4 things you need to know as the Hillsborough state attorney election approaches

Hillsborough County residents’ decision Tuesday in the state attorney race will be among the most closely watched elections in the state as voters make their final choices for president, senator and amendments to the Florida Constitution.

This is a race that began more than two years ago when Gov. Ron DeSantis fired Andrew Warren and replaced him with Suzy Lopez.

Warren, a Democrat who supports criminal justice reforms, has been rebuked for the Republican governor’s public statements on abortion and transgender rights, as well as his policies discouraging the prosecution of some low-level, nonviolent crimes.

Lopez, a Republican, describes himself as “a prosecutor, not a politician.” It underlines support for police officers and tough sanctions against criminals.

Here are four things you need to know about the race ahead of Election Day.

Different approaches

This kind of high political drama is unusual for an office like state attorney. In other states, they are often called district attorneys. There are 20 state attorneys general in Florida, one for each judicial branch. This is an office where resident people tend to work unrivaled. It is also an office that people know very little about. unless they have a reason to engage with him as a crime victim, defendant, or witness.

However, this is a position entrusted with tremendous power; The power to accuse people of crimes, take away their freedom, order a person to be executed.

Warren’s election in 2016 brought new awareness of these powers and brought public attention to criminal justice reforms. These included expanding criminal penalties for minor crimes, preventing criminal charges against people whose driver’s licenses were suspended for unpaid fees, and establishing a conviction review unit to root out wrongful convictions.

Lopez follows a more traditional approach. State court data shows his office is filing more charges and taking more cases to trial. According to Department of Juvenile Justice data, there was a 15% increase in the number of youth charged as adults in their first year. Death penalty cases rise to at least 18 cases involving 21 defendants That compares with five death penalty cases pending when Warren left.

Warren’s suspension is the real issue

Warren to have He framed his campaign as a fight for democracy, arguing that DeSantis was subverting the will of Hillsborough County voters who elected him twice.

He portrays Lopez as a “puppet” of DeSantis while also highlighting positive legal decisions that found DeSantis violated Warren’s First Amendment rights and the state constitution.

William Levens, a retired Hillsborough circuit judge, is among Warren’s campaign contributors. He said he believed the suspension was a political move by the governor, who was preparing to run for president at the time.

“The only reason I support him is because it is wrong for the governor to remove himself from office for political reasons,” Levens said. “This seems to me to be extremely unfair.”

Tampa attorney Mike Trentalange, who supports Warren, likened the suspension to a “coup.”

“Tell me the difference between this and the totalitarian system,” Trentalange said. “This is undemocratic and un-American.”

Both candidates made misleading claims

Warren achieved a 32% drop in crime during her years in office. He has also repeatedly claimed that crime has increased since Lopez took over. But this is not the case.

Current crime statistics It has been on a consistent downward trend since Warren took office. As for her claim that it has increased in recent years, Warren pointed to data showing law enforcement is making more arrests. But criminal justice experts say it’s more of a police precaution. behavior and takes priority over crime. Crime figures from Tampa police and Hillsborough sheriff officials show crime continues to decline.

Warren recently criticized Lopez for not seeking the death penalty in the case of Howell Donaldson III, who randomly shot four people in Seminole Heights in 2017. But the case was complex and it would have been difficult for the state to obtain the death penalty. Lopez accepted a deal that had Donaldson plead guilty in exchange for four consecutive life sentences.

A new ad from Lopez’s campaign Created the false impression that Warren refused to prosecute the rioters The ad featured footage of Warren talking about her decision not to file charges against a specific group of protesters because of images of people attacking police, looting businesses and damaging property. By the end of that summer, his office announced that it had filed more than 200 criminal charges against 120 people in connection with the riots.

Lopez also made statements that Warren was fired “for not doing her job.” But the judge found that all the evidence showed Warren was. perform his/her job competently and exercise the prosecutor’s discretion.

Insiders and DeSanti allies like Lopez

Republican activists, lawmakers and political committees affiliated with DeSantis’ allies have poured large sums of money into Lopez’s campaign. Brings total fundraising to over $1 million, More than twice what Warren raised.

His other supporters include several prominent criminal defense attorneys and retired judges. They know him from personal experience.

“He actually appeared before me when I was a circuit court judge,” said former Hillsborough circuit judge Emmett Lamar Battles, who donated to Lopez’s campaign. “Frankly, I have always found him to be not only a good lawyer, but also a very straightforward person. “He was one of those people you could trust when they came into the courtroom.”