Escambia County Commissioner Jeff Bergosh's text messages indicated he wanted former Medical Director Dr. Rayme Edler fired long before her employment ended with the county, which could contradict the county’s legal argument that his messages on his phone have nothing to do with Edler’s pending lawsuit.
The News Journal has obtained files of public records of Escambia County officials’ communications that also included a document that contains Bergosh’s text messages that is at the center of a hearing Monday in a lawsuit between the county and Edler's allegations the county made false Medicare claims to the U.S. government.
A federal judge will decide whether those messages are public record and can be used in the lawsuit.
Former county employee Jonathan Owens provided Edler’s attorneys with the text messages, which he said was anonymously provided to him.
Owens worked as Commissioner Doug Underhill’s aide at the county for eight years and unsuccessfully ran against Bergosh for the District 1 commission seat in the 2020 Republican primary.
Separately, an anonymous source provided the News Journal with the files after it published a story on the legal battle earlier this month. Owens verified to the News Journal the file appeared identical to the one he provided to Edler's attorneys, and the number of messages contained in the file was the same.
Edler’s attorneys, who are seeking the court’s permission to review the file as part of the lawsuit,...
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