Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended Palm Beach County Clerk of Court Michael Caruso within hours of his arrest on five felony counts involving the sexual abuse of a child under five — and the only shock is that it took this long for anyone in power to act.
Caruso, 67, a former Republican state legislator, now faces charges of kidnapping, lewd or lascivious molestation, lewd or lascivious exhibition, luring or enticing a child, and child abuse causing mental injury. If convicted, he faces life in prison. According to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement affidavit, the victim is a family member. The abuse allegedly spanned multiple incidents in late 2024 and August 2025, including fondling during a fishing trip, a sickening game Caruso called "tickle monster" on Thanksgiving Day, and an incident aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise where Caruso separated the boy from his parents for over an hour under the pretense of getting ice cream. The child later told his father that Caruso made him shower with him and urinated in his mouth, calling it "yucky," according to the New York Post's review of the affidavit.
When confronted by the boy's father, Caruso allegedly threatened consequences: "If you tell anyone I will get arrested. I will just go away. You tell anyone I'm going to jail." He also claimed he was only attracted to women and blamed his "evil" ex-wife for fabricating the allegations.
Here is where the story turns from sickening to infuriating. The New York Post reports — and WPEC entirely buries — that Caruso's first wife, Beverly Caruso, accused him of sexually assaulting a child during their 2013 divorce proceedings. The Florida Department of Children and Families investigated. Nothing happened. Caruso walked, blamed a bitter ex-wife, and went on to win elected office as Palm Beach County's clerk — a position of public trust with access to sensitive records and systems. He was seeking re-election this November.
Thirteen years. That is how long the institutional safety net failed this child and however many others may be out there. DCF looked at it. Family court looked at it. Local law enforcement looked at it. And Michael Caruso kept his badge of respectability.
DeSantis didn't wait for the process to grind on. His executive order stripped Caruso of his salary, his authority, and his access to government files immediately. The FDLE was directed to secure the clerk's office and prevent any document removal. That is what executive action looks like when the permanent bureaucracy has already failed.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier stated it plainly: "Being in a position of public trust provides no shield from accountability." He's right. The question is why that shield held for 13 years before anyone with the authority to act bothered to pick up a hammer.
The system didn't protect that child. A governor did. Remember that the next time some consultant-class pundit tells you executive action is a threat to norms. The norm was a predator in a clerk's office.
