Orange Circuit Judge accused of molestation, governor’s order says

Orange Circuit Judge Alan Apte has been accused of molestation, according to an executive order by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The order, signed Wednesday, assigns the case to Daytona-based State Attorney R.J. Larizza because Orange-Osceola State Attorney Aramis Ayala has a conflict of interest as Apte is a judge in her circuit and used to work for the State Attorney’s Office.

Ayala voluntarily recused herself, the order said.

Specifics of the allegations against Apte are unclear.

Apte was first elected to the circuit bench in 2002 and has held his seat through several elections since then, but lost to challenger Christy Collins in August’s primary election. Collins received 51% of the vote to Apte’s 49%.

Earlier this week, Apte was announced as an applicant to fill the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal vacancy left when Judge Jamie Grosshans was appointed to the Florida Supreme Court by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Interviews for that position by the Fifth District Court of Appeal Judicial Nominating Commission are slated to begin Nov. 9.

Orange-Osceola Chief Judge Donald Myers Jr. learned of the accusation against Apte around 5 p.m. Friday, said Karen Connolly Levey, a spokeswoman for the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court.

“We really have very little information at this point,” she said. “We will be revisiting it in the coming days. All [Judge Myers] has seen is the order. We do not have information at all other than that.”

Apte did not immediately respond to multiple phone calls and emails. Ayala also did not respond immediately when asked about the nature of the allegations against Apte.

He currently serves in the family division, which focuses on probate, guardianship and mental health cases. As a judge, Apte presided over 100 jury trials, including over 20 murder cases.

Apte received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Miami in 1989 and his law degree from Nova University Law School in 1993, according to the court’s website.

This isn’t the first brush with the law for Apte. In 2005, he was indicted after he paid a political consultant $5,000 to collect absentee ballots for his election. Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer also was indicted. The case against both men and two other defendants was later dropped.

Apte was reinstated to the bench by then-Ninth Circuit Chief Judge Belvin Perry.