Florida's First Amendment Foundation gets new leader.
For those who don't know, The First Amendment Foundation helps protect access to Florida public records for citizens and reporters. In the nineties it was the only real help I had to acquire public records from the City when there was a community-wide attempt to cover-up wrong-doing by the city and community leaders. It was a mess that resulted in a two million dollar settlement agreement paid by the City to a private business owner who sued them.
That settlement is why I say the entire city paid for their shenanigans, but it was more harmful to those of us who were in the shock zone of where the land scandal took place. Imagine your neighbors gaslighting you at HOA meetings and, essentially, bullying you into submission to keep quiet about the things you learned from your public record searches. The more I read about what they did, the more I realized they thought they were entitled to force me to participate in my own victimization.
What I can say today is that I experienced the real Central Florida backwater culture and I can't imagine how much worse it would have been if I didn't have the information from all those public records searches to understand why it was happening. Just learning the term, "gaslighting" helped me break away from the toxic environment. It wasn't me that was out of line. It was them.
It would have been nice to find a group of people here to use the information I gathered in time to save my neighborhood future heartache, but ordinary people aren't equipped to weed through a high level of deceit and betrayal. Frankly, Trump's behavior is no surprise to me, because that level of brashness, crudeness and entitlement is all I've ever seen from the main architects that still live in the area. I may have been denied timely justice, but at least I have a story to write about my experiences.
Hat tip to Barbara Petersen who is retiring from the First Amendment Foundation. Pamela Marsh has big shoes to fill, but she seems to have the background to do it.
TALLAHASSEE – The First Amendment Foundation is pleased to announce that Pamela Marsh, the former United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, will become president of the organization on December 1. She will replace Barbara Petersen, who announced her retirement earlier this year.
As U.S. Attorney from 2010 to 2015, Marsh was the lead federal prosecutor in 23 counties, from Alachua to Escambia, and was the first woman appointed to the position. She earned a reputation for investigating and prosecuting cases related to banking, healthcare fraud, public corruption, cybersecurity, international and domestic terrorism, as well as human trafficking. She was selected as one of only 16 U.S. Attorneys to serve on the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee, while also serving on the Subcommittee on Counter-Terrorism and National Security, as well as the White Collar Criminal Subcommittee. She also established and led the Big Bend Coalition against Human Trafficking.
Marsh has more than 20 years of legal experience. She is currently a shareholder at Ausley McMullen and serves on the Board of the National Missing Children’s Day Foundation. A Tallahassee resident, she was named one of the Tallahassee Democrat’s “25 Women You Need to Know” in 2016. Marsh earned her J.D., cum laude, and B.S., magna cum laude, from Georgetown University. She is admitted to The Florida Bar, the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit, and the U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Middle and Southern Districts of Florida.
On her new role, Marsh says, “I am honored and excited to join the First Amendment Foundation as its new President. Perhaps now more than ever, the mission of the Foundation is critical to Florida communities and to a thriving democracy. Barbara Petersen built her legacy fighting for open access to government meetings and public records, to ensure that the public stays well informed and able to participate in government and be heard. I am grateful to Barbara and the Board of FAF for offering me this opportunity to serve the people of Florida and the objectives of the First Amendment. I look forward to continuing the highly regarded work and reputation already established by the First Amendment Foundation.”
In announcing her successor, Petersen stated, “I am so pleased with the selection of Pamela Marsh as the new FAF president. She has a passion for open government and buckets of energy; she’s smart and curious and will take FAF into its next phase. Pamela Marsh is the perfect choice and I’m immeasurably pleased to know I’ll have the chance to work with her through the transition.”
Jim Baltzelle, FAF’s Chairman of the Board and the Director, Local Media, Southeast, for the Associated Press, said of the announcement, “Pamela Marsh has tremendous vision for the Foundation’s future. Her distinguished legal experience, and the relationships she’s built across the state, will enable her to get off to a fast start. She is stepping into a great situation, too, thanks to the tenacity and hard work of Barbara Petersen. As Floridians, we have been blessed to have Barbara at FAF’s helm for so long.”
Marsh and Petersen will work together during the transition in December, and Petersen will advise the Foundation into 2020.
https://files.constantcontact.com/4cd4cac7201/bb9ac8c8-17e7-440d-bda6-7a959935e262.pdf
