ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Orange County Circuit Judge Renee Roache delayed her decision on a motion to disqualify Orange County sheriff candidate Darryl Sheppard until Monday.
The judge agreed Friday to allow the Orange County supervisor of elections attorney, Nicholas A. Shannin, additional time to gather information related to the two bad checks presented to the Orange County supervisor of elections by Sheppard.
Roache will review that information Monday morning.
The hearing, which lasted about an hour, centered on Sheppard’s campaign finances and whether the funds to cover the $10,000 qualifying fee were actually in the account when the checks were issued.
Stuart P. Buchanan, the attorney who represents the plaintiff, Said Lutfi, said the judge “was very thorough in reviewing the facts in the case.”
Buchanan said the records leave no doubt Sheppard’s account had only half the funds needed to pay the qualifying fee.
Both sides have agreed that if Roche rules to disqualify Sheppard the action would be delayed up to five days to allow him time to present a rebuttal.
Sheppard, the lone Democrat in the race for Orange County sheriff, has argued the funds were available when the first of two certified checks was issued.
It's up to the judge to decide if Sheppard violated election protocol.
The attorneys who filed the emergency motion, argue Sheppard “clearly failed” to meet qualifying requirements by submitting two bad checks to the Orange County Supervisor of Elections Office before finally providing a viable cashier’s check minutes before a 48-hour extension.
The lawsuit, filed on Oct. 1, names Sheppard and Supervisor of Elections Bill Cowles as co-defendants.
Lutfi, said Sheppard has been avoiding process servers for several weeks prompting the law firm to hire private detectives to find him.
“The process server has not been able to find him,” Winter Park attorney Stuart P. Buchanan said. “They (private detectives) are looking at every known address that he has listed on his campaign report.”
Sheppard said he is convinced the lawsuit is an attempt to clear the way for candidates John Mina and Joe Lopez.
“My reaction is it’s another attempt at getting me off the ballot," Sheppard said. “I think the campaigns are threatened, so I wasn’t surprised.”
Sheppard said the campaign checking account issues were not intentional and that he always intended to make sure the qualifying fee was paid.
Lutfi, owner of the Lutfi Investment company, said he filed the lawsuit after seeing a report on News 6 about the bad checks and how much money was involved.
“If he has money to run for sheriff why doesn’t he come and pay me some of my money?" Lutfi said.
Lutfi and Sheppard have been in a legal dispute since May 2017 involving a property on 500 North Orange Blossom Trail. He said Sheppard owes him in excess of $100,000.
The judge has allowed 30 minutes to review the facts on Monday. It is unclear if she will issue an
immediate decision although one source told News 6 that it is likely.
The judge also asked the plaintiff's attorneys to provide case law supporting their argument.