A special master who is hearing the
suspension case of former Broward Supervisor of Elections Miriam
Oliphant won't require Gov. Jeb Bush to give a deposition.
Oliphant, who was suspended in November by the governor, who said she
was mismanaging Broward's election office, is scheduled for a July 12
hearing before Stephen Kahn, general counsel of the Florida Senate, and
the special master who is serving as the judge in the case. His
findings and recommendations will go to the full Senate.
Oliphant's attorney, Henry Hunter of Tallahassee, argued that Bush,
former Secretary of State Jim Smith and current Secretary of State
Glenda Hood should give depositions in the case.
Although Kahn said there was no precedent for a governor to be
subpoenaed and won't require Smith to testify, he found that Hood could
be asked to testify, and may be subpoenaed.
Bush had no ''personal eyewitness knowledge of the facts,'' Kahn
pointed out. But as the state's chief election officer, Hood sent an
assessment team to Broward twice to see whether Oliphant was meeting
performance guidelines. Hood's testimony is important because she can
detail how the ``benchmarks were set and just how . . . Oliphant failed
to meet them.'' [ more]
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