TAMPA, Fla. – The lawyer for the now-fired director of code enforcement in Tampa is responding to the state attorney’s decision not to press charges.

What we know:

Keith O’Connor was fired this week after the state attorney’s office found he likely worked in cahoots with a lotto winner to help him avoid paying child support.

O’Connor’s attorney, Ralph Fernandez, says a memo put out by the state attorney’s office, explaining as to why they are not pressing charges against him, isn’t just holding a memo: According to him, it’s proof someone had it out for Keith O’Connor.

“This memo is a hatchet job,” said Fernandez. “I’m surprised at this time, you know, that people still do this.”

The backstory:

The two-pager from the state attorney’s office explains that Aubrey Pierce, who has long known Keith O’Connor, won a $20,000 scratch-off lotto ticket. 

But because Pierce owed $70,000 in child support, it’s reasonable to “presume” that when he gave O’Connor the ticket, that they were working to hide the winnings from the Florida court system. 

The memo says, “This is an example of what the state strongly believes happened versus what it can actually prove in court.”

“I don’t think he even knows the rules of child support,” said Fernandez. “You’d be surprised how little real boys in blue know about collateral rules.”

Fernandez accused the state attorney of writing the memo just to give the city a case to fire him, several years after his wife, former TPD Chief Mary O’Connor, resigned after a golf cart traffic stop in Pinellas County. 

Keith O’Connor is a former deputy chief at TPD and was the head of code enforcement while Pierce worked under him at a city trash disposal site. 

O’Connor spent years helping Pierce land on his feet after several arrests, including by promising him a job. 

What they’re saying:

The Lotto ticket Ralph Fernandez says Pierce gifted him wasn’t about avoiding child support, it was a thank you.

“Pierce never had two nickels to rub together,” said Fernandez. “He gets his ticket, and he says, ‘You know what? I want you to have it, and whatever.’ Once that transaction is completed, even if it takes one second, O’Connor can do whatever he wants with that money and give it back to Pierce to buy equipment for a side job.”

The memo says Pierce told at least two people he had someone else cash the scratch-off to avoid paying past-due child support.” 

It says the conduct is “suggestive of theft.” 

The other side:

But it also says Pierce made a statement that said he had given the ticket to O’Connor. “This claim, which can be read as an attempt to exonerate O’Connor, is not surprising given the longstanding connection between the two.” 

It also says nothing on their phones, or elsewhere, establishes that fact beyond a reasonable doubt. 

O’Connor was fired this week, with the mayor’s office saying his supervisors determined that his poor judgment merited dismissal.”

Fox 13 asked, “Is there anything he could have done differently to avoid the appearance, apparently, of this exchange of lottery tickets and money?”

Fernandez responded, “Every human being that faces a difficult encounter regrets being in that position to any extent.”

Regarding the memo that was written, the state attorney’s office says, “Our office may prepare memos when we decline to file charges in order to clearly document our reasoning… This helps provide additional clarity for victims, law enforcement, and the community.”

O’Connor was fired this week after the Hillsborough County state attorney’s office declined to press charges.

The Source: Information in this story comes from interviews done by FOX 13’s Evan Axelbank.

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