A state ethics commission dismissed a complaint lodged against Islamorada Mayor Buddy Pinder by a former councilwoman. An investigation found Pinder didn’t use public funds for his 2022 re-election campaign.
Filed by Cheryl Meads last fall, the complaint alleged Pinder used a contracted village employee at the time, Carlos Garcia, to create and post a video to thank voters who suåpported him. The complaint also alleged Pinder had another on-the-clock village employee partaking in the video. The executive director for the ethics commission determined the allegations from Meads’ complaint were sufficient to conduct a preliminary investigation on whether Pinder violated the Florida Constitution and state statute.
The complaint stated Pinder posted a “thank you Islamorada” campaign video to his campaign’s Facebook page for his election in 2020. The video created by Carlos Garcia’s Attention Media company showed Pinder riding his bike. Garcia was hired by the council shortly after the 2020 election, on Feb. 25, 2021, to create a media presence for the village.
A video created on Nov. 13, 2022 and posted to various social media channels on Nov. 14-15, 2022, after the election results showing Pinder the victor, was similar to one created by Garcia in 2020. In the 2022 video, Pinder can be seen riding his bicycle at Founders Park with his campaign sign and American on display. At the 22-second mark, Pinder high-fives a park attendant before riding away.
Pinder told the investigator the 2022 video was directed by Garcia. He also said he denied any prior discussion with the park attendant or park supervisor before the video shooting.
A commission advocate who reviewed the case stated the overt political solicitations on Pinder’s bike would support wrongful intent. However, the 2022 election had already occurred, with Pinder the winner in his race against challenger Sue Miller. As a result, he was no longer running for office. The advocate also stated Pinder’s encounter with a village attendant in the video was nothing more than a friendly gesture. Evidence didn’t exist to show Pinder had wrongful intent with respect to obtaining a disproportionate benefit.
“Respondent utilized and benefited from a village resource that was equally available to all Council members via a Council-approved contract with AML (Attention Media). Some members chose to use it while others did not. His (Pinder’s) conduct did not conflict with the contract’s terms,” the advocate stated.
The ethics commission swiftly took up the recommendation to find no probable cause in the complaint, leading to the case to be dismissed for Pinder.
“I thank them for doing the right thing,” Pinder told the Keys Weekly following a letter he received on April 24 stating the case was dismissed. “It was after the election. It wasn’t that I was running. … The campaign was over. There was a lack of evidence and no probable cause.”
