Kiester faces a fine of $500.

Kiester was fighting a charge that he committed the Sunshine Law violation by not honoring a citizen's public records request to submit e-mail messages to the city's archives.

While under oath, Kiester said he preferred not to forward e-mail messages to city hall.

"I decided to protect the e-mails," he said, adding that the computer he used had crashed.

Assistant State Attorney Dean Plattner argued the case for the state of Florida, while Stephen Ostrow was Kiester's attorney.

An investigator with the Collier County Sheriff's Office was able to recover the messages. Plattner said Kiester's inability to "properly preserve public records" made the charges valid.

Carr added that while Kiester's actions were not done with criminal intent, he failed to comply with a public records request.

"... The defendant has made a mockery of the law," Carr said.

Carr hoped the decision would be seen as a "deterrent and warning to other public officials."

Marco Island City Clerk Laura Litzan was called to the stand as a witness, as well as employees of the Collier County Sheriff's Office, Kiester and his wife, Jane.

After the decision, Plattner said he was pleased with the result.

"The argument speaks for itself. Our office has indicated that we're serious about public records laws," he said.

Ostrow was unhappy, but accepted Carr's ruling.

"He's the judge, he makes the decision," Ostrow said, adding Kiester may appeal.

After Carr issued his ruling, Ostrow requested the fine be reduced to $50. His request, along with a motion to dismiss the allegations earlier in the afternoon, were both dismissed.

...more to come...