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House Candidate Facing Drug Charges Will Remain In Race
July 28, 2010
Ricky Perritt, the Florida Florida House District 1 candidate arrest on felony. drug trafficking charges Monday night, said Wednesday afternoon that he will remain in the race.
Perritt made the announcement during a brief press conference at a park in Pace. He told reporters that he did not have the word “quit” in his vocabulary. He said that since the ballots with his name were already printed for the August 24 election, he would remain in the running for the seat.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement alleges Perritt, a former sergeant for the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office, fraudulently obtained 1,200 hydrocodone pills through “doctor shopping” — visiting several physicians or the purposes of obtaining hydrocodone. Agents say Perritt did not disclose to any of the physicians that he had already been prescribed hydrocodone by another physician.
Click here to read the FDLE report.
“Ricky Perritt will remain in the race for the Florida House. Mr. Perritt asks that you continue all of your support and prayers for his family and himself during these trying times, and asks that when you vote on August 24th that you look at all the facts in all of the candidates,” Tommy Nichols, Perritt’s campaign manager, wrote in an email to NorthEscambia.com.
Perrit is facing felony charges of withholding information from a practitioner to obtain a controlled substance, obtaining a prescription by fraud, and trafficking in hydrocodone.
Fink said Perritt suffers from chronic pain in both shoulders and is recovering from a recent shoulder surgery. His arrest came after his wife Jennifer Perritt, 38, was arrested last week on the same charges. A statement issued after her arrest by Perritt’s campaign said Jennifer Perritt has suffered from a degenerative spinal condition for the past seven years, and that she became addicted to her prescribed pain medications.
In that statement, Ricky Perritt said he was “consulting with the appropriate professionals to evaluate the situation” with his wife, and he asked for prayers for her.
“While FDLE officials say that the Perritt’s fraudulently obtained approximate 1,200 pills over a nine month period, sources inside the campaign point out that since both of the Perritt’s had recently had surgery the number of pills in question boiled down to about two or three pills each for the time in question. For people dealing with chronic pain, those numbers are well within reason,” Fink said.
Comments
18 Responses to “House Candidate Facing Drug Charges Will Remain In Race”
REGARDING:
“The drug laws in this country are nuts!!”
While I agree, that doesn’t change the fact that they are laws and folks should at least consider complying–especially if they want to be part of the government.
Part of the question at hand is end use. If the purchasers were so addicted that they needed that much dope, that is sad but doesn’t hurt others. If the purchasers intended to sell the dope to others, that is also sad but not quite as forgivable.
And then there’s the political aspect. Even if you made massive consumption of controlled substances legal, do you want them in power? Maybe you do, but spell it out clearly.
David for removing the profit motive
from drug dealing by legalization
but for complying in the mean time
well said joshua.
I don’t know anything about the guy’s political views, and frankly I don’t care. It’s a sad case in this country when someone who may be an addict, rather than getting the help he needs, could end up in prison. The drug laws in this country are nuts!!
The law should treat him the same as you or me,that being said even god waits until a man is dead to judge him …so should every one else!
does he really think he will win now? smh.
politics son politics
looks like little tommy nichols is growing up ha ha ! love ya tommy your doing great not so much 4 perritt !!
we must not forget that the good book says do not judge your brothers correct ? and when you call someone a name it only makes you look like the one who should be prayed for ! i will pray for all of your souls ! and maybe if things go right and yall straighten up i will be joined by you all in gods palace ! love you all !
The mitigated gaul of this guy. Does he really think he is not going
to jail and can still run……
To say nothing of the fact he thinks all us stupid hillbillies would vote
him in.
LOL
“QUIT” should be in your vocabulary. You and your wife should have quit taking hydrocodone. I quess the other candidates made you commit fraud,forgery, and drug trafficing. It is never your fault is it?
The FDLE report was interesting reading. I’d say it’s a pretty tight case against him. How can somebody get out of doing time on charges like that? What is the typical defense?
Was there an FDLE report for Jennifer? Also, it’s being said that if convicted he faces up to 260 yrs in prison. What is Jennifer facing? I don’t remember reading anything about what kind of time she is facing if convicted.
But he would fit right in well with all the other politicians lol
Talk about the nerve of politicians or political wannabe’s, just look at old W D Childers. Now theres a big laugh, who in their right mind would vote for him?
And now this guy, he and his wife need help, not a place in office.
It’s amazing what politics’ will make a man do. Steal signs, become drug dealers. Lie to everybody. There must be a lot of power up there to make a man sell his soul for a little fame and money. Some of best crooks work in Tallahassee and Washington. Nobody runs for office to help their fellow man it’s all about what’s in it for me. This, people having no values and morals is why the good Lord is going to take his place back and send all to the hot house.
pretty insightful and well said big al…
It’s hilarious to drive around in Escambia or Santa Rosa County and see all the political posters (some of them are convicted felons!) They try to convince you that they are dedicated public servants sacrificing years of their lives over and over again for the good of the community!!!! Total complacency by the average citizen – so we get what we deserve.
“Chronic pain”… a sad and lame excuse. Perritt is a disgrace and he should quickly withdrawal from the race and then go “serve” the public by doing his time in the Santa Rosa Hilton. I guess the only viable candidate left is Ferd Salomon from Pace, but I don’t know much about him other that he’s a retired naval aviator. Maybe he’ll get out and let us know what he’s about now that Brown, Broxson, and Perritt are all in the same sinking boat.
There sure is a lot going on here. I feel really sorry for the children in this household. Even if all the drugs were obtained legally, that is a lot of pain killers to be in one house. I hope that the kids manage to stay away from this trap, but I see homes with 2 or 3 generations of prescribed medicine abusers. In our communities we hold certain professions to a higher standard. Police officers, Fire Men, Judges, Doctors and Elected Officials are in this group. No one is forced to choose these professions, but if they do, it is likely that their lives will be under the microscope from time to time. If you don’t want your life made public, stay out of public life. Work at the paper mill or the oil field or the Navy Yard, but don’t offer yourself up as the perfect candidate for a public office if you have things in your life that you don’t want made public. If you are a policeman hired to enforce the laws of the land, don’t break those laws. If you are a judge who passes sentences over citizens of our community, don’t break the law. If you are a doctor, licensed to perscribe narcotics, don’t abuse them yourself or allow anyone who works for you to do so. If you are a Lawyer, Shoot, just get away with anything you can…… Of note to all… there are things in my family’s background that I don’t want published on this web site, so I obey the law, don’t run for public office, and Keep working my non public, non political, non elected JOB.