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12/22/2024 02:21:19 pm

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Town of Two Mayors: Miami Lakes' Michael Pizzi Wants Town, Current Mayor Won't Budge

Michael Pizzi

(Photo : Reuters / Zachary Fagenson) Suspended Miami Lakes Mayor Michael Pizzi talks to reporters in the lobby of Miami Lakes Town Hall in Miami Lakes, Florida August 18, 2014.

A dispute involving two men claiming to be mayor of Miami Lakes, a small town in Florida, will likely be elevated to the court after both of them showed up on Monday at the town hall.

Last week, a federal jury declared Miami Lakes Mayor Michael Pizzi not guilty of charges involving extortion and bribery. He was suspended from his position when he got indicted in August 2013, Reuters explained.

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After Pizzi was exonerated last week, Florida Governor Rick Scott refused to restore him to his post, citing a Miami Lakes provision that prohibits public officials from returning to office. He also said incumbent Mayor Wayne Slaton, who replaced Pizzi in October 2013, should be the one to finish the remaining time in the latter's term.

Pizzi, on the other hand, argued that his suspension was sanctioned by the state's constitution. Therefore, he is allowed to return to his post after his acquittal.

In Florida, public officials are allowed to re-assume office after they are cleared of charges filed against them. In 2011, Governor Scott reinstated a commissioner in Miami who was indicted and later on cleared of corruption charges.

During a visit to the town hall on Monday, Pizzi announced that he will ask his attorneys to secure a court order that will command the staff to regard him as the town's mayor.

Slaton, on the other hand, refused to budge and held another press conference in the town hall. He said Miami Lakes will be "moving forward" from the issue.

Slaton is a former mayor and one of the founders of Miami Lakes.

During Pizzi's trial, prosecutors alleged he accepted a bribe worth thousands of dollars from representatives of a consulting company who were actually FBI agents working undercover. Benedict Kuehne, Pizzi's attorney, said his client was just entrapped.

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