Florida grand jury finds DeSantis administration misused $10 million, but no charges filed

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks before a roundtable discussion on college sports in the East Room of the White House in Washington, March 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File) By JIM VERTUNO Updated 12:38 AM MESZ, August 28, 2026 Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit A Florida grand jury found that Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration “misappropriated” $10 million in taxpayer money it diverted to a charity connected to his wife, but it declined to file criminal charges due to a lack of evidence indicating who specifically was responsible. DeSantis on Thursday did not dispute the legitimacy of the secret grand jury report obtained and published online by CBS News Miami, but he insisted no laws were broken and said whoever leaked the sealed documents would face “consequences.” The Leon County Grand Jury completed its report in January on investigations into Florida" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="194947" data-entity-type="organization">Hope Florida, the charity started in 2021 by Florida first lady Casey DeSantis. Despite the lack of charges, the report ignited a new round of criticism aimed at DeSantis and other top state Republicans over the charity receiving $10 million from a state Medicaid settlement intended to help poor children get health insurance. David Jolly, the Democratic nominee for governor, called for the grand jury probe to be reopened. He faces Republican Byron Donalds in November. DeSantis, under Florida law, cannot seek a third term. The Florida" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="194947" data-entity-type="organization">Hope Florida charity is supposed to help financially struggling families connect with churches and aid groups to help keep them off publicly-financed assistance programs. The $10 million was instead moved to political action committees that used the money to oppose a 2024 statewide ballot measure that would have legalized marijuana for adults in the state. US Rep Byron Donalds wins GOP nod for Florida governor against Ex-Rep David Jolly for the Democrats 2 MIN READ AP Decision Notes: What to expect in Florida’s state primary 4 MIN READ Election takeaways: Donalds joins historic field and progressive scores upset victory in Florida 4 MIN READ DeSantis opposed the measure, and it fell just short of the 60% supermajority it needed to become law. “Despite our finding that the money was misappropriated, we find insufficient evidence to charge anyone criminally,” the report concluded. The grand jury said no one would take responsibility for sending the money to the charity or had any memory of who did. “We recognize that this would be an impediment to criminal prosecution,” the report noted. “While we can’t prove who is responsible, we can plainly see that taxpayer money was misused for political purposes and we would like to see changes made to prevent this from happening again.” The grand jury report concluded that James Uthmeier, who was DeSantis’ chief of staff at the time, “was in a position of authority over those involved in settling,” and that his Keep Florida Clean PAC was the prime recipient of the $10 million. The grand jury said then-state Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office knew of the plans to divert the money. She was later appointed by DeSantis to the U.S. Senate. In a news conference Thursday, Uthmeier suggested Democrats were behind the grand jury report leak and called renewed interest in its findings “a politically motivated hoax.” In a post on X on Thursday, Moody said her office was only one of several agencies that signed off on the initial settlement, and “had no knowledge of how funds would be spent” by Florida" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="194947" data-entity-type="organization">Hope Florida, state lawmakers or any other group. JIM VERTUNO Vertuno has been covering news, sports and politics from Texas for The AP since 1998. He won a National Headliner Award for sports writing in 2013. twitter mailto