Ousted Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren asks Gov. DeSantis to reinstate him
TALLAHASSEE -- Saying "the facts do matter," suspended Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren on Wednesday asked Gov. Ron DeSantis to rescind an executive order that ousted the prosecutor.
DeSantis' Aug. 4 order accused Warren of "incompetence and willful defiance of his duties."
Warren, a twice-elected Democrat, filed a federal lawsuit seeking to get his job back.
U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle on Friday ruled that DeSantis' suspension violated the First Amendment and the Florida Constitution but that the federal court lacked jurisdiction to reinstate Warren.
"The record includes not a hint of misconduct by Mr. Warren," Hinkle's 59-page ruling said.
In a letter to DeSantis on Wednesday, Warren pointed to the judge's conclusions and asked for reinstatement so he can serve the nearly two years remaining in his term.
"Duty requires you to accept the court's findings that the executive order is illegal, even if that finding is perhaps unwelcome," Warren wrote.
The Columbia Law School graduate noted that, following "exhaustive discovery" and the trial, the governor now has more information than he did when he issued the suspension
"The facts are now known, and the court's findings are clear: I engaged in zero misconduct; the allegations in the executive order are false; and the suspension violates federal and state law," Warren wrote