SO, YOU WANT TO BE A JUDGE .....

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

FOUR NEW JUDGES COMING TO A COURTROOM NEAR YOU …

It’s been a busy time for the Eleventh Judicial Circuit’s Judicial Nominating Commission (JNC).

There are currently four judicial vacancies in Miami-Dade County—one on the Circuit Court and three on the County Court.

CIRCUIT COURT

The Circuit Court vacancy was created by the elevation of Judge Thomas Rebull to the Third District Court of Appeal.

Governor DeSantis will select his replacement from the following six nominees:

Hon. Rita Cuervo

Hon. Jennifer Trautman Levin

Hon. Stephanie Silver

Hon. Miesha Darrough

Hon. Natalie Moore

Hon. Eleane Sosa-Bruzon

For those of you who emailed Captain Justice asking who didn't make the final cut, that list includes:

Hon. Michelle Urbistondo

Hon. Luis Perez-Medina (although he did make the County Court list of nominees)

Hon. Chiaka Ihekwaba

Several attorneys who are not currently on the bench also applied but did not make the final list.

Interesting tidbit: All six nominees are women.

The JNC considered a total of six male applicants. None made the final list submitted to the Governor.

COUNTY COURT

There are three County Court vacancies, created by the elevations of Judges Cristina Correa, Elizabeth Espinosa Marin, and Jorge Perez Santiago to the Circuit Court.

The Governor will choose their three replacements from the following 18 nominees:

Shawn Abuhoff — ASA

Natalia Costea — General Counsel’s Office, Eleventh Judicial Circuit; former AAG

Aaron Feuer — Private civil practice; former ASA

Eddie Holiday — Private insurance defense practice; former ASA

Melissa Jordan — Private insurance defense practice; former ADA

Anthony Maneiro — City of Miami Beach Prosecutor; former ASA

Juan Perez — Too many lawyers by that name for Captain Justice to figure out which one

Jeffrey Pierce — AUSA

Alexander Shear — APD

Alexander Annunziato — Private insurance defense practice; former APD

Christian Dunham — AFPD

Kimberly Hillery — Department of Homeland Security

Scott Janowitz — General Magistrate; former ASA

Yvette Lavelle — Private civil defense practice

Cristobal Padron — Private family law practice

Hon. Luis Perez-Medina — Current County Court Judge; former ASA*

Patricia Salman — CABA Pro Bono Legal Services; former AAG

Annette Strauch — Captain Justice could not locate anyone by this name in The Florida Bar directory

Interesting tidbit: Of the 18 nominees, 13 have current or prior experience as a state prosecutor or Assistant Attorney General, while only three have experience as state criminal defense attorneys.

And then there is the interesting case of Judge Luis Perez-Medina.

* JUDGE LUIS PEREZ-MEDINA

Judge Perez-Medina currently sits on the County Court bench. Before becoming a judge, he spent 13 years as an Assistant State Attorney. Governor Rick Scott appointed him to the County Court in 2018, and he ran unopposed in 2020.

In 2026, however, Perez-Medina faced challenger Maribel Diaz in his reelection campaign.

He lost by just 565 votes:

Maribel Diaz — 110,589

Luis Perez-Medina — 110,024

Now, just weeks after losing his reelection bid, Judge Perez-Medina finds himself among the 18 nominees for one of the three newly vacant County Court seats.

If Governor DeSantis appoints him to one of those vacancies, Perez-Medina would presumably resign from the County Court seat he currently occupies through January 5, 2027, and accept a new appointment to the very same court.

Only in judicial politics.

The Governor has 60 days under the Florida Constitution to make these appointments. Based upon the date the nominations were submitted, that would make the deadline October 27, 2026.

And, as our loyal readers know, the words “constitutionally required” have occasionally proven to be more of a suggestion than a deadline in Tallahassee.

We’ll be watching.

CAPTAIN OUT …
Captain4Justice@gmail.com 

DESANTIS APPOINTS FOUR NEW JUDGES .......

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

UPDATE:

Today, the Daily Business Review (Law.com) ran its story on the appointment of the four new judges. Contained within that DBR story, written by reporter Annie Mayne, she wrote as follows:

DeSantis Appoints 4 Judges to Miami-Dade Benches

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis named two judges to the Miami-Dade Circuit Court and two judges to the Miami-Dade County Court.

July 22, 2026 at 11:38 AM

By Annie Mayne

.... "Benedi and Losa will take seats emptied by former Judges Jason Reding Quiñones and Yara Klukas. Quiñones was sworn in as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida in August 2025 and Klukas took her oath as First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida in September.

