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Record Group Number: 000100
Series/Collection Number: .S 1984
Creator: Florida. Office of the Governor.
Title, Dates: Legal Counsel subject files, 1994-2018.
Amount: 36.5 cubic ft.
16.1 megabytes (419 files, 18 folders: Size 16.1 MB (16,896,196 bytes); Size on disk 16.8 MB (17,698,816 bytes))
Medium Included: Electronic records.
Organization/Arrangement: Alphabetical by subject within gubernatorial administration (Chiles, 1994-1998; Bush, 1999-2007).  Boxes three through sixteen are unarranged.
Restrictions: RESTRICTED: Boxes 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 and 35 are RESTRICTED BOXES containing confidential/exempt records separated from other boxes. Redacted copies have been placed in original record locations where possible.
Terms Governing Use:
Biographical/Historical:     The post of Governor of the state was created in the 1838 Constitution (Article III, Section 1, 1838 Constitution; Article IV, Section 1, 1885 and 1968 Constitutions; Ch. 14 FS) and became effective in 1845. The Governor serves a four-year term and, since 1968, can succeed himself for one term.

    The Governor is the Chief Executive Officer of the state and as such is commander-in-chief of the state militia, signs all commissions for state and county officers, fills hundreds of state and county offices by appointment, and has the power of suspension over state and county officers. The Governor is also chief planning and budgeting officer for the state, has veto power over legislative acts, can call special sessions of the Legislature, and can call for adjournment if the Legislature cannot agree upon a time.

    The Executive Office of the Governor was created in 1979 (Ch. 79-190, Laws). The Office is comprised of staff members handling the administrative functions required by the Governor. The Office also houses various committees, commissions, and councils created by the Governor.

Summary:     This series consists of files maintained by the Governor's Office of General Counsel under Governors Chiles, Bush and Scott documenting a variety of legal issues in which the Governor's Office was involved or had interest.
    Files maintained by Thomas Crapps, Assistant General Counsel to Governor Lawton Chiles, contain legal correspondence, memoranda, case law, etc. relating to crimes committed in Florida, capital collateral cases, clemency, prisoners mental health, prisoner extraditions, supreme court cases, executive orders, transportation of prisoners, international prisoner transfers, as well as victims rights.
    Files maintained by Governor Jeb Bush's legal office document such issues as litigation, immigration, nursing home surveillance, university governance, constitutional revision, state agencies, judicial vacancy appointments, fee caps for lawyers, Cuba policy, election issues, faith based prisons, state agencies, negotiating a gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe, and abortion. state agencies. Bush administration records also include unsigned Executive Orders and lists of Executive Orders, unsigned death warrants for execution of death row inmates, and a charging document in the death of Martin Lee Anderson, an inmate in the juvenile boot camp operated by the Bay County Sheriff's Office.
    Files maintained by Governor Rick Scott's legal office document such issues as OPS health care, abortion law, legal hold research, Patient Protection and the Affordable Care Act, LGBTQ rights, and state agencies.


Finding Aids: Box and folder listing (paper records). 0
File listing (electronic records). 0
Additional Physical Form:
Reproduction Note:
Location of Originals/Duplicates:
Associated Materials:
Language Notes:
Ownership/Custodial History:
Publication Note:
General Note:
Electronic Records Access: MS Word and PDF files.
Subject Access Fields: Chiles, Lawton, 1930-1998
Bush, Jeb
Florida. Governor (1991-1998 : Chiles)
Florida. Governor (1999-2007 : Bush)
Governors Florida
Capital punishment History Florida
Crime Florida
Crime prevention Florida
Criminals Florida
Prisoners Florida
Prison sentences Florida
Added Entries