JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Action News Jax Investigates has discovered a new text message that may have sparked the JEA “favor to a friend” controversy. We found it among hundreds of pages of emails and text messages of Jacksonville city council president Kevin Carrico that were subpoenaed by the State Attorney’s Office.
The documents follow our investigation, first brought to you by Ben Becker, that revealed Carrico wanted to appoint his Boys and Girls Club boss, Paul Martinez, to the JEA board.
The Feb. 5 text message that started it all suggested he owed a big favor to a friend.
The documents also mention other requests for favors.
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One text that stood out appears to have been sent from Carrico to Martinez on January 20. It reads “Guess it’s time they get a new board member to show them who’s boss... You ready to play the game?”
Carrico released the following statement about the text to Action News Investigates:
“That message was directed to my nominee for the Board Mr. Martinez. I’m a straight shooter, and sometimes that means my language is more blunt than polished. The text reflects what I’ve said publicly for years: JEA needs change. Under the current leadership, Jacksonville ratepayers have been saddled with some of the largest utility rate hikes in JEA’s history, and they’ve every right to be frustrated. Rather than demanding answers and pushing back on behalf of customers, too many members of the board have simply accepted the status quo. I will continue fighting for greater accountability, stronger oversight, and for a board that puts ratepayers first.“
“The text about Martinez, I know he’s a nice guy, but the way that text was written, I don’t care how he can justify it, it’s not correct,” said Matt Schellenberg, former JEA Liaison and Jacksonville city council member.
He says the original text, also found in the released documents, was wrong. He also added that it shouldn’t have taken weeks for our public records request to be fulfilled.
“Maybe some of the things that are concerning to JEA are in those documents somewhere, they’re hidden amongst all those thousands of words,” Schellenberg said.
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In these documents, we found several texts asking and requesting favors, including one for Jacksonville’s former Mayor.
It reads, “need this permit closed out, bro. It’s a favor to a church for Lenny Curry”.
A different thread shows a person asking Carrico for help to get a friendship fountain coordinator position.
“I think it’s time to replace every city council person. I’m disappointed with almost all of them,” Schellenberg said.
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Another text from Carrico saying in part, “JEA is mad at me and already tipped off the media apparently through the grape vine.”
After the texts came out, Carrico launched an investigatory committee into JEA that critics say is retaliation.
“I think that City Council, like many elected officials, need to get back to the constituents,” Schellenberg said.
Action News Jax will continue to go through these documents and bring you updates on air and online.
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