The governor’s office has declined to comment on the months-long gap between the time Quiñones and Klukas resigned and when DeSantis convened the 11th Judicial Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission to interview applicants to replace them. That more-than-seven-month-long delay was first reported by the Justice Building blog." (The story provided a hyperlink to the Captain Justice story posted on April 7th).

WE HAVE FOUR NEW JUDGES IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

Today, on the final day of the 60-day constitutional deadline for filling judicial vacancies, Governor DeSantis finally complied with the Florida Constitution and appointed four new judges to the Miami-Dade bench.

CIRCUIT COURT

The Circuit Court welcomes two new judges, replacing retired Judges Jose Rodriguez and Marcia Caballero.

JUDGE ALICIA GARCIA PRIOVOLOS has served on the Miami-Dade County Court for the past three and a half years. She was elected to the bench in 2022, defeating incumbent Judge Scott Janowitz with nearly 60% of the vote. Before taking the bench, she spent sixteen years as an Assistant State Attorney.

JUDGE CHRISTOPHER GREEN was appointed to the County Court by Governor DeSantis in December 2022 and was elected without opposition in 2024. Judge Green began his legal career as an Assistant Public Defender in Miami, where he served for six years. He then spent twenty-three years as an attorney for the City of Miami before joining the judiciary.

COUNTY COURT

The County Court also gains two new judges, filling the vacancies created when Judges Jason Reding Quinones and Yara Klukas resigned in August and September 2025, respectively.

JUDGE GUSTAVO LOSA has been a member of The Florida Bar for twenty-one years. Prior to his appointment, he served as Associate General Counsel for Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Company.

JUDGE JOHANNA BENEDI has been a member of The Florida Bar for nineteen years. Before her appointment, she practiced with Farmers Insurance, defending Personal Injury Protection (PIP) cases. Captain Justice also believes she previously served as an Assistant State Attorney in Miami.

Our loyal readers will recall that the appointment process for these two County Court vacancies sat dormant for approximately seven months after Judges Quinones and Klukas resigned. It took an email from Captain Justice to the Governor's General Counsel's Office to get things moving.

Remarkably, within an hour of receiving the Captain's email, the Governor's General Counsel contacted the Governor, and—faster than you can say "Get 'Er Done"—letters accepting the resignations of Judges Quinones and Klukas were issued, finally allowing the Judicial Nominating Commission to begin the constitutional appointment process.

Here are the links to our previous Blog posts on this saga: from April 7th, and from April 15th.

A PERSONAL NOTE...

Dear Judges Losa and Benedi:

You may send your thank-you notes to The Captain at Captain4Justice@gmail.com.

You're welcome.

And, in all seriousness, congratulations to all four of our newest judges. We wish each of you a long, successful, and distinguished judicial career.

CAPTAIN OUT …….
Captain4Justice@gmail.com

 

SO, YOU WANT TO BE A JUDGE IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY .......

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

UPDATE (NO UPDATE): 

Updating our readers on the open seat on the 3rd DCA (read below). The Governor was constitutionally required to fill that open seat by May 16 (60 days after receiving a certified list of nominees). Today is Day 66, and still no replacement. This despite emails being sent to General Counsel Axelman, AGC Gustafson (in charge of judicial appointments), and multiple phone calls and messages left for each.

FOUR NEW JUDGES (& MAYBE A FIFTH) COMING TO A COURTROOM NEAR YOU .....

We previously reported to you that there were five open seats to be filled on the bench in Miami-Dade County, including two on the Circuit Court, two on the County Court, and one on the Third District Court of Appeal.

Today, the 11th Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission (JNC) certified its list of nominees to Governor DeSantis for four of those vacancies.

The nominees to replace retiring Circuit Court Judges Jose Rodriguez and Marcia Caballero include ten sitting County Court judges and two private attorneys:

Natalie Costea
Hon. Rita Cuervo
Hon. Miesha Darrough
Christian Dunham
Hon. Alicia Garcia Priovolos
Hon. Christopher Green
Hon. Chiaka Ihekwaba
Hon. Jennifer Tautman Levin
Hon. Natalie Moore
Hon. Stephanie Silver
Hon. Eleane Sosa-Bruzon
Hon. Michelle Urbistondo

As for the two County Court vacancies, I fully expect handwritten thank-you notes from all twelve nominees, thanking Captain Justice for creating these openings in the first place. 

My loyal readers will recall that Governor DeSantis and his General Counsel’s Office somehow managed to “overlook” these vacancies for more than seven months after Judges Yara Klukas and Jason Reding Quinones submitted their resignations. Apparently, nobody in Tallahassee remembered that the Florida Constitution actually requires the appointment process to begin promptly after a judicial resignation.

Only after Captain Justice emailed General Counsel David Axelman and pointed out the obvious constitutional problem did the Governor — on the very same day as my email — finally initiate the process to replace both judges.

