Florida Arrests Two Residents For Illegally Voting In Previous Elections

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement announced Wednesday that two residents of the state were arrested for illegally voting during previous elections.

The department released a press release revealing that Donna Prentes Brady has been taken into custody “on two counts of casting more than one ballot in any election, a third-degree felony.” Brady, an Ocala resident was accused of voting twice in both the 2020 general and state primary elections. This included voting in Marion County (Florida) and in Sussex County (New Jersey).

Toye Ann, a Fort Walton Beach resident was also taken into custody. “one count of false swearing of voter registration information and two counts of unqualified electors willfully voting, all third-degree felonies.” According to the agency La Rocca voted in violation of state law last year while she was on probation for a felony DUI offense. The first instance was an in-person election in Okaloosa County’s primary election. The second was a mail vote in the general election.

Brady and La Rocca will be prosecuted by the Fifth and First Judicial Circuits of the Office of the State Advocate, respectively.

Florida Republican Governor. Ron DeSantis passed SB 524 into law. This law, in addition to numerous election integrity-related initiatives was created by the Office of Election Crimes and Security. “investigate election law violations.” The office does not have the authority to prosecute individuals for breaking the law. However, it can conduct investigations and refer its findings and findings to the Department of Law Enforcement.

Many people have been arrested for allegedly violating Florida election law since the unit was established. The office and the Florida attorney general’s offices identified 20 individuals who were arrested in August. “illegally cast ballots in recent elections, with a majority of the cases coming from Democrat strongholds such as Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade Counties.”

“We want to recognize … that in order for a democracy to persevere, in order for us to remain a country and a state under a rule of law, we must have men and women that are willing to enforce those laws,” Ashley Moody, Florida Attorney General, stated that at the time.

DeSantis has requested an increase in funding to the state’s Election Crimes and Security division, as part of his fiscal year budget proposal 2023-2024. The following items are requested: “$3.1 million and 27 positions” To fully staff the office. “$1.2 million for live call center services supporting the Statewide Voter Fraud and Assistance Hotline, cybersecurity awareness training for Supervisors of Elections, and an Elections Signature Verification Training Program.”

“The Governor’s funding proposals support what Floridians want to see foremost in their elections process – the highest degree of access and security with the assurance of transparency,” According to a statement by Cord Byrd, Florida Secretary of State. “Increased staffing for the Office of Election Crimes and Security will do more to shield the elections process from bad actors and increase the effectiveness of investigations.”

Before the budget can become law, it must be approved by the Florida legislature.

Shawn Fleetwood is a Staff writer at The Federalist. He is also a graduate of The University of Mary Washington. He is also a Convention of States Action state content writer. His work has been featured on numerous outlets including RealClearPolitics and RealClearHealth. Follow him @ShawnFleetwood