Richard Kelly (July 31, 1924 – August 22, 2005) was an American politician from

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. As a Republican congressman, he was convicted of taking bribes in the 1980

Abscam Abscam, sometimes written ABSCAM, was a Federal Bureau of Investigation sting operation in the late 1970s and early 1980s that led to the convictions of seven members from both chambers of the United States Congress and others for bribery and co ...

scandal.

Early life and career

Kelly was born July 31, 1924, in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, Georgia, and his mother abandoned him in an orphanage at an early age. He attended a one-room school in

Crystal Springs, Florida Crystal Springs is a hydrological spring. It is a census-designated place (CDP) in Pasco County, Florida, United States. The population was 1,175 at the 2000 census. Geography Crystal Springs is located at (28.180879, -82.168690). According ...

. He served in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

from 1942 to 1946, attended Colorado State College of Education and Vanderbilt College of Law, and graduated from the

University of Florida College of Law The University of Florida Levin College of Law (UF Law) is the law school of the University of Florida located in Gainesville, Florida. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest operating public law school in Florida and second oldest overall in the stat ...

in Florida with a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

in 1952.KELLY, Richard (1924-2005)
''

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress The ''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress'' (Bioguide) is a biographical dictionary of all present and former members of the United States Congress and its predecessor, the Continental Congress. Also included are Delegates fr ...

''. While in Colorado, he married for the first of five times. He was admitted to the Florida bar the same year and practiced in

Zephyrhills Zephyrhills is a city in Pasco County, Florida, United States. The population was counted at 17,194 in the 2020 census. The city is the headquarters of the Zephyrhills (water), Zephyrhills bottled water company. The current mayor is Melonie Monso ...

. In 1953, he became city attorney of Zephyrhills and worked from 1956 to 1959 as senior assistant to the

United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida The United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida (in case citations, S.D. Fla. or S.D. Fl.) is the federal United States district court with territorial jurisdiction over the southern part of the state of Florida. Appeals ...

. Kelly was appointed circuit judge of the sixth judicial circuit of Florida and served from 1960 to 1974, when he was elected to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

as a Republican. While serving as a state judge, Kelly twice survived

impeachment Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eur ...

efforts to remove him. This included the passage of an impeachment in the State House in 1963, with him being acquitted in his

impeachment trial An impeachment trial is a trial that functions as a component of an impeachment. Several governments utilize impeachment trials as a part of their processes for impeachment. Differences exist between governments as to what stage trials take place ...

of the charges detailed in the

articles of impeachment An article of impeachment is a documented statement which specifies the charges to be tried in an impeachment trial as a basis for removing an officeholder. Articles of impeachment are an aspect of impeachment processes of many governments that ut ...

. Troubled by accusations of insanity in the 1970s, Kelly allowed himself to be examined by doctors, who declared him sane, allowing him to boast that he was "the only Congressman officially certified as not cuckoo." He served three terms in the House of Representatives, starting in 1975. He opposed

Food Stamps In the United States, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, is a Federal government of the United States, federal government program that provides food-purchasing assistance for Poverty ...

, aid to the failing

Chrysler Corporation FCA US, LLC, doing business as Stellantis North America and known historically as Chrysler ( ), is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of ...

and financially troubled

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. He attributed

New York City fiscal crisis New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 19 ...

to the pay for police and firefighters and aid to poor people: "The unions have forced industry out of the city. The uniformed services are the highest-paid in the U.S. of A. And welfare? City politicians keep jacking up the rates to get the ghetto vote. No doubt about it."

Abscam scandal and later life

In 1980, Kelly was involved in the FBI undercover

scandal and failed to win renomination, losing to Republican

Bill McCollum Ira William McCollum Jr. (born July 12, 1944) is an American lawyer and Republican Party politician. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1981 to 2001, representing Florida's 5th congressional district, which was ...

. Kelly was the only Republican member of the House to vote against the expulsion of fellow Abscam target Michael Myers (D-PA). Myers was expelled by a 376-30 vote on October 2, 1980, the House's first expulsion since 1861. Kelly was convicted of taking $25,000 in bribes. He claimed he had conducted his own undercover operation and spent part of the money to maintain that cover, but was convicted and served thirteen months of a 6 to 18 month sentence at the federal prison camp at Eglin Air Force Base. During his third term, he also divorced his wife and married his secretary. He was released from a halfway house in 1986. Kelly died August 22, 2005, in Stevensville, Montana after suffering for years with

Pick's disease Frontotemporal dementia (FTD), also called frontotemporal degeneration disease or frontotemporal neurocognitive disorder, encompasses several types of dementia involving the progressive degeneration of the brain's frontal and temporal lobes. Men ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, Richard 1924 births 2005 deaths 20th-century American judges 20th-century American lawyers Assistant United States attorneys Deaths from Pick's disease Deaths from dementia in Montana Florida politicians convicted of crimes Florida state court judges Fredric G. Levin College of Law alumni People from Stevensville, Montana People from Zephyrhills, Florida Politicians convicted of bribery under 18 U.S.C. § 201 Politicians convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States Politicians convicted under the Travel Act Politicians from Atlanta Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II University of Northern Colorado alumni Vanderbilt University Law School alumni United States judges impeached by state or territorial governments People convicted in the Abscam scandal 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives

Early life and career

Abscam scandal and later life

See also

References

External links