Clerk suspended over courthouse sex sues Florida Gov. Rick Scott

Jeff Burlew | Tallahassee Democrat

TALLAHASSEE — Former Jefferson County Clerk of Court Kirk Reams, who was suspended from office in part over allegations he had sex with his then-girlfriend in the Monticello courthouse, is suing Florida Gov. Rick Scott and Senate President Joe Negron in an attempt to get his job back.

Reams filed a lawsuit Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Tallahassee seeking to bar Scott and Negron from enforcing statues and Senate rules pertaining to suspensions of public officials. The complaint also asks for Reams to be reinstated as clerk of court.

An investigation into Reams began in 2016 after his former girlfriend reported to the Sheriff’s Office that he’d taken nude photos of her at the courthouse and had sex with her in the judge’s chambers. The investigation found no wrongdoing because the sex was consensual and Reams as clerk of the court was allowed to be in the courthouse.

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But Reams was charged with petty theft after investigators learned he’d given a county-owned laptop to his girlfriend for her personal use for more than a year. The case went to trial, but jurors found Reams not guilty after deliberating less than 15 minutes.

Scott cited both the courthouse incident and the laptop when he suspended Reams on Oct. 18. Chief Circuit Judge Jonathan Sjostrom later appointed former Madison County Clerk of Court Tim Sanders to the post.

“At present the governor refuses to reinstate Reams, and the Senate took no action of any kind regarding Reams during the entire recent legislative session, which lasted from Jan. 9, 2018 until March 11, 2018,” the complaint says. “Unless special session is called Reams will not have his ‘due process’ hearing until as late as May 2019.”

Under the Florida Constitution, the governor can suspend public officials for a variety of reasons, from malfeasance and misfeasance to neglect of duty, habitual drunkenness or commission of a felony. The Senate has the authority to either reinstate suspended officials or remove them permanently.

Reams is seeking a ruling that statutes and Senate rules governing suspensions of public officials be found unconstitutional on the grounds they violate the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of due process. The lawsuit also notes that Reams, an attorney, can’t practice law in Florida while he’s suspended.

A Democrat, Reams was elected clerk in 2006 and re-elected in 2008, 2012 and 2016.

Follow Jeff Burlew on Twitter: @JeffBurlew