Michael A. Caruso
SUSPENDED — arrested 8/18/2026 on five felony child sexual abuse charges (see below); suspended by Gov. DeSantis effective immediately; Shannon Ramsey-Chessman sworn in as ad interim Clerk. Not automatically removed from the November 2026 general election ballot; Republicans have until 8/27/2026 to formally replace him. Prior to this, he was incumbent Clerk (appointed by Gov. DeSantis, August 2025), previously Florida House of Representatives (2018–2025, HD-89 then HD-87), CPA.
Last updated: 2026-08-21
Integrity & Legal Record 20 / 25
Criminal History
(Superseding revision, 2026-08-19) On August 18, 2026, Michael A. Caruso was arrested on five felony charges, announced by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier with assistance from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and local law enforcement. The charges are: kidnapping, lewd or lascivious molestation, lewd or lascivious exhibition, luring or enticing a child, and child abuse involving mental injury. Per arrest affidavits, the alleged victim — a child under age 12, known to Caruso — reported that Caruso engaged in sexual activity with him on two separate occasions: once around Thanksgiving 2024, and again during a family cruise in August 2025. Caruso, 67, was ordered held without bond at his first court appearance and was booked into the Orange County Jail. Gov. Ron DeSantis ordered Caruso's immediate suspension from the Clerk & Comptroller office in response to the arrest; Shannon Ramsey-Chessman was sworn in as ad interim Clerk. These are charges, not a conviction or adjudicated finding of guilt — per this project's standards, they are presented factually and Caruso has not been reported to have entered a plea as of this research date. Separately, and prior to this arrest, no other criminal charges, arrests, or convictions were found under the candidate's confirmed identity going back through his full public career (original 2026-07-22 research: PBC Clerk of Courts eCaseView exact-name search "Caruso, Michael, A" returned 10 results, all civil/family/traffic, no criminal cases).
- Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, public announcement — 2026-08-18
- Local10 (WPLG) — "Palm Beach County Clerk of Court Michael Caruso arrested on child sex abuse charges, AG says" — 2026-08-18
- Local10 (WPLG) — "Palm Beach County Clerk of Court Michael Caruso held without bond on child sex abuse charges" — 2026-08-19
- NBC6 South Florida — "Palm Beach Clerk of Court Michael Caruso arrested on child sex abuse charges" — 2026-08-18
- WPTV — "Palm Beach County Clerk of Court Michael Caruso arrested on child sex abuse charges" — 2026-08-18
- CBS Miami — "Palm Beach Clerk of Court suspended by Gov. DeSantis hours after his arrest on child sex abuse charges" — 2026-08-18
- CBS12 — "Palm Beach County clerk arrested on 5 felonies involving child, suspended by DeSantis" — 2026-08-18
- CBS12 — "Suspended PBC clerk Mike Caruso denied bond, booked into Orange County Jail" — 2026-08-19
- PBC Clerk of Courts eCaseView — exact name search "Caruso, Michael, A" — 2026-07-22 — 10 results (pre-arrest history), all civil/family/traffic, no criminal cases
- Nationwide Google/news search: "Mike Caruso" Palm Beach Clerk arrested OR convicted OR indicted — 2026-07-22 — no adverse matches found prior to the 2026-08-18 arrest
Civil Court History
Several matters were found and individually reviewed: - 50-2026-CA-007719-XXXA-MB — Brady, Richard v. Caruso, Michael A (Circuit Civil, Extraordinary Writ, filed 7/9/2026). Currently Open. Docket shows this is a Petition for Writ of Mandamus filed by Richard and Michele Brady (represented by attorney Christopher W. Wickersham Jr.) naming Caruso as Defendant/Respondent. As of this research date, the case is only two weeks old — the only substantive docket entries are the initial petition and an administrative notice that the summons needs correcting — and no news coverage of this specific case could be located. The substance of the mandamus petition (what official act it seeks to compel) could not be determined from the public docket alone. Note: this is a separate matter from the well-publicized October 2025 lawsuit challenging Palm Beach County's $1 billion Israel Bonds investment (a policy/institutional matter, not a personal integrity issue, and outside Category 1's scope); that suit was not found under this candidate's personal name search, suggesting it was filed against the County or Clerk's Office rather than Caruso individually. - 50-2009-DR-002377-XXXX-SB — Caruso, Beverly M v. Caruso, Michael A (Domestic Relations/Family, Domestic Violence, filed 3/4/2009). A Petition for Injunction for Protection Against Domestic Violence was filed by Beverly M. Caruso. The docket shows the case was dismissed before hearing the same day it was filed, with an "ORDER DENYING" entered stating "INSUFFICIENT ALLEGATIONS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AS DEFINED BY LAW," signed by Judge Martin Colin. No injunction was ever entered and no hearing was held; the petition was rejected by the court on its face. - 50-2004-CA-005671-XXXX-MB — Foreclosure case involving a different, deceased "Michael A. Caruso" — see Name-collision check above. Not attributed to this candidate. - 50-1990-CA-003490-OCAE-MB and 50-1989-CA-008887-CDAF-MB — Caruso, Michael A v. Pastorino, Joan F (Circuit Civil, "Other Circuit" and "Contract & Debt," filed 1989–1990). The candidate would have been approximately 30–32 years old at the time; he was the plaintiff in both matters. These are old records with limited available detail and could not be conclusively confirmed as this candidate versus another same-named individual, though the plaintiff posture (business/contract-type dispute) is broadly consistent with his career as an accountant. Treated as unverified, neither attributed nor ruled out. - Traffic infractions from 2004 and 2007 under "Caruso, Michael A" — routine, not integrity-relevant.
