Mary Ballard McCarty (born December 8, 1954) is a politician and former County Commissioner in

Palm Beach County, Florida Palm Beach County is a county in the southeastern part of Florida, located in the Miami metropolitan area. It is Florida's third-most populous county after Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County and Broward County, Florida, Broward County ...

, and served in office from November 1990 until resigning for corruption, announced on January 8, 2009. McCarty resigned from the Board of County Commissioners after she pleaded guilty to one count of honest services fraud. The charges stemmed from votes on projects that indirectly benefited her husband, Kevin McCarty a former employee of Raymond James, without the required disclosure and she received reduced hotel rates from a company that did business with Palm Beach County. Prior to joining the County Commission, McCarty was elected to the

Delray Beach, Florida Delray Beach is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population of Delray Beach as of April 1, 2020, was 66,846 according to the 2020 United States census, 2020 United States Census. Located in the Miami metropolitan area, De ...

City Commission; she was first elected to the post in 1987 at the age of 32.Eliot Kleinberg
Mary McCarty’s got a brand new gig: Prison-life coach
''Palm Beach Post'' (November 11, 2015). In December 2000 McCarty became the chair of the Palm Beach County Republican Party. and served two years. After pleading guilty, McCarty served 21 months of a 3½-year prison sentence. After being released from a

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prison, McCarty and her husband (who also served prison time) returned to Palm Beach County and jointly started a management consulting business. Mary McCarty also opened a life coaching business.

Early life, education and family

Mary Ballard McCarty was born in

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on December 8, 1954, the eldest of six children. The family lived there for a time in Arlington Heights and Northbrook, both suburbs of

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. In 1969, McCarty's family moved to Spooner, Wisconsin, where McCarty graduated from Spooner High School in June, 1972. In the same month, McCarty's family moved to

. McCarty started attending the University of Florida in 1973. She began her career in politics as an

intern An internship is a period of work experience offered by an organization for a limited period of time. Once confined to medical graduates, internship is used to practice for a wide range of placements in businesses, non-profit organizations and g ...

for U.S. House Majority Leader Tip O'Neill in Washington D.C. in 1974 and helped to monitor the Watergate Hearings. She worked as a waitress to help pay for college. McCarty graduated from the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

in 1977 with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree of accuracy. The word, a noun, applies to the journ ...

. McCarty went on to work in many capacities in the restaurant industry including, waiting tables, bar-tending, and management. McCarty is married to Kevin McCarty In 1986, McCarty co-chaired the Delray Beach 75th Diamond Jubilee, a month-long city anniversary celebration.

Public office

From 1987 - 1990, she was a City Commissioner and Vice-Mayor of Delray Beach. From November 1990 until her 2009 resignation, she was a county commissioner of Palm Beach County. In 2002, ''CEO Magazine'' named her as one of the "100 Most Powerful People in South Florida".

Federal felony conviction

On January 8, 2009, McCarty resigned from office after 18 years and pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit honest services fraud.Reid, Andy "Palm Beach County Commissioner Mary McCarty Resigns, Plans to Plead Guilty Fraud, ''

The Palm Beach Post ''The Palm Beach Post'' is an American daily newspaper serving Palm Beach County in South Florida, and parts of the Treasure Coast. On March 18, 2018, in a deal worth US$42.35 million, ''The Palm Beach Post'' and '' The Palm Beach Daily News' ...

'' (January 8, 2009). The charges stemmed from votes on projects that indirectly benefited her husband’s employer without the required disclosure and failed to disclose that she received reduced hotel rates from a company that did business with the county (in establishing a Palm Beach County Convention Center hotel). In June 2009, U.S. District Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks sentenced McCarty to 42 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. McCarty served her sentence at the Federal Prison Camp, Bryan in Texas. She ultimately served 21 months in prison. Her husband, Kevin also pleaded guilty to a misprision of a felony for not reporting his wife’s crimes to authorities. He was sentenced to 8 months and spent 5 months in Miami Federal Prison Camp, serving the remaining time under Halfway House supervision.

Life after prison

After being released from a

prison, McCarty and her husband (who also served prison time) returned to Palm Beach County and jointly started a management consulting business. Mary McCarty also opened a life coaching business.

Presidential pardon

On December 23, 2020, McCarty received a full pardon from

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

.www.whitehouse.gov
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References

External links

Mary McCarty's resignation letterFederal fraud case (Sun Sentinel)
{{DEFAULTSORT:McCarty, Mary County commissioners in Florida Florida politicians convicted of crimes People convicted of honest services fraud Living people Politicians from Delray Beach, Florida American politicians convicted of fraud University of Florida alumni Florida city council members Women in Florida politics 1954 births Women city councillors in Florida Florida Republicans People pardoned by Donald Trump 21st-century prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government