Gov. Ron DeSantis ripped a state judge for releasing a convicted child sex predator while speaking at a press conference in Titusville this week.
"Why would you do anything other than throw the book at those people?" DeSantis questioned. "I don't get why you would release someone on bond pending sentencing, giving them a chance to reoffend, and in some cases, like Tallahassee, he killed somebody, a 5-year-old child. I just don't understand what goes into the thinking."
Gov. DeSantis's comments come after Tallahassee Judge Tiffany Baker revoked bond for a man convicted of trying to meet a minor for sex in April 2025, despite immediate pushback from state prosecutors.
The man, Daniel Spencer, later allegedly killed his stepdaughter, Melissa "Missy" Mogle, after being released. Later on, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed "Missy's Law," which requires a judge to immediately revoke bond and hold defendants in custody after being convicted of dangerous, violent, or sexual crimes.
Spencer's trial on charges related to Missy's death is scheduled for next month.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier urged the House Legislature to impeach Baker over the decision earlier this week. He also pressed the House to impeach another judge for giving bond to a 12-year-old boy for shoving rocks in a 12-year-old girl's mouth as she allegedly was being raped by another teen.
Also speaking on the state's effort to combat the drug, opioid, and fentanyl crisis, DeSantis vowed to hold people accountable for drug crimes. The governor highlighted the state's fight by announcing the results of a report showing a decrease in drug-related overdoses, including opioid and fentanyl deaths.
"You gotta hold people accountable, particularly when they are peddling this to children," DeSantis said. "We do treat them as if they are homicides, and people go to prison for the rest of their lives, sometimes as long as we don't get a liberal judge."
