never my intention to harm Ms. Lopez or to say anything untrue about her.
That said, voters have a right to know who they are voting for. Honesty and integrity matter, and it is not defamatory to state the facts. Ms. Lopez is not a “convicted felon” because the law changed, but that does not make her behavior honest or ethical.
Sincerely,
Joe Sanchez
Candidate for Miami-Dade County Commission, District 5
