[Love2Swim]

Originally Posted by Mrs.Guy

HAS NOT BEEN SENTENCED YET.

Correct, I mis-spoke. I meant the fact that he is behind bars is over the top. And faces 5 years in prison. Seriously?

[Kenswing]

Originally Posted by Love2Swim

Correct, I mis-spoke. I meant the fact that he is behind bars is over the top. And faces 5 years in prison. Seriously?

I was surprised too that they are holding him until sentencing. I figured they’d just pull his passport. Maybe put an electronic leash on him.

[ThirdOfFive]

Originally Posted by tophcfa

Now that Oren Miller is a convicted felon and is off the streets of the Villages does anyone feel safer? Let’s see, a harmless senior citizen whose trivial crime was misremembering (that’s a Roger Clemens term) the details of some telephone conversations is now behind bars. Meanwhile, wife beaters, drug dealers, drunken drivers, golf cart thieves, and many other dangerous criminals we should all be afraid of are walking around freely on our streets.

Something is seriously wrong with this picture. The moral of the story is that it’s not the crime one commits, it’s the people in high places that one rubs the wrong way that really matters.

I know very little about the case—but this is the way our system works. The judge didn’t find him guilty. A randomly-selected jury of his peers did that, and as I understand it, it took that jury something like twenty-seven minutes to arrive at that verdict.

Oh—and about whether or not we feel safer with “wife beaters, drug dealers, drunken drivers, golf cart thieves, and many other dangerous criminals” allegedly walking around freely on our streets—well, dunno about the rest of the folks here, but for a good ten years living in my former residence near Minneapolis - St. Paul, I never went into the cities without carrying personal protection. Here in TV, even though I am qualified to do so under Florida law, I haven’t done so even once.

The law seems to be doing an exceptional job here.

[Mrs.Guy]

Originally Posted by Love2Swim

Correct, I mis-spoke. I meant the fact that he is behind bars is over the top. And faces 5 years in prison. Seriously?

Seriously! And I'm sure he knew the possible punishment before going to trial. I also bet the other one did too...... he copped a plea.

[DAVES]

Originally Posted by Taltarzac725

He lied about their talking about some other stuff. I would be very interested though in how much this happens in real life and the culprits are never caught. And if equity would find that throwing the book at Owen Miller was really worth it? Selective prosecution in other words.

Law, police, crime is interesting. I recall a cub scout trip to the FBI in Washington DC. Yup it was a long, long, long time ago. I still recall being told they solve 20% of the cases. The good criminals-crimes- they never know about. Most crime that is prevented is prevented out of fear of being caught. They do not catch everyone.

Selective prosecution is always so. They do not catch everyone. Real life? Caught once, it is on your record making you a suspect in other crimes. REALITY - LIFE IS NOT FAIR.

[Love2Swim]

Originally Posted by DAVES

Law, police, crime is interesting. I recall a cub scout trip to the FBI in Washington DC. Yup it was a long, long, long time ago. I still recall being told they solve 20% of the cases. The good criminals-crimes- they never know about. Most crime that is prevented is prevented out of fear of being caught. They do not catch everyone.

Selective prosecution is always so. They do not catch everyone. Real life? Caught once, it is on your record making you a suspect in other crimes. REALITY - LIFE IS NOT FAIR.

Agree. Life certainly is not fair. I think of someone like Roger Stone who was found guilty of felony charges of obstruction, making false statements and witness tampering, and he was sentenced to 40 months in prison. And then he was pardoned - completely got away with it. Quite the double standard. The law may do and exceptional job, but the powers that be can easily override the law to suit their whims.

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by Love2Swim

Agree. Life certainly is not fair. I think of someone like Roger Stone who was found guilty of felony charges of obstruction, making false statements and witness tampering, and he was sentenced to 40 months in prison. And then he was pardoned - completely got away with it. Quite the double standard. The law may do and exceptional job, but the powers that be can easily override the law to suit their whims.

The powers that be pretty much put a watermelon ������ on the scales of justice ⚖️ against Oren Miller.

[golfing eagles]

Originally Posted by Mrs.Guy

What I take away from this post is #1.Oren Miller is a convicted felon. #2. Someone's hatred may be showing again.

And

I don't have a degree in Law but I don't think he was convicted of lying about donuts.

That pretty much sums it up

[Bruce3055]

For the most part, I hope the sunshine law is widely dis-regarded. I can't imagine any responsible leaders not talking with each other outside of formal meetings. It seems business would grind to a halt if they didn't.

Now why Miller didn't take a plea bargain if offered the same as his partner in crime is beyond me especially when he knew he was going to testify against him. But then again, maybe the pleas deal wasn't really offered to him.

