Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) on Friday suspended a Florida mayor who was arrested earlier this month on two felony charges tied to allegations of corruption in a local grant program. Kissimmee Mayor Jackie Espinosa was suspended, according to the city, and Vice Mayor Angela Eady will now serve as mayor until the suspension is revoked or until the current mayoral term ends.
DeSantis’s order prohibits Espinosa from receiving pay, allowances, or other privileges of office during the suspension. Espinosa has been accused of creating and expanding a city business program tasked with dispersing COVID-19-era relief grants to enrich herself by the tune of tens of thousands of dollars without disclosing personal interests.
Authorities accused her of “systematically manipulating policy and voting on the program just to pave a clear path to her own payout.” Espinosa was arrested earlier this month, before being issued a public reprimand by the Florida Commission on Ethics and ordered to pay a civil fine of $2,000, after the panel found there was probable cause to believe those grants were illegal.
Her suspension by DeSantis comes as, under Florida’s Constitution, the governor has the power to suspend any elected municipal official who has been indicted for a crime or arrested on any charge related to their office duties.