Ormond Beach former director of Leisure Services, Alan H. Burton is the lone candidate for Ormond Beach City Commission Zone 1.

Burton, a 58 year old Republican was an “at-will” city employee when he was fired by the city in 2005. Burton was fired because of an email he sent in response to an e-mail from city commissioner Bill Partington. In his email to the City Manager and others, Bill Partington suggested that the city manager should fire Burton for poor job performance and that “a strong re-organization is in order.”

Alan Burton responded to the e-mail by criticizing the city’s organizational and management structure, the performance of the city manager and other issues related to his job. More seriously, Burton accused the city manager of violating the Florida Sunshine Law or open-meetings law.

 Burton was fired a week after sending the email.

Burton retaliated against the city by filling a lawsuit in Federal Court (Burton v. City of Ormond Beach, Fla). In the lawsuit Burton contended that he was retaliated against because of his speech on matters of public concern or importance. The court sided with the city’s argument that Burton’s First Amendment suit had no merit because he was speaking as an employee, not a citizen, when he sent his critical e-mail. Burton filed an appeal with the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which affirmed the lower court’s decision in a unanimous three-judge, per curiam opinion issued on Nov. 25, 2008.

Alan Burton is currently the only candidate for City Commission Zone 1 but rumors are that he will be challenged. According to reliable sources, a mytery candidate picked up paper from at city hall.

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Ormond Beach Zone 2 Commissioner Troy Kent will be seeking another term. Earlier this week, he filed papers with the City Clerk, ending speculation that he would run for Mayor.

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As of May 18, 2010, Zone 3 City Commissioner Ed Kelley and Zone 1 Commissioner Lori Gillooly are the only two “official” candidates for the Mayor seat currently occupied by Fred Costello. 

Fred Costello will not be seeking another term for Mayor or Ormond Beach – He is vying the Florida House District 26 seat. 

Commissioner Kelley was first to formally announce and many citizens, who are friends of the two, were disappointed at the news that Lori Gillooly would be challenging him. 

The general feeling for many Kelley/Gillooly supporters is that in this race, no matter who wins, the citizens or Ormond Beach will lose a great public servant.   

There are also rumors circulating that former zone 1 commissioner Jeff Boyle could take advantage of the new winner-takes-all change in our city election rules. The reasoning – Ed Kelley and Lori Gillooly would divide a shared constituency and Boyle could sneak-in with a slightly higher percentage than the two.  

Boyle, who lost his commission seat to Lori Gillooly in 2005, ran unsuccessfully against incumbent Mayor Fred Costello in 2007.  

The qualifying period for Mayor and City Commissioner starts at 12:00 noon, Monday, June 14, and ends at 12:00 noon on Friday, June 18, 2010.

Ed Kelley · Elections · Fred Costello · Jeff Boyle · Lori Gillooly

A Volusia County’s beach patrol officer is under arrest for allegedly having repeated sexual encounters with a 16-year old girl he met while she was sunbathing on the beach. Police investigators say he also secretly videotaped some of his sexual encounters with the teen. 

The 44-year-old beach patrol officer Robert “Bobby” Paul Tameris was arrested following a joint investigation by the State Attorney’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Volusia County Department of Public Protection. Following the arrest at his Port Orange home on Wexford Way Tuesday evening, State Attorney’s Investigators also executed a search warrant.  

According to the investigation, Tameris had sex with the 16-year-old 20 to 25 times between fall of 2007 and spring of 2008.

The arrest affidavit says Tameris also videotaped the sex and while he was investigated for the past couple of months, sent the 16-year-old a lewd photo of his genitals.

The charge, unlawful sex with a minor, could carries up to 15 years in prison.

Tameris who is represented by attorney Mike Lambert appeared this afternoon before Volusia County Judge Dawn Fields, who left his bail at $250,000. Prosecutor would not object to the bond being lowered to $100,000, but Tameris’ attorney, Mike Lambert, declined that offer on the basis that Tameris would have not easier time posting a $100,000 bond than a $250,000 bond. According to Lambert, the county’s bond schedule calls for bail to be set at $2,500.  

This arrest followed a previous investigation, conducted earlier this year that did not result in any charges.

In the previous case, a 17-year-old girl who worked as a Volusia County lifeguard accused three county employees, including Tameris, of having sexual encounters with her. In this case, the FDLE investigation and the State Attorney’s Office concluded there was insufficient evidence for charges to be brought against the trio.

According to Volusia County spokesman Dave Byron Tameris who has been with the county for more than 20 years has been suspended without pay.

