ORLANDO, FL (January 7, 2025) — On Tuesday morning, duly elected progressive State Attorney Monique Worrell was sworn-in on the steps of the Orange County Courthouse in front of a joyful crowd.
“Eighteen months ago, I stood on these very steps after being unjustly removed from the office that you elected me to,” Worrell said. Worrell continued, “I told you then that I didn’t intend to give up. And as a result of you standing with me over these last 18 months, today, I am honored to return to the seat of the peoples State Attorney.”
Worrell said the last four years have been challenging. She suffered the sudden loss of her father and she said some people she thought would be there to support her, turned their backs on her as a result of her loss of power. “The campaign proved to be equally treacherous as my former political rivals joined forces with the new ones to slander my name, discredit my character and destroy my reputation and the reputation of those associated with me,” Worrell said.
In 2023 Worrell was stripped of her power by Governor Ron DeSantis via an Executive Order calling her ‘weak on crime,’ and citing a “neglect of duty.” Worrell was replaced by Governor DeSantis with Andrew Bain — a former judge who ran unsuccessfully against Worrell. Shortly after the 2024 election, Bain’s administration had made comments about refusing to leave office against the will of the voters. Bain then backtracked saying he would work with the new administration to ensure a smooth transition.
Worrell’s suspension & the significance of the case against Keith Moses
Worrell’s suspension came after she was accused of being lenient on Keith Melvin Moses, a man who was arrested for possessing 4.6 grams of cannabis in 2021 during a traffic stop. In that encounter with Orange County deputies, Moses was one of two suspects who may have thrown the gun out of the vehicle.
In a watchdog exclusive Spectrum News story by journalists Molly Duerig and Curtis McCloud, Sheriff John Mina said the State Attorney’s Office should have taken a closer look at the case. But Mina also admitted there were missteps within his agency. Mina said, “So we’re looking at how to fill those gaps and again that’s the responsibility of a supervisor, and the chain in command and also the State Attorney’s Office as well to say (inaudible) you arrested this juvenile and in your report you stated that there was a gun — was that gun ever tested, did you test it, what were the results of that.” But the report shows deputies did not make mention of a gun charge making it impossible for the State Attorney’s Office to know a gun was connected to the incident.
Tragically, on February 22nd, 2023 Moses shot and killed a woman, a 9-year old girl, and a Spectrum News reporter in the Pine Hills community in Orange County. During the shooting, he also shot and wounded a Spectrum News photographer.
In addition to deputies not listing the gun charge on the arrest report, deputies also did not follow through with testing the gun for fingerprints. It was only after the triple murders in Pine Hills that the Orange County Sheriff’s Department tested the gun for DNA. Those results showed the gun could not be tied to Moses.
Osceola County Sheriff Marcos López also accused Worrell of being soft on crime. Almost a week after the Pine Hills murders, López, who was just added to the Brady List, said Worrell was not properly prosecuting drug trafficking cases. The Brady Information System is a list handled by a prosecutor’s office that contains the names of law enforcement officers who have a history of misconduct or credibility issues.
López was just recently added to the Brady Identification System or the “Brady List” for posting a picture of the murdered body of 13-year-old Madeline Soto on social media. The Florida Sun has reached out to the governor’s office to find out if López is in jeopardy of being suspended from office or if Governor DeSantis is considering suspending López. Currently, we are awaiting a response.
Although some voters are fearful the governor will disregard their constitutional right to choose their State Attorney and suspend her again, today Worrell has regained her power to serve in the 9th Judicial Circuit which covers Orange and Osceola counties.
Duly elected State Attorney Monique Worrell delivers a speech to a crowd of joyful supporters after being sworn-in at the Orange County Courthouse on Jan. 7, 2025
