Crawford - Giannino - Florida Bar

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The 2011 Florida Bar complaint filed against William Gentry Crawford of Fort Lauderdale, FL.

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Saturday, December 17, 2011 THE FLORIDA BAR 651 E. Jefferson Street Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2300 Timothy "Chaz" Stevens PO Box 1123 Deerfield Beach, FL 33443 Dear Sir or Madam: I hereby file a grievance alleging Deerfield Beach Housing Authority attorney William Gentry Crawford, Jr. violated Florida Bar Rule 4-1.2(d) and Florida Bar Rule 4-1.7. In consideration of such, I offer the following. 1. Since 1993, Mr. Crawford has been the Fee Attorney for the Deerfield Beach Housing Authority. 2. In the 2003/8 timeframe, Deerfield Beach Housing Authority Commissioner Lee Giannino leased professional office space from the Authority and in doing so likely violated Florida Statute 112.313(3). 3. In May 2010, as a Commissioner for the Deerfield Beach Housing Authority, I brought these concerns to the attention of Mr. Crawford, putting him on written notice of the possible violation of Florida law, and demanded a cure for the situation by requiring Commissioner Giannino to either resign his post or immediately pay back the entire amount due. In response, Mr. Crawford informs Commissioner Giannino via email to “resolve this issue before someone makes a mountain out of a mole hill.” 4. As of December 2010, Commissioner Giannino owed $2,796.32 in back due rent and no interest was applied to the four year old debt. 5. In July 2011, Commissioner Giannino’s term in office ended and he was not re-appointed to the post. August 2010, the Deerfield Beach Housing Authority lets its Legal Services out to bid, while at the same time, Mr. Crawford is actively negotiating with Commissioner Giannino regarding his loan repayment parameters. Shortly thereafter, the Deerfield Beach Housing Authority awards Mr. Crawford’s firm a multi-year contract extension and from a review of the bid scoring sheets, one notes: 1. Commissioner Giannino scored the firm McDonald & Crawford better on its billing rate, yet the second-place firm of Goren, Cherof, Doody & Ezrol bills $30.00 per hour less. 2. Commissioner Giannino scored Mr. Crawford’s firm better on experience, yet Mr. Goren’s firm manages several Public Housing Authorities -- as to Mr. Crawford’s firm of one -- and over 20 times more housing units. 3. All the other commissioners rated Mr. Goren’s firm as best. 4. Commissioner Giannino’s scoring sheets for Mr. Crawford’s firm contained post-scoring changes. 5. If one removes Commissioner Giannino’s score from the final tally, Mr. Goren’s firm would have won. At the December 2010 Authority Board meeting, Commissioner Giannino was provided with very lenient repayment terms not offered to other similar Deerfield Beach Housing Authority debtors.

I allege that Commissioner Giannino has now twice possibly violated Florida Statute 112.313, this time by entering into a business relationship with his own agency to repay $2,796.32. For the record, one notes that I have filed a complaint for such against Commissioner Giannino with the Broward State Attorney’s Office. I also allege Mr. Crawford violated the following Florida Bar Rules. 1. Since Mr. Crawford was put on written notice and previously made aware of illegal activity, by drafting a promissory note that compounded Commissioner Giannino’s statutorial violations, he knowingly engaged in criminal activity with his Client, thereby violating Florida Bar Rule 4-1.2(d). 2. While negotiating the terms of his Client’s loan repayment and at the same time seeking a multi-year contract extension from the Client’s agency, a clear conflict of interest existed, thereby violating Florida Bar Rule 4-1.7. Given this, I respectfully request the Florida Bar thoroughly investigate this Grievance filed against Mr. Crawford and to the extent permitted by State or local law or regulations, any and all penalties, sanctions, or other disciplinary actions for violations of such standards be applied forthwith. Under penalty of perjury, I declare the facts set forth are true, correct, and complete. Sincerely;

Timothy “Chaz” Stevens Former Commissioner Deerfield Beach Housing Authority

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