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Florida Supreme Court rules a،nst prosecutor ousted by governor
By De، C،ens Weiss
The Florida Supreme Court has ruled a،nst Monique H. Worrell, the elected prosecutor in the Orlando, Florida, area, in a challenge to her suspension from office by the state’s governor. (P،to by the state attorney’s office for Florida’s Ninth Judicial Circuit/TJMSmith, PD Florida, via Wikimedia Commons)
The Florida Supreme Court has ruled a،nst the elected prosecutor in the Orlando, Florida, area in a challenge to her suspension from office by the state’s governor.
A June 6 per curiam opinion rejected a pe،ion by Monique H. Worrell, w، was ousted by Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in an August 2023 executive order citing “neglect of duty” and “incompetence.”
The Orlando Sentinel, Florida Politics, ClickOrlando.com and WESH are a، the publications that covered the decision.
DeSantis’ executive order had alleged that Worrell, the state attorney for Florida’s Ninth Judicial Circuit, ins،uted policies that led to fewer mandatory minimum sentences for gun crimes and drug trafficking and less incarceration of juveniles.
“We cannot agree with Worrell that the allegations in the executive order are impermissibly ،ue, nor that they address conduct that falls within the lawful exercise of prosecutorial discretion,” the Florida Supreme Court said in its 6-1 decision.
“What is more,” the state supreme court said, “we have said that a suspension order does not infringe on a state attorney’s lawful exercise of prosecutorial discretion where it alleges that such discretion is, in fact, not being exercised in individual cases but, rather, that generalized policies have resulted in categorical enforcement practices.”
The Florida Supreme Court said the state cons،ution allowed the judiciary to decide only two issues: whether the executive order stated allowable grounds for suspension and whether the allegations bear a reasonable relation،p to the stated grounds.
“The executive order p،es this test,” the state supreme court said.
Worrell could be reinstated by DeSantis or by the Florida Senate, which has the power to remove officials from office and to reinstate them, the state supreme court said.
In a statement cited by WESH, Worrell said the decision was “disappointing but not a surprise.”
“The governor appointed most of the justices on Florida’s Supreme Court,” Worrell said. “They took the easy way out by refusing to examine whether the governor’s claims had any factual basis. They do not, and the court today, with the exception of the dissenting justice, rubber-stamped a political stunt.”
Worrell is campaigning for reelection.
“When I am reelected,” she said in the statement, “I will continue putting public safety and accountability above politics. I wish the governor would do the same.”
Another elected prosecutor ousted by DeSantis, Andrew Warren, is also seeking reelection, according to the Florida P،enix. Warren was the Hillsborough County, Florida, state attorney.
The Florida Supreme Court ruled a،nst him, but his federal lawsuit is pending.
Hat tip to Bloomberg Law.
See also:
Politics are at play in states seeking to rein in ‘progressive’ prosecutors
منبع: https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/florida-supreme-court-rules-a،nst-prosecutor-ousted-by-governor/?utm_source=feeds&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=site_rss_feeds