TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A former official with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement claims the state agency has been unable to produce public records in a timely manner because the office of Gov. Ron DeSantis insists on conducting “reviews” of certain records before releasing them.
Army veteran and former sheriff’s deputy Shane Desguin spent more than half of his 30-year career at FDLE, most recently serving as the agency’s Chief of Staff, until he claims he was suspended in November and forced to resign following a dispute over public records.
“One cause of FDLE’s delay in timely compliance with public record requests was a requirement by the Executive Office of Governor (EOG) that it review and decide FDLE’s response to certain public record requests made to FDLE,” Desguin wrote in a sworn declaration filed as part of lawsuit over the release of the governor’s travel records.
Last year, News 6 uncovered internal government documents that revealed DeSantis’ office was delaying the release of certain public records, sometimes for weeks or months, while his legal team conducted a secondary review of the materials before releasing them under Florida’s Government-in-the-Sunshine and public record laws.
DeSantis’s office stopped generating those internal documents in 2022 on the very same week News 6 requested copies of the handwritten logs, which detailed the governor’s intervention in public record requests.
State law does not require government agencies to produce public records within a specific time limit. However, the Florida Supreme Court has ruled the “only delay” permitted in producing public records is the time it takes for a record custodian to retrieve the record and delete any information exempt from release.
Record custodians employed by state agencies typically release requested public records directly to citizens after they are compiled and redacted, sometimes within days or weeks, although certain requests can take longer.
In most cases, state agencies do not seek a secondary review from the governor’s office prior to distributing public records.
But more than 280 batches of public records were sent to DeSantis’ office by various state agencies in 2021 for secondary review, documents obtained by News 6 revealed. Most of those public records were originally requested by news organizations.
“This extra layer of review often unquestionably delayed FDLE’s ability to timely respond to public record requests,” Desguin wrote. “The EOG’s review of FDLE records would regularly take weeks or longer, and because FDLE had been directed not to release records under EOG’s review unless and until that review was complete, FDLE was often delayed from producing public records for the sole reason that they were under review at EOG.”
Desguin’s statements about the governor’s role in public record delays were first reported by The Washington Post.
The Washington Post is suing the FDLE and the governor’s office over the failure to release records related to DeSantis’ travel while campaigning for president last year.
The newspaper is seeking records documenting DeSantis’ airplane trips and the FDLE personnel who accompanied him.
FDLE has refused to release those travel records, citing a new state law passed last year that shields some of the governor’s travel records from public disclosure.
Desguin claims he was involved in efforts to draft that legislation, which he understood would prohibit the release of travel records that could threaten the safety of the governor or others if revealed.
As part of its lawsuit, the Washington Post obtained a sworn statement from Desguin about his firsthand experience supervising public record processing at FDLE.
“EOG would regularly insist that FDLE inform it of public record requests relating to state-funded travel for Governor Ron DeSantis, requests that were submitted by press outlets including the Washington Post, and requests otherwise involving the Governor that staff at EOG would deem to be of interest,” Desguin wrote.
DeSantis’ office claims that the governor has the authority to review public records compiled by subordinate state agencies if the governor “may have an equity” in the record “because the record includes communications with the Executive Office of the Governor, because the record concerns the Governor, or because there is reason to believe that the Governor may be asked about information in the record.”
“In accordance with the Governor’s duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, the Executive Office of the Governor may review the record to ensure the accuracy and correctness of the record production,” a DeSantis spokesperson told News 6 in 2022.
Desguin said he and other FDLE officials originally agreed to give the Washington Post 600 “Aircraft Mission Print” records that revealed historical information about DeSantis’s travel by taxpayer-funded aircraft that includes travel dates, destinations, and passenger lists.
“In my view, and based on my experience helping draft Senate Bill 1616 and the intent of the legislation, and on my experience in more than 30 years as a certified law enforcement officer, disclosure of those public records to the Post, or anyone else, would not have threatened the safety of the Governor, his family, other to whom FDLE provides transportation or security services, or FDLE personnel who provide those services,” Desguin wrote. “Instead, disclosure of those records, in my view, would allow the public to understand how their tax dollars are used in the provision of important public services.”
But Desguin claims the governor’s office overruled FDLE’s decision and ordered the agency to withhold the airplane records from The Washington Post.
Janine Robinson, an FDLE attorney who was involved in the public record dispute with the governor’s office, was later denied a promotion and pay raise at the request of a DeSantis aide, according to Desguin.
FDLE Deputy Chief of Staff Patricia Carpenter was fired after she sought whistleblower protection to report the alleged retaliation against Robinson.
“The governor’s office has received multiple complaints of [Carpenter] creating a hostile work environment,” a DeSantis spokesperson said in December.
Desguin claims he was placed on administrative leave in November and given a choice to “retire or be terminated” after discussing Robinson’s promotion denial with Carpenter.
“Mr. Desguin was placed on leave for insubordination, mismanagement of state funds, agency policy violations, creating a hostile work environment and unethical behavior,” an FDLE spokesperson told News 6. “FDLE does not comment on pending litigation.”
Desguin is willing to testify about what he witnessed, according to his sworn declaration.
Last week, while DeSantis was in Orlando speaking about an unrelated matter, a News 6 reporter asked the governor whether his staff is still delaying the release of public records while conducting secondary reviews of those documents.
“I don’t get involved in that, so I’ll just refer you to [my staff],” DeSantis said. “As you know this is all legal. There are different general counsels in each agency, they usually interact with the chief of staff and the general counsel, the head of the executive branch. So I don’t know. I can tell you since I’ve been governor that just not something I’ve gotten involved in. I’ve got to focus at the task at hand and you’ve got good people working for you that can sort out all that other stuff.”
DeSantis’s staff did not respond to News 6’s follow-up questions about the governor’s review of public records and the delays described by Desguin.
The governor’s office is asking a judge to dismiss the Washington Post’s lawsuit against DeSantis arguing, in part, that it is not in possession of the travel records generated by FDLE.
FDLE lawyers have accused The Washington Post of using its lawsuit “to generate headlines and stories to smear FDLE” and other DeSantis administration officials while misunderstanding the relationship between the governor’s office and executive branch agencies.
“Regardless of differences of opinion between lawyers, EOG has a constitutional duty to ensure [Florida law related to the release of the governor’s travel records] is properly and uniformly interpreted among agencies of the executive branch,” FDLE lawyers wrote in response to the Washington Post’s lawsuit. “That is exactly the legal advice that EOG provided to FDLE.”
Desguin Declaration by News 6 WKMG-TV on Scribd
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