Julie Brown Linked to Trash Fliers Tampa FL

Brown Linked To Fliers
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By ELLEN GEDALIUS The Tampa Tribune

Published: Apr 11, 2007

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TAMPA - The mysterious attack ads slamming John Dingfelder during the recent city council campaign were financed by people with close business ties to his opponent's husband.

The business associates of Julie Brown's husband poured at least $50,000 into the campaign, according to finance reports filed Tuesday.

Brown said during the campaign that she didn't know who was behind the ads.

"I have no involvement in this," Brown said Tuesday. "I had no idea. If I had any say, I would never have authorized any of this."

Brown ran against Dingfelder and Joe Citro in a particularly nasty Tampa City Council race. The candidates were vying for the District 4 south Tampa seat. Dingfelder prevailed.

Dingfelder said Tuesday that he thinks Brown knew about the links between her husband and the contributions.

"For my opponent and her friends to be using this type of organization to try to slander my good name was really inappropriate and slimy," Dingfelder said. "There are too many connections that would allow this to be innocent."

Contributor, Brown Shared Address
In the final days before the election, an electioneering group called ElectionWatch-Florida mailed four fliers to south Tampa residents, attacking Dingfelder. The ads, titled "Presenting: Ding'felder Follies," criticized Dingfelder's ethics and his position on taxes.

ElectionWatch-Florida is run by Jack Hebert, who runs a political consulting firm called The Mallard Group. The group has worked with several Republican lawmakers.

JC Davis Management contributed $25,000 to ElectionWatch-Florida, according to finance reports. The company's president is Spencer Ford, a businessman who owns Red House Lounge and Grill on South Howard Avenue.

The property is owned by HCB Holdings, a real estate holding firm, according to the property appraiser's office. Brown's husband, Hank, is listed in corporate records as president of HCB Holdings. Julie Brown said her husband sold his shares late last year.

In addition, JC Davis Management, in its corporate filings, lists its address at 304 S. Howard Ave. Brown's campaign headquarters was at the same address.

Spencer Ford, president of JC Davis Management, would not comment on why he gave $25,000 to ElectionWatch-Florida other than to say: "It's just something I wanted to do. I appreciated the cause."

HCB Manager Chipped In $25,000
Another big contributor is Blake Casper, whose company owns McDonald's restaurant franchises in the Tampa Bay area. Casper also is listed as a manager of HCB Holdings.

Casper contributed $25,000 to ElectionWatch-Florida.

He also contributed directly to Brown's campaign, as did at least seven other companies listing the same business address as Casper's. They each contributed the maximum $500.

Casper could not be reached for comment late Tuesday.

Brown said she has known Spencer and Casper for years through her husband and business dealings.

Dingfelder, commenting on the connections, said, "Oh, what a tangled web we weave."

Reporters Michael Fechter and Michael H. Samuels contributed to this story. Reporter Ellen

Gedalius can be reached at

egedalius@tampatrib.com or (813) 259-7679.