Amazing how that works.

The nominees for the County Court vacancies include: 

Shawn Abuhoff
Johanna Benedi
Natalie Costea
Christian Dunham
Aaron Feuer
Kimberly Hillery
Scott Janowitz
Yvette Lavelle
Gustavo Losa
Jeffrey Pierce
Patricia Salman
Alexander Shear

Governor DeSantis now has 60 days to make four judicial appointments.

THIRD DCA

Meanwhile, over at the Third District Court of Appeal, the Governor’s Office continues its troubling pattern of treating constitutional deadlines as if they were merely “suggestions.”

The Third DCA JNC certified six nominees to Governor DeSantis on March 17 to replace Judge Kevin Emas. Article V, Section 11(c) of the Florida Constitution could not be more clear:

“The governor shall make the appointment within sixty days after the nominations have been certified to the governor.”

The 60-day deadline expired on May 16. Since that fell on a Saturday, the appointment should have been announced no later than Monday, May 18.

Today is Day 64.

Still no appointment.

Captain Justice sent yet another email today to General Counsel David Axelman asking why the Governor’s Office continues to ignore the constitutional deadline.

If Mr. Axelman actually responds this time — which would itself qualify as breaking news — I will certainly update our readers.

For the record, I never received so much as a courtesy response to my prior emails or telephone calls to his office.

CAPTAIN OUT .......
Captain4Justice@gmail.com

FOUR NEW JUDGES IN MIAMI-DADE ... & FIVE MORE STILL TO BE NAMED

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

YOUR FOUR NEWEST MIAMI-DADE COURT JUDGES ARE:

CIRCUIT COURT

Judge Elizabeth Espinosa. A former ASA, she was appointed by DeSantis to the County Court in December 2019. She won election in 2022.

Judge Jorge Perez Santiago. He was appointed by DeSantis to the County Court in May 2023. He won election in 2024.

COUNTY COURT

Michelle Roth. A former ASA, she was in private practice. She has been a member of The Florida Bar since 1995.

Andrew McGinley. A former AAG, he was serving as the General Counsel for the Department of Children & Families. He has been a member of The Florida Bar since December 2018.

All four were appointed to newly created judicial seats under SB 2508.

SO, YOU STILL WANT TO BE A JUDGE .....

There are four more open seats, including two on the Circuit Court by virtue of the retirements of Judge Jose Rodriguez and Judge Marcia Caballero, and two more open seats on the County Court. 

And yes—those County Court openings come with a backstory.

As previously reported, Judges Jason Reding Quinones and Yara Klukas resigned last summer to assume leadership roles with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami. Under the Florida Constitution, that should have triggered the appointment process within 30 days.

It didn’t.

Eight months later—after a few well-placed nudges from Captain Justice to General Counsel David Axelman—the Governor’s Office finally accepted the resignations and directed the JNC to begin the process.

Better late than never… but eight months late is still eight months late.

To read our two previous posts about the fiasco, go here and here.

THE APPLICANT POOL:

CIRCUIT (10)

Judge Miesha Darraugh
Judge Eleana Sosa-Bruzon
Judge Rita Cuervo
Judge Chiaka Ihekwaba
Judge Alicia Garcia Priovolos
Judge Stephanie Silver
Judge Michelle Urbistondo
Judge Christopher Green
Judge Jennifer Trautman Levin
Judge Natalie Moore

CIRCUIT & COUNTY (7)

Annette Strauch
Natalia Costea
Christian Dunham
Alexander Shear
Aaron Feuer
Scott Janowitz
Jose Martinez

COUNTY (9)

Patricia Salman
Kimberly Hillery
Gustavo Losa
Johanna Benedi
Ivette Lavelle
Madeline D’Arce
Jeffrey Pierce
Shawn Abuhoff
Lillian Gonzalez

HAVE A VIEW? SAY IT.

If you have thoughts about any of the applicants, direct them to JNC Chair Eliot Pedrosa at epedrosa@jonesday.com.

Interviews are scheduled for May 19, 2026, after which the JNC will submit three to six nominees per vacancy to the Governor.

THIRD DCA 

Governor DeSantis is expected to name Judge Kevin Emas' replacement sometime in the next week.

CAPTAIN OUT .......
Captain4Justice@gmail.com

EIGHT MONTHS OF SILENCE — UNTIL WE ASKED QUESTIONS .....

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

EIGHT MONTHS OF SILENCE — UNTIL WE ASKED QUESTIONS 

Funny how that works ...

On April 7th, we told you that “SOMETHING VERY FISHY IS GOING ON HERE” regarding two vacant County Court seats in Miami-Dade.

