ORLANDO, Fla. – An attorney who represented an associate of former Seminole County tax collector Joel Greenberg is apologizing for talking to jurors and questioning them about their verdict shortly after they convicted his client of bribery-related charges.
“I humbly and sincerely apologize for my lapse in memory,” defense attorney Dr. Gavin Clarkson wrote in court papers filed Thursday. “I assure the court that there was no intention whatsoever to violate [local federal court rules], and any unintended rule violation was the result of absentmindedness in the aftermath of a trial that held significant emotional weight for all parties involved.”
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Last month a jury found Michael Shirley guilty of honest services fraud and conspiracy. He faces up to 20 years in prison when sentenced Oct. 31.
Shirley paid a $6,000 kickback to Greenberg in exchange for maintaining a lucrative consulting contract with the tax collector’s office, according to prosecutors.
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Greenberg is serving an 11-year prison sentence for child sex trafficking and other offenses.
Clarkson, a Texas attorney who joined Shirley’s Orlando-based lawyers shortly before the trial began, confirmed he attempted to speak with jurors as they left the federal courthouse in Orlando on July 27.
According to U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell, Clarkson’s actions violated a local federal court rule prohibiting lawyers from communicating with jurors during or after a trial without the court’s permission.
Presnell ordered Clarkson to explain in writing why the court should not revoke his permission to continue serving as an attorney in Shirley’s case.
“More than an hour after the jurors had been excused from the courtroom on July 27, 2023, when I unexpectedly encountered a group of jurors next to the parking lot that jurors, attorneys, and defendants apparently all use, my failure to mentally recall the distinctions between the local rules of the Middle District of Florida and those of the Southern or Western District of Texas was mine and mine alone,” Clarkson wrote.
According to Clarkson, Shirley’s Orlando-based attorneys departed the courthouse immediately after the verdict, leaving Clarkson to phone Shirley’s elderly parents to inform them of the jury’s guilty verdict.
“After that gut-wrenching call, my client and I spent several minutes talking before we exited the courthouse, approximately 75 minutes after the jury was excused and led out of the courtroom,“ wrote Clarkson.
Presnell said he was originally told Clarkson approached the jurors “20-30 minutes” after the jury was excused.
After exiting the courthouse, Clarkson and Shirley approached a News 6 reporter and videographer and provided a brief statement reacting to the jury’s verdict.
“Unbeknownst to me, some jurors were still in the courthouse, and a group of them apparently exited the courthouse after we did, including the foreperson,” Clarkson wrote. “That group of jurors then walked towards me, albeit on the way to the same parking lot that attorneys, defendants, and jurors all use.”
In his reply to the judge, Clarkson noted that the local federal court rules in his home state of Texas allow attorneys to contact jurors except in certain limited circumstances.
“I fully acknowledge it was my responsibility to familiarize myself and comply with the Local Rules of the Middle District of Florida, however, the perceived abandonment of my client by his Florida-based attorneys and the difficult conversation with my client’s elderly parents were all weighing heavily on my mind,” Clarkson wrote. “Furthermore, my interaction with the jurors was entirely unplanned, as I fully expected that all of the jurors had already left the courthouse long before we did.”
Clarkson said Shirley was standing at least 100 feet away as a group of jurors approached the attorney at the entrance to the parking lot. He claims the entire interaction lasted for less than a minute.
“I did let the foreperson know that she and the rest of the jurors had no obligation to speak with me. She indicated that she didn’t feel comfortable speaking with me, and most of the jurors filed on past me,” Clarkson wrote.
“One juror, perhaps because they sensed that I was struggling to make sense of the verdict, did offer some insights,” he added.
Clarkson said it was inaccurate to indicate that he “confronted” the jurors in any way, the attorney’s response stated.
The attorney said he discovered the local federal court rule prohibiting communications with jurors while researching what he claimed was “potential juror misconduct.”
“I sincerely apologize for any concern my actions may have caused the Court, the jurors, or any other parties involved,” wrote Clarkson.
Presnell did not immediately rule on whether Clarkson will be allowed to continue serving as Shirley’s attorney as he awaits sentencing.
Shirley’s Orlando-based lawyers, Warren Lindsey and Ashley Parker, filed court papers earlier this month seeking permission to withdraw from Shirley’s case. The lawyers did not cite a reason, but they included paperwork indicating Shirley consented to their withdrawal.
Magistrate Judge Daniel C. Irick has scheduled a hearing next week to consider the lawyers’ request to withdraw.
Parker filed two motions Thursday on Shirley’s behalf asking the judge to set aside the jury’s verdict and request a new trial, citing multiple alleged errors in how the original trial was conducted.
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