Gov. Ron DeSantis declared victory Thursday in Miami after the First District Court of Appeals struck down a grand jury report that accused his administration of misappropriating $10 million from a Medicaid settlement with Centene. The 19-page ruling, written by Judge Lance Neff, expunged the report, which had been leaked and later published by CBS News Miami.
The court said the money was never public money because it moved directly from Centene to the Hope Florida Foundation. It also said the grand jury exceeded its authority. The proceedings were held in secret, and the state attorney in Leon County chose not to take part in defending the report.
DeSantis spoke for 23 minutes, calling the case a hoax and attacking the grand jury, the judge who oversaw it and the media. He said the ruling was “a smackdown” and that there were “no misappropriations.” He conceded the strength of the opinion was unusual.
The ruling is a win for Attorney General James Uthmeier and U.S. Sen. Ashley Moody, both of whom are on the November ballot, and Hope Florida remains a campaign issue. The Florida Trident reported last week that the governor’s office paid outside attorneys $895 an hour to oppose the report, with fees above $330,000. The grand jury’s findings were not the only account of the money’s use: state officials reimbursed the federal government for its share of the funds, which the appeals court did not address.
