Poitier fights back

By Diane Emeott

As of 5:58 p.m., Thursday, April 14, Governor Rick Scott issued an executive order to suspend Deerfield Beach District 2 commissioner Sylvia Poitier from public office.

“Until a further executive order is issued, or as otherwise provided by law” –she is prohibited from performing any official act, duty, or function of public office, from receiving any pay or allowance, and from being entitled to any privileges of office.

She is charged with four counts of falsifying or avoiding a record, one count of falsifying proceedings – a first degree misdemeanor.

Poitier has said she is not going to resign from office while fighting those charges.

“This community will still continue to stand behind Commissioner Poitier – that’s all I can say at this time,” said her campaign manager and community activist Terry Scott.

On Friday, city officials were in meetings, trying to determine what comes next.

By definition, suspension –“to cause to cease or become inoperative for a time; stop or withhold temporarily”– is less final than being permanently removed from office.

The city has experience with removal from office but not so much with suspension of commissioners.

Following the December 2008 arrests of both former mayor Al Capellini and former District 4 commissioner Steve Gonot on unrelated felony corruption charges, Gonot resigned, Capellini was removed from office by the governor.