Jimmie Gardner, a youth motivational speaker and brother-in-law of former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, is facing serious charges of human trafficking and is currently in jail in Hillsborough County with no bond.
Gardner is scheduled to face a judge in first appearance court in Tampa tomorrow.
Tampa Police arrested Gardner Friday morning after his 16-year-old victim called police to report Gardner committed sex acts on her at the Renaissance Hotel at International Plaza.
Read: Stacey Abrams Brother-In-Law From Georgia, Charged With Human Trafficking In Tampa
His victim says Gardner paid her money and later became angry and choked her when she refused to have sex. His booking charges include human trafficking, lewd and lascivious touching of certain minors, and battery.
Gardner, who was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in 1984, was wrongly convicted in the 1987 sexual assault of two women in West Virginia.
He was exonerated in 2016 and released from prison 27 years after his wrongful conviction. Two years later, he married Georgia Federal Judge Leslie Abrams Gardner.
He currently lives in Georgia and works as a motivational speaker and emotional intelligence trainer for students and people who were formerly incarcerated.
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“Everyone is entitled to the presumption of innocence. Our attorneys will prosecute this case as we would any other offender who is alleged to have committed these crimes. We take these charges very seriously,” said State Attorney Suzy Lopez.
State Attorney Lopez leads a team of talented prosecutors and professional staff who are responsible for all criminal prosecutions in the 13th Judicial Circuit.
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