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"Pasco Sheriff Spurs Challenge on Radio Show" - Lucy Morgan and Jack Reed - St. Petersburg Times
". . .In an emotional phone call broadcast Friday morning by WDCF in Dade City, realtor Lewis Abraham asked Short either to deny that the sheriff's office ever investigated him or to submit himself to an examination that would determine if Short was lying. . ."
St. Petersburg Times 1983-12-17
"Pasco Department Hired Girls, 17 and 18, as Drug Informants" - Lucy Morgan - St. Petersburg Times
"As part of a drug investigation, the Pasco County sheriff's Department once installed a 17-year-old runaway and her 18-year-old friend in a mobile home, where the young women sometimes traded sex for drugs. The mother of the 17-year-old girl had already reported her daughter as a runaway and had asked the Sheriff's Department for help in finding the girl, a juvenile. Meanwhile she was being used in the investigation without her parents' knowledge. . ."
St. Petersburg Times 1984-05-06
"Some Deputies Had Records Before Being Hired" - Lucy Morgan - St. Petersburg Times
". . .Before hiring anyone to be a law enforcement officer, the state demands that a police or sheriff's department certify that the applicant has been subject to a 'thorough background investigation' and is 'satisfied' that the person is of 'good moral character' . . ."
St. Petersburg Times 1984-02-26
"Shooting Was Ruled Suicide, But Was It?" - Lucy Morgan - St. Petersburg Times
"Joseph H. Donahue was dead on his bathroom floor, his legs neatly crossed and his hands poised on his chest. Beside the body was a Smith & Wesson service revolver engraved with the date he left the Port Richey police department to become a top-ranking officer for Pasco County Sheriff John M. Short. The chamber of the gun was open and four live rounds of ammunition were scattered in a pool of Donahue's blood. . ."
St. Petersburg Times 1983-12-18
"Short Will Continue Re-Election Efforts" - Bradley Stertz - St. Petersburg Times
"On his way out as sheriff of Pasco County Friday, John M. Short added a parting comment: 'It's obvious I'll have a little more time in the next 11 or 12 days to campaign full time.' Even though he was indicted by a grand jury Friday and suspended from the office he has held for eight years, Short will be pushing ahead to the September 4 primary. . ."
St. Petersburg Times 1984-08-25
"Public Duties, Private Business Overlap in Pasco" - Jack Reed and Lucy Morgan - St. Petersburg Times
"On the afternoon of November 9, people passing the Pasco County Sheriff's office in New Port Richey saw a hearse parked out front. It remained there for about three hours. Inside, no one was dead. A spokesman for Crain S&S Sales a funeral home supply company, says a company salesman was merely showing his wares to Sheriff John M. Short and Roger Michels, the sheriff's assistant director of administration. . ."
St. Petersburg Times 1983-12-11
"Sheriff Rented to Firm with Questionable Ties" - Jack Reed - St. Petersburg Times
"Wearing the hats of public official and private landlord as Pasco County Sheriff John M. Short does can be embarrassing at times. When Short's former captain Joe Donahue was indicted by a federal grand jury in March for accepting bribes from Vincenzo 'Jimmy' Acquafredda, a garbage company with ties to Acquafredda was renting an office from Short. . ."
St. Petersburg Times 1983-12-11
"Doing Business with the Boss in Pasco" - Jack Reed and Lucy Morgan - St. Petersburg Times
"When Pasco County Sheriff John M. Short wants to buy or sell a piece of property or find a business partner, he often turns to his employees. While building his personal wealth, the sheriff has done business with at least eight subordinates and surrounded himself with fellow entrepreneurs. . ."
St. Petersburg Times 1983-12-11
"Pasco County Sheriff Had Secret Target List" - Lucy Morgan - St. Petersburg Times
"Pasco County Sheriff, John M. Short investigated a number of prominent East Pasco residents as suspected drug smugglers in a secret, privately financed undercover operation in 1961-62. The investigation, which produced no arrests, apparently focused on men who had earned the enmity of Short or John T. Moorman, a wealthy part-time deputy and Short associate who helped finance the operation. . ."
St. Petersburg Times 1983-12-03
"Pasco Sheriff Short Indicted" - Lucy Morgan - St. Petersburg Times
". . .Governor Bob Graham appointed Phillips as interim sheriff today. He'll take over at noon today when the suspension of Sheriff John M. Short is effective. . ."
St. Petersburg Times 1984-08-25