The Florida state attorney who was removed from office earlier this month by Governor Ron De Santis filed a lawsuit against him on Wednesday, claiming that it was an infringement on his First Amendment rights.
The federal court-filed lawsuit claims that the Republican governor retaliated against Andrew Warren, the state attorney for Hillsborough County, for supporting liberal prosecutors who swore not to pursue cases involving abortion and child gender-transition procedures.
Democrat Warren referred to the move as “political theatre” and said Ron De Santis did it to further his own career.
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida by Warren’s legal team. The chief prosecutor in the Tampa Bay region and a twice-elected state attorney are hoped to be reinstated by a judge’s decision.
At a press conference in Tallahassee on Wednesday morning, Warren stated, “I have the same first amendment right as everyone else in Florida does,” and added that the governor’s choice amounted to an abuse of authority.
At the press conference, Warren’s attorney Jean Jaques Cabou asserted that the governor lacked justification for ousting Warren. Ron De Santis removed his client from office, according to him, “because of policy differences [and] because the governor would like to execute his job differently than Mr. Warren wants to do his job,” he claimed.
The governor cannot suspend Warren on such grounds, Cabou continued.
When ABC News asked Ron De Santis for a response regarding the case, he did not do so right away. State attorneys have a responsibility to pursue offences as defined by Florida law, not to pick and choose which laws to enforce based on a personal agenda, the governor stated in a statement after suspending Warren on August 4.
On the campaign road this week, the governor also praised his choice to remove Warren from office.
He said in a speech on Sunday in Carlsbad, New Mexico, “Out of 20 elected prosecutors, we discovered one who decided to put himself above the law, stating he didn’t have to enforce laws that he disagreed with.”
Warren has vowed in two simultaneous comments that she will not bring charges for crimes involving abortion and kid gender-transition therapies. Ron De Santis contends that by doing this, Warren has abandoned his responsibility and displayed ineptitude.
Abortions are prohibited in Florida during a 15-week gestation period according to a statute that DeSantis signed in April. On July 1, the statute became operative, one week after Roe v. Wade was reversed by the US Supreme Court.
Last Monday, medical professionals in Florida filed an appeal notice with the state Supreme Court contesting the abortion statute. The plaintiffs contend that the law is unconstitutional under state law.
Florida does not currently have a legislation that makes gender-based treatment of juveniles illegal, despite the efforts of certain state lawmakers. Recently, a rule was established by the state’s Agency for Health Care Administration that prevents transgender people from utilising Medicaid to pay for gender-affirming medical care.
According to the governor, Warren’s choice to sign the joint remarks, together with other choices he has made during his two tenure as state attorney, are adequate grounds for suspension under the Florida Constitution.
Cabou argues that it’s up to the court to decide whether Warren’s statements meet the criteria for a suspension
He replied, “Just because the governor or the administration considers something lack of duty or ineptitude doesn’t make it true.
According to Scott Stephens, a retired Hillsborough County circuit judge and professor of Florida constitutional law, the court will determine whether Warren’s decision to sign the two letters may be used as proof that he disregarded his duties or is incompetent.
Warren is entitled to a hearing before the Florida state senate to determine if his suspension was legal.
The Republican-controlled body’s secretary, Debbie Brown, wrote to Warren on Monday to start the procedure for a hearing.
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