‘The loss of democracy': Monique Worrell, other elected officials denounce DeSantis' suspension of state attorney

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Wednesday he is suspending State Attorney Monique H. Worrell of Central Florida effective immediately in an announcement in Tallahassee.

Worrell was the state attorney for the ninth judicial circuit court for the state of Florida. She appeared in a news conference Wednesday to speak out on the governor's decision to suspend her.

"If we're mourning anything this morning, it is the loss of democracy," Worrell said. "I am your duty-elected state attorney for the ninth judicial circuit and nothing done by a weak dictator can change that."

Worrell had been elected three years ago and on Wednesday said she has lived up to everything she had promised the community.

"I didn't hide, I didn't say things and then didn't do them, I didn't say I wouldn't do things and then did them," Worrell said. "I did exactly what I said I was going to do and that is what you want from an elected official."

She went on to say that elected officials "are being taken out of office solely for political purposes and that should not be a thing."

"There used to be a very high standard for the removal of an elected official. There used to be a standard that I would've had to have been prosecuted for something, neglected my duties meaning that I didn't show up for work to do my job, or that I had some sort of illness that would have prevented me from doing my job," Worrell said. "Under this tyranny, elected officials can be removed simply for political purposes and by a whim of the governor, and no matter how you feel about me, you should not be okay with that."

Worrell's suspension has also been met with criticism by several other elected officials and organizations.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz released a statement Wednesday in response to the governor's decision to suspend the state attorney.

“Ron DeSantis’ autocratic removal of yet another elected official, purely because he disagrees with her decisions, is the epitome of the weaponization of government. The authoritarian tactic of removing duly-elected officials without legal cause is a direct affront to voters and Gov. DeSantis’ removal of the Orlando State Attorney is a brazen and petulant act of a flailing presidential candidate whose disregard for democracy and the rule of law is deeply troubling," the statement said. "DeSantis is already being dragged through courts for a similar government removal overreach in Tampa. Compounding that with this latest capricious ouster will not only litigiously waste more taxpayer dollars, it needlessly disrupts the administration of justice in yet another metro area of our state. Tinpot dictators and MAGA extremists will certainly smile on the governor's dictatorial power grab, but it is yet one more alarming act that undermines our democracy and the will of thousands of Florida voters.”

Florida Senator Shevrin Jones also shared his disdain for the governor's decision, calling it an "attack on democracy."

"This latest attack on our democracy is classic Ron DeSantis as he struggles to resuscitate his floundering presidential campaign on the right-wing cable circuit. DeSantis’ weaponization of government is not only an inappropriate use of taxpayer resources, but also insultingly hypocritical," the statement said. "This is clearly motivated by misogyny and racism as State Attorney Monique Worrell is Florida’s only Black woman State Attorney and serves central Florida with incredible dedication and a commitment to justice. The fact that DeSantis is tyrannically targeting duly-elected officials, in the name of unjustified, partisan gain, WHILE pledging allegiance to ‘the rule of law’ is sickening. I’ll wait while he refuses to hold white GOP elected officials who fail to do their jobs to the same standard."

The National Urban League expressed their outrage calling DeSantis' decision "undemocratic, unconstitutional, and a naked appeal to bigotry.

"Governor DeSantis has calculated that he can harness the forces of misogyny, racism, and antisemitism all in one authoritarian attack," National Urban League President and CEO Marc H. Morial said in a statement. "He is defying the overwhelming preference of the voters in Orange and Osceola counties, just as he trampled on the rights of voters in Hillsborough County with his suspension of the elected prosecutor there last week. It's no coincidence that these counties are three of Florida's most racially diverse. These suspensions are meant to serve as a sinister threat to every elected official in Florida who does not hew to DeSantis' extremist political agenda. Like a child who overturns the game board when he knows he is losing, DeSantis is determined to enforce by tyranny what he cannot achieve by democracy.  History, which DeSantis tries so hard to distort, will remember his administration with shame and regret."

But the police union that represents the Broward Sheriff's Office said in a statement that it is applauding the governor's decision, and that Worrell implemented "soft crime policies guided by radical far left political views" that "ultimately" led to a possible murder suspect shooting two Orlando officers over the weekend.

"Gov. DeSantis’s decision to suspend State Attorney Monique Worrell has shown his commitment to keep Florida a law-and-order state. Suspended State Attorney Monique Worrell’s tenure as can be described in one word, FAILURE, which Gov. DeSantis laid out in his executive order," the local International Union of Police Associations chapter said in a statement. "State Attorneys elected to office have an obligation to ensure violent offenders who break the law and pose a danger to the community are held accountable to fullest extent of the law. Any lesser standard implemented can be attributed to none other than neglect of duty and incompetence which has no place in public office.

In a news conference Wednesday, DeSantis said that Florida was a law and order state, meaning that the strong policies are in place to hold criminals accountable.

Ahead of his announcement, he said prosecutors have "a duty to faithfully enforce the law. One's political agenda cannot trump this solemn duty," and that refusing to do so "puts our communities in danger and victimizes innocent Floridians."

DeSantis added that Worrell's administration has been "clearly and fundamentally derelict to as to constitute both neglect of duty and incompetence," and that based on the policies and practices listed in the executive order, she met the requirements for suspension.

After announcing Worrell's suspension, DeSantis said he has appointed Judge Andrew Bain to take over as state attorney for the ninth judicial circuit court.

According to the governor, Bain is a native Floridian serving as a judge in Orlando. An alum of the University of Miami, Bain played football and later received his law degree from Florida A&M Law School.

“It is my duty as Governor to ensure that the laws enacted by our duly elected Legislature are followed,” DeSantis said in a statement. “The people of Central Florida deserve to have a State Attorney who will seek justice in accordance with the law instead of allowing violent criminals to roam the streets and find new victims.”