Florida Republican could face death penalty after allegedly molesting grandson under new law he voted for

In 2023, Florida Republican state legislator Mike Caruso enthusiastically voted yes to the new Florida Capital Sexual Battery law, which allows prosecutors to pursue the death penalty for adults who molest children under 12. Caruso is now accused of molesting his young grandson and may well become a victim of the very law he put in place.

The 67-year-old Caruso, originally appointed by Ron DeSantis, is accused of repeatedly molesting his grandson between fall 2024 and summer 2025. The alleged abuse came to light when the victim told his father that Caruso had abused him on a family cruise, with investigators claiming:

“During the voyage, while in international waters, Caruso separated the victim from his parents under the stated pretext of taking the child to obtain ice cream. Victim was away from his parents in Caruso’s company for at least an hour and was not taken to get ice cream.”

The young victim later detailed to law enforcement other instances of abuse, including one around Thanksgiving 2024. Sadly, this is not the only case with Republicans being accused of these kinds of crimes in Florida and in South Dakota.

“Violate all standards of decency held by civilized society”

Caruso was confronted with these allegations and denied everything. As per IB Times, he apparently argued that this is the work of his “evil” ex-wife, who he said had invented the abuse  “in an effort to poison the child against him.” The investigators’ report also notes that Caruso’s daughter had previously made accusations of “sexually inappropriate behavior” from her father.

On Tuesday, Caruso was arrested and officially charged with five felony charges, including kidnapping, child molestation, lewd exhibition, luring or enticing a child, and child abuse causing mental injury. Following the arrest, DeSantis suspended Caruso from his legislative position.

The 2023 statute that Caruso voted for underlines that crimes like the ones he’s accused of “destroy the innocence of a young child and violate all standards of decency held by civilized society” and specifically allows the imposition of the death penalty, so long as a jury unanimously finds “at least two aggravating factors beyond a reasonable doubt.”

The Miami Herald notes that the investigation is ongoing and that Caruso may soon face “an indictment under Florida’s capital sexual battery law, which went into effect in 2023 and opened up the death penalty for those convicted of sexual battery of a child under 12.”

To date, nobody has been given the death penalty under this law. In December 2023, they attempted to pursue this, but the defendant pled guilty and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. As per IB Times, Caruso has been booked into the Orange County Jail and is being held without bond.