Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended the state attorney for Florida’s Ninth Judicial Circuit, saying she routinely failed to implement mandatory minimum sentencing for gun crimes and drug trafficking offenses, according to reports.
DeSantis also accused Monique Worrell of allowing juvenile defenders to avoid serious charges and jail time, saying she has been has been “clearly and fundamentally derelict” in her duties.
An executive order signed by DeSantis and Secretary of State Cord Byrd says Worrell “systematically” allowed criminals to avoid jail time, either by dropping charges or declining to prosecute them with all available evidence, adding that she has been “both neglect of duty and incompetence."
Orlando Judge Andrew Bain has been appointed to replace her. Her suspension is effective immediately.
In April, Worrell wrote a scathing letter to media in which she said DeSantis was trying "to exploit his political agenda against" her based on her differences of opinion.
She also wrote the DeSantis "prances around Southeast Asia on his dilapidated presidential campaign tour."
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Florida officials have also accused Worrell of limiting charges against child pornography offenders.
Worrell was a longtime advocate of criminal justice reform and repeatedly called for emphasis to be placed on rehabilitating criminals. She has recently come under fire from state officials for a shooting in February that killed three people that was carried out by a suspect with a lengthy criminal history who critics say was repeatedly given lenient sentences.
This is the second time DeSantis has suspended a state attorney he accused of being soft on crime. Last year, he suspended Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren after Warren refused to enforce state restrictions on abortion and gender-related surgery.
