Republican touted by DeSantis as a 'legend' accused on Election Day of molesting a child

A former Florida House member whom Gov. Ron DeSantis had appointed as Palm Beach County's clerk of courts and comptroller was arrested early Tuesday on allegations of molesting and kidnapping a child.

Michael Allen Caruso, a 67-year-old Republican running for re-election in November but unopposed in Tuesday's primary, was booked that same day into the Palm Beach County jail on suspicion of molestation, kidnapping, luring and enticing a child, lewd and lascivious exhibition, and child abuse, according to his arrest affidavit, reported the Miami Herald.

Hours later, DeSantis issued an executive order suspending Caruso from office, using his authority to remove elected officials accused of crimes. "Being in a position of public trust provides no shield from accountability," Attorney General James Uthmeier said in a statement.

According to an Orange County Sheriff's Office report obtained by the Miami Herald, Caruso is accused of molesting the child on multiple occasions last year, including during a family gathering and again aboard a cruise ship.

Anonymous sources with knowledge of the FDLE investigation told the Herald the victim was a boy younger than 5. The child later began acting out sexually at home, prompting his parents to alert law enforcement.

This is not the first time Caruso has faced child sex abuse allegations. In a January 2013 divorce filing, Caruso himself revealed that his first wife, Beverly Caruso, had previously accused him of sexually assaulting a child — which he called a "false sexual abuse case" that he claimed she had orchestrated.

A related Delray Beach police and DCF investigation in December 2012 deemed the allegation unfounded after the child and other witnesses denied any abuse. Records show Caruso has also been the subject of other, undisclosed reports to DCF.

Caruso was elected to the Florida House in 2018, the same year DeSantis became governor, and built a close relationship with him, notably backing DeSantis on immigration legislation opposed by other House Republicans. DeSantis called him a "legend" and appointed him clerk of courts in August 2025 as he faced term limits. The job pays roughly $219,000 annually and oversees an $80.1 million budget and 670 employees.

Caruso's current wife, Tracy Stein Caruso, holds two DeSantis-appointed roles and awaits Senate confirmation for a third, on the Palm Beach State College Board of Trustees. Neither she nor Beverly Caruso responded to requests for comment.

Divorce records also describe a 2009 incident in which Beverly Caruso, his wife of 31 years, called 911 alleging he was drunk, speeding on I-95 and threatening her, and she disputed a 2012 claim that she had physically attacked him.

A judge denied both her protective injunction and his later restraining order request. Their divorce was finalized in 2014.

Caruso, who is an accountant by profession, coached Little League baseball for 30 years and volunteered for the Boy Scouts for eight years, and he was also a member of the Delray Beach Police Advisory Board.