Fla. Lawmaker Charged in Slur Scandal

FORBES

A state lawmaker under fire for leaving a message filled with obscenities and a racial slur on a colleague's voice mail resigned Wednesday and was charged with two crimes.

Rep. Ralph Arza, who had been urged to step down by fellow Republicans, including Gov. Jeb Bush, apologized for his actions and said he was resigning because he did not want to distract from the work of the GOP-led Legislature.

"I do not want to be the story," he said.

Arza acknowledged leaving the message on fellow Republican Rep. Gus Barreiro's voice mail last month but said he was drunk.

He said he had learned that Barreiro had filed a complaint accusing him of using a racial epithet to refer to Miami-Dade County School Superintendent Rudy Crew, who is black. He used the same epithet in his phone message to Barreiro, who is Hispanic, but has vehemently denied ever using a racial slur to refer to Crew.

Prosecutors charged Arza with retaliating against and tampering with a witness, both felonies, for allegedly trying to thwart the investigation of the complaint.

Arza's cousin was also charged with the same offenses. They could get up to 10 years in prison.

Authorities said 10 phone calls were made between Oct. 21 and Oct. 22 to Barreiro from phones belonging to Arza and his cousin. Five threatening calls were recorded, two from Arza's cell phone and three from the cousin's phone, officials said.

The two men were expected to turn themselves in Thursday

Arza resigned about an hour before a special House panel was set to begin hearings on whether to expel him.

"It's not really a happy day for anybody, I don't think," Barreiro said. "I think he made the right decision, the right decision, not only for himself, but I thought he looked at the bigger picture, which is the institution he represents. I wish him the best." .....