DeSantis won't fine former Temple Terrace mayor over bogus bio

The governor ignored an ethics board’s recommended $10,000 fine against Mel Jurado for embellishing her education credentials.

More than two years after a state ethics panel recommended a former Temple Terrace Mayor be fined $10,000 for exaggerating her education credentials on the city website, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has declined to levy any penalty.

In an executive order signed July 22, DeSantis accepted the findings of the Florida Commission on Ethics, which found that Mel Jurado violated state law by directing city staff to post embellished educational credentials on her official bio on the city website.

But DeSantis ignored the commission’s recommendation that a $10,000 be imposed on Jurado, who resigned as mayor in March 2020. Instead, his order states that “no penalty shall be imposed in this matter.”

The ethics order recommending the fine had been in DeSantis’s inbox since June 2023, records show. His office did not respond to an email seeking comment.

Jurado could not immediately be reached for comment. Mark Levine, her former attorney who represented her through some of the ethics board’s proceedings, said he was not surprised by the governor’s decision.

“She’s a big-time Republican and one of his supporters,” he said.

https://www.tampabay.com/news/hillsborough/2025/08/01/desantis-wont-fine-former-temple-terrace-mayor-over-bogus-bio/