No shocker: Records show DeSantis' staff planned Keith Pearson's appointment well in advance

I wish I could say I'm surprised, but I'm not.

Records released by Gov. Ron DeSantis' office this week to TCPalm confirm what I and others have long suspected about Keith Pearson's appointment as St. Lucie County sheriff.

This was no spur-of-the-moment decision, made in haste following Ken Mascara's (seemingly) abrupt announcement on Dec. 1 that he would be retiring at the end of the same day.

Instead, the governor's records clearly show Pearson's appointment was carefully planned days, if not weeks, before the official announcement was made. And the paper trail, public records provided by the governor's office about six months after TCPalm requested them, seems to have begun right after a family politically connected to Pearson made generous donations to DeSantis' then-active presidential campaign.

Timing doesn't appear to be coincidental

Neither the governor's staff nor Pearson responded to requests for comment, but the documents tell a pretty interesting story.

Among more than 7,000 pages the governor's office supplied to TCPalm is a Nov. 21 email from what appears to be the personal email account of Alex Kelly, then DeSantis' acting chief of staff, to his government email account. The file Kelly was transferring was titled "Keith Pearson awards and recognition.PDF"

That was the day after several members of the DiFrancesco family made generous contributions to the DeSantis campaign and two political action committees supporting the campaign.

According to Federal Election Commission records, Anthony, Carol, Michael, Patrick and Steven DiFrancesco each contributed $6,600 — the maximum allowed — to the DeSantis campaign Nov. 20. Each of the five, who are listed as Florida residents, also donated $5,000 to Great American Comeback and $11,600 to Team DeSantis, the two PACs.

The only exception was Steven DiFrancesco, who was listed as having made a $12,600 contribution to Team DeSantis, rather than the $11,600 given by the other four.

Anthony "Tony" DiFrancesco is a Fort Pierce businessman, convicted felon whom DeSantis pardoned earlier that year and a political ally of Pearson's.

On Nov. 15, less than a week before the DiFrancesco donations to DeSantis and the PACs, Anthony DiFrancesco hosted a fundraiser for DeSantis' presidential campaign at the headquarters of Missionary Flights International, located at Treasure Coast International Airport in Fort Pierce.

The DiFrancescos and companies with family members listed as officers or registered agents have also made generous contributions to Pearson's campaign for sheriff, according to St. Lucie County Supervisor of Elections Office records.

Governor gets contributions, then Pearson gets vetted

More: St. Lucie sheriff not transparent about private fundraiser, campaign contributions, felon ties

More: Erratic conduct by Sheriff Keith Pearson, allies may hurt Gov. Ron DeSantis' political career

More: How St. Lucie Republicans could get stuck with Keith Pearson as their nominee for sheriff

Pearson attended the Nov. 15 fundraiser and had his photo taken with the governor and Jarret Romanello, executive director of the St. Lucie Sheriff's Police Athletic League.

Within a few days after the fundraiser and the DiFrancesco campaign donations, DeSantis' staff began preparing for Pearson's appointment.

A Nov. 27 email from the governor's appointments office asked the Florida Department of Law Enforcement if a background check on Pearson could be completed "by the end of the day tomorrow, Tuesday, November 28."

Later on Nov. 27, an email from Sheri Taylor, a senior crime intelligence analyst supervisor for FDLE, confirmed the background check had been completed.

On Nov. 29, Chelsea Aaron, the governor's director of appointments, sent an email to Carter Hull, the deputy director of appointments, with a question regarding some of the wording in Pearson's bio.

Also on Nov. 29, the governor's communications team had a draft news release ready, announcing Pearson as the new sheriff of St. Lucie County. That draft release included the same language for Pearson's bio that was part of the official news release distributed to the media on Dec. 1.

In his resignation letter to the governor dated Dec. 1, Mascara made no mention of any previous conversations the two men had about the transition. The way the letter was worded, it did not appear Mascara knew who his successor would be.

"Whoever you appoint as St. Lucie County's next sheriff, you have my commitment for a smooth transition so the next sheriff continues to successfully serve our citizens," Mascara wrote.

A surprise pick? Let's get real

Nor did the news release DeSantis sent out on Dec. 1 acknowledge there had been any planning for the transition.

"Today, Gov. Ron DeSantis was notified of Sheriff Ken Mascara's retirement effective close of business on December 1, 2023," the release stated. "To ensure law enforcement operations continue without delay, the governor announced the appointment of Keith Pearson as sheriff of St. Lucie County."

That narrative was followed by a brief bio on Pearson.

In an interview the day after his appointment was announced, Pearson told TCPalm reporter Melissa Holsman he got little advance notice the governor was planning to pick him.

“I got a phone call about 30 minutes before the press release came out that the governor put his confidence in me to lead St. Lucie County,” Pearson said the next day. “And it's just been very, very humbling and exciting since then.”

It's ridiculous to suggest the governor's staffers were looking at Pearson's credentials and requesting a background check without bothering to ask him if he would be interested in taking the job.

But, based on some of the emails DeSantis received following the appointment, he didn't vet Pearson closely enough.

Among the documents we obtained were emails from numerous people who wrote to DeSantis to suggest he had made a bad decision, questioning Pearson's integrity and fitness to lead the department. More than one alleged Pearson had to be removed from a post he previously held with the sheriff's narcotics unit because there were questions about his credibility when bringing cases to court.

There were other allegations in the protest emails and letters, including that Pearson filed a lawsuit against a painting company on false grounds and also that he removed a dirt bike from the sheriff's evidence room for his son's use, then later sold the bike to a man in Miami.

There's no evidence in the correspondence records that any of those allegations made against Pearson were investigated by the governor's staff.

Does DeSantis care if any Pearson allegations are true?

All in all, just a cursory review of the records suggests both DeSantis and Pearson have some explaining to do.

The narrative that Pearson's appointment was a surprise reaction to Mascara's departure doesn't pass the smell test. In truth, it never did. Nor does the notion Pearson's elevation from a middle management job in the sheriff's office to the top position didn't have anything to do with the political contributions the governor received.

This looks like a clear-cut case of "pay to play." Only it's all of St. Lucie County's residents, not just the DiFrancescos, who are doing the paying.

This column reflects the opinion of Blake Fontenay. Contact him via email at bfontenay@gannett.com or at 772-232-5424.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Pearson was vetted by FDLE days before 'surprise' pick as SLC sheriff