A few traffic infractions and an unsubstantiated suspicion of perjury in a residency claim were enough for Republican Florida State Sen. Randy Fine to brand Democratic Palm Bay City Council candidate Phil Moore a “career criminal.”
“‘Criminal Phil’ Moore is Back; Under Investigation for Perjury in Palm Bay City Council,” Fine announced in a Facebook post last year. “Special Election serial criminal Phil Moore, has been able to perjure his way onto the ballot for the Palm Bay City Council Special Election.”
Fine announced that he was voting for Republican Pete Filiberto “who is committed to ending the #CultureOfCorruption and stands with our police.”
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Filiberto won with Fine’s enthusiastic backing but did not so much stand with the police as flee them on a red-striped motorcycle on Saturday.
According to court papers, Filiberto sped through two stop signs before taking a tumble while making an evasive U-turn. He was arrested after refusing to take a breath test and was allegedly found to have 10.6 grams of cocaine in his shoe.
Fine has said exactly nothing about his protégé’s drug bust.
Fine—who has served as Gov. Ron DeSantis’ attack dog with the “Don’t Say Gay” bill and the accompanying fight with Disney—did not respond to a request for comment from The Daily Beast. He was also mute with the local Space Coast Rocket, which has noted his repeated smearing of political opponents.
Moore twice sought to unseat Fine from the state Senate before challenging Filiberto for a City Council seat. Fine had sought in his own contests to depict Moore’s spotty driving record as a life of crime and he extended that falsehood when Moore moved on to challenge Filiberto.
“Some criminals just don't know when to stop,” Fine posted on Facebook.
Fine contended online that Moore had falsely sworn to have resided in Palm Bay for two years when it may have been only one. Fine then suggested that Moore was under investigation for perjury, but Fine may have been the only one doing the investigating. Fine then cited the maximum penalty for perjury, which is almost never imposed in such circumstances, if indeed it occurred.
“Moore is under investigation for a third degree felony and imprisonment for up to five years for his latest crime,” Fine wrote. “With the deep #CultureOfCorruption affecting Palm Bay, we cannot afford to make it worse by adding a career criminal.”
As it happens, Filiberto has an even worse driving record than Moore, with at least three DUI convictions, and more listed under another name with the same DOB and driver’s license number. And if anybody was a criminal who didn't know when to stop, it was Filiberto when he allegedly tried to speed away from the police. The amount of cocaine Filiberto is charged with possessing is just over the 10 grams that make it an actual third-degree felony with a real possibility of five years behind bars.
The bust of Filiberto comes a month after Fine announced his candidacy for state Senate, having reached a three-term limit in the state House of Representatives. Filiberto was a full-hearted booster, as positive on Facebook about Fine as Fine had been negative about Moore. Filiberto posted this in July after Fine secured state aid for a lagoon bordering Palm Bay:
“The City of Palm Bay recognizes the efforts of State Representative Randy Fine who has forwarded Lagoon matters straight to the Governor's desk and brought Governor DeSantis himself to visit the Indian River Lagoon. Thank you Representative Fine, for continuing to Fight for Brevard, the resident's within, and the Indian River Lagoon. I look forward to working with you on other initiatives, as we strive to make Palm Bay a more perfect place to live, work, and play.”
As it happens, Filiberto is not only a former police dispatcher but also the son of a former Palm Bay mayor.
"Lock these people up like rats," one-time Mayor Frank Filiberto once said of drug offenders. “Treat them like rats. Contract with Mexican jails. You'll never see them again."
The current mayor, Rob Medina, was initially as mute as Fine about Filiberto’s arrest. But Medina broke his silence with a statement on Tuesday,
“As public officials serving our city, it is incumbent upon us to reflect on how our actions affect those we serve,” Medina said. “I feel strongly that resignation would be in the best interest of our community.”
As it happens, Florida law would empower Fine’s liege, DeSantis, to suspend an elected official who is charged with a felony. DeSantis could remove Filiberto before Fine works up the gumption to say anything at all.