And I'm disappointed about the tax payers dollars spent on this case. I sure hope he doesn't get sentenced to more jail time for his crime. I think the stress he's already gone through will keep him from taking on politicians in the future.

And I agree to throw him in jail awaiting sentencing is over the top. It reminds me of how many high level convicted folks are out on appeal - why not Miller.

One thing I can be almost glad for is the reporting on this case is hopefully almost done. It's been embarrassing.

[charlie1]

Originally Posted by Kenswing

I’d be very surprised if he got much time if any. Probably community service and probation.

This whole thing would have been a big nothingburger if he would have simply admitted that he made a mistake by secretly talking about county business. But instead he decided to lie under oath. That has proven to be a stupid decision.

I would also will be surprised, when sentenced, if he gets additional prison time. I agree that he should have just admitted to the issue in the first place. Because he lied and, he did create his own problem! Apparently, his lawyers had no defense to the proof presented by the prosecutors since the jury was only out 23 minutes for deliberation. It takes that long to take a rollcall and fill out the paperwork. The jurors obviously saw no reason to discuss the case.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by Bruce3055

For the most part, I hope the sunshine law is widely dis-regarded. I can't imagine any responsible leaders not talking with each other outside of formal meetings. It seems business would grind to a halt if they didn't.

Now why Miller didn't take a plea bargain if offered the same as his partner in crime is beyond me especially when he knew he was going to testify against him. But then again, maybe the pleas deal wasn't really offered to him.

And I'm disappointed about the tax payers dollars spent on this case. I sure hope he doesn't get sentenced to more jail time for his crime. I think the stress he's already gone through will keep him from taking on politicians in the future.

And I agree to throw him in jail awaiting sentencing is over the top. It reminds me of how many high level convicted folks are out on appeal - why not Miller.

One thing I can be almost glad for is the reporting on this case is hopefully almost done. It's been embarrassing.

Yup. Our tax dollars at work, supplying Mr. Miller with food, clothing, shelter, and medical care (if needed) until sentencing. When he /could/ be at home, paying his own way. He's not exactly wealthy enough to fly to another country to live, to avoid sentencing. And if there was even the -hint- that he might do that, just strap an anklet on him and pull his passport.

[twoplanekid]

Originally Posted by Bruce3055

For the most part, I hope the sunshine law is widely dis-regarded. I can't imagine any responsible leaders not talking with each other outside of formal meetings. It seems business would grind to a halt if they didn't.

Now why Miller didn't take a plea bargain if offered the same as his partner in crime is beyond me especially when he knew he was going to testify against him. But then again, maybe the pleas deal wasn't really offered to him.

And I'm disappointed about the tax payers dollars spent on this case. I sure hope he doesn't get sentenced to more jail time for his crime. I think the stress he's already gone through will keep him from taking on politicians in the future.

And I agree to throw him in jail awaiting sentencing is over the top. It reminds me of how many high level convicted folks are out on appeal - why not Miller.

One thing I can be almost glad for is the reporting on this case is hopefully almost done. It's been embarrassing.

It's a law that all elected officials in Florida must adhere to. I personally believe the Sunshine Law is too restrictive and should be modified. I suggested to staff that we should have a board meeting in December. Staff then has to contact the board chair to pass my suggestion on to him to have him decide if a board meeting is needed. My suggestions as to why I would like to have a board meeting in December are not conveyed as I don't want to use staff as an intermediary. What the heck??

[tophcfa]

Originally Posted by Bruce3055

For the most part, I hope the sunshine law is widely dis-regarded. I can't imagine any responsible leaders not talking with each other outside of formal meetings. It seems business would grind to a halt if they didn't.

Every state has those laws, just under a different name. You are correct, the laws can be so restrictive it makes doing one’s job way more difficult and time consuming than necessary. I used to volunteer for several boards in the small town we live in up north, but not any more primarily because of those requirements (and that we spend about half our time in the Villages). It’s a big reason many towns are struggling to find people willing to volunteer their time to serve on municipal boards.

[Caymus]

Originally Posted by twoplanekid

It's a law that all elected officials in Florida must adhere to. I personally believe the Sunshine Law is too restrictive and should be modified. I suggested to staff that we should have a board meeting in December. Staff then has to contact the board chair to pass my suggestion on to him to have him decide if a board meeting is needed. My suggestions as to why I would like to have a board meeting in December are not conveyed as I don't want to use staff as an intermediary. What the heck??

Are sunshine laws only at the town/municipal levels? Doesn't seem to be at Federal/State levels.

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by Caymus

Are sunshine laws only at the town/municipal levels? Doesn't seem to be at Federal/State levels.

They do but with a lot of limitations-- Government in the Sunshine Act | GSA