A corruption probe in South Florida has ensnared a Broward County school board member who is facing federal charges of extortion, wire fraud, and bribery, according to this story in the Sun-Sentinel.
Beverly Gallagher, who was elected to the board in 2000, allegedly promised two FBI agents who posed as businessmen that she would steer lucrative school construction projects their way. In return, she accepted $12,500 in four payments, according to the Sun-Sentinel.
She allegedly told the agents that they could “make a lot of money together.”
Here’s the best detail about her dealings with the undercover agents: Accepting $2,000 inside a Day Planner during a restaurant meeting, which Gallagher then dropped inside a plastic bag with her leftovers.
If you’re curious, you can read much more about Gallagher here on her Web site, where, among other things, she claims that “her name is synonymous with parental involvement.”
It’s important to note that Broward’s 250,000-student school system is highly regarded nationally. Dakarai featured it in this piece he wrote about Florida’s cutting-edge use of data to help students get to college.
