Angela Corey (born October 31, 1954) is a former Florida State's Attorney for the Fourth Judicial Circuit Court, which includes Duval, Nassau and Clay counties—including Jacksonville and the core of its metropolitan area. She was elected in 2008 as the first woman to hold the position, and was defeated on August 30, 2016, by Melissa Nelson, the second woman to hold the position.Angela Corey First Woman in Local State Attorney's Seat First Coast News WTLV, August 27, 2008Tuttle, Ian (2013-07-17) Angela Corey's Checkered Past, National Review Corey was catapulted into the national spotlight on March 22, 2012, when Florida Governor Rick Scott announced that she would be the newly assigned State Attorney investigating the shooting death of Trayvon Martin (replacing State Attorney Norm Wolfinger).
On August 30, 2016, Corey lost her re-election primary to Republican challenger and former Nassau County prosecutor Melissa Nelson by nearly 50,000 votes, a margin of 38 percentage points.
Early life and education The granddaughter of Syrian immigrants, Corey was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, where she attended Englewood High School. Her parents are Tom Corey Jr. and Lorraine (Lewis) Corey. Her father's family owned the Corey Supermarket in Jacksonville, and her father became an executive at JEA in Jacksonville. After graduation, she majored in marketing at Florida State University before she decided to try a legal career. After receiving her Juris Doctor degree at the University of Florida's Levin College of Law, she did legal research while preparing for the Florida bar examination, then spent 18 months with Howell & Howell, PA (trial attorneys). She later became board certified in criminal trial law. She is an Episcopalian and active in her church.
Career
Prosecutions Corey was hired by Ed Austin in 1981 during his tenure as State Attorney from 1975 to 1991, and remained an Assistant State Attorney after Harry Shorstein was appointed by Governor Lawton Chiles in 1991.Chamness, Monica: Profile: Angela Corey Jacksonville Daily Record, February 8, 2002 During her 34 years as a prosecutor, she tried several hundred cases, which includes more than 60 homicides.Murphy, Bridget. "Shorstein dismisses longtime assistant", Florida Times-Union, November 17, 2006
In 1996, her primary responsibility became homicide prosecutions, but she also supervised lawyers in the Felony division. Shorstein changed Corey's work assignment in 2005 from director of the Gun Crime Unit to director of the County Court, which handles misdemeanors. In that position, she trained newly hired lawyers to be prosecutors. She previously served as Juvenile division supervisor.
State Attorney Corey made the decision to run for the office of State Attorney in 2006. After her candidacy became known, her working relationship with Shorstein became difficult. He terminated her employment in November 2006. Afterwards, she was hired by John Tanner, State Attorney for the Seventh Judicial Circuit, to perform the same job functions, working homicide cases in St. Johns County.Treen, Dana: "Fired Shorstein assistant lands job with man he's investigating". Florida Times-Union, February 6, 2007
The following day, Shorstein called a news conference and announced that he would retire at the end of his term and not run for re-election in 2008.Weeder, Roger: Harry Shorstein Not Running for Re-election First Coast News WTLV, February 6, 2007 In that election, Shorstein supported his chief assistant, Jay Plotkin. On August 26, 2008, Corey defeated Plotkin with more than 64% of the votes cast.2008 Election results , Duval Supervisor of Elections
Upon taking office, Corey terminated 10 assistant state attorneys, as well as "half of the office’s investigators, two-fifths of its victim advocates, a quarter of its 35 paralegals, and 48 other support staff — more than one-fifth of the office."Corey cuts 10 from her staff Florida Times-Union, September 20, 2008New state attorney axes half of her investigators Florida Times-Union, September 16, 2008Corey drops 48 more, turns attention to hiring Jacksonville Journal, October 31, 2008 In 2010, the Florida Times-Union reported that Corey sent 230 juvenile felony cases to adult court in 2009. This was twice the number of juvenile felony cases placed in adult court in the years prior to Corey becoming State Attorney."Crime: Getting tough", Florida Times-Union, July 15, 2010 After Corey took office, the number of juvenile arrests dropped in half. In 2009, 6,184 juvenile cases were opened. In 2014, that number dropped to 3,161. The number of juvenile cases transferred to adult court also dropped. In FY 2014-15, Corey's office ranked seventh in the state, out of 20 circuits, in juvenile direct files. State Attorney Corey spent more than a million dollars in FY 14-15 to run juvenile and adult diversion programs, meaning that defendant's cases are handled out of court.
Cristian Fernandez case In 2011 Corey's office oversaw a case in which 12-year-old Cristian Fernandez was arrested for the murder of his two-year-old brother. Corey stated that because the juvenile system is not equipped to handle cases as serious as murder, the case was transferred to adult court. A grand jury indicted Fernandez on (adult) charges of first degree murder and aggravated child abuse.Murphy, Bridget. "Defense for Cristian Fernandez files new motions" The Florida Times-Union. December 12, 2011. Retrieved February 2, 2012.
