Randy Acevedo's appeal of three felony convictions is based on allegations that the trial judge failed to properly instruct the jury, according to documents filed with the appeals court.

The former Monroe County schools superintendent is seeking a new trial on three felony counts of official misconduct.

According to Robert Herce, Acevedo's attorney, circuit Judge Mark Jones declined to tell jurors to limit how they were to consider prosecution evidence when Acevedo's defense attorney at the time, Catherine Vogel, asked the judge to do so. Herce says Florida statute requires judges to grant a defense attorney's request to tell juries to limit the weight of certain evidence.

"The court shall, if requested, [instruct] the jury on the limited purpose for which the evidence is received and considered," Herce argues in a June 11 brief.

Under what is known as the Williams Rule, such evidence does not go to prove the "bad character" or "criminal propensity" of a defendant, but is used to show motive, intent, knowledge, or lack of mistake. Acevedo was convicted for trying to hide the discovery of his wife's alleged misuse of a school district credit card.

During Acevedo's August trial, Assistant State Attorney Mark Wilson showed the jury bank statements that former school district Finance Director Kathy Reitzel showed to Acevedo in October 2007. The bank statements, Wilson argued, indicated the then-superintendent knew as early as 2007 that his wife, former Adult Education Coordinator Monique Acevedo, had used her school district credit card to buy airline tickets for family members.

Not only that, Wilson argued, the evidence showed that Randy Acevedo knew his wife had scratched out the names of their children, the passengers on those flights. State law prohibits the use of public money for personal purchases.

To prevent the jury from considering the bank statements as proof that Acevedo had been involved with the illegal purchase of the tickets, Vogel asked Jones to explain that to the jury.

"I have no objection [to the evidence] as long as there's an instruction given that this is only ... to prove knowledge," Vogel told Jones as she and Wilson conferred with Jones at the bench. "I think there should be an instruction from the court that it can only come in to show knowledge, not to suggest that Mr. Acevedo has committed another offense."

Jones denied Vogel's request, saying he didn't believe the instruction was necessary, Herce said in his brief.

Jones had other opportunities to give the limiting instruction to the jury when the same evidence was repeated during closing arguments and other points, Herce said, but Jones declined to do so.

Other reasons Herce gave for reversing Acevedo's convictions included:

• There was lack of evidence to convict Acevedo;

• There is no proof that Randy Acevedo was acting dishonestly or for a wrongful purpose when he didn't immediately inform law enforcement or state auditors of his wife's allegedly illegal purchases; and

• State statutes are unclear as to what reporting was required of Randy Acevedo once he learned of his wife's allegedly illegal purchases.

A jury convicted Acevedo on three counts of official misconduct in August. He was sentenced to three years of probation, assessed a $15,000 fine and ordered to perform eight hours per month of community service for the duration of his probation.

His wife faces trial on three counts of felony theft and three counts of felony fraud.

jguerra@keysnews.com