We went digging. Public Records Requests (PRRs) went out. And now, the timeline tells the story.

On August 13, 2025, County Court Judge Jason Reding Quinones submitted his resignation to Governor DeSantis, advising that he had been nominated by President Trump to serve as the next United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

On September 25, 2025, County Court Judge Yara Klukas followed suit, submitting her resignation to accept a position as First Assistant U.S. Attorney—under Quinones.

Two resignations. Two vacancies. Clock starts ticking.

Under the Florida Constitution, the process to fill a judicial vacancy must begin within 30 days.

Instead?

Nothing.

Not 30 days. Not 60. Not 90.

Nearly eight months of radio silence.

No publication of the resignation letters (as is customary).

No request to the Judicial Nominating Commission (JNC).

No applications. No interviews. No nominees.

No replacements.

Just… nothing.

So, on March 25, at precisely 1:38 PM, your Captain Justice sent an email to the Governor’s General Counsel, Ryan Newman, asking a simple question:

Why had the constitutional process never even begun?

Newman has yet to respond.

But here’s where it gets interesting.

Within the hour of that email, Governor DeSantis suddenly sprang into action.

He drafted and signed two letters, (without ever even thanking the Captain).

The first, addressed to “The Honorable Jason Quinones, 11th Judicial Circuit of Florida,” stated: “I accept your resignation as Judge of the Miami-Dade County Court.”

Date of the letter?

March 25, 2026.

A small problem: by that date, Quinones had already been serving as the United States Attorney for roughly eight months.

Even better—the letter was sent to a courthouse address… for a judge who hadn’t been a judge in eight months.

DeSantis sent an identical letter to former Judge Klukas—same date, same format, same courthouse address.

At that point, Klukas had already been serving as First Assistant U.S. Attorney for seven months.

Then—still on March 25, shortly after those letters were signed—Deputy General Counsel David Axelman emailed JNC Chair Eliot Pedrosa, directing him to finally convene the Commission to begin the process of filling the two long-vacant seats.

Amazing how that works.

Eight months of inaction… followed by a flurry of activity within hours of one email from Captain Justice asking questions.

Coincidence?

You decide.

As for answers—don’t hold your breath.

I called Axelman. Multiple times. Left messages.

I emailed him. Asked for an explanation.

Nothing. No response. No return calls.

And that, folks, is where we stand.

Two judicial seats sat vacant for the better part of a year.

A constitutional mandate ignored.

And only when someone started asking questions did the machinery of government suddenly come to life.

Draw your own conclusions.

JUDICIAL ELECTIONS – UPDATE …

Two new filings since our posts last week.

Circuit Court – Group 5

Attorney Monica Segura has entered the race, joining Alex Annunziato and Arthur McNeil. Segura is the Senior Managing Associate General Counsel for Universal Property & Casualty and has been a member of The Florida Bar for 20 years.

Interesting note: Segura applied to the JNC in its most recent round, when two Circuit and two County Court seats were open. Out of 32 applicants, she interviewed for both Circuit and County. The JNC ultimately forwarded 24 names to the Governor—Segura’s was not among them. Now she’s taking her case directly to the voters.

County Court – Group 25

Attorney Maribel Diaz has filed against incumbent Judge Luis Perez-Medina. Diaz has been a member of The Florida Bar for 17 years and currently works in the Miami-Dade Tax Collector’s Office.

Keen readers of the Captain will recall last week’s Incumbent Vulnerability Quotient (IVQ), © 2026 rankings. Judge Perez-Medina came in at number three. It appears Ms. Diaz may have been paying attention.

CAPTAIN OUT .......
Captain4Justice@gmail.com

SO, YOU WANT TO BE A JUDGE ..... THEN THANK YOUR CAPTAIN JUSTICE .....

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

SOMETHING VERY FISHY IS GOING ON HERE…

Let’s start with the backstory.

When a judge resigns in the State of Florida, the process for filling that vacancy is governed by the Florida Constitution, Article V (Judiciary), Section 11 (Vacancies), paragraph )(c):

“The nominations shall be made within thirty days from the occurrence of a vacancy unless the period is extended by the governor for a time not to exceed thirty days. The governor shall make the appointment within sixty days after the nominations have been certified.”

In practice, the process begins when the Governor receives a judge’s resignation letter. The Governor then directs the local Judicial Nominating Commission (JNC) to accept applications, conduct interviews, and submit a list of three to six nominees. Once certified, the Governor has sixty days to make the appointment.

Now, here’s where things get unusual.

Sometime prior to August 2025, two Miami-Dade County Court judges resigned from the bench:

... Judge Jason Reding Quinones, who left after being nominated as United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; and

... Judge Yara Klukas, who resigned to become First Assistant United States Attorney under Reding Quinones.

