Latest news with #NinthJudicialCircuit
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
James Uthmeier says he wants to help Monique Worrell's office prosecute more cases
Florida Attorney General and Orange County Sheriff John Mina in Orlando on April 14, 2025. (Screenshot from video from James Uthmeier's X account) Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier offered Monday to provide six prosecutors from his office to assist in Florida's Ninth Judicial Circuit, where State Attorney Monique Worrell recently announced new policies to manage a backlog of more than 13,000 cases. Saying Worrell had refused to prosecute at least 90 cases in the past week, Uthmeier said, 'We're going to tell her the words that no George Soros prosecutor wants to hear: We're from the Attorney General's office, and we're here to help you.' 'So, the calvary's here,' he added. 'We've got the entire team of prosecutors that we're going to be sending to help out. We hope that she will take that help. We want to get rid of that backlog and those thousands of cases that we want to make sure that dangerous people are put behind bars. We want to see bad guys go away.' Worrell did ask Uthmeier last week for funding to bring in 13 more prosecutors to address the backlog of non-arrest cases that is now up to 13,675, according to WFTV in Orlando. That request followed her announcement of a new policy that requires local law enforcement to make an arrest or issue a notice to appear in court before they submit a case to her office for prosecution — comments Uthmeier criticized as 'blanket policies' that 'are contrary to the essential duties of a prosecutor.' Worrell, a Democrat, campaigned and won office for the first time in 2020 in part by promising criminal justice reform in her circuit, which encompasses Orange and Osceola Counties. Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended her in August 2023, alleging she had neglected 'her duty to faithfully prosecute crime in her jurisdiction.' The move outraged Democrats, and Worrell took her case to the Florida Supreme Court, which voted 6-1 to uphold her suspension. However, running in liberal Orange and Osceola, she won a second term in November, beating NPA candidate Andrew Bain (appointed by DeSantis to replace her) by 15 percentage points. Nick Cox, who serves as statewide prosecutor in the attorney general's office, said during Monday's press conference that if Worrell takes in the state prosecutors, they would act under her authority. 'We will try to determine how these cases would typically be handled in the Ninth Circuit but, at the same time, we're going to bring to bear our opinions and our judgements on the cases, working with the state attorney's office,' he said. Despite his comment referring to Worrell as being funded by Soros, Uthmeier insisted his actions were not politically motivated. 'We're not running around the state looking for people to remove from office,' he said. 'We're looking for people who aren't doing their job. And, as a prosecutor, your job is simple: Put the bad people away and keep Floridians safe. It's that simple. 'If you're willing to do that, I've got no beef with you. I want to help you. I want to help everybody. Democrat, Republican, if you are a prosecutor your job is to put bad people away.' Worrell and Uthmeier have sparred in just the last week. Speaking at a news conference in Tampa last Monday to announce arrests in a child pornography ring, Uthmeier said that one of the people arrested 'was on a lighter probation sentence by the state attorney over in Orlando,' citing it as an example of a prosecutor who 'go soft on crime.' However, the individual to whom he referred, Frankie Pineiro, was prosecuted in a different jurisdiction and before Worrell was elected in 2020. 'The Attorney General is once again inaccurate and uninformed,' Worrell said in a statement issued last week. 'A simple review of public records established that not only was this individual sentenced prior to my election in 2020, but also that this case did not come out of the 9th Judicial Circuit. Since the Attorney General has stated that he will be looking at my conduct going forward to make sure we are enforcing the rule of law, I hope that he will prioritize public safety and also look at my request for additional prosecutors to support our enforcement of the rule of law.' Throughout last year, DeSantis refused to comment about the possibility of suspending Worrell a second time if she won re-election. Speaking Monday in Kissimmee, which is part of Worrell's jurisdiction, the governor said he would do so if there was proof that she was neglecting her duties. 'You do not have the ability to pick and choose which laws you're going to enforce,' he said. 'You don't have the ability or the authority to let the inmates run the asylum. So I know the attorney general is keeping a close eye on what she's doing. That could end up on my desk if there's proof that somebody is neglecting their duties or satisfying one or the other provisions of the Florida Constitution, then obviously I could act again.' As of early Monday afternoon, Worrell's office had not responded to Uthmeier's offer. We will update this story when and if she does. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Florida attorney general sending prosecutors to help with Monique Worrell's backlog of 13,500 cases
