Gov. DeSantis suspends Miami-Dade Commissioner Joe Martinez weeks after arrest

Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday suspended Miami-Dade Commissioner Joe Martinez, weeks after Martinez’s Aug. 30 arrest on felony charges.

There was no immediate word on who DeSantis would name as a replacement for Martinez, a fellow Republican representing a conservative district. But that’s sure to follow, with the Florida Constitution allowing a governor to appoint a successor to represent the 215,000 people who live in Miami-Dade’s District 11.

DeSantis announced the suspension in a 1:10 p.m. press release, and it did not address the governor’s replacement plans. A statement from Martinez’s legal team said the suspended commissioner “offers his support to whomever the governor decides to appoint.” The statement also denied the charges, saying: “Commissioner Martinez, his legal team and supporters will focus on clearing his name and fighting these baseless allegations...”

READ MORE: A pugnacious former police officer, Miami-Dade’s Joe Martinez now fighting the law

Martinez skipped one commission meeting after his arrest and five-hour stay in a Miami-Dade jail, then attended the county’s first 2023 budget hearing on Sept. 8.

He cast preliminary votes on the budget ordinances ahead of a final vote scheduled for Tuesday, and failed to win support from fellow board members for a 3% reduction in property-tax rates the county charges outside of city limits.

News of the suspension came hours before Martinez was expecting to attend the final budget hearing. As the doors of the commission chambers opened to the public at 4 p.m. for the hearing, county staff had already purged Martinez images. The District 11 website was marked “Vacant,” only a nail remained where Martinez’s portrait hung in the commission lobby, and his nameplate was gone from the District 11 seat on the dais.

Florida’s Constitution gives a governor the power to suspend a county office holder arrested on felony charges, but it’s not required. At a Sept. 7 event in Sweetwater, DeSantis said a suspension was coming after Martinez’s arrest. “Obviously when you have a situation like that, there is going to be a new commissioner,” he said.

READ MORE: ‘There is going to be a new commissioner.’ DeSantis comments on Miami-Dade’s Martinez

At the event, DeSantis said his administration hadn’t settled on whether a Martinez replacement needed to live in District 11, a suburban area in western Miami-Dade with no municipalities. Miami-Dade lawyers have privately told county commissioners a Martinez replacement must live in the district to hold office. DeSantis, a lawyer, said he “probably” held the same view, but that he thought a District 11 resident made the most sense for the sake of “good governance.”

This is the sixth suspension of an elected official by DeSantis since early August, but the first tied to a felony arrest. Martinez is also the first Republican in the DeSantis string of suspensions, which began Aug. 5 with Hillsborough County’s elected prosecutor and continued Aug. 26 with four members of the Broward County school board.

DeSantis claimed dereliction of duty in suspending those Democratic office holders while critics called the moves abuse of a power prior governors have mostly limited to criminal offenses by local officials.

Miami-Dade prosecutors charged Martinez with two felonies related to a $15,000 payment from a business owner who would have benefited from legislation the commissioner proposed in 2017. Martinez withdrew the legislation shortly after filing it, and the proposed ordinance never advanced. Martinez said the payments in question were related to consulting work he did before taking office in 2016.

Under the Florida Constitution, the Florida Senate decides whether to remove or reinstate a suspended county official. Senate rules state that if the suspended official faces charges, the vote shouldn’t take place until after the criminal case concludes unless both sides agree to a faster process. DeSantis can also lift the suspension at any time.

READ MORE: Are DeSantis’ suspensions of elected officials who didn’t commit crimes unusual?

Should Martinez be removed by the Senate or opt to resign his office outright, that would create a permanent vacancy Miami-Dade commissioners could fill until the 2024 elections. The board could appoint a District 11 commissioner or call a special election to fill the seat.

With no municipalities in District 11, DeSantis didn’t have a collection of city-level office holders to consider for a Martinez replacement.

Martinez, 65, a retired county police lieutenant, has held the District 11 seat since 2016. His final term expires in 2024. Before his arrest he said he was considering a run for sheriff once that office is back on the ballot in 2024 under a new amendment to the Florida Constitution reviving the office in Miami-Dade.

This story was originally published September 20, 2022 at 1:14 PM.