Jill Kelley Ran a Bogus Cancer Charity, Wants 'Diplomatic Protection'

AP

Adam Clark Estes  

 

Jill Kelley does not appreciate the flood of attention she's been receiving since the investigation into David Petraeus's affair -- the one that she started -- captivated the nation. More specifically, she does not appreciate the media on her lawn, taking pictures through her windows and probably ruining her cred. Never mind the inside reporters who have been checking her background and digging up dirty secrets. How dare they do to her what she prompted the FBI to do to others!


The latest Jill Kelley revelation hit the web at the end of the day on Tuesday. It's a rough one because it cuts right into her reputation as a lauded socialite in the Tampa area, a woman who knew all the top brass and threw them fancy parties with expensive cigars and buffets of expensive caviar. Turns out some of these parties were funded by a bogus cancer charity that she set up with her doctor husband, Scott.
The Kelleys established the Doctor Kelley Cancer Foundation in 2007 with the exclusive mission "to conduct cancer research and to grant wishes to terminally ill adult cancer patients," according to The Huffington Post. Things did not exactly go as planned. "By the end of 2007, the charity had gone bankrupt, having conveniently spent exactly the same amount of money, $157,284, as it started with -- not a dollar more, according to its 990 financial form," HuffPost's Jason Cherkis and Christina Wilkie report. "Of that, $43,317 was billed as 'Meals and Entertainment,' $38,610 was assigned to 'Travel,' another $25,013 was spent on legal fees, and $8,822 went to 'Automotive Expenses.'" Neither of the Kelleys were able to be reached for comment.
Well, that was then and this is now. It's not like Kelley's asking for any special treatment these days, right? Wrong. Frustrated by the media attention, Jill Kelley's taken to calling 911 multiple times a day. On one of these calls a couple of days ago, the socialite told the dispatcher that someone was lurking in her yard and asked for a little bit of special protection. "You know, I don't know if by any chance, because I'm an honorary consul general, so I have inviolability, so they should not be able to cross my property," she said. "I don't know if you want to get diplomatic protection involved as well."
It's true. Jill Kelley is an honorary consul of South Korea. (Who knew?) A diplomatic official confirmed her status to Foreign Policy on Tuesday and explained that she "assumed this position last August thanks to her good connections and network." He went on to clarify, however, that it's nothing more than a symbolic title and comes with no special treatment or protection. "She does not work as a real consul," the official said.
So Jill Kelley is not the head of a cancer charity that's actually doing work to cure cancer. She's not eligible for "diplomatic protection." And she's not even really on staff at MacDill Air Force Base, where the AP says she's just an "unpaid social liason." So what is Jill Kelley? She's something. That's what.