Rep. Amesty says Orlando Sentinel’s report contains ‘half-truths’ and ‘outright falsehoods’

WINDERMERE, Fla. (FLV) – Rep. Carolina Amesty, R-Windermere, released a list of responses to rebut an Orlando Sentinel report that claimed Amesty left a “trail of falsehoods” and unpaid taxes.

“The Sentinel is attempting to deceive voters with smears, half-truths, and innuendo to see if anything will stick,” Amesty told Florida’s Voice in a statement. “Nothing has, or will, because most people understand it is wrong to attack someone for the finances of their relatives.”

Florida’s Voice reported last week about a source, who is a teacher, claiming the Sentinel took his comments out of context.

On Friday, Amesty released a thread on social media calling out what she called the “Sentinel Smear(s).”

“I will not hesitate to debunk their smears,” Amesty said.

…filed false information with the state about her family’s small Christian university, claimed to run a thriving restaurant that actually was closed and failed to ensure taxes were paid on the $1.3 million home she lived in, an Orlando Sentinel investigation found.

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“I do not own a residence. This is my parents’ residence,” Amesty said in response to the excerpt. “It is absurd for the Sentinel to attack *me* over *their* residence. CCU is also in a process with the county.”

The first-term Republican lived for nearly three years with her parents in a five-bedroom pool home near Windermere purchased last year by Central Christian University, an arrangement that prompted controversy during her campaign.

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The Sentinel is referring to a previous article where Amesty’s opponent criticized her for living with her parents.

“Fact: There is nothing ‘controversial’ about me having lived with my family,” Amesty said.

Amesty then continued to criticize a portion of the article Florida’s Voice previously reported on regarding documents sent to the state.

The university in late 2021 sent documents to the Florida Commission for Independent Education that claimed as faculty four men who told the Orlando Sentinel they did not work there. 

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“This is outrageously deceptive,” Amesty explained in response.

Communication documents with the Florida Department of Education showed those listed on the form referred to in the Sentinel is not “a guarantee of employment.”

“The application the Sentinel is referencing is the standard process to obtain approval to hire *potential* faculty members. All of the professors CCU submitted to the state had applied to work at the institution and six of them have worked for the institution,” she said.

Scot Hamilton, who has taught psychology at colleges and a South Florida high school, said it was “galling” that his name and academic credentials, which include a degree from Georgetown University, were included on the document sent to the state.

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Hamilton previously told Florida’s Voice that he believed his comments were taken out of context. Hamilton said he was describing the hiring process as “galling,” not that his name and academic credentials were included on a document sent to the state.

The university’s enrollment is unclear. The state documents showed Central Christian anticipated enrolling about 145 students, but its website claims more than 500.

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On visits to the North Hiawassee Road campus this year, Sentinel reporters did not see college students nor much sign of activity.

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Amesty said in response that “our post-secondary summer and fall courses are online at this time.”

Its English-language website said four employees had identical degrees from Cornell, Purdue and Stanford universities, though the name of the prestigious California institution was misspelled. 

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Carolina Amesty says she began working at Central Christian in 2014, at age 20, before she had a college degree.

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“There is nothing wrong with this,” Amesty responded with. “My parents instilled a strong work ethic in me and a belief that you start at the bottom. At CCU, I began cleaning facilities and stacking books. I’m proud to have worked alongside my family while I pursued my B.A.”

A Spanish version of Central Christian’s website claimed it operated nine campuses, in foreign countries and in several states. It said there were two campuses in California, one in Los Angeles and one in San Francisco.

But California’s Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education, which regulates private colleges there, said it had no record of Central Christian ever operating there.

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Amesty said the Sentinel is “referring to what is obviously a defunct Spanish website that has not been used for many years.”

She said the university transitioned to a new website with a new URL about a decade ago.

“The Sentinel knows CCU’s current Spanish website makes no such claim, and its English-language website clearly states that CCU is a Florida-based institution,” Amesty said.

