By Terry Witt -Spotlight Senior Reporter

                One of the attorneys running for circuit judge in the Eighth Judicial Circuit is a prosecutor who specialized in cases involving crimes against women and children.

            Speaking at a Republican candidates’ forum on July 22, Sean Brewer said he has been an assistant state attorney for 24 years prosecuting just about every type of criminal case imaginable.

            “I specialized in crimes against women and children – your child abuse, your domestic abuse, your sex abuse for both children and adults,” Brewer said. “I’ve been one of the major homicide trial attorneys for this circuit. I’ve handled some of the biggest and most complex trials we’ve had in the prosecutors’ office in this circuit.”

            Brewer made the statement when he was asked by questioner Stoney Smith why he felt he was the best candidate in the race to be the next circuit judge. He said his trial experience in prosecuting cases, but there were two other reasons.

            He said the second thing that qualifies him for the job is his connection to the community. He said to be an elected official, you need a connection to know what’s going in in the community.

            “I’ve raised a family. I have three boys, a 20-year-old, a 17-year-old, and a 12-year-old,” Brewer said. “My wife grew up in Alachua County. She’s been a teacher at a religious school since 1996. The way I give back to the community, I coached. With three boys it was kind of easy – 125 different youth sports, from 3- year-old basketball to middle school sports.”

            Brewer said as a prosecutor he has worked on child abuse cases.

            “I know what’s going on with families in this community. I know how to ask the tough question of kids, how to ask the delicate question of kids who are going through this kind of stuff. My first assignment that may very well happen for whoever is elected circuit judge is family law. So that’s the background I have,” Brewer said.

            Brewer said his third quality is that he has the temperament to be a circuit court judge.

            “To be a circuit judge, one of the most important things we have in my unit – crimes against women and children – is everyone goes through the process with respect. Not everyone is going to win their case, throughout time. Everyone’s going to remember how they were treated and there’s no excuse for not treating everybody with respect. That’s one of the things that’s been my hallmark as a prosecutor and will continue on the bench,” Brewer said.

            Smith asked if crime rates for violent crimes are increasing or decreasing in this district and most important in Levy County.

            “I believe in Levy County they are increasing. There is a problem throughout the circuit with major crimes, gun crimes especially with youth,” Brewer said.

            Brewer said he is currently a prosecutor in a case in the Gainesville area. He said a 14-year-old girl was having a birthday party at an American Legion when a shooting occurred.

            “At that birthday party, three kids; I say, kids, one was 18, but they’re all kids – brought guns and no one hit what they were shooting at. But one innocent child is dead and four other innocent children are hurt. That’s a problem. That’s one of the problems my office is seeking to solve. In that case, we are going forward with three charges against three kids – murder for the person who killed the child and two attempted murder cases. Serious cases are a problem without question,” Brewer said.

            Questioner Parks Wilson said it seems as though major crimes are either gang-related or drug-related or both.

            “There are certainly some gang-related. I will say in Alachua County the gangs are loosely affiliated. It’s not like the gangs you see on TV. But there are gang crimes. There’s no question in our circuit that crimes arise out of drugs, there are also a lot of serious crimes that come out of domestic situations. There’s not a clear answer. You can’t say it’s all from drugs, it’s from gangs or it’s all from domestic violence, but those are certainly major contributors to our serious crimes.”

            Smith mentioned the Roe vs. Wade ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court regarding abortions. Smith said it’s going to come down to Florida, its laws, and the circuit judge’s decisions in some cases. He asked if Brewer would comment.

            “We’re not allowed to answer that,” Brewer said. “As judicial candidates, we’re not allowed to answer that question. I can tell you this, I will follow the Supreme Court’s decision as the law of the land, but we can’t answer that question.”

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Enterprise Reporting by Terry Witt July 22, 2022; Posted July 30, 2022