Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis expressed support Tuesday for his attorney general potentially bringing charges against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, citing alleged crimes committed in Florida related to immigration and drug offenses.”We’re looking at the statutes to see,” DeSantis said. “Obviously, we’ve got robust narcotic statutes.”However, Dave Aronberg, former state attorney in Palm Beach County, raised doubts about the success of a state case against Maduro. “You can try to prosecute Maduro under state charges, but there are serious obstacles,” Aronberg said.Aronberg said multiple legal challenges could arise, such as the prohibition against being tried twice for the same crime and the precedence of federal law over state laws.Aronberg also questioned the ability to prove a crime against Maduro.”Can you show evidentiary wise that the leader of Venezuela was specifically sending drugs into Florida?” Aronberg said.He further pointed out that the penalties in a state case might be redundant if Maduro is convicted in a federal case, which could result in a life sentence. “Just the gun charges alone, they have a 30-year mandatory minimum sentence. Maduro is 63 years old. That doesn’t even get to the narco trafficking charges, which has a 20-year mandatory minimum,” Aronberg said.Aronberg concluded that if the state were to bring charges, Florida would likely have to wait for the federal case to conclude, as “the federal government won’t play second fiddle to a state.”

, Fla. —

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis expressed support Tuesday for his attorney general potentially bringing charges against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, citing alleged crimes committed in Florida related to immigration and drug offenses.

“We’re looking at the statutes to see,” DeSantis said. “Obviously, we’ve got robust narcotic statutes.”

However, Dave Aronberg, former state attorney in Palm Beach County, raised doubts about the success of a state case against Maduro.

“You can try to prosecute Maduro under state charges, but there are serious obstacles,” Aronberg said.

Aronberg said multiple legal challenges could arise, such as the prohibition against being tried twice for the same crime and the precedence of federal law over state laws.

Aronberg also questioned the ability to prove a crime against Maduro.

“Can you show evidentiary wise that the leader of Venezuela was specifically sending drugs into Florida?” Aronberg said.

He further pointed out that the penalties in a state case might be redundant if Maduro is convicted in a federal case, which could result in a life sentence.

“Just the gun charges alone, they have a 30-year mandatory minimum sentence. Maduro is 63 years old. That doesn’t even get to the narco trafficking charges, which has a 20-year mandatory minimum,” Aronberg said.

Aronberg concluded that if the state were to bring charges, Florida would likely have to wait for the federal case to conclude, as “the federal government won’t play second fiddle to a state.”