Florida Judge Orders Gov. Ron DeSantis to Hand Over Migrants' Flights Records

A Florida judge has ruled against Governor Ron DeSantis' office in a legal fight over records related to migrants' flights from Texas to Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts.

According to Fox 13 News, Leon County Circuit Judge J. Lee Marsh on Tuesday said De Santis' office did not comply with the state's public-records law after a group sought records about the decision to fly migrants to Martha's Vineyard.

Marsh then gave DeSantis' office 20 days to provide the records sought by the open-government group, Florida Center for Government Accountability.

Marsh referred to requested phone or text logs that could provide information about communications by DeSantis Chief of Staff James Uthmeier about the flights.

The Florida judge said the governor's office did not show "any steps, direct steps taken to gather what this court finds are public records."

The director of public access for the center, Michael Barfield, said that Marsh's verbal ruling held the governor accountable for delays in providing public records.

Barfield added that "the public's right of access was vindicated" and that DeSantis was "not immune from being held accountable."

Florida Migrants' Flights Records

Tampa Bay Times reported that Andrew King, an attorney for Ron DeSantis, argued before the court ruling that the governor's administration was working to fulfill numerous records requests regarding the migrant flights.

King then accused the center of "weaponizing" the public records law to get ahead of other people or organizations seeking records. He added that they are "diligently working" to provide all the migrant records in Martha's Vineyard to all the people who have asked.

Attorney for the center, Andrea Flynn Mogensen, said the administration's arguments about a backlog of requests showed of delay that "violates the public records law."

Mogensen noted that they were being told to "get in line and stay in line." The center filed the lawsuit on October 10 and claimed that the governor's office did not comply with requests made on September 21 and 22.

DeSantis' administration is also facing controversy over using the state's money to finance the two September 14 flights, which started in San Antonio, stopped at an airport in the Northwest Florida community of Crestview, and ended at Martha's Vineyard.

Florida Flying Migrants to Massachusetts

Oregon-based charter airline company Vertol Systems had flown the group of migrants, mostly Venezuelans, to Martha's Vineyard.

According to The Washington Post, some of the migrants said they were lured onto the flights with false promises of housing and jobs.

Florida officials did not explain the reason behind the stop in Crestview. Records showed that the state of Florida paid Vertol $615,000 on September 8, or six days before the migrants were flown to Martha's Vineyard.

And another $950,000 on September 19, or a day before other migrants in San Antonio, Texas, told The Miami Herald they were scheduled to fly on a flight to President Joe Biden's home state of Delaware.

However, the outlet reported that it was canceled on September 20, when the migrants were supposed to depart.

DeSantis earlier said that the flights carrying migrants were designed to send a message to Democrats. The governor noted that most of the migrants intend to come to Florida.

DeSantis added that they were dealing with the issue at the source. In July, Florida launched the relocation program for incoming migrants.

The migrant flights are currently under criminal investigation in Texas and a civil lawsuit from several asylum seekers.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

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