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