Reding Quinones was sworn in on August 18, 2025. Klukas followed on September 26, 2025.

Yet—despite those resignations occurring at least eight months ago, and possibly earlier—neither vacancy was filled.

Your Captain Justice began asking questions.

In March, I sent multiple emails to Ryan Newman, General Counsel to Governor DeSantis, and Eliot Pedrosa, Chair of the Eleventh Circuit JNC. I also checked the Governor’s Judicial Appointments website, where resignation letters are typically posted as a matter of public record.

Nothing.

No resignation letters for either judge.

In seven years of tracking Governor DeSantis’ judicial appointments, I have never seen anything like this. Whether this was a clerical oversight or something more remains unclear.

Here is an abbreviated copy of my email to General Counsel Ryan Newman:

Captain Justice <captain4justice@gmail.com>
Wed, Mar 25, 1:38 PM 
to ryan.newman

Mr. Newman:

I would like to bring your attention to something very unusual regarding the judicial nominating process.

I am writing to inquire about an open seat on the County Court in Miami-Dade County. More than six months ago, County Court Judge Jason Reding Quinones resigned from the bench so he could be appointed as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

There is no record of his resignation letter on the Judicial Appointments website. There is no record of the Governor requesting the 11th Circuit JNC to open the interview process. The JNC here in Miami did not conduct any interviews for the open seat. This is true even though the Florida Constitution requires all of this to happen within thirty days of the resignation. (See Article V, Section 11).

I have been following Governor DeSantis' judicial appointments for the entirety of his two terms. I cannot recall the above situation having happened ever before.

Can you please tell me why the "process" was never begun to replace Judge Reding Quinones? And when you expect the "process" to begin?

Thank you.

Captain Justice

Within an hour of me sending my email, the General Counsel’s office for Governor DeSantis sent a letter to the Chair of the JNC for the Eleventh Judicial Circuit, Eliot Pedrosa:

Office of the Governor
THE CAPITOL
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA 32399-0001
www.flgov.com
RON DESANTIS 850-717-9418
GOVERNOR

March 25, 2026

Dear Mr. Pedrosa:

On behalf of Governor DeSantis, I am requesting that you convene the Eleventh Judicial Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission for the purpose of selecting and submitting to the Governor the names of highly qualified lawyers for appointment to the Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court (two) and to the Miami-Dade County Court (two). 

These appointments are to fill the vacancies on the Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court created by the resignations of Judge Caballero and Judge Rodriguez and to fill the vacancies on the Miami-Dade County Court created by the resignations of Judge Klukas and Judge Quinones. 

.....

The Commission's handling of this matter is most appreciated.

Sincerely,
David Axelman
General Counsel

cc: The Honorable Ariana Fajardo Orshan
Chief Judge

Then, just as suddenly—as if the Red Sea had parted—on March 29, 2026, the JNC issued an announcement.

The Commission is now accepting applications for vacancies “created by the resignations of Judges Yara Klukas and Jason Reding Quinones”. The announcement also includes vacancies resulting from the retirements of Circuit Court Judges Jose Rodriguez and Marcia Caballero. The application deadline is May 1, 2026.

Which raises the obvious question: what happened during the preceding eight months?

You can thank your own Captain Justice for jump-starting the process. To the two eventual appointees, don't forget to thank me on the day of your investiture.

If we get any more information as to why this appointment process was delayed by more than eight months, we will let you know.

A QUICK REMINDER: THE “NAME GAME”

We previously wrote about Jason Reding Quinones in a December 19, 2023 post titled:

“THE NAME GAME: HERE WE GO AGAIN?!”

You can revisit it here:

We invite you to reread the post and the accompanying Comments.

In that post, we examined the troubling practice of candidates changing their names shortly before applying for judicial office:

Attorney Jason A. Reding—now Jason A. Reding Quinones, according to The Florida Bar—changed his name on December 1, 2023.

He had practiced for more than 15 years as “Jason Reding.” Then he applied to the JNC for an open County Court seat. Not coincidentally, December 1, 2023 was also the deadline to apply for multiple open judicial seats in Miami-Dade County.

A NEW LAW ENTERS THE PICTURE

On April 1, 2026, Governor DeSantis signed CS/HB 91 – Candidate Qualification into law.

The statute now provides, in relevant part (F.S. 99.021(4)(c)):

A candidate with no party affiliation must certify that he or she has not legally changed his or her name pursuant to section 68.07 within the 365 days preceding the qualifying period.

Which leads to an interesting hypothetical:

Would the attorney formerly known as Jason Reding have been permitted to run for judicial office under the name “Jason Reding Quinones” under this new law—had he remained on the bench?

