BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — Just months after he was found mentally competent to stand trial, Eyewitness News learned former Brevard County Clerk of Court Mitch Needelman has died.
He was charged with bribery, bid tampering, and accepting illegal campaign contributions stemming from his time in office.
Needleman was accused of awarding an eight-and-a-half-million-dollar contract to a digital scanning company called BlueWare on the condition that some of their profits would go back to his re-election campaign.
In 2017, the former clerk stood trial in the case and was found guilty. But, as he awaited sentencing, a judge threw out his conviction due to a juror’s misconduct and ordered a new trial.
It was only in June of this year that state attorney William Scheiner won a ruling that found Needleman was mentally competent for trial.
We learned today that the state attorney’s office was actively negotiating a plea agreement that could have required 72-year-old Needleman to admit guilt and pay restitution to the Brevard Clerk of Court when the office received word of Needleman’s death.
In a written statement, Scheiner said, despite his medical conditions, Needleman knew right from wrong.
He added, " I’m disappointed we will not be able to secure justice and restitution from Mr. Needleman to the Brevard County Clerk of Courts office like we were able to do with his charged co-defendants.”
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