DeSantis's Legal Team Wants To Block Governor From Being Deposed Under Oath In Andrew Warren Case

Florida Phoenix

October 24, 2022

Gov. Ron DeSantis’ legal team has officially filed a motion to block the Republican governor from being deposed in a federal case challenging the suspension of elected Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren.

Court filings show that lawyers for DeSantis have filed a “protective order” to exempt DeSantis and his Chief of Staff, James Uthmeier, from giving a deposition under oath before Warren’s federal trial scheduled on Nov. 29.

“Compelling the Governor of the State of Florida and his top executive aide to ‘personal[ly] appea[r] . . . for interrogation’ in a federal proceeding is a ‘serious encroachment on the separation of powers,'” the filing stated.

DeSantis suspended Warren from his office in early August, alleging that Warren would not enforce laws, such as Florida’s 15-week abortion ban and a potential law to block transgender medical care for minors.

“Far more must be shown before a plaintiff may subject high-ranking government officers to burdensome depositions that distract from their important duties, like responding to the aftermath of a Category Four hurricane (hurricane Ian),” according to the motion.

“But much more is required to justify deposing officials at the ‘apex’ of state government. On this record, Mr. Warren can no more depose the Governor and his Chief of Staff than a plaintiff suing President Biden for an allegedly discriminatory executive action could depose the President or his Chief of Staff, Ron Klain,” the motion says.

Christina Pushaw, a former press secretary for DeSantis “who was wholly uninvolved with the decision to suspend Mr. Warren,” has completed the only deposition in the case so far, the motion says.

The governor’s legal team is attempting to invoke what’s called the “apex doctrine,” arguing that DeSantis and his chief of staff “comprise the highest echelon of Florida’s executive branch and are no doubt high-ranking officials,” according to the court filings.

That allows courts to bar executives or government officials from deposition to protect them from harassment intended to force a settlement, according to an American Bar Association analysis.

As previously reported by the Florida Phoenix, Warren’s suspension was challenged in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida, alleging that it amounted to a purge over political differences in violation of free speech and Florida Constitution.

“The governor is the best source of information on why the governor suspended Mr. Warren,” Jean-Jacques Cabou, Warren’s attorney, said in a written statement Monday.

“The governor has talked about it at length on TV. We continue to think it is appropriate that the governor talk about it under oath.”

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