{"id":1375923,"date":"2023-12-06T22:07:17","date_gmt":"2023-12-06T22:07:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theintercept.com\/?p=454050"},"modified":"2023-12-06T22:07:17","modified_gmt":"2023-12-06T22:07:17","slug":"desantis-lawyer-cant-name-a-single-policy-that-led-to-reform-prosecutors-suspension","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/2023\/12\/06\/desantis-lawyer-cant-name-a-single-policy-that-led-to-reform-prosecutors-suspension\/","title":{"rendered":"DeSantis Lawyer Can\u2019t Name a Single Policy That Led to Reform Prosecutor\u2019s Suspension"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
The Florida Suprem<\/u>e<\/u> Court<\/span> on Wednesday heard oral arguments in a case about Gov. Ron DeSantis\u2019s suspension earlier this summer of an elected Florida district attorney over allegations that she neglected her duties. State Attorney Monique Worrell, the suspended municipal prosecutor in Orange and Osceola counties, petitioned the court to reinstate her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During the hearing, justices on the court vacillated between contradictory positions, arguing on the one hand that they weren\u2019t there to litigate the facts of DeSantis\u2019s claims against Worrell, and on the other suggesting that she neglected prosecutorial duties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As part of his remaking of Florida\u2019s government, DeSantis has stacked the court<\/a> with his allies and pressured it to enact his political agenda. For DeSantis, the court is yet another venue for expanding his authority<\/a> and fanning the flames of a right-wing culture war by attacking criminal justice reform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n Worrell won election in 2020 with an overwhelming victory against a \u201claw-and-order\u201d opponent. She ran on addressing mass incarceration, restoring public trust in the office, and serving victims. DeSantis suspended Worrell in August, making her the second prosecutor he removed from office over political disagreements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The attacks on prosecutors have far-reaching implications for the future of the criminal justice system and how state lawmakers exercise their authority and undermine the will of voters who elected reformers, Worrell\u2019s attorney Laura Ferguson said during the arguments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf a governor were able to remove a prosecutor of a different political party simply because they disagreed with their policies and categorize that as a neglect of duty or incompetence,\u201d Ferguson said, \u201cthen that will have a substantial chilling effect on how state attorneys perform their roles or their willingness to serve.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n In one exchange during the hearing, Ferguson said DeSantis\u2019s allegations<\/a> that the district attorney had \u201cpractices or policies\u201d to not prosecute certain categories of crimes were false and that she considered cases individually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Justice Charles Canady, whose wife is a DeSantis ally, interrupted Ferguson. \u201cThat\u2019s not what\u2019s alleged though,\u201d Canady said. \u201cWhat\u2019s alleged, to kind of sum it up, is that she has policies that under-prosecute certain categories.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe order infers and speculates about policies,\u201d Ferguson said in response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt makes assertions, it makes allegations,\u201d Canady replied. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t have to prove it.\u201d He said a trial in the Florida Senate over Worrell\u2019s removal \u2014 on hold because of the Supreme Court challenge \u2014 would adjudicate those claims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The attempt to remove elected prosecutors in Florida is part of a nationwide trend of Republicans looking to gain favor with the electorate through punitive, though potentially anti-democratic, policies. At least 17 states<\/a> have launched similar efforts to curb the rise of reform-minded prosecutors who won office in increasing numbers since the mid-2010s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last month, Georgia\u2019s Supreme Court blocked<\/a> an effort by Republican lawmakers who sought to use a new state law to oust the prosecutor<\/a> who indicted former President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Prior to winning the office, Worrell had worked under outgoing State Attorney Aramis Ayala<\/a>. Ayala \u2014 a prosecutor who, like Worrell, is a Black woman \u2014 fell victim to the growing push<\/a> to oust or limit the authority of elected reformers when former Florida Gov. Rick Scott removed her for refusing to seek the death penalty<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n