Mary McCarty

Mary Ballard McCarty (born December 8, 1954) is a politician and former County Commissioner in Palm Beach County, Florida, 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. 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. One of his brothers, Brian D. Ballard, became lobbyist and founder of lobbying firm Ballard Partners. The family lived there for a time in Arlington Heights and Northbrook, both suburbs of Chicago.

McCarty graduated from the University of Florida in 1977 with a bachelor's degree in journalism. McCarty went on to work in many capacities in the restaurant industry including, waiting tables, and management.

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. 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. 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 Texas 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.