Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ® appointed Michael Allen Caruso last August to serve as Palm Beach County’s clerk of courts and comptroller. Caruso was arrested yesterday on charges of molestation, kidnapping, luring and enticing a child, lewd and lascivious exhibition, and child abuse early yesterday morning, according to an arrest affidavit reported upon by The Miami Herald.

Investigators say that Caruso sexually molested the child, a male relative under the age of five, several times last year. Caruso allegedly exposed himself to the kid while playing soccer and then played “tickle monster” with him to touch his buttocks and genitals later that day. During a cruise, he allegedly put his penis in the child’s mouth after telling his parents that the two were going to get ice cream. He also reportedly fondled the boy’s penis during a fishing trip.

The boy subsequently acted out sexually at home, leading his parents to question him. The parents then contact the police, and also asked Caruso about the allegations; he denied them but begged them not to tell others under fear of arrest and jail time.

    • Regrettable_incident@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      4
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      2 days ago

      It’s always the people you most expect.

      I mean, it’s not, otherwise it would be much easier to keep kids safe. But I get what you mean - Republican legislator, vociferously anti-CSA, probably performatively Christian and ‘pro-family values’ (Meaning discriminates against anything that isn’t a straight white CIS family) - you wouldn’t want one of those fuckers living within a mile of a school, that’s for sure.

  • QueenHawlSera@piefed.social
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    12
    ·
    2 days ago

    Wait I thought it was trans people and drag queens doing this? So how come it keeps ending up being republicans and priests?

  • SkyezOpen@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    17
    ·
    2 days ago

    From the Newsweek article:

    Palm Beach County Clerk of Court Michael Caruso, a former Republican state legislator who previously backed the death penalty for adults convicted of sexually battering children under 12, was arrested Tuesday on five felony child sex abuse charges.

  • Blibly@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    20
    ·
    2 days ago

    It would be great if this dumbass country could come to the understanding that we have an entire party of pedophile criminals destroying everything. The evidence is overwhelming and I’m so tired of nothing being done about it.

  • john_lemmy@slrpnk.net
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    11
    ·
    2 days ago

    You know how easy it is to not be a child molester? And yet, it is story after story of these weirdos popping up with this affiliation.

  • switcheroo@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    16
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    2 days ago

    We should all be at the point where if they are a republikkkan, we should assume they are a pedophile. I mean, they keep electing them so they’re obviously fine with that shit. If they don’t want to be thought of as child-rapists, then maybe they should have to prove it.

  • Eldritch@piefed.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    15
    ·
    2 days ago

    Won’t somebody think of the children!? Eeeeew not like that!

    If this is why Republicans are always thinking of the children, maybe they should think about them less.

  • shininghero@pawb.social
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    15
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    2 days ago

    “No way to screen these people from positions of power,” says the only nation where this routinely happens.

  • TheTechnician27@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    9
    ·
    2 days ago

    Someone told him that gay people exist, and this was the result.

    The tragic downfall of another good, American patriot. 😞

    • ChickenLadyLovesLife@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      3
      ·
      1 day ago

      His actual, stated defense was that sexual deviancy is directed at only one sex, and since he is attracted to women (while the victim was a boy) he can’t possibly be a sexual abuser. We’ve actually finally hit something that is so illogical even Republicans can’t support it.