Prosecutors at Florida’s Ninth Judicial Circuit are making dents in a backlog of thousands of non-arrest cases that still need to be processed.
Compared to last January, there are now 33% fewer non-arrest cases in need of processing, according to data shared Thursday by Orange-Osceola State Attorney Monique Worrell. In January of last year, there were 13,675 non-arrest cases in the backlog; now, there are 9,182.
“That's still a lot of cases, but we are down quite a bit,” Worrell said, speaking at a press conference Thursday. “The policy to reduce the number of non-arrest cases that we receive in this office is working.”
Breaking down the backlog
Worrell’s office announced that policy last April, telling law enforcement agencies within Orange and Osceola counties that the office would no longer accept most non-arrest cases for review and consideration of potential charges. Attorney General James Uthmeier said that policy was “not acceptable,” and sent in six prosecutors to help Worrell’s office whittle down the 13,000-case backlog.
So far, prosecutors from Uthmeier’s Office of Statewide Prosecution have processed 2,610 cases from the backlog at Worrell’s office. Of those 2,610 cases, prosecutors filed charges in just 63 (2.4%).
RELATED: Florida AG sends prosecutors to Worrell’s office to help with 13,000-case backlog
Initially, six extra state prosecutors were working full-time out of Worrell’s office; later, that number was reduced to four. Now, four extra prosecutors continue working there but on a part-time basis.
Worrell said she doesn’t know how long her office will continue to have the extra help.
“Again, we've seen a 33% reduction in the backlog. So for that, I am grateful,” Worrell said. “I don't know if or when that help will cease to exist. I will take it as long as we can get it.”
Although overall staff turnover is down about 10% compared to recent years, Worrell said, her office remains significantly underfunded, making it difficult for prosecutors to keep up with cases coming in. That’s why it’s so important to ensure cases are viable before sending them to the state attorney’s office, Worrell said.
“Processing 13,000 cases of backlog is not going to result in protecting community safety,” Worrell said. “What it is is busywork that keeps our prosecutors from focusing on what's here and now: the cases that were serious enough for law enforcement to arrest someone on, and the cases that deal with violent crime and drug trafficking and the things that we actually need to do to protect our community. It distracts us from that.”
Reducing ‘red tape’
Worrell cited two reasons for why her office’s non-arrest case backlog is shrinking successfully. Help from the extra state prosecutors is one big component. So is more effective collaboration with law enforcement.
“We are literally working collaboratively to reduce some of the red tape in the system that keeps us from getting to the real heart of the work that we do,” Worrell said.
Law enforcement’s role is to arrest people with charges they think are most appropriate, Worrell said. But once those charges are brought to the office of a state attorney, things can change.
“Sometimes we add more charges, sometimes we charge different things, sometimes there are less charges. Because it is our attorneys who are most well-versed in the law,” Worrell said. “Our role is to file charges: the most appropriate charges in any given case.”
Once charges are filed and cases are prosecuted, the judiciary branch of government then steps in to decide on specific outcomes, Worrell said.
In 2024, the Ninth Judicial Circuit received 12,118 non-arrest cases. In 2025, it received only 1,682 such cases: “a significant decrease,” Worrell said.
“I am extremely thankful to law enforcement for working with us to reduce the number of non-arrest cases coming in, so that we can focus on the cases in front of us,” Worrell said. “They are making arrests on cases that are serious enough; that warrant arrest. They are talking to us about cases that need them to consult with us before they make a decision.”
Thursday’s press conference came on the heels of the one-year anniversary of Worrell’s return to her post as Orange-Osceola State Attorney, after Governor Ron DeSantis removed her in 2023. She was voted back in by Orange and Osceola County voters in 2024.
