PBS and NPR for Southwest Florida
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Lawmaker Claims Vindication After Ethics Ruling

Sebring Republican Cary Pigman was cleared of ethics charges that he improperly pressured Okeechobee administrators to discipline a veteran principal.
Florida House of Representatives
Sebring Republican Cary Pigman was cleared of ethics charges that he improperly pressured Okeechobee administrators to discipline a veteran principal.

Republican Representative Cary Pigman did not illegally pressure Okeechobee school administrators to discipline a veteran principal, the Ethics Commission has ruled.

Sebring Republican Cary Pigman was cleared of ethics charges that he improperly pressured Okeechobee administrators to discipline a veteran principal.
Credit Florida House of Representatives
Sebring Republican Cary Pigman was cleared of ethics charges that he improperly pressured Okeechobee administrators to discipline a veteran principal.

The woman was suspended without pay after extending her middle finger to Pigman during a public meeting.

The incident brought to light an affair Pigman was having with the woman’s estranged sister-in-law. The Sebring Republican says he’s glad to get the matter behind him.

The DOAH (Department of Administrative Hearings) did what we expected them to do, which is discover the truth, and make a recording of the facts based on that. So I’m very happy that I’ve been vindicated.”

After the hearing, Pigman dashed from a courtroom at the First District Court of Appeal in southeastern Tallahassee to the Capitol, where lawmakers were hoping to wrap up a contentious special session.

Copyright 2020 WFSU. To see more, visit .

Jim Ash is a reporter at WFSU-FM. A Miami native, he is an award-winning journalist with more than 20 years of experience, most of it in print. He has been a member of the Florida Capital Press Corps since 1992.