TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday he has fired Hillsborough County State’s Attorney Andrew Warren for failing to prosecute certain crimes.
At a press conference escorted by Tampa Bay police, DeSantis said Warren had “put himself publicly above the law” by signing letters saying he would not enforce laws banning gender-affirming care for minors or laws that restricting abortions.
“Our government is a government of laws, not a government of people,” DeSantis said.
READ THE DISTRICT’S ORDER HERE
Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said police have had lingering frustrations with Warren for not pursuing certain cases.
“I continue to work with my law enforcement colleagues who are personally frustrated with a state attorney who seems highly focused on empathizing with criminals and less interested in pursuing justice for victims of crime,” Chronister said Thursday.
Thursday’s press conference included other neighboring police chiefs, including Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco and Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd and Attorney General Ashley Moody.
“Andrew Warren is a fraud,” said former Tampa Police Chief Brian Duggan. “It’s a terrible day that the governor had to come and clean up our mess.”
Warren, a Democrat, has been a frequent critic of DeSantis, including calling the governor’s 2021 “anti-riot” legislation a misguided “solution in search of a problem.”
On Thursday morning, Warren was escorted from his office. He was scheduled to host a press conference for a “major development” related to the case of Robert Dubois, who was exonerated in 2020 after serving 37 years in prison for a murder he did not commit. After DeSantis was fired, Warren’s office canceled the event.
Warren can appeal DeSantis’ decision.
Under the state constitution, the governor can remove public officials for malfeasance, official misconduct, neglect of duty, drunkenness, incompetence, permanent inability to perform official duties, or commission of a crime.
DeSantis’ order cited dereliction of duty and incompetence as the reason for Warren’s removal, citing in part a 1937 case law in which a Tampa prosecutor was accused of failing to charge people with gambling crimes.
Warren, the order said, “demonstrated his incompetence and willful defiance of his duties,” citing:
- Warren signed a June 2021 “joint statement” with prosecutors across the country “to use our discretion and not promote the criminalization of gender-affirming health care or transgender people.” Although the state has not passed such criminal laws, “these statements demonstrate that Warren believes she has the power to defy the Florida Legislature,” DeSantis wrote.
- Warren instituted a policy not to prosecute “certain criminal offenses, including trespassing on a place of business, disorderly conduct, intoxication and prostitution.”
- Warren instituted a policy “against prosecuting crimes where the initial encounter between law enforcement and the defendant resulted from a non-criminal bicycle or pedestrian violation.”
“Warren effectively invalidated these Florida criminal statutes in the 13th Judicial Circuit, thereby undermining the rule of law, promoting lawlessness, and usurping the exclusive role of the Florida Legislature to define criminal conduct,” the order states.
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As Warren’s replacement, DeSantis appointed Hillsborough County Judge Susan Lopez, a former district attorney whom DeSantis named to the judgeship last year.
DeSantis said he did not talk to Warren about his concerns before suspending him.
The governor’s decision was a stunning advantage over the 369,129 Hillsborough County voters who voted for Warren in 2020, representing 53.4 percent of the voter turnout.
It also had echoes of a 2016 showdown between former Gov. Rick Scott and Aramis Ayala, the state’s first black state attorney representing Orange and Osceola counties.
Ayala stunned many supporters and made national news when, just two months into office, she announced that she would not seek the death penalty in any cases, including the case of Marquette Lloyd, who was charged in the murders of police Lt. Debra Clayton and Lloyd pregnant ex-girlfriend.
Scott reassigned that case and 28 others to a neighboring state attorney’s office, but did not remove her. Ayala is now running for attorney general.
Before Thursday’s bombshell, DeSantis’ most high-profile firing of an elected official was Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel after his department’s failures during the Parkland mass shooting.
After problems in Broward and Palm Beach during the 2018 election, such as missing ballot count deadlines, DeSantis also suspended Palm Beach Supervisor of Elections Susan Butcher. Technically, it was Gov. Rick Scott who removed Broward County Supervisor of Elections Brenda Snipes, though DeSantis reversed that just so he could accept her resignation letter.
In 2019, DeSantis also suspended the superintendent of Okaloosa County Schools, citing grand jury reports that teachers mistreated special needs children at two schools in her district, and suspended other local officials, including Port Richey Mayor Dale Massad, after being accused of crimes.
Thursday’s news conference drew a cheering crowd that laughed at Judd’s comments and stood to applaud DeSantis when he announced Warren’s suspension.
On Wednesday, DeSantis’ spokeswoman, Christina Pushau, warned on Twitter that there would be a “MAJOR announcement” from the governor Thursday morning.
“Get ready for the liberal media meltdown of the year,” she wrote.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Times/Herald contributor Romy Ellenbogen contributed to this report.
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