TALLAHASSEE — A grand jury probe relating to the Hope Florida Foundation continued into its second day on Wednesday, with the former president of the embattled charity seen leaving the Leon County courthouse.
Joshua Hay would not answer questions about whether he was there to speak to a grand jury, which was convening on the third floor.
Hay’s appearance around noon Wednesday is another sign that the State Attorney’s Office in Tallahassee’s investigation is tied to the DeSantis administration’s diversion of $10 million from a Medicaid settlement through the Hope Florida Foundation for political purposes last year. A key Republican lawmaker has called the series of transactions illegal.
As president of the foundation until recently, Hay was on the board when it accepted the $10 million and gave away half of it to a nonprofit overseen by the Florida Chamber of Commerce.
Days later, Hay individually signed off on the foundation giving the other $5 million to another nonprofit, the St. Petersburg-based Save Our Society from Drugs.
On Tuesday, the executive director of the organization, Amy Ronshausen, entered and left the courthouse with her lawyer. She declined to comment.
State Attorney Jack Campbell, who confirmed an active criminal investigation relating to the Hope Florida Foundation this summer, declined Tuesday to comment about the grand jury.
Grand juries are secretive proceedings where a panel of jurors hears evidence and testimony presented by a prosecutor and decides whether to issue a criminal indictment. The process could take days or weeks.
On Tuesday, Republican state Rep. Alex Andrade of Pensacola confirmed he spoke to a grand jury for about two hours. He wouldn’t say what he was asked or what he said.
In April, Andrade said he gave state and federal prosecutors records supporting his belief that DeSantis’ then-chief of staff, James Uthmeier, and an attorney for the foundation, Jeff Aaron, “engaged in a conspiracy to commit money laundering and wire fraud.”
The records included copies of text messages Uthmeier and Aaron had sent to Ronshausen.
Andrade said that “several parties played a role in the misuse of $10 million in Medicaid funds.” Money from Medicaid settlements is highly regulated and owed to state and federal taxpayers, according to experts and federal guidelines.
Times/Herald reporters and Republican lawmakers began digging into the state-created Hope Florida Foundation early this year as Gov. Ron DeSantis tried to enshrine the Hope Florida program into state law. The 501(c)(3) nonprofit was created by the Legislature in 2023 to assist that program, which is a signature initiative of first lady Casey DeSantis.
Hope Florida was created to move Floridians off of government services and toward local churches and nonprofits. The foundation is supposed to raise money to give to those churches and nonprofits.
Lawmakers found that the charity was not complying with state laws governing its oversight, ethics and fundraising, and had not filed its tax returns.
Hay told Andrade’s committee in April that “mistakes were made” with the foundation. He also said he thought the $10 million would go to a “public awareness campaign” to help the Hope Florida program.
“I got assurances through Jeff Aaron that … there was comfort that it was above board,” Hay told lawmakers.
Campaign finance records show that nearly all the $10 million ended up in a political committee controlled by Uthmeier that was dedicated to defeating last year’s recreational marijuana ballot initiative. The initiative’s defeat was one of DeSantis’ top priorities last fall.
Aaron announced at the foundation’s board meeting last month that Hay had left because his two-year term was up.
The foundation is overseen by the Department of Children and Families. Its secretary at the time, Shevaun Harris, told lawmakers in April that she didn’t know where the $10 million ended up.
Harris, who is now the secretary for the Agency for Health Care Administration, was asked by reporters at an event outside the Capitol Wednesday whether she had been asked to testify before the grand jury.
She walked away from reporters without commenting, and spokesperson Mallory McManus said Harris was only taking questions about the event. McManus was the registered agent for the Hope Florida Foundation until April.
“We’re done here,” McManus said.
