The impeachment case against Kissimmee Mayor Jackie Espinosa collapsed Tuesday when the city commission deadlocked 2-2 on whether to move forward with a trial-by-commissioners over her receipt of thousands of dollars from a city grant program.<\/p>\n
Vice Mayor Angela Eady and Commissioner Janette Martinez voted in favor of the impeachment process, while Mayor Pro Tem Carlos Alvarez III and Commissioner Noel Ortiz were opposed, leaving the first-term mayor in place for lack of a majority against her. Espinosa did not participate.<\/p>\n
The vote also left a special prosecutor\u2019s conflict-of-interest allegations unresolved after roughly $25,000 in city investigation costs. A state probe of Espinosa is continuing.<\/p>\n
More than 150 people packed the Kissimmee commission chamber Tuesday evening for the hour-long meeting, some waving signs reading \u201cWe [heart] our Mayor,\u201d with others hoisting placards proclaiming \u201cShame on the Mayor.\u201d<\/p>\n
No public comment was permitted, but emotions ran high. Police moved to the front of the room at one point to protect commission members.<\/p>\n
Espinosa addressed the issue briefly at the regular commission meeting that followed the special session regarding her possible impeachment. She thanked her family, her campaign team and Commissioners Alvarez and Ortiz by name.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you for everyone that\u2019s gone out and voted and exercised their civic duty,\u201d she said. \u201cYour voice matters. Your voice changes things.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis entire moment, you saw a lot of hate. Yet you saw a lot of love,\u201d she said. \u201cThe only thing stronger than hate is love.\u201d<\/p>\n
The meeting opened with court-appointed special prosecutor Mayanne Downs reading her findings<\/a> into the record. Downs was appointed April 27 by a Ninth Circuit judge after city commissioners voted to begin the process. A citizen\u2019s complaint about Espinosa\u2019s actions had set that decision in motion.<\/p>\n Downs, who regularly serves as Orlando\u2019s city attorney, told the commission Tuesday she had \u201cno client, no faction and no dog or cat in this fight,\u201d framing the vote as a procedural step.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a little like when you get a ticket,\u201d Downs said. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re guilty. It doesn\u2019t mean anything other than that you\u2019re being given notice that you have to proceed with the legal process.\u201d<\/p>\n Downs found probable cause in her July 23 report that Espinosa, elected in 2024, violated city ethics codes by taking part in official actions to fund and expand a small-business grant program while three businesses tied to her and her family collected over $50,000 from it. The grant program, funded by federal pandemic money, was championed by Espinosa her first year in office, according to the report.<\/p>\n According to Downs\u2019 report, Adanse LLC, wholly owned by Espinosa, received $20,000. Kissimmee Diner Inc., registered under Espinosa, received $15,000. The Real Estate Gallery LLC, registered under her husband, received $15,000.<\/p>\n Downs recommended not only articles of impeachment but also that the city refer the matter to law enforcement and that Espinosa be required to repay the money. Downs said during the Tuesday meeting that Espinosa hasn\u2019t paid back the money.<\/p>\n Espinosa\u2019s attorney urged commissioners to reject the articles and let the Florida Commission on Ethics, not the city, resolve the matter first.<\/p>\n Tuesday\u2019s vote blocks the city\u2019s impeachment track, but the same grants remain the subject of a separate complaint before the state ethics commission, set for a probable cause hearing Aug. 28.<\/p>\n