A court ends Andrew Warren's legal fight

TALLAHASSEE — More than two years after challenging his suspension by Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren hit a legal dead end Friday.

A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the dismissal of Warren’s lawsuit against DeSantis, saying the case is moot. Warren was elected in 2020 and, though he was suspended in 2022, his term officially ended Tuesday. He also lost an election bid in November to get his job back.

“Because Warren’s term of office has concluded, we cannot grant him any meaningful relief on appeal in this case in which he effectively seeks, either by injunctive or declaratory relief, his reinstatement to office,” said Friday’s five-page opinion shared by Judges Jill Pryor, Kevin Newsom and Anne Conway. “Because his term has expired, any decision on the merits of his claims would be an advisory opinion.”

Warren’s attorneys argued in a December brief that the challenge to the suspension should be allowed to proceed, saying that, while Warren’s term would expire in January, “this controversy will not.” Continuing the case, in part, could also allow Warren to seek back pay for the time he was suspended, the attorneys wrote.

But the appeals court said Friday that state law would only allow Warren to receive back pay after he resumed duties of the office.

“Because Warren’s term of office has now expired, any declaration that his suspension was unconstitutional would not entitle him to resume the duties of state attorney,” the opinion said. “As a result, even if he received a declaration that his suspension was unconstitutional, he would not be entitled to back pay.”

DeSantis’ 2022 suspension of Warren drew widespread attention, with the Republican governor accusing the Democratic state attorney of “incompetence and willful defiance of his duties.” DeSantis replaced Warren with Suzy Lopez, a former county judge who in November defeated Warren to win a full term as state attorney.

DeSantis took part in a swearing-in ceremony Tuesday for Lopez.

The suspension order, in part, pointed to Warren signing a national organization’s statement about refraining from prosecuting abortion cases.

DeSantis also targeted Warren for signing a statement that criticized laws restricting care for trangender people. In addition, DeSantis cited Warren policies that could have limited prosecution of cases related to bicycle and pedestrian stops by police and certain low-level offenses.

Warren disputed DeSantis’ accusations about his performance and filed the lawsuit in August 2022. He argued the suspension violated his First Amendment rights.

U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle in January 2023 ruled that the First Amendment protected Warren on two factors — his political affiliations and advocacy for criminal justice reform. Nevertheless, Hinkle concluded that DeSantis would have suspended Warren based on other factors that were not protected by the First Amendment.

In a temporary win for Warren, a three-judge panel of the Atlanta-based appeals court in January 2024 vacated Hinkle’s ruling. The panel said the suspension violated First Amendment protections in a series of ways and directed Hinkle to re-examine whether DeSantis had legitimate policy grounds to oust the prosecutor.

DeSantis’ lawyers, however, quickly asked the full appeals court to take up the dispute. Though Warren’s attorneys made attempts to speed up the resolution of the case, it largely remained on hold.

Friday’s opinion vacated the January 2024 panel ruling, dismissed the appeal and directed Hinkle to dismiss the case as moot.