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Florida Judge Says Migrant Flight Lawsuit Against DeSantis Needs Work

The judge dismissed Sen. Jason Pizzo’s suit, giving the lawmaker and his team two weeks to amend their complaint to reflect how exactly the law was violated, and by whom.

A Florida judge on Monday sent a Miami Democrat back to the drawing board, telling him to workshop his lawsuit alleging that Gov. Ron DeSantis misused state funds to transport migrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard earlier this year. Leon County Circuit Judge John Cooper dismissed state Sen. Jason Pizzo’s complaint, telling him he had two weeks to amend his complaint “with some additional facts and clarity.” Cooper said that Pizzo needed to be more specific about the constitutional violations at issue, and also explain why DeSantis was the “proper defendant” in the case. The lawsuit was filed within days of the Sept. 14 flights, which dumped roughly four dozen migrants on the Massachusetts island. Quick to take credit, DeSantis said he had bankrolled the stunt with part of the $12 million earmarked by the state this year for a program to relocate migrants. Pizzo’s suit, which also names the Florida Department of Transportation as a defendant, rests on the argument that the funds were specifically allocated to shift “unauthorized aliens from this state,” not Texas. His complaint sought to block DeSantis, who has vowed to spend “every penny” of the $12 million, from using any more taxpayer dollars on the program.