DeSantis fights for Israel’s removal
Governor works to ensure state Senate upholds Broward sheriff’s suspension
Aided by the emotional power of family members of the 17 people killed in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre, Gov. Ron DeSantis is waging an all-out political and legal campaign to make sure the Florida Senate upholds his suspension of Broward Sheriff Scott Israel.
A high-stakes, contentious marathon of legal arguments over Israel begins Monday in Tallahassee, and DeSantis isn’t holding back.
Shortly after a special master recommended reinstating Israel, DeSantis hired an outside lawyer, George Levesque, to represent his office before the Florida Senate, which decides if Israel gets his job back. Levesque is a former Senate general counsel, so he knows the Senate’s rules and customs, as well as senators, and he has also served as a special master himself.
The governor’s team, including Levesque, has been holding private meetings with individual senators in recent days, pressing them to support the governor’s suspension Israel.
The governor’s side has put more facts before senators that weren’t in the special master’s report, including an affidavit describing the loss of accreditation at the Sheriff’s Office, which took place after Israel’s suspension but reflected what happened at the agency under his tenure. of
Parkland parents: The Parkland families, who pushed for Israel’s removal and adamantly oppose returning him to office, are a potent force.
Many plan to be in Tallahassee monitoring the Senate proceedings — an impossible-to-ignore presence that will make it easier to vote against Israel and harder to vote for him.
“We’re planning on showing up. All of us families, we’re going. This isn’t just a few people who feel this way,” said Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter Jaime was killed at her school in Parkland. “We’re all working really hard to make sure our position on this is clear, which is former Sheriff Israel should not have his job back.”
Andy Pollack, whose daughter Meadow was one of those killed in the school massacre, has been in Tallahassee for days, helping to organize opposition to Israel’s reinstatement and meeting with senators to press his case. He declined to say how many senators he’s met with, but he said he’s spoken to Republicans and Democrats.
“All the families are united. All of us,” Pollack said. “We vote differently. We see different sides of things. But on this issue we are all united.”
Pressure from Broward: Israel’s opponents from Broward are making themselves heard. An email blast Friday from the Broward Republican Party urged recipients to immediately call or
email senators urging opposition to reinstating Israel.
On Twitter last weekend, School Board member Lori Alhadeff, whose daughter Alyssa was killed at the school, urged people to contact state Sens. Lauren Book, Gary Farmer and Kevin Rader to oppose reinstatement.
Book, Farmer and Rader, along with Oscar Braynon II and Perry Thurston, all Democrats, represent parts of Broward.
The issue is trickiest for Book and Rader because their districts include the Parkland and Coral Springs areas, which were the most directly devastated by the school massacre — and whose constituents are some of the most outspoken critics of Israel.
Aubrey Jewett, a political scientist at the University of Central Florida, said many senators are going to feel cross-pressures.
“It does put them in a somewhat of a tough situation,” Jewett said. “It’s definitely a high-profile issue, and it’s an emotional issue and it’s the kind of thing that the public pays attention to because it is a high-profile issue.”
Israel’s supporters: Farther from Parkland and Coral Springs, the communities that suffered the greatest effects of the school massacre, Israel has some Broward supporters, especially among Democrats who are politically active.
It’s unclear how many plan to travel to Tallahassee. People close to the suspended sheriff declined to comment. Israel’s lead attorney, Benedict Kuehne, didn’t respond to a message seeking comment.
Karen P. Fortman, president of the Broward County Presidents’ Council of Democratic Clubs and Caucuses, said she wants senators to understand “there is support in the community for reinstating Sheriff Israel.”
“My concern is that they need to hear another voice as well. My voice isn’t terribly loud. I have to have a microphone,” she said. Fortman, who is also president of the Davie-Cooper City Democratic Club and served on the Broward School Board in the 1990s, said she and her husband may go to Tallahassee for will return to play a role in such a sensitive manner. Some, however, offered anodyne statements.
But the interviews with 13 people, including current and former senators, government staffers, lawyers, lobbyists, analysts and friends and foes of Israel, revealed a consensus that DeSantis is almost certain to prevail, even if a Republican or two breaks with him and votes to reinstate Israel. Democratic senators are seen as likely to vote for Israel.
Pollack described himself as “pretty confident” Israel won’t be reinstated. “But nothing is 100% until the vote count.”
Senate’s role: DeSantis suspended Israel in January, just three days after he took office, charging the sheriff with incompetence and neglect of duty in connection with the 2018 Parkland school massacre and the 2017 shooting at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, in which five people were killed.
But it’s up to the Florida Senate to decide whether to uphold DeSantis’ suspension order or reinstate Israel.
A full Senate vote is scheduled for Wednesday. But the ultimate outcome could become more apparent late Monday or Tuesday. The Senate Rules Committee is scheduled to hear presentations from Special Master Dudley Goodlette; DeSantis’ counsel, Levesque; and Israel’s legal team on Monday. Then public comment is allowed, including from Parkland families and any supporters of Israel who show up.
The Senate is preparing for a large turnout. The Rules Committee meeting has been moved to the largest hearing room, with plans for an overflow room if needed. Security is expected to be tight, especially after Goodlette received a death threat.
After all the testimony, the Rules Committee will make a recommendation to the full Senate on what to do with Goodlette’s recommendation.
A party-line vote, with all Republicans siding with DeSantis and all Democrats siding with Israel, would likely foreshadow the results in the full Senate.