HERNANDO COUNTY, Fla. — The Hernando County Republican Party is asking the Governor to take Hernando County Commissioner Nick Nicholson out of office while he’s being investigated on prostitution charges.
Hernando County Commissioner allegedly paid to have sex with man's wife twice a week
"An old fool!" said Hernando County resident Jim Gill when asked his thoughts about Commissioner Nicholson's arrest.
On Thursday, 71-year-old Hernando County Commissioner Nick Nicholson was arrested for charges involving prostitution.
"Awful, he’s supposed to be a role model for the county and he’s not a role model," said Brooksville Resident Ladonna Garman.
The arrest came after a two month long investigation. Deputies were initially called to Nicholson’s Spring Hill home in February because his roommates, a married couple in their 30’s, were fighting.
Deputies reported that while in the home they found drug paraphernalia that Nicholson said belonged to his roommates. Deputies reported that Nicholson looked to be under the influence of a substance and he spoke to deputies with his genitals exposed. Deputies said they had to tell Nicholson repeatedly to cover himself.
While there Kendel Surette told deputies that his 30-year-old wife Valerie Surette has sex with 71-year-old Nicholson on Tuesdays and Saturdays in exchange for shelter and food and that he pays $300 a week for the sex.
Surette also told deputies that Nicholson allows his wife to bring “customers” into the home for sex.
Nicholson was arrested Thursday for one count of owning a home for the purpose of prostitution and two counts of engaging in prostitution.
On Thursday night the Republican Party voted to send a letter to the governor asking him to suspend Nicholson from office. They also voted to ask for Nicholson to resign.
We reached out to all the commissioners for comment.
Commissioner Jeff Holcomb said “I asked him to step down as commission chairman when Commissioner Nicholson was being investigated for a similar incident in 2015, but he refused.”
Commissioner John Allocco said in short, “I am deeply concerned about the behavior and recent arrest of Nick Nicholson. I wish that he would have taken our advice to resign in 2015 and used his time as an opportunity to straighten his life out.”
Commissioner Wayne Dukes had no comment.
Commission Chairman Steve Champion said, "If it’s true, we don’t condone any kind of behavior like that in any elected office."
We reached out to Commissioner Nick Nicholson for comment but he did not respond.
The governor’s office gave this statement: “Governor Scott expects all elected officials to behave ethically and responsibility. Our office is aware of this and reviewing the details. We will keep you updated on any action taken.”
Currently, Commissioner Nicholson's term does not expire until 2020.
