Felony charges against Florida Rep. Carolina Amesty will not be prosecuted, records show

According to documents submitted by the Orange-Osceola state attorney’s office, Florida Representative Carolina Amesty will not face prosecution on four felony charges.

“I am very grateful that this legal matter is finally over, and I can look to the future,” Amesty wrote in a statement that was put on X. God, my family, and the numerous friends who supported me during this traumatic experience have my sincere gratitude.

Amesty will not be prosecuted for forgery, uttering a forgery, false acknowledgment or certification by a Notary Public, and notarizing her own signature, as per the “not wishing to prosecute” nolle prosequi order submitted on Sunday.

Republican state lawmaker Carolina Amesty was found guilty in August by an Orange County grand jury of falsifying some documents to give the impression that her family’s Orlando school, Central Christian University, had eminent academics on staff.

She was working as an administrator at Central Christian University, which was her family’s institution at the time. After the state attorney’s office accused Amesty, R-Windermere, of intentionally notarizing a document with a fake signature in 2021, she turned herself in to the Orange County Jail in September.

Investigators’ Words

Investigators claimed that as a Notary Public, she verified her own fake signature. The office of State Attorney Andrew Bain has dropped the charges.

“(Amesty) was offered diversion given her lack of criminal history,” a Bain representative wrote in an email.

The defendant had to do 30 hours of community service, a financial literacy course, and a financial crimes course as part of the diversionary conditions, all of which they did.

According to Samuel Vilchez Santiago, the chair of the Orange County Democratic Party, Bain accused Amesty in order to establish his legitimacy as an independent candidate in November.

“Now that the electorate made their choice clear on November 5th, Bain doesn’t have to worry about public accountability, and he dropped the charges. It’s just really sad to see,” said Vilchez Santiago.

Former Orange County Republican Party Chair Charles Hart expressed his opinion that Bain erred in his initial prosecution.

Even though Amesty’s lawyer insisted that the woman would be exonerated in court and stressed that her accusations had nothing to do with her government service, Amesty was charged two months prior to Election Day and lost to former Disney executive and Democrat Leonard Spencer.

The Democrat who defeated her, Leonard Spencer, told WESH 2 News: “In November, my people made it clear that they were prepared to move past the politics of turmoil and corruption that characterized my two years in office in District 45.

Although there are numerous questions surrounding today’s decision, I am primarily interested in learning how to reduce costs for Floridians.

The investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the subsequent indictment by a grand jury were spurred by a citizen tip, according to the state attorney’s office.

In November, Amesty’s tenure as a public servant paid by taxpayers came to an end. In the spring, she was scheduled to stand trial.