Gov. Ron DeSantis has appointed Vero Beach resident and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Porter to serve as a judge on the 19th Judicial Circuit Court.
Porter has served as an assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida since 2018. Before that, he was an assistant United States attorney for the Eastern and Western Districts of Tennessee.
Porter fills the judicial vacancy created by the resignation of Judge Janet Croom, who retired June 15, saying she wanted “to spend irreplaceable time with family,” according to a letter she wrote to Gov. Ron DeSantis.
“I am honored and humbled to serve the people of the Treasure Coast as a Circuit Court Judge. I am grateful to the governor for my appointment,” Porter said via text July 24. “I promise to bring a relentless drive to learn, a collaborative spirit, and a steadfast work ethic to the bench, grounded in integrity and respect for the rule of law.”
Porter received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Louisville and his juris doctor from Case Western Reserve University School of Law in Cleveland, Ohio.
He was admitted to the Florida Bar in 2006 and has lived in the state for about 14 years, he noted in an application submitted to the 19th Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission.
As a federal prosecutor assigned to the Fort Pierce division, Porter has been “responsible for a substantial criminal docket,” he noted, “including the oversight of criminal investigations, grand jury proceedings, suppression hearings, trials, and sentencing hearings.”
“I represent the United States, and the people of the Treasure Coast, in all facets of the criminal justice system that take place in the Southern District of Florida,” Porter wrote. “I work directly with the DEA, FBI, ATF, IRS, HSI, ICE, and local authorities in prosecuting drug trafficking offenses, drug-related homicides, drug diversion cases, financial crimes, tax crimes, fraud offenses, domestic terrorism, violent crimes, immigration offenses, and firearm offenses.”
Court Administrator Patty Harris on July 24 said Chief Circuit Judge Charles “Tony” Schwab will be assigning Porter to a seat in St. Lucie County.
(This story was updated with more information.)
Melissa E. Holsman is the legal affairs reporter for TCPalm and Treasure Coast Newspapers and is writer and co-host of “Uncertain Terms,” a true-crime podcast. Reach her at melissa.holsman@tcpalm.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: DeSantis appoints Vero Beach assistant US attorney as circuit judge
Reporting by Melissa E. Holsman, Treasure Coast Newspapers / Treasure Coast Newspapers
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