In September 2021, Amesty and her fiancé, Jay Rosario, 54, celebrated their engagement at a catered party at the house, according to Instagram posts that show bouquets of roses, platters of cheese and appetizers and a tower of pink frosted cupcakes.

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The school relies on state vouchers to cover tuition payments for a majority of its students and could benefit from the expansion Amesty and other GOP lawmakers approved this year.

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“This argument is strained and disingenuous,” the lawmaker said on social media.

“Any family business operated by a legislator in any industry could also be affected by that legislator fulfilling their civic duty. I have never profited from the K-12 school; it is a separate entity; and no one is forced to use a voucher to attend the school,” Amesty explained.

During her campaign, Amesty said on social media sites that she graduated from UCF in 2016.  But UCF said she didn’t earn a degree until three years later. 

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“Fact: It appears the ‘social media sites’ the Sentinel is referencing is my personal Linkedin page,” she said.

The publicly available tax forms for the three Central Christian enterprises show “a number of things that are odd,” said Mayer, who reviewed the organizations’ tax forms for the Sentinel.

More than $900,000 is unaccounted for in their 990 tax forms for 2021, the most recent year available. The university, without explanation, reported its assets and fund balances dropped from almost $1.6 million in 2020 to less than $700,000 in 2021.

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“In this section of the article, the Sentinel overwhelms its readers with legitimate business accounting processes it knows will confuse most people to insinuate impropriety where none exists,” Amesty said.

Amesty said the $900,000 referenced are not “missing.”

“It merely reflects a change of net assets as leasehold construction improvements of the operational entity are no longer assets of the entity,” Amesty said. “Furthermore, I do not prepare CCU’s tax filings.”

Her parents seemed to struggle financially for years, Orange County court records show.  In 2017 on a judge’s order, deputies went to the house and repossessed a dining room table and eight chairs because of unpaid Rent-A-Center bills.

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The lawmaker said this reporting has “nothing to do with my public service.”

The Sentinel reporters wrote a section titled “The closed restaurant,” which detailed Amesty attacking her opponent for facing bankruptcies. It then elaborated on the Amesty’s restaurant, Pollo Juan, which had reportedly been closed for months when Amesty talked about starting a thriving restaurant during “very tough times.”

In response to this section, Amesty said like many businesses, they never fully recovered from the pandemic.

“Fact: Pollo Juan did well. Like many businesses, we never fully recovered from the global pandemic. I’m proud of our work. We’re working to pay off expenses,” Amesty said. “I’m optimistic we will sell the property at a significant profit.”

Amesty, who estimated the restaurant was worth $3 million in 2021, dropped that to $2.2 million on her 2022 disclosure forms filed in July. The property now is listed for sale for $2.5 million on a real estate website.

The Orange County Property Appraiser, however, estimates its market value at about $871,000.

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“This excerpt perfectly illustrated the type of cheap sophistry the Sentinel uses to confuse its readers and tarnish my reputation,” Amesty said.

This spring and summer, a Hummer, a van and trailers decorated with Amesty’s face and political slogans were seen parked on Central Christian’s campus.

That parking arrangement likely violates IRS rules, which say 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations like Central Christian cannot participate in political campaigns, said Mayer, the Notre Dame professor.

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Amesty called the Sentinel’s angle for their photograph “misleading.” She said the vehicles were positioned between a building and a wall with little to no pedestrian activity.

Another section within the Sentinel’s article is labeled “Campus campaign rallies.”

Two weeks before last fall’s election, DeSantis campaigned at the school, urging sign-waving supporters to “stand strong” until “we bring this home,” video of the event shows. Two days before that, his wife, Casey, made a stop at Central Christian.

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“Fact: I make no apologies for the Governor and First Lady visiting CCU’s campus, nor is any of this improper. CCU’s auditorium is available for public events,” Amesty said.

The Sentinel said Amesty did not respond to their reporters’ attempts for a comment.

“Reporters called her, texted her, emailed her a detailed list of questions and requested to speak with her at the university campus and at her district office, where they left letters seeking an interview and printed copies of their questions,” the report said.