CAPTAIN OUT .......
Captain4Justice@gmail.com

SO, YOU WANT TO BE A JUDGE .....

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

YOUR NEXT 2 CIRCUIT COURT & COUNTY COURT JUDGES:

The next additions to the Eleventh Judicial Circuit bench will come from the lists below.

Last week, the Eleventh Judicial Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission (JNC) interviewed applicants for two newly created Circuit Court seats and two newly created County Court seats.

Following those interviews, the JNC submitted 12 nominees for each court to Governor Ron DeSantis. The Governor now has 60 days to select the four judges.

CIRCUIT COURT NOMINEES:

Notably, 10 of the 12 nominees are currently serving as County Court judges. The two nominees who are not sitting judges are marked with an asterisk.

Rita Cuervo 
Miesha Darrough
Christian Dunham* 
Elisabeth Espinosa
Alicia Garcia Priovolos 
Christopher Green
Chiaka Ihekwaba 
Andrew McGinley*
Jorge Perez Santiago 
Stephanie Silver
Eleane Sosa-Bruzon 
Michelle Urbistondo

COUNTY COURT NOMINEES:

Shawn Abuhoff (Assistant State Attorney)
Destiny Goede Alvarez** (private practice)
Yaneth Baez (Assistant State Attorney)
Natalia Costea (Office of Gen Counsel 11th Jud. Circ., former AAG)
Christian Dunham* 
Kimberly Hillery (Department of Homeland Security)
Yvette Lavelle (private practice)
Andrew McGinley*
Michelle Roth (private practice, former ASA)
Jeffrey Pierce (Assistant United States Attorney)
Patricia Salman (CABA Pro Bono Legal Services)
Alexander Shear (Assistant Public Defender)

*DUAL NOMINATIONS

Two nominees managed to get themselves nominated for both Circuit Court and County Court — no small feat.

Christian Dunham currently serves as an Assistant Federal Public Defender. He began his legal career as an Assistant Public Defender in state court, where he spent six years. Dunham has been a member of the Bar for 27 years, handling both state and federal criminal defense matters.

Andrew McGinley has been a member of The Florida Bar for seven years and currently serves as General Counsel for the Florida Department of Children and Families. Prior to relocating to Florida, he began his legal career in Missouri nine years ago, practicing family law before serving as an Assistant Attorney General in Illinois and later holding several additional legal positions.

BACKGROUND ON Destiny Goede Alvarez:

We previously reported on Destiny Goede Alvarez, who has been a member of The Florida Bar for just over five years, the minimum required to qualify for judicial appointment.

Alvarez earned two degrees from the University of Florida, where she served as President of Florida Blue Key and was later inducted into its Hall of Fame. She is also a member of the Federalist Society.

Her professional experience includes:

Serving as a judicial intern for U.S. Magistrate Judge Amanda Arnold Sansone

Working for one year in the DeSantis Administration at the Florida Department of Transportation

Practicing for two years as an associate at GrayRobinson

Currently serving as a partner at Goede, DeBoest & Cross (the Goede is John Goede)

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT:

Governor DeSantis now has 60 days to select two Circuit Court judges and two County Court judges from the nominees submitted by the JNC.

CAPTAIN OUT .......
Captain4Justice@gmail.com

SHAWN ABUHOFF & 31 OTHERS APPLY TO JNC .....

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

SCROLL DOWN TO THE BOTTOM FOR OUR ADDENDUM REGARDING THE 3RD DCA.

SO, YOU WANT TO BE A CIRCUIT/COUNTY COURT JUDGE .....

The Judicial Nominating Commission (JNC) for the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida is entering a busy stretch following the expansion of the bench in Miami-Dade County.

In 2025, Governor Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 2508 into law, creating four additional County Court seats and three additional Circuit Court seats. Last year, the Governor filled two of the County Court seats and one Circuit Court seat. The JNC is now tasked with interviewing applicants for the remaining two County Court and two Circuit Court vacancies.

THE APPLICANT POOL .....

The JNC received 32 applications, divided as follows:

10 applicants for County Court only

11 applicants for both County and Circuit Court

11 applicants for Circuit Court only

The Commission will conduct interviews on March 13 and may nominate up to 12 candidates for County Court and 12 for Circuit Court.

A NOTABLE APPLICANT: ASA Shawn Abuhoff .....

One name that immediately stands out is Assistant State Attorney Shawn Abuhoff (and not because he is listed first). Abuhoff has applied for a seat on the County Court.

Many in the legal community will recall the high-profile disputes in 2024 and 2025 between the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office and members of the criminal defense bar. Abuhoff was at the center of one such controversy in the case of State v. Pratt.

