BRADENTON — A Manatee County Judge has denied Scott Hopes’ motion for dismissal in the State of Florida’s ongoing case against the former county administrator. Hopes was indicted on multiple felonies last year related to his time leading the local government organization, including grand theft and fraudulent use of public records.
Hopes was appointed Manatee County's interim county administrator in 2021 before being named permanent administrator later the same year.
The former school board member served in the role until February 2023, when he submitted his resignation following several scandals.
A year after he departed from the government organization, in February 2024, Hopes was arrested and charged with three felony counts: notary fraud, grand theft, and fraudulent use of public records.
The State ultimately dropped the charge of felony notary fraud earlier this year, but in complying with a previous court order in the case, it filed five additional felony charges of grand theft and fraudulent use of public records.
The former official is alleged to have stolen public funds by claiming payment for work hours for which he was not eligible. To obtain the funds, Hopes allegedly falsified or altered time cards, thereby committing the crime of fraudulent use of public records.
In April, the same Judge sided with Hopes’ counsel, ordering the state to provide “specifics as to the exact amount of money alleged to have been stolen,” as well as more specific dates of the alleged offense.
In complying with the judge’s order, the state separated the original charge into separate offenses by date of paycheck cycles, as opposed to the broader date range in which all of the theft was alleged to have occurred. The more detailed information resulted in the additional felony charges.
This latest order in the case followed a hearing held on June 20, during which Twelfth Judicial Circuit Judge Honorable Frederick P. Mercurio heard the defense’s renewed motion for a “more definite statement of particulars,” or, if ruling against more particulars, than an alternative motion to “dismiss” the charges altogether due to their “vagueness” and failure to comply with the court’s April order.
Judge Mercurcio, however, sided with the state, denying the motion and submitting a written order on June 24.
The order included in part, “Having considered the issues and arguments from counsel for the State of Florida and the defendant, respectively, the court being fully advised in the premises and having placed findings of fact and law on the record…the defendant’s motion is denied as to all counts.”
The case remains ongoing, with the next case management hearing scheduled for Oct. 23, 2025.
The following are the six felony charges and one misdemeanor that Hopes has been charged with:
Count 1 - grand theft greater than $5,000 but less than $10,000 (third-degree felony), alleged to have occurred within the pay period of September 24, 2022, to October 7, 2022.
Count 2 - grand theft greater than $750 but less than $5,000 (third-degree felony), alleged to have occurred within the pay period of November 5, 2022, to November 18, 2022.
Count 3 - grand theft greater than $750 but less than $5,000 (third-degree felony), alleged to have occurred within the pay period of April 1, 2021, to April 9, 2021.
Count 4 - petit theft greater than $100 but less than $750 (first-degree misdemeanor), alleged to have occurred within the pay period of May 21, 2022, to June 3, 2022.
Count 5 - fraudulent use of public records (third-degree felony), for allegedly falsifying a time card on or about October 7, 2022, to facilitate the crime of felony theft.
Count 6 - fraudulent use of public records (third-degree felony), for allegedly falsifying a time card on or about November 18, 2022, to facilitate the crime of felony theft.
Count 7 - fraudulent use of public records (third-degree felony), for allegedly falsifying a time card on or about April 9, 2021, to facilitate the crime of felony theft.
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Debann
HES A SCUMBAG...GLAD WE ARE RID OF HIM..BUT WE NOW HAVE ANOTHER LOSER ADMINISTRATOR...THAT'S HOW WE ROLL IN MANATEE COUNTY...
Wednesday, July 9, 2025 Report this