ACLU sues Florida Gov. DeSantis over missed judicial appointment deadline
ACLU of Florida filed suit with the Florida Supreme Court on Aug. 8 on behalf of Gary Edinger, a First Amendment lawyer and resident of the 8th Judicial Circuit, which covers Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Gilchrist, Levy and Union counties.
The filing asks the court to require DeSantis to fill a vacancy that arose when Judge Michael Moseley submitted his resignation April 1, effective June 30.
DeSantis convened the circuit's Judicial Nominating Commission, which returned a list of four names to him on June 4: Michael Becker, Lorelie Brannan, Joy Danne and Kristine Van Vorst.
Florida's constitution requires the governor to make an appointment within 60 days after the JNC submits its nominees, but DeSantis has yet to name a successor to Moseley.
As the ACLU filing notes, the timing of the appointment is important. If the appointment isn't made by Aug. 18, whomever DeSantis names to the vacancy won't have to appear on next year's ballot.
Florida law requires appointed judges subject to elections to go before voters if they were appointed more than a year before the next election. The primary election next year is Aug. 18, 2026.
'When a governor flouts the constitutionally mandated deadline for appointing a trial judge, that can illegally deprive voters of their right to vote on the judge at the next election,' the filing says. 'It can also confer an unconstitutional benefit on the appointee by adding an extra two unlawful years to their initial term, which the Constitution does not permit.'
A request for comment is pending with DeSantis' press office.
The lawsuit comes after a similar suit filed by the ACLU in July on behalf of Maite Garcia, an attorney and resident in the 2nd Judicial Circuit, which includes Leon, Gadsden, Wakulla, Jefferson, Liberty and Franklin counties. That suit involved the vacancy that arose when Judge Robert Wheeler resigned on March 28.
The suit was voluntarily dismissed after DeSantis appointed Jason Jones, a Leon County judge who was once general counsel for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, to replace Wheeler on July 17 – two weeks after the ACLU filed the legal challenge.
More: ACLU of Florida drops lawsuit after Gov. DeSantis fills Tallahassee judicial vacancy
Gray Rohrer is a reporter with the USA TODAY Network-Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at grohrer@gannett.com. Follow him on X: @GrayRohrer.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: DeSantis sued again by ACLU for failing to fill court seat on time
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