In that case, the defendant was charged with second-degree murder and represented by Assistant Public Defenders Natalie Ender and Lauren Dawson. During the proceedings, the Public Defender’s Office filed a motion seeking Abuhoff’s removal, alleging that he attempted to intimidate a key witness. Specifically, Ender claimed that Abuhoff and a police officer appeared near the home of witness Bridet Lampley and banged on the window of a car in which she was seated.

The presiding judge, Judge Wolfson, denied the motion.

Shortly thereafter, Abuhoff filed a motion seeking to disqualify Ender and Dawson, Abuhoff wrote in his complaint as to Ender and Dawson that “Their actions of tampering with a witness have made them witnesses themselves and created conflicts that this court can not ignore,” His office also publicly announced that both attorneys were under criminal investigation and that it was “in the process” of determining whether charges would be filed.*

Judge Wolfson denied that motion as well.

*No charges were ever filed against either Ender or Dawson.

FACDL-MIAMI ENTERS THE FRAY .....

The dispute drew the attention of the local chapter of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (FACDL-Miami), which alleged a broader pattern of prosecutorial misconduct.

FACDL cited several incidents, including the removal of ASA Michael Von Zamft from the case of State v. Corey Smith by Judge Wolfson. The organization also publicly commented on actions taken by the State Attorney’s Office in the murder prosecution of OnlyFans model Courtney Clenney and the related charges against her parents.

Regarding the Ender and Dawson matter, FACDL’s Board of Directors issued a statement asserting that the State Attorney’s Office “continues to engage in a pattern of unethical misconduct” in cases where defense attorneys have “done nothing more than uphold their constitutional obligation and duty to defend their client.” The Board further criticized what it described as the unjustified public accusation of criminal conduct against defense counsel and their investigator.

The Miami Herald covered it in July of 2024 in two stories you can read here and here.

Here is a list of the 32 applicants:

COUNTY COURT ONLY

Shawn Abuhoff 
Yaneth Baez  
Johanna Benedi  
Madelin D’Arce** 
Kimberly Hillery 
Yvette Lavelle  
Gustavo Losa 
Marlin Muller  
Jeffrey Pierce  
Patricia Salman 

COUNTY & CIRCUIT COURT

Natalia Costea 
Yenly Dominguez  
Christian Dunham 
Aaron Feuer 
Scott Janowitz  
Jose Martinez 
Andrew McGinley 
Michelle Roth 
Monica Segura  
Alexander Shear 
Annette Strauch 

CIRCUIT COURT ONLY

(All are County Court Judges except for Mrs. Alvarez)

Destiny Goede Alvarez**
Rita Cuervo 
Miesha Darrough  
Elisabeth Espinosa  
Christopher Green  
Chiaka Ihekwaba  
Alicia Garcia Priovolos  
Jorge Perez Santiago 
Stephanie Silver 
Eleane Sosa-Bruzon 
Michelle Urbistondo  

**Destiny Goede Alvarez has been a member of The Florida Bar for five years (the minimum necessary to qualify to be a judge). She has two degrees from the University of Florida, she was President of Florida Blue Key, and she was inducted into their Hall of Fame. She is a member of the Federalist Society.

She was an Intern for Federal Magistrate Judge Amanda Arnold Sansone; spent a year working in the DeSantis Administration for the Department of Transportation; was an Associate at Gray Robinson for two years (is there any law firm more connected to the DeSantis Administration?!); and she is currently is a Partner at Goede, DeBoest, & Cross (the Goede is John Goede - her father we surmise)

Another interesting note: Attorney Madelin D’Arce, who applied for County Court, is also a Partner at Goede, DeBoest, & Cross. 

THIRD DCA JNC

The 3rd DCA JNC has announced that they will be conducting interviews of seven applicants to replace Judge Kevin Emas, who is retiring from the bench on March 31. The applicants are:

Jeffrey DeSousa

Judge Javier Enriquez

Judge Spencer Multack***

Judge Joseph Perkins

Judge Thomas Rebull

Thomas Ward

Judge Robert Watson

Interviews will take place on March 17, and the JNC will nominate up to six of the seven applicants to the Governor's office.

***Judge Multack could have an uphill battle to get the call from Gov. DeSantis. Multack sits in Family Court and, until last week, sat over a paternity case between Arlene Delgado and Jason Miller. The case has already gone through nine judges, and, at one point in the litigation, Delgado moved to recuse Multack from the case, arguing that he was biased for Miller. But recently, Miller decided he didn't like Multack either. 

Miller, according to a post from Above The Law, was all set to be the White House communications director for the first Trump administration when news circulated that he’d had an affair with fellow campaign staffer, Arlene “AJ” Delgado. Delgado has a 7-year-old son that she contends belongs to Miller. 

