Laurence v. State
Twelve consolidated defendants sought writs of prohibition to disqualify a Monroe County judge whose spouse became Executive Director (a non-attorney administrative post) of the State Attorney's Office prosecuting their cases. The Third DCA held the disqualification motions were legally insufficient because the spouse's role was purely administrative, did not supervise any assistant state attorneys, and did not involve participation in prosecutions, adopting the reasoning of Florida JEAC Opinion 2023-09.
Key facts
- Twelve defendants consolidated in Monroe County sought writs of prohibition to disqualify a judge whose spouse became Executive Director (a non-attorney administrative position) of the State Attorney's Office prosecuting their cases.
- The spouse's role was purely administrative, involved no supervision of assistant state attorneys, and involved no participation in the prosecutions of the defendants' cases.
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Why it matters
This is one of the few Florida appellate decisions addressing when a trial judge's spouse's employment at the prosecuting state attorney's office requires disqualification, and it establishes a workable line… — full analysis with a trial
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