Monique Worrell reelected as Ninth Circuit State Attorney
In August 2023, Gov. DeSantis suspended Monique Worrell from her position as State Attorney for Florida’s Ninth Judicial Circuit. (TFDP covered that here.)
Before her suspension, Worrell had furthered efforts for forensic testing in Florida death row prisoner William “Tommy” Zeigler’s case. Zeigler has been on Florida’s death row since 1976. He is one of only two people on Florida’s death row to have been sentenced to death by a jury override. Since his conviction, Zeigler has maintained his innocence and repeatedly requested additional testing.
In December 2023, after Worrell’s suspension, Andrew Bain (who DeSantis appointed as Worrell’s replacement) announced that the State was withdrawing its motion for testing in Zeigler’s case. (TFDP covered that here.)
This week, voters reelected Worrell as the Ninth Circuit’s State Attorney. It is unclear whether and how Worrell’s reelection will affect Zeigler’s case.