Escambia County Board of Commissioners

Escambia County Administrator

221 Palafax Pl.
Pensacola FL, 32502
January 26, 2017
Dear gentlemen,
I am assuming that each of you have had an opportunity to read the Jan.18, 2017 issue of
Inweekly concerning the questionable operation of the REAP program in Brownsville.
The Real Problem
Thanks to Inweekly we now see the big picture concerning REAP, and that our concerns
were misdirected. It's not the REAP program but its organizers, president, an executive
director that are the problem. REAP Pensacola is a standalone organization. Coming
from Indiana, the heart of the nation's Bible belt, I have always welcomed faith based
charities as part of community services. But the people running Pensacola REAP are not
trying to rehabilitate their clients; they are trying to save them. Many REAP clients say
that they are not getting the psychological and moral support that was promised them
when they signed up for the program; some feel they were forced to join REAP. They
are now forced to live with those that they don't trust. Contrary to his earlier radio
broadcast comments, executive director, Rick Dye acknowledged at a meeting with the
Historic Brownsville Community Board on October 4 that the sex offenders under his
control do not get any psychiatric or psychological counseling in the program. The next
day REAP severed its relationship with Rick Dye. These overzealous do-gooders care
little about their clients; their only goal is to feed their ego by holding themselves up to
the community as saviors of individuals who have never contributed anything to society.
Al Stubblefield and Vince Whibbs admit REAP is a Failure
In Inweekly Al Stubblefield readily admits that the REAP program is a failure. He and
Vince Whibbs, the disbarred attorney now running REAP, state that REAP houses 49 sex
offenders in 11 houses in Brownsville. They state that nine men were returned to jail, but
they do not say what crime was committed that sent them back to jail or prison. More
troubling is their admission that eleven have disappeared. How can they disappear when
they are required to register with the local Sheriff? Because REAP, in violation of 501(c)
3 statutes, has refused the public any documentation, we are forced to accept their
figures. According to their figures they have a 38% failure rate with very dangerous
criminals in their charge. I find it troubling that Mr. Stubblefield's energy is concentrated
on helping convicted rapists instead of offering help to their victims. It would be
interesting to know how many of those victims were treated at Baptist Hospital during his
tenure there. I hope Mr. Stubblefield has more respect for the HIPAA laws then he has
for zoning laws.

Zoning-Housing Code Violations

In Mr. Stubblefield's pursuit of his brass plaque, and honorary dinner with a federal
judge, he is shown total disregard for the law, and no respect for the commissioners who
enforce those laws. The REAP story in Inweekly was written over several weeks. Yes.
Sandra Slay did e-mail me to say that the house at 909 Lynch St, owned by GCCB, was
vacated in September, but two weeks later when things cooled down they were back.
Currently there are eleven sex offenders living at 909 and 911 Lynch St, with ten more in
other houses on Lynch St. That is in addition to 9 other occupied houses. That action in
of itself shows the contempt that these individuals have for the Board of Commissioners.
Mr. Stubblefield readily admits to renting houses in Brownsville from GCCB and then
sub-renting out rooms (two men per room) for $100 a week, and even rents couches for
$50 a week -all in violation of Brownsville's single family dwelling zoning laws.
I asked Judge Rogers if the above scenario met her threshold for RICO -I received no
response. Judge Rogers comments in Inweekly were disingenuous if not untruthful. She
is quoted as saying she sends very few ex-cons to the REAP program because she has her
own federal program. What she failed to mention was that her federal program does not
allow sex offenders. She is fully aware that sex offenders cannot be rehabilitated, so she
dumps them in REAP's Brownsville program. Here is a link explaining the qualifications
for her federal program - please note it clearly states -no sex offenders.
https://www.fd.org/docs/select-topics/sentencing-resources/clemency-fjc-reentry-courtinformation-and-contact-list.pdf?sfvrsn=3
Many Brownsville homeowners believe that this violation of room rentals by REAP has
devalued their property. We purchased our home believing we were moving into a
community of single-family housing. As a result of REAPs transgressions we contend
our property values have been devalued because of the lack of code enforcement by the
County. We therefore will be petitioning Escambia County appraiser, Chris Jones, to
reappraise all houses in Brownsville to reflect a 10% decrease in our property taxes.
There is legal precedent in the State of Florida for such action. We have already made
inquiries at the County Appraisers office concerning this matter. Some of the takeaways
were Those are very small houses - I think the Board of Health would be concerned
about that situation, and I wouldn't want those guys living in my neighborhood.
REAPs collusion with Gulf Coast Community Bank
Soon after I contacted the chairman of the FDIC concerning fraud at Gulf Coast
Community Bank it was announced that GCCB was purchased by a major bank in
Hattiesburg (First Bancshares) for $2.3 million. The same day it was also announced that
the same Hattiesburg bank purchased another bank for $32 million. Its very clear that the
purchase price for GCCB was basically the value of the real estate of its branches. As I
explained to the FDIC Chairman, GCCB was insolvent and had lost $500,000 in 2015.
However, the FDIC was more interested in the real estate involving foreclosed houses
being rented to REAP, and $6 million in insider loans. The question was whether or not
GCCB was accelerating foreclosures on slow paying houses and renting them to REAP
where they would get guaranteed income. A copy of that letter is attached.
Later I was contacted by the Atlanta bureau of the FDIC asking me to submit public
comment and testimony to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency concerning the

purchase of GCCB. GCCB is a state regulated bank, with customer assets protected by
the FDIC. But the Hattiesburg bank is a federally charted bank under control of the
Comptroller of the Currency. So you can see my dilemma. If the bank purchase does not
go through 50 people will be unemployed, and Escambia County will lose multiple tax
revenues resulting from the bank failure. Legal advisers of course are hopeful that the
bank deal goes through- the surviving bank has deeper pockets.
The lack of initiative to enforce zoning laws by the Escambia County Board of
Commissioners has jammed up a lot of people. Impact 100 is humiliated by its exposure
of giving $106,000 to questionable organization. A federal judge has lost considerable
respect after acknowledging she created REAP. And now the governor will have to
explain why he approved a $200,000 grant to an organization that is violating both
County and State zoning laws, and is being run by the convicted embezzler.
This issue now has legs of its own and time is running out. You hitched your
wagon, in good faith, to an organization that you thought might help Brownsville.
The person who sold you that bill of goods, Rick Dye, has left the state.
The State Legislature is now taking a closer look at REAP's grant application, while the
Judge who started REAP is now disassociating, herself from the organization. She is well
aware that in the 230 year history of the United States that there have only been 15
federal judges impeached, and two of them were from the Northern District of Florida
she is not going to be number 3, and she's not going to stick her neck out for anyone.
The last two men standing Al Stubblefield and Vince Whibbs are accountable to no one.
Stubblefield is retired, and the Florida Supreme Court forced Whibbs retirement.
That leaves five men holding the bag, that would be you. When you start getting the
telephone calls from Tallahassee, and the boys at REAP continue to jump ship, you are
the ones that are going to have the face the media. The solution is just a phone call away make the phone call and get REAPER houses out of Brownsville. You will want to do
that before something bad happens. I'm sure the newshounds are already going through
public records to find out why nine a REAP clients were re-arrested and returned to
prison. Then there is the problem of the other eleven sex offenders that lived in REAPER
houses in Brownsville -whereabouts unknown.
Respectfully,
Charles C Garnette
Charles C. Garnette
CC Gov. Rick Scott
Hon. Thomas J. Curry

Hon. Bob Goodlatte

Hon M. Casey Rodgers
Chris Jones
Joe Scarborough
HBC Board

Buzz Ritchie