Corruption

Three of the seven County Commissioners who voted in favor of Scripps on Mecca Farms ended up in federal prison for development-related corruption:

• Mary McCarty pleaded guilty in 2009 to conspiracy to commit honest services fraud after failing to disclose that she was voting on projects that indirectly benefited her husband, Kevin McCarty. She was also receiving reduced hotel rates from a company that did business with Palm Beach County.
• Warren Newell pleaded guilty in 2008 to conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, admitting he had concealed his involvement in various real estate deals and cast votes that made those deals more lucrative for him and his business partners. Prosecutors estimated he netted about $500,000. His original five-year sentence was reduced after he helped prosecutors snare former County Commissioner Mary McCarty.
• Tony Masilotti pleaded guilty in 2007 to conspiracy to commit honest services fraud in connection with land deals that netted his family up to $10 million. The conspiracy included tax evasion and lying to federal agents.