Hillsborough State Attorney Andrew Warren is responding to his suspension by Governor DeSantis.
He calls it a "political stunt" and "illegal overreach."
Warren accuses the governor of using his power for political ambition and says DeSantis is spitting in the face of voters who elected him twice. Warren says crime is low in Tampa and the people have the right to elect their own leaders. DeSantis says Warren is selectively refusing to enforce Florida laws, including one on abortion that passed this year.
Here is Warren's statement in its entirety:
“Today’s political stunt is an illegal overreach that continues a dangerous pattern by Ron DeSantis of using his office to further his own political ambition. It spits in the face of the voters of Hillsborough County who have twice elected me to serve them, not Ron DeSantis.
In our community, crime is low, our Constitutional rights—including the right to privacy—are being upheld, and the people have the right to elect their own leaders—not have them dictated by an aspiring presidential candidate who has shown time and again he feels accountable to no one.
Just because the governor violates your rights, it doesn’t mean they don’t exist.”
Warren is scheduled to meet with reporters later this afternoon.
photo: Andrew Warren