MIAMI – Jurors heard attorneys’ closing arguments in the public corruption trial of former Miami-Dade Commissioner Joe Martinez on Thursday.
Martinez is facing charges of conspiracy and unlawful compensation.
Prosecutors accuse him of taking $15,000 from a supermarket owner and his landlord in a failed effort to get a county ordinance changed to clear up code enforcement issues.
They argued that the fact that the money stopped coming in as soon as the ordinance failed to pass shows that it was a quid-pro-quo. Defense attorneys have argued that it was a private transaction with someone the former commissioner has known for years.
“The reason why the money stops is because the deal fell through,” prosecutor Tim VanderGiesen said. “The legislation didn’t pass so (there was) no reason why any more money was needed.”
VanderGiesen argued that “a public official can’t shake people down to benefit themselves with their public jobs.”
Martinez’s attorney, Ben Kuehne, said there was “no evidence that Joe Martinez was desperate for money, couldn’t pay his bills, was behind on his mortgage, none of that.”
“Whether it was when he is in office or out, a retired law enforcement officer or private citizen, he was always looking to help everyone else,” Kuehne said.
If convicted, Martinez could serve up to 20 years behind bars.