Monique Worrell said criticism of her office over 17-year-old Keyan Rundell was political point-scoring after his arrest on two second-degree murder counts in the July 29 DeLand killings of two teens.
Worrell said Rundell was 12 when her office first encountered him, and Florida law barred direct filing for juveniles that young while prosecutors also could not pursue cases without sufficient evidence.
Mike Chitwood and Attorney General James Uthmeier had argued Rundell received years of second chances, dropped charges and weak prosecution in the 9th Circuit before the double homicide.
Worrell countered that the most recent juvenile case cited by Chitwood arose in his own 7th Circuit, not hers, and said confidentiality limits what her office can publicly disclose.
She widened the dispute to Florida's juvenile system, saying some youths accused of manslaughter or murder are released within 18 months and that the Department of Juvenile Justice declined coordination talks.