The Brief ORLANDO, Fla. - Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier is sending a team of prosecutors to help State Attorney Monique Worrell of the Ninth Judicial Circuit in addressing a backlog of 13,500 cases. Uthmeier announced the move Monday morning during a news conference in Orlando, joined by Orange County Sheriff John Mina and Statewide Prosecutor Nick Cox. According to the attorney general's office, Worrell recently implemented what it called a "soft-on-crime" policy. Officials said the policy restricts law enforcement from referring certain non-arrest cases to her office — including some involving gun crimes and violent felonies. What they're saying "There is no excuse for non-prosecution politics that allow dangerous criminals to go free. The people of Orlando deserve better," Attorney General James Uthmeier said in a statement. RELATED |Florida State Attorney Monique Worrell, law enforcement at odds over arrest warrant policy "Other Statewide Prosecutors will help pick up the caseload of their colleagues and work longer days that may turn into long nights. But this is what public service is all about: doing what is right and bringing justice where it is due." These prosecutors from the Office of Statewide Prosecution will be supporting the Office of the State Attorney for the Ninth Judicial Circuit. Joni Gerrity Lauryn Day Jean Almonacy Rebecca Addison Rebecca Smith-Hameroff Taylor Chatting The backstory Earlier this month, Florida State Attorney Monique Worrell that her office would no longer accept law enforcement cases for prosecution that do not include an arrest or cases that have not already entered the court system, essentially challenging officers, deputies, and detectives to build better cases before submitting them to her office. RELATED | State Attorney Worrell's policy sparks clash over case submissions, concerns over possible delays of justice Worrell said her office is dealing with a backlog of thousands of "non-arrest" cases because those cases are less prioritized than ones where an arrest has been made. The new policy received pushback from the Orange County Sheriff's Office and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier. "We are not supportive of the policy in its current form as it could deny prosecution in some domestic violence and firearms cases and deny justice to some victims of those crimes," the Orange County Sheriff's Office previously said in a statement. "To ensure the safety of our residents and visitors, the Orange County Sheriff's Office intends to continue sending misdemeanor, non-arrest cases to the State Attorney's Office when appropriate. We would welcome the opportunity for true collaboration in this matter." This is a developing story. Check back for updates. STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 35 ORLANDO: Download the FOX Local app for breaking news alerts, the latest news headlines Download the FOX 35 Storm Team Weather app for weather alerts & radar Sign up for FOX 35's daily newsletter for the latest morning headlines FOX Local:Stream FOX 35 newscasts, FOX 35 News+, Central Florida Eats on your smart TV The Source This story was written based on previous reporting and the Office of the Attorney General for the State of Florida on April 14, 2025.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
DeSantis appoints former state attorney Andrew Bain an Orange County judge
Former Orange-Osceola State Attorney Andrew Bain has been appointed an Orange County judge — for the second time — by Gov. Ron DeSantis. The appointment, announced by the governor's office Tuesday, comes just five months after Bain was ousted as state attorney by his predecessor, Monique Worrell. DeSantis had suspended Worrell in August 2023 and appointed Bain to replace her, generating national headlines and outcry from Democrats who said DeSantis had usurped the will of voters. Worrell won just over 57% of the vote in her reelection bid in November. Following the election, Bain took a position in the law firm Byrd Campbell. Bain's new appointment fills a vacancy opened when the state Legislature created several new judgeships, including three in Orange County, the governor's office said. This is the third job DeSantis has appointed Bain to since 2020. He appointed Bain to an Orange County judgeship in 2020. Bain won an election in 2022 to stay on the bench. DeSantis then appointed him as Worrell's replacement in 2023. Prior to his first judgeship, Bain served as a prosecutor in the Ninth Judicial Circuit under Worrell's predecessor, Aramis Ayala. In the 2024 race, Bain ran as an independent in a circuit dominated by left-leaning Orange County, leaving him in the odd position of being viewed as the GOP governor's candidate but appearing on the ballot without a party affiliation even as he was backed by Florida Republicans. Bain said his background — he was once a registered Democrat — demonstrated he is independent-minded, but his opponents painted him as a puppet without firm convictions, beholden to DeSantis, his benefactor who gave him the post. Bain received his bachelor's degree from the University of Miami and his law degree from Florida A&M University College of Law.
