Overview

• At an Orlando press conference, Attorney General James Uthmeier accused Ninth Circuit State Attorney Monique Worrell of “soft on crime” decisions he says endanger children.
• He alleges Worrell declined to charge Kevin Chapman, 61, after an alleged indecent exposure at an Apopka splash pad despite video evidence and witnesses.
• Uthmeier says Worrell’s office dismissed charges against Thomas Dolgos, accused of possessing thousands of child-sex-abuse files, after which statewide prosecutors took over, added 48 counts, and had him apprehended at the Canada border.
• Statewide Prosecutor Brad McVay called the splash-pad case “worth the fight,” urged Worrell to reconsider, and said his office would prosecute where hers would not as the AG signals he may seek reassignment and has sent prosecutors to address an alleged backlog.
• Worrell publicly rejected the claims, saying she has no non-prosecution policies and calling the AG’s assertions misleading, against the backdrop of her 2023 suspension and 2024 return via reelection.