An elected prosecutor in Floridawas fired Wednesday by Gov. Ron DeSantis for his position on abortion and transgender rights. I filed a lawsuit to get my job back.
DeSantis said he suspendedHillsboro County State Attorney Andrew Warren as a transgender For minors.
“If the governor allows this, what is left of the democracy? '' asked Warren at a press conference in Tallahassee
. The governor says DeSantis is punishing Warren for taking a stand against him.
DeSantis, criticized by Democrats for signing into law bills deemed abortion-restrictive and anti-LGBTQ, held campaign-like events to announce Warren's suspension, with supporters cheering the decision The governor's office did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment Wednesday morning. The governor, who believes it's possible, cited Warren's alleged "negligent dereliction of duty" and other violations.
DeSantis, in an executive order, cited Warren's policy not to pursue several subcategories of crime, including "business trespassing, disorderly conduct, disorderly drunkenness, and prostitution." did.
Several law enforcement officials, including Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister, said Warren was like "the supreme authority for determining what crimes were legal and illegal in our county."
In recent years, similar use of prosecutorial discretion by elected progressives across the country has sparked some backlash.
San Francisco In June voters recalled Chesa Boudin, a former public defender who was elected district attorney in 2019 on a criminal justice reform platform. After refusing to prosecute most of his drug offenses, Boudin faced criticism over the rise in crime. A similar effort to bring back the Los Angeles DA failed to gather enough signatures this week.
Warren, who was elected by voters in the Tampa area in 2016 and re-elected in 2020, said the governor has overturned the will of those who put him in office.
"The governor is attacking our democracy and everyone should be concerned," Warren told reporters. Our condition will continue for many years to come.
Warren described the pledges circulated by prosecutors nationwide as "value statements" and said they were not definitive decisions about how to handle a particular case. He also noted Florida's new ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy.
"Of course, DeSantis is free to express his opinion. The complaint states that 'DeSantis went too far.'
The complaint states that Warren is obligated to take his position on such issues to voters and how, as a prosecutor, his limited resources should be used to prosecute crimes. states that it has the right to decide Public safety should be a priority, it said. In fact, it's because voters who choose voters choose, Warren's attorney, Jean-Jacques Cabou, said in a telephone interview. As Freed is a contested gubernatorial race, the state's only statewide elected Democrat, Democratic U.S. Rep. Entering the final week of
``This state governor has weaponized his office and has prosecutorial discretion over which cases to file and which not to file. It would be an overreach and an overstep for the governor, which Mr. Freed said at Tuesday night's election event was "the most dangerous thing we've ever seen for a democracy."
