Just one day after his suit against Gov. Ron DeSantis was tossed out of Broward Circuit Court,  former Broward Sheriff Scott Israel has signaled his intent to bring his case before Florida's appellate courts.

The embattled law enforcement officer filed a notice of appeal Friday indicating he'd be bringing his case before the Fourth District Court of Appeal. His lawsuit against Gov. DeSantis for alleged abuse of gubernatorial authority was dismissed by Broward Circuit Judge David Haimes for lack of jurisdiction Thursday.

“This is consistent with the Florida Constitution and general principles of separation of powers, which grant the governor the authority to suspend an official, and grant the Florida Senate that exclusive authority to review the suspension and decide whether to remove or reinstate the official,” Haimes wrote of DeSantis' decision to strip Israel of his position as Broward County Sheriff by executive order.

Israel's lawyers Benedict “Ben” Kuehne and Stuart Kaplan issued in a joint statement on the appeal.

“The constitutional question involving the governor's political use of the limited suspension power is so very important that it should be resolved by Florida's appellate courts,” the attorneys said.

“This is not merely an issue for Sheriff Israel, whose removal resulted from the governor's election campaign political deal-making,” the statement continued. “It also represents an unprecedented use of the suspension power to disenfranchise the voters, who alone hold the authority to determine their elected officials.”

Read the notice of appeal and dismissal order: 

According to Israel's attorneys, the appeal will ask the appellate judges to rein in the governor's power to pluck elected officials from office, a procedure DeSantis has utilized repeatedly since assuming office in January. In addition to Israel, DeSantis also dismissed Mary Beth Jackson from her position as Okaloosa County Schools Superintendent via an executive order. In March, the governor also suspended Terrence Rowe, the acting mayor of Port Richey, who was arrested on obstruction of justice charges.

DeSantis issued his executive order removing Israel from the Broward Sheriff's Office on Jan. 11. The governor said he booted Israel in part for incompetency regarding the Broward Sheriff's Office's handling of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018.

However, Israel's lawsuit characterized his firing as an “abjectly political” move. His attorneys' statement said, “Sheriff Israel remains committed to serving the benefit of the people of Broward County.”

In a statement responding to the appeal, Gov. DeSantis said Israel “continues to live in denial.”

“The court has recognized my authority as governor to suspend him for neglect of duty and incompetence and this appeal is just his latest delay tactic,” the governor said. “I have filed a request with the Fourth DCA asking for expedited consideration to move this case to the Florida Supreme Court for a final ruling so that the Senate can resume the process of formally removing him.”

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