Fla. governor seeks corruption inquiry

TALLAHASSEE, Fla., Oct. 15 (UPI) -- Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has called for a statewide grand jury inquiry centered on an apparent "culture of corruption" in South Florida.

The jury panel will have the authority to indict public officials and make recommendations for changes in state law, the governor said, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported.

Crist said Wednesday he was a basing his action on "an unsettling string of crime, unconscionable violations of the public trust by public officials, predominantly in South Florida."

The grand jury will be expected to meet for one year, meaning its findings could be released just before the 2010 election. Crist is a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate.

Democratic Party spokesman Eric Jotkoff called Crist's motives a "half measure" since the governor has not sought a similar inquiry for the GOP-run legislature.

Florida House Speaker Ray Sansom, R-Destin, stepped down from his post amid a scandal involving a Republican fundraiser.

This month, Broward County Commissioner Josephus Eggelletion and school board member Beverly Gallagher were arrested, as was Republican fundraiser and Hollywood eye doctor Alan Mendelsohn, who served on Crist's gubernatorial transition team. All those cases, however, were pursued by federal prosecutors.