From the beginning of the case, Corey stated her office would not be seeking a life sentence in this case.Murphy, Bridget (October 6, 2011). "Prosecutor not seeking life in prison for Cristian Fernandez" The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved February 2, 2012. Corey also noted that the juvenile system was inadequate to handle a crime of this magnitude.. firstcoastnews.com. December 12, 2011. Retrieved February 2, 2012."Cristian Fernandez won't stand trial, spend life in prison" (October 6, 2011). firstcoastnews.com. Retrieved February 2, 2012.
In 2013, Fernandez pleaded guilty to manslaughter as a juvenile (to be incarcerated until age 19 in juvenile facilities) and to aggravated battery as an adult but without adjudication (ensuring no felony record if he completes 5 years of probation successfully after release).
George Zimmerman case
On March 22, 2012, Florida governor Rick Scott appointed Angela Corey as Special Prosecutor to investigate the killing of Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman. On the evening of February 26, 2012, in Sanford, Florida, George Zimmerman, a 28-year-old neighborhood watch volunteer armed with a 9mm Kel-Tec pistol, shot to death Trayvon Martin, an unarmed 17-year-old, in a gated community. A few hours after the killing, the Sanford Police Department determined that there was no "probable cause" to arrest George Zimmerman, who claimed that he acted in self-defense. Martin was returning to the home of his father's fiancee after purchasing a can of iced tea and a bag of Skittles candy at a local convenience store. Zimmerman told police that Martin was the aggressor.
The decision by Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee and Seminole County State Attorney Norm Wolfinger not to arrest and charge Zimmerman with a crime triggered outrage fueled by social media including a petition on Change.org calling for his prosecution. Following growing protests, including some 30,000 people in Sanford, Florida, as well as media coverage and engagement of the FBI, both police chief Bill Lee and state attorney Norm Wolfinger resigned from the investigation and state attorney Corey took over. The case added to a national debate over racial profiling, gun control, institutional racism in law enforcement agencies, and the role of American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in advocating for pro-gun laws like Florida's "Stand Your Ground" bill.
On April 11, 2012, Corey charged George Zimmerman with murder in the second degree. Corey held a globally broadcast press conference to explain her decision. She stated, "I can tell you we did not come to this decision lightly. This case is like a lot of the difficult cases we have handled for years here in our circuit. And we made this decision in the same manner. Let me emphasize that we do not prosecute by public pressure or by petition. We prosecute based on the facts of any given case, as well as the laws of the state of Florida." When asked by a reporter about the issue of race and justice in the case, Corey stated, "Those of us in law enforcement are committed to justice for every race, every gender, every person, of any persuasion whatsoever. They are our victims. We only know one category as prosecutors, and that’s a V. It's not a B, it’s not a W, it’s not an H. It’s V, for 'victim'. That’s who we work tirelessly for."
Corey's decision to charge Zimmerman was praised by supporters of the Justice for Trayvon movement across the country. Natalie Jackson, a Martin family attorney, stated, "It's actually a very brave charge of Angela Corey, and it really shows that she conducted an independent, impartial and fair investigation in this case... She could have easily charged this as a manslaughter, to try to appease everyone, and she didn't. She did what prosecutors do. She charged it to the hilt".CNN Wire Staff. "Experts argue appropriateness of murder charge in Martin case", CNN April 12, 2012, accessed April 13, 2012. On the other hand, Corey was criticized as "irresponsible and reckless" by Alan Dershowitz, a Harvard legal scholar and attorney who served on O.J. Simpson's defense team, for filing a probable cause affidavit that he claims was too thin for a 2nd-degree murder charge; Dershowitz predicted that it would be thrown out by a judge.
On April 12, 2012, Seminole County Judge Mark Herr found the affidavit legally sufficient to establish probable cause and ordered Zimmerman to appear for his arraignment on May 29, 2012.Alcindor, Yamiche. "Zimmerman held pending arraignment in Trayvon shooting," USA TODAY April 12, 2012, accessed April 13, 2012. CNN legal analyst Sunny Hostin stated, "I suspect that there is some evidence we just don't know about, because no prosecutor in a high-profile case wants to walk into court and not be able to prove each and every count beyond a reasonable doubt".
Some critics, including Dershowitz, believed that Corey, an elected official, treated her press conference as a sort of campaigning opportunity. A Reuters article also indicated that some of Zimmerman's neighbors who claimed they saw signs of injury on Zimmerman the day after the shooting "said they spoke to Sanford police and the FBI in their investigations but did not recall speaking to the office of special prosecutor Angela Corey".Reuters."Trayvon Martin's killer showed signs of injury: neighbors," Reuters April 16, 2012, accessed April 19, 2012. On the other hand, US attorney and legal analyst Kendall Coffey referred to Corey's presentation as "masterful" and that she made "a very compelling statement about her commitment to victims... So, if you were scoring that press conference, I give it an A plus".
Dershowitz called for Corey to be disbarred.Huckabee, Mike. Dershowitz: Zimmerman Special Prosecutor Angela Corey Should Be Disbarred, Real Clear Politics, July 14, 2013. In response to his harsh criticism, Dershowitz claimed that Corey called Harvard Law School and, "threatened to sue the institution, get me disciplined by the Bar, and made accusations of libel and slander".Jeff Weiner, "Dershowitz: Zimmerman prosecutor ranted against Harvard" , Orlando Sentinel, June 6, 2012.