Last week, Miller went onto X (formerly Twitter) and tweeted (is that still a word), 

"I am actively opposing Florida Judge Spencer Multack's application to get a promotion to Florida's Third District Court of Appeal, and I will be activating EVERYONE I know and EVERY resource I have to stop his bid". 

Multack recused himself four hours later. You can read the story from Above The Law here. Florida Bulldog covered it here.

CAPTAIN OUT .....
Captain4Justice@gmail.com

JUDICIAL NEWS IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY .....

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS: 

JUDICIAL NEWS IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY .....

JUDGE KEVIN EMAS IS RETIRING .....

There’s lots of judicial news going on in Miami-Dade County. Let’s start with the 3rd DCA. Judge Kevin Emas has announced his retirement from the bench effective March 31, 2026. Judge Emas has led a distinguished career, beginning with his employment as an Assistant Public Defender in Bennett Brummer’s office in 1982. He went on to private practice with the law firm of Fine Jacobson, and then with Thornton Rothman & Emas. He then began a 30-year career serving on the bench. He was first appointed to the County Court in 1996 by Governor Lawton Chiles. He was elevated to the Circuit Court in 2001 by Governor Jeb Bush. Finally, he was tapped by Governor Crist to sit on the 3rd DCA in 2010. He has served on the 3rd DCA for the past 16 years and served as Chief Judge of the Third District from 2019 to 2021.

Judge Emas has held numerous leadership roles in the Florida Conference of Circuit Judges. He also served as a faculty member of the Florida Judicial College, New Appellate Judges Program, Florida’s College of Advanced Judicial Studies, and the National Judicial College. He served as an adjunct faculty member at both FIU College of Law and UM Law. He served as a member of the Judicial Qualifications Commission, Chair of the Supreme Court’s Criminal Court Steering Committee, and Chair of the Florida Criminal Procedure Rules Committee.

Thank you, Judge Emas, for your incredible dedication to the citizens of Miami-Dade County and the State of Florida. 

The 3rd DCA JNC is now accepting applications for Judge Emas' replacement, with a deadline of February 26, 2026.

11TH CIRCUIT JUDICIAL NOMINATING COMMITTEE (JNC) .....

The JNC has announced that it is now taking applications for two Circuit Court seats and two County Court seats. These four seats are new and were created by the Florida legislature with the enactment of SB 2508. The deadline to submit your application is February 20, 2026. The JNC expects to conduct interviews on March 13. The Governor is expected to name the four new judges by no later than May 14, 2026.

CIRCUIT COURT JUDICIAL ELECTIONS .....

There are 34 Circuit Court seats up for election in 2026. The six-year term begins on January 6, 2027. Qualifying Week is April 20-24, 2026. The election is scheduled for August 18, 2026.

The following is a list of judges whose terms expire on January 5, 2027. Some of these judges will be retiring. An (F) next to their name means they have filed with the Department of Elections for the upcoming election. Six incumbents have not yet filed, while three newcomers have filed to run.

CIRCUIT COURT

Michelle Alvarez Barakat (F)
Tanya Brinkley (F)
Beatrice Butchko (F)
Marcia Caballero - has not yet filed - Group 51
Carmen Cabarga (F)
Yvonne Colodny (F)
Ivonne Cuesta (F)
Jorge Cueto (F)
Abby Cynamon (F)
Michelle Delancy (F)
Dawn Denaro (F)
Reemberto Diaz (F)
Veronica Diaz (F)
Spencer Eig (F)
Carlos Gamez (F)
Stacy Glick (F)
Laura Gonzalez-Marques (F)
Carlos Guzman (F)
Christine Hernandez (F)
Richard Hersch - has not yet filed* - Group 69
Peter Lopez (F)
Denis Martinez-Scanziani (F)
Alberto Milian (F)
Cristina Miranda - will be filing soon** - Group 48
Spencer Multack (F)
Joseph Perkins (F)
Orlando Prescott - has not yet filed - Group 35
Jose Rodriguez - retired - Group 07 - 
Mavel Ruiz (F)
Migna Sanchez-Llorens (F)
Laura Stuzin (F)
Daryl Trawick (F)
Andrea Wolfson (F)
Angelica Zayas - has not yet filed - Group 05 -

*Judge Hersch is retiring.

We communicated with Judge Miranda, who indicated that she "intends to file shortly and hopes to continue serving the people of Miami-Dade County as she has for almost 29 years."

The three non-incumbent attorneys who have filed to run include:

Group 05 - Attorney Alexander Annunziato

Group 07 - Attorney Cristobal Padron

Group 69 - Attorney Rita Baez

Tomorrow, we will cover the County Court races.

CAPTAIN OUT .......
Captain4Justice@gmail.com