TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the suspension of elected State Attorney Monique Worrell, citing "neglect of duty and incompetence."
In a sudden announcement Wednesday morning at the Florida State Capitol, the governor explained that it's a state attorney's duty to "faithfully enforce the law."
"One's political agenda cannot trump this solemn duty," DeSantis said.
Worrell, who serves the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court in Orange County, has been criticized by the Florida governor for months regarding her handling of certain high-profile cases in the Orlando area.
"Worrell’s practices and policies have too often allowed violent criminals to escape the full consequences of their criminal conduct," the governor said in a news release.
In March, DeSantis' office claimed Worrell "refused to prosecute" a crime that let 19-year-old suspected shooter Keith Moses "remain on the streets." Police say Moses is responsible for the shooting that left a 9-year-old girl, a 38-year-old woman and a 24-year-old TV news reporter dead.
In addition to the Moses case, DeSantis mentioned Worrell's handling of 28-year-old Daton Viel's alleged crimes. Viel, who had an extensive criminal record, was shot and killed by police after he allegedly shot two Orlando officers during a traffic stop last week.
“Prosecutors do have a certain amount of discretion about which cases to bring and which cases to not, but what this state attorney has done is abuse that discretion and has effectively nullified certain laws in the state of Florida," the governor said. "Monique Worrell’s administration of criminal justice in the ninth circuit has been clearly and fundamentally derelict so as to constitute both neglect of duty and incompetence."
DeSantis appointed Judge Andrew Bain to take over as state attorney.
Worrell reacted to the suspension in a news conference hours later, calling DeSantis a "weak dictator" and calling her suspension a "political hit job."
"This is simply a smokescreen for Ron DeSantis failing a disastrous presidential campaign," she said. "This should not happen in a democracy."
Worrell said that given suspended State Attorney Andrew Warren's situation, she understands that her removal from office will likely be permanent. However, she intends to continue her re-election campaign.
"I am a fighter, and I intend to fight," she said.
Employees at the state attorney's office were notified of the suspension in a note Wednesday morning, WESH reports.
Worrell's suspension comes just more than a year after DeSantis made the controversial decision to suspend Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren, similarly accusing him of picking and choosing which cases to prosecute.
Since then, Warren, who was elected twice by Hillsborough County voters, has been fighting to get his job back. He sued the governor in federal court, where a judge ruled that DeSantis violated Warren’s First Amendment rights, but also said he didn't hold the authority to reinstate him.