A Leon County grand jury has cleared Tallahassee mayor and Democratic candidate for governor, Andrew Gillum, of misconduct for the political use of computer software that was purchased with city money.
After the release of the grand jury report, Gillum appeared to lash out at his rivals in the race for governor.
Gillum was accused of using the software to distribute 106 emails, including four that were considered to be political advertisements.
Gillum had used the software for political purposes in previous campaigns, but used campaign funds to pay for it. The grand jury report says the mayor’s chief of staff directed city funds be directed to pay for the software last year.
The grand jury concluded that Gillum was not directly involved in the use of the software and did not commit any misconduct. It also determined that any actions by his staff were “incidental and insufficient” to pursue further legal action.
Gillum ordered his staff to stop using the software when a private citizen filed a complaint. He reimbursed the city for more than $5,000 for the software.
The case involving the use of the software is separate from the federal grand jury probe that reportedly is looking into the actions of Tallahassee area developers and the local Community Redevelopment Authority.
The federal grand jury issued several subpoenas in June, including one to the city of Tallahassee asking for tens-of-thousands of documents, mainly emails and communications between the authority, the city and the businesses.
Gillum’s name was not on any of the subpoenas issued.
After the local grand jury’s report on the use of the political software was released on Tuesday, Gillum posted a video on his Facebook page.
Without naming names, Gillum appeared to take a swipe at his potential gubernatorial opponents. Saying he doesn’t have a well-known name or big dollars behind him, he suggested the “establishment” would continue to look for ways to attack him in the campaign.
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