Seasoned federal prosecutor Michael David Porter, a seven-year Vero Beach resident, hopes to be on the circuit bench in St. Lucie County by the end of August after being appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis to take over the judicial seat vacated by Judge Janet Croom.
Croom resigned in February for family reasons after 10 years on the local bench. She had been handling a portion of the family law docket in St. Lucie County, but Porter said it will be up to the 19th Circuit’s Chief Judge Charles Schwab to make whatever assignments necessary to fit him into the mix of judges in Fort Pierce.
Clearly excited about the career change, Porter did not play it cool when asked about the appointment. “It’s a huge deal. It’s a dream for me, and a wonderful opportunity,” he said. “The job that I have now, I’m very fortunate. I don’t know how many people get to do their dream job, but I get to do my dream job twice now.”
“I’m so excited about becoming a judge. I’m also eager about the challenge that I’m going to face and the learning experience,” he said. “I think this job is going to test me, there’s a lot I’ll need to learn, especially about family law so I’m excited about that challenge. This is something I’ve wanted to do my entire career and for that moment to finally come, it’s an incredible experience.”
Porter, 49, said he hopes to be on the job by Aug. 25th, but in the meantime he needs to wind up his caseload in federal court where he’s worked as an Assistant United States prosecuting federal criminal cases in Fort Pierce since 2018.
“I have active cases, and I’m going to try to either transfer those or close them out as quickly as I can. I have a couple possible trials coming up,” Porter said, looking forward to a busy upcoming three weeks. “I’ve loved being an AUSA. It’s been an incredible experience. It’s awesome.”
He works extensively with federal agencies on drug trafficking offenses, financial and tax crimes, domestic terrorism and violent crimes, plus immigration and firearms cases.
He was one of six applicants nominated to be interviewed by the governor’s staff two weeks ago in Tallahassee. Porter said he found the entire process “very intellectually stimulating” and that he enjoyed the back and forth of both rounds of interviews. “It was a rewarding and unique process,” Porter said.
“It was really nice for me to get to know the other nominees. It was a list of very qualified attorneys. You can’t go wrong with a list like that,” Porter said.
Porter was admitted to the Florida Bar in 2006 after graduating from Case Western Reserve University School of Law in Cleveland in 2002. Prior to signing on to represent the U.S. government as a prosecutor in Tennessee, Porter got broad experience in Florida law serving as a senior associate and civil litigator with Gray Robinson in Orlando. He also clerked for two judges, and worked as a legal intern with the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, and the Criminal Defense Clinic at Case Western Reserve University.
His wife, Erin Porter, works as a judicial clerk at the Fifth District Court of Appeal. Porter told Vero Beach 32963 that his wife has family scattered around Central Florida but “I can’t tell you how happy my wife and I are that Vero Beach was our landing spot” when he transferred from the Chattanooga, Tenn. area to Florida. “We love Vero Beach. We really got lucky,” he said.
The Porters’ two children attend Beachland Elementary. According to his application filed with the 19th Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission, Porter coaches soccer and basketball and attends Community Church of Vero Beach.
Porter is a registered Republican, and he listed federal Judge Aileen Cannon, a South Beach resident who presides over a U.S. District Court courtroom in Fort Pierce, as a reference for the job.
There have been two judicial openings in the 19th Circuit, with interviews for the second opening vacated by Judge Brett Waronicki scheduled for Aug. 8th. Waronicki stepped down in May after being arrested on DUI and possession of drug paraphernalia charges. Eight local lawyers have applied, the same group which sought Croom’s seat on the bench.
