Former Santa Rosa County Code Enforcement Officer Bobby Burkett, a candidate for the District 1 Commission seat, had no comment after a campaign supporter was caught red handed with incumbent Sam Parker’s signs. Oedsma has been charged with a misdemeanor in the case.
Oedsma, a member of the Santa Rosa County Republican Executive Committee (REC), will appear before County Judge Robert Hilliard at 8:30 a.m., Thursday, September 5 at the Santa Rosa County Courthouse for arraignment on the second-degree misdemeanor charge.
Oedsma on May 28 gave $500 to Burkett’s campaign. So far Burkett has not responded to a request for comment on the issue.
South Santa Rosa News was covering the July 22 county commission meeting when police confronted Oedsma about the missing signs. The encounter was recorded and viewable below.
Oedsma initially told deputies that Parker’s signs had been put into the “sign jail” at the Santa Rosa County Auditorium; however, after a witness reported seeing the missing signs in Oedsma’s SUV, the suspect allowed cops to search his vehicle, where the signs and metal supporting stakes were located and subsequently returned to Parker.
Oedsma is also a campaign supporter of District 3 Candidate Jerry Couey, who was present with Oedsma during the July 22 police questioning. When asked about the sign theft, Couey had no comment and walked away.
SRSO forwarded the case to the First Judicial State Attorney’s Office for review. Assistant State Attorney D. Stevens concluded there was probable cause that Oedsma had committed petit theft “when he was in possession of the stolen signs belonging to Sam Parker, and did possess them with knowledge that they were stolen” while in the presence of SRSO deputies who were questioning him.
It’s not the first time Oedsma has had a run in with law enforcement over his actions against Parker. He was temporarily trespassed from Ye Olde Brothers Brewery in Holley on April 23 after he and fellow REC member Donna Long, a local videographer, were caught inside an invitation-only event area.
