Judge Questions Snipes' Suspension

Dr. Brenda Snipes faced heavy criticism for her actions during the 2018 midterm election Florida recounts, and since then it’s been a battle between her and Senator-elect Rick Scott. She had sent a letter of resignation, then she attempted to rescind her resignation after she was suspended by Scott, and now she’s fighting for her job back.

In turn, a federal judge is now calling into question Snipes’ suspension.

Snipes had sued Scott and the Florida Senate in December 2018, arguing that Scott maligned her and that the Senate had violated her due process rights when she was denied a hearing. What she’s ultimately fighting for is to have her job reinstated and Scott’s order dismissed.

U.S. District Court Judge Mark Walker, appointed by President Barack Obama and a judge that has clashed against the Scott administration, argued that “For the life of me, I don’t understand how the government could say whatever he wants about someone,” take them out of office, then say that they’re “out of luck.” He questioned, “How do you square with due process?”

John Tupps, a spokesman for Senator-elect Scott, commented that “This is simply an attempt by Ms. Snipes to rewrite the history of her failed leadership.”

Commenting on Scott’s order of suspending Dr. Snipes, Walker said that the order was so broad that it called for clarifications. He noted that the order stated that Snipes had shown “misfeasance, incompetence, and neglect of duty.”

However, Walker argues that he doesn’t “know what ‘misfeasance’ means. It could be anything under the sun.”

With Dr. Snipes’ immediate suspension, Pete Antonacci was called to replace her as Broward County Supervisor of Elections.

In addition, a lawyer for the Senate informed the court that her complaint is moot because the resignation letter she sent before being suspended had her resignation effective January 4^th, 2019, which is a date that has already passed.