M. Mandy Dawson

Muriel Mandy Dawson-Bethune (born July 18, 1956) was a Democratic member of the Florida Senate, representing the 29th District from 1999 to 2008. Previously she was a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 1993 through 1998.

Muriel Mandy Dawson
Member of the Florida Senate
In office
November 3, 1998 – November 4, 2008
Preceded byMatthew Meadows (30th)[1]
Steven Geller (29th)[2]
Succeeded byRon Klein (30th)
Chris Smith (29th)[3]
Constituency30th district (1998–2002)
29th district (2002–2008)
Member of the Florida House of Representatives
from the 93rd district
In office
November 3, 1992 – November 3, 1998
Preceded byDebby P. Sanderson[4]
Succeeded byChris Smith[5]
Personal details
Born
Muriel Mandy Dawson

(1956-07-18) July 18, 1956
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)
Hobson Bethune
​
​
(m. 2010; died 2017)​
EducationBarry University (BS)

Early life and education

Dawson was born in Fort Lauderdale and moved to Daytona Beach when she was six years old.[6] She attended Florida A&M University from 1975 to 1980 and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in social work from Barry University.[7]

Career

She was the first African-American female elected to the Florida Legislature from Broward County.[6] During her time in the legislature, she worked on bills restoring civil rights for ex-offenders, penalties for leaving children in locked cars, and keeping Black physicians on managed care panels to address health care inequalities.[6] Since leaving office, Dawson has worked as a political campaign manager.[8]

Personal life

She married Hobson Bethune, a retired Marine and longtime youth athletics coach, in 2010.[6] Bethune died in 2017.[6]

Dawson had chronic back pain requiring hospitalization and surgery. She later became addicted to prescription drugs.[6] In 2002, Dawson was arrested and charged with felony prescription drug fraud for altering a painkiller prescription from 60 pills to 160. In return for dismissal of the charges, Dawson entered a pretrial intervention program.[9] On July 20, 2011, Dawson was charged with federal income tax evasion and failure to file tax returns.[10]

In court papers filed in early February 2012, Dawson signaled her intention to plead guilty to the tax evasion charges.[11][12]

References
  1. "Our Campaigns - FL State Senate 30 Race - Nov 03, 1998". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved Jun 24, 2020.
  2. "Our Campaigns - FL State Senate 29 Race - Nov 05, 2002". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved Jun 24, 2020.
  3. "Our Campaigns - FL State Senate 29 Race - Nov 02, 2004". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved Jun 24, 2020.
  4. "Our Campaigns - FL State House 93 Race - Nov 03, 1992". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved Jun 24, 2020.
  5. "Our Campaigns - FL State House 93 Race - Nov 05, 1996". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved Jun 24, 2020.
  6. Butler, Andreas (2018-03-15). "Dawson-Bethune adds fire to Williamson's campaign – Daytona Times". Daytona Times. Retrieved 2020-06-20.
  7. "Mandy Dawson's Biography". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
  8. Author, D. T. (2018-03-15). "Dawson-Bethune adds fire to Williamson's campaign". Daytona Times. Retrieved 2021-04-06. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  9. "Legislator returns fire to Limbaugh". Archived from the original on 2004-06-24. Retrieved Jun 24, 2020.
  10. Hendley, Matthew (Jul 21, 2011). "Mandy Dawson Arrested Again -- for a Little More Than Prescription Pill Fraud This Time". New Times Broward-Palm Beach. Retrieved Jun 24, 2020.
  11. Paula McMahon, Sun Sentinel (February 13, 2015). "Former state legislator Mandy Dawson freed, admits cocaine use". www.sun-sentinel.com.
  12. | July 20, 2012 | Ex-Fla. lawmaker Mandy Dawson sentenced to 6 months for tax evasion | SCOTT HIAASEN |


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