As voters in St. Johns County cast their ballots in the primary election this month, two individuals with ties to key elections are engaged in an uphill battle in the courts.
James Higbee and Nicole Crosby are not on the ballot, but their court battle is tied to the St. Johns County Commission election.
Higbee, whose grandfather is running a largely inactive campaign for county commission, is suing Crosby, who is directing campaign efforts for county commission candidates Ann-Marie Evans and Ann Taylor.
On paper, the case has nothing to do with the election, but Crosby’s lawyer accuses Higbee of political machinations.
Higbee’s defamation lawsuit revolves around a 2013 misdemeanor conviction in which he pleaded guilty to stealing $252 worth of merchandise from a Walmart in Delray Beach.
His side argues that Crosby repeatedly described the outcome of this case as a felony charge and claimed in a Facebook post that Higbee was involved in several “grand thefts.”
Crosby has since edited a Facebook post on the page she runs, Fight for St. Johns County, to remove the word “serious crime.” However, Higbee’s lawyer argues that Crosby’s posts have affected him socially and emotionally and led to a demotion in his job.
According to court documents, Higbee was formerly chief technology officer at McGraw, a marketing agency based in St. Augustine. He is now a senior vice president, according to the company’s website.
In a document filed in St. Johns County courts, Crosby’s attorney explains that the case “is ostensibly a defamation suit, but is really just about politics.”
Her lawyer, W. Bradley Russell, accuses Higbee’s team of “attempting to misuse evidence to obtain political information against his opponents.”
The questions Higbee’s team asked Crosby initially revolved around her Facebook page, but quickly shifted to the upcoming election, particularly the candidates she supports.
“Since October 2023, have the majority of the defendant’s posts on the FFSJC Facebook page advocated the election of Ann Taylor and/or Ann Marie Evans?” one of the questions asks.
The team also asked if Crosby had communicated with current St. Johns County Commissioner Krista Joseph – whose 2022 campaign Crosby also endorsed – about her positions or if Crosby had been promised the role of county administrator if her candidates were put in office. Crosby says this allegation came out of nowhere and was fabricated by the incumbents’ campaign team. Joseph has also publicly stated on Facebook that she would not support Crosby running for county administrator.
Crosby’s lawyers not only asked for the case to be dismissed, but also for Joseph, Evans and Taylor to be excluded from the disclosure process.
“Higbee is currently attempting to interview Ann Taylor, Ann-Marie Evans and Commissioner Joseph prior to the election. Those statements would in all likelihood relate to the election and not to this case,” Russell wrote in a court document.
Last Friday, a judge denied those requests and scheduled testimony from Joseph, Evans and Taylor for August 26. The judge noted, however, that the questions “should be limited to matters related to the issues raised in the complaint” and that “the parties and witnesses retain their right to object.”
Talk to Jacksonville today This month, Crosby said she believes supporters of incumbent candidates for St. Johns County Commission are using underhanded tactics to target challengers like Evans and Taylor.
While Higbee is not running for office like his grandfather, his social media accounts show he previously worked as a volunteer and social media manager for County Commissioner Christian Whitehurst. Whitehurst is running for re-election and is endorsed by a number of the same political action committees and companies as his fellow County Commissioners Henry Dean and Roy Alaimo.
Crosby also alleges that other people associated with the campaigns she supports are being targeted as part of a larger pattern of Republican infighting in St. Johns County. She specifically recalled the rebuke of Commissioner Joseph after she was accused of spending her time during a County Commission meeting campaigning for candidates she supports.
A federal judge cleared Joseph of any wrongdoing.
“Individuals close to the incumbents have also used the justice system as a weapon to harm the Anns team,” Crosby said.
Crosby has come under repeated criticism during this election cycle, with some within her own party accusing her of being a liberal infiltrator trying to put like-minded candidates in office.
Higbee’s attorney, Zachary Watson Miller, said Jacksonville today He could not comment on the ongoing legal disputes.