Editor’s Note: OrmondBeach.Net attempted to obtain a booking photograph of Tameris by filling a public information request.  The request was denied by Volusia County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Gary Davidson who wrote: 

I am unable to provide you with the requested photo. The explanation is as follows: 

Florida statute, Chapter 119.071(4)(d)1.a, exempts photos of law enforcement officers — both current and former — from public release. Like the County’s other lifeguards, Robert Tameris is dual certified, meaning he also is a sworn law enforcement officer. Pursuant to the interpretation of the Florida Attorney General’s Office, the exemption for photos of law enforcement officers includes booking photos — but only if the officer is not working in an undercover capacity, and only if the arrested officer asserts the exemption by making a written request to the jail to exempt his/her booking photo from being publicly released. While being booked, Mr. Tameris made a written request asserting this exemption. Accordingly, his booking photo isn’t a public record and I’m prohibited by law from providing it to you. 

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions regarding this e-mail. 

Sincerely,

Gary Davidson
Public Information Officer
Volusia County Sheriff’s Office
(386) 736-5989

beach patrol officer · Robert “Bobby” Paul Tameris

Things are not looking so wonderful in Doug Wilhite’s world –  

Wilhite, 56 a prominent local churchgoing Republican  businessman who in 2006 was named Florida “Businessman of the Year” and was subsequently invited in Washington DC to have lunch with members of Congress and dinner with President George W. Bush could face jail time if convicted of the charges filed by the State’s Attorney’s Office. 

Wilhite’s Wonderful World first signs of trouble – customers complaints with Seniors vs. Crime, the Better Business Bureau and the Office of the Attorney General over the WELE 1380 Travel Show. In the past few years discontent Premier Travel Show customers also used the internet to post their complaints against the Trave Show (complaintsboard.com, my3cents.com, complaints.com).

Several local news media outlets ran stories over complaints againts the Premier Travel Show. One such story was published in the Volusia Edition of the Hometown News, a weekly publication (Doug Wilhite is suing the Hometown News over the article).

Last year a criminal investigation by the Ormond Beach Police undertaken after receiving complaints about the Premier Travel Show found that while there were “still unsatisfied customers with unresolved grievances,” but those complaints are considered civil matters and no criminal charges were warranted.

Then in July 2009 Wilhite was arrested in Volusia County after being accused of engaging in sex acts with a teenage boy. Wilhite was charged with engaging in sex acts multiple times with 15-year-old. Wilhite was booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail under a $100,000 bond. He was released the next day after posting bail.

But last Thursday, Wilhite who is supposed to go to trial this week on charges brought on him last July of having sex with a boy who was 15 at the time, was rearrested on additional child-sex charges after more teens said he behaved inappropriately with them according to Volusia County deputy sheriffs.

Investigators say seven teenage boys and girls between 14 and 16 years old told them Wilhite walked around his house naked, offered them alcohol, showed them pornographic movies and encouraged them to have sex while he watched – In one occasion while one couple was in Wilhite’s car on the way to church.

Strangely, when Sheriff deputies arrived to arrest him, Wilhite, a nudist, refused to wear clothes and was wrapped in a blanket to go to Sheriff’s Office district headquarters in Holly Hill.

The new charges placed against Wilhite Thursday were six counts of contributing to the delinquency of a child, five counts of showing obscene material to a minor, three counts of lewd or lascivious conduct and one count of lewd or lascivious exhibition. He was arrested on a warrant setting bail at more than $1.5 million.

But Friday, in a bizarre ruling judge John Doyle ordered Doug Wilhite released from jail without having to post bail. State Attorney Prosecutors urged Circuit Judge John Doyle to keep bail at that figure, but he instead ordered Wilhite released.

Wilhite’s Defense Attorney David Damore argued that the State’s Attorney’s Office has been sitting on latest criminal complaints against Wilhite for months and claim they suddenly served warrants on Wilhite to deprive him of time to prepare for the upcoming trial on the first charge.

Prosecutors said they were talking to victims and the arrest became more urgent after they received a tip that Wilhite was preparing his boat to skip town.

Stay tuned…

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Clearly, this first post is going to upset some of my friends (and some city staffers) but I need to get this of my chest – I don’t care that this is “old Florida color” and that the owner is a prominent and respected Ormond Beach businessman – I still think this house located in downtown Granada Boulevard looks like a giant Barbie doll house.

Barbie Doll House

Welcome to the new OrmondBeach.Net – This Ormondbeach.net blog is dedicated to the greater area Ormond Beach community.

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