In a speech at the Future of Florida Forum, Attorney General James Uthmeier vowed to continue prosecuting child predators, calling it his top goal as Republicans continue targeting local government spending and deporting undocumented immigrants.
Uthmeier, a close ally to Gov. Ron DeSantis, spoke about his ongoing fights and his successes on Day 2 of the Forum, which is the Florida Chamber of Commerce’s annual meeting.
“My No. 1 priority is to protect our kids and leave our country better for them than we found it,” Uthmeier said as he highlighted the state’s criminal and civil cases targeting online abusers, social media companies and platforms that expose kids to danger or don’t do enough to protect them.
“And today in the fight of good versus evil, we continue to see countless numbers of evil predators going after our kids. … We will continue this endeavor until we’ve captured every single one of these sick and evil people. You have my word on that.
The Future of Florida Forum is being held in Orlando and has featured U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Jared Perdue, Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, and other business and education leaders.
Uthmeier’s 10-minute speech Tuesday covered a variety of topics related to the judicial system, including Florida’s civil litigation reform after the state became a “hotbed for abusive lawsuits,” he said.
“We’ve had a civil justice system that’s had misaligned motives and that’s had incentives in all the wrong places. Attorneys made windfall sums of money just for bringing cases, even cases that were frivolous,” Uthmeier told the crowd at the JW Marriott Orlando Bonnet Creek Report and Spa.
“Today, attorneys will not just be paid for every case they bring. They must bring cases with merit. And at the end of the day, consumers are, and must always be, our No. 1 priority.”
