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Crist has called for an eighteen member grand jury, which would last for a year and would be filled by citizens. The grand jury would be created in order to respond to two felt needs in Florida; outing corrupted public officials and toughening the corruption laws. The jury would have the authority to indict any public officials who are suspected of corruption and to recommend changes to the current corruption laws [1].
Crist says that corruption is a problem state-wide, but it is worst, he says, in South Florida. In the last month alone, many South Florida politicians have been the subjects of corruption cases. The list includes a Broward County Commissioner and School Board member, and three Commissioners from Palm Beach County. It also includes a political fundraiser and former Crist backer, Alan Mendelsohn, who is from Hollywood, Florida [2].
In the midst of the corruption scandals, the Florida Attorney General has expressed dissatisfaction with the current corruption laws in the state, which are much less strict than the federal corruption laws. The lenient corruption laws in Florida make prosecution difficult [3].
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