- PBC Clerk of Courts eCaseView — full docket and party-name review of cases 50-2026-CA-007719-XXXA-MB and 50-2009-DR-002377-XXXX-SB, docket review of 50-2004-CA-005671-XXXX-MB — 2026-07-22
- WLRN, CBS12, Hoodline — coverage of the separate, institutional Israel Bonds litigation — 2026-07-22 (for context/disambiguation only)
Ethics Violations
No ethics complaints found via news search, the PBC Commission on Ethics complaint archive, or the Florida Commission on Ethics, across his time in the Florida House or as Clerk.
- Google/news search: "Mike Caruso" ethics complaint OR financial disclosure violation — 2026-07-22 — no relevant results
- Palm Beach County Commission on Ethics — https://palmbeachcountyethics.com/complaints.htm — 2026-07-22
- Florida Commission on Ethics — https://ethics.state.fl.us/Complaints/Complaints.aspx — 2026-07-22
Campaign Finance Violations
No Florida Elections Commission violation records found across his Florida House campaigns or the current Clerk campaign.
- Florida Elections Commission — https://www.fec.state.fl.us/FECWebFi.nsf/pages/Violations — 2026-07-22 (no name-search capability from landing page)
- VoteSmart campaign finance summary — https://justfacts.votesmart.org/candidate/campaign-finance/184475/mike-caruso — 2026-07-22
Residency Confirmed
A PBC Property Appraiser (PAPA) owner-name search confirmed an exact match: Caruso, together with Tracy L. Caruso, purchased a condominium unit at 220 Lake Shore Dr, Unit 1703, Lake Park, FL for $3,200,000 on 12/3/2025 (Warranty Deed, OR Book 36226/Page 1683), currently claiming Homestead + Additional Homestead exemption for 2026.
- PBC Property Appraiser (PAPA) Advanced Search — https://pbcpao.gov/AdvSearch/AdvanceSearch — owner "Caruso Michael A" — 2026-07-22 — exact match found, homesteaded
- 🔴 PRIORITY — HIGHEST SEVERITY, SUPERSEDES ALL PRIOR FLAGS: Caruso was arrested 2026-08-18 on five felony charges (kidnapping, lewd/lascivious molestation, lewd/lascivious exhibition, luring/enticing a child, child abuse involving mental injury) involving a child under 12; held without bond; suspended from office by Gov. DeSantis effective immediately. Not automatically removed from the November ballot — Republicans have a formal replacement window through 2026-08-27. Recommend the operator treat this as the single highest-priority item in the entire project, monitor for arraignment/plea/replacement developments, and hold this file's overall score pending fresh review.
- ⚠️ PRIORITY REVIEW FLAG (pre-existing, still relevant): A 2009 Petition for Injunction for Protection Against Domestic Violence was filed against Caruso by a person with the same surname (relationship undetermined from the public docket). The court denied the petition the same day it was filed, before any hearing, explicitly finding "insufficient allegations of domestic violence as defined by law" — no injunction was ever entered against him. Given the sensitivity of DV-related findings, recommend the operator personally review this section and its sourcing before scorecard publication, consistent with how the Tinker DV litigation section was flagged earlier in this project.
- ⚠️ REVIEW FLAG: A Petition for Writ of Mandamus (Brady v. Caruso) was filed against him in his official capacity on 7/9/2026 — very recent, substance not yet publicly clear, and unresolved. Recommend a follow-up docket check as this case develops, and a news-search follow-up once press coverage (if any) becomes available.
- Investigated and ruled out a 2004 foreclosure case involving a different, deceased "Michael A. Caruso" — documented per this project's name-collision verification practice.
- Two very old (1989–1990) civil matters could not be conclusively confirmed as this candidate versus another same-named individual; treated as unverified rather than attributed.
- The widely-reported controversy over Palm Beach County's $1 billion Israel Bonds investment (including a 2025 lawsuit and a public ultimatum from a gubernatorial candidate) is a policy/institutional matter concerning an investment decision made in his official capacity, not a personal integrity or legal-record issue — it is noted here only to disambiguate it from the unrelated Brady mandamus petition, and is more appropriately assessed under a future Category 3 (Policy) or Category 6 (Issues) pass, not Category 1.
- Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — the CIVICS Disclosure Survey PDF answers have not yet been extracted/indexed per-candidate; no survey response is on file for this candidate per the roster.
Professional & Business Transparency 20 / 25
Business Ownership
Prior to his political career, Caruso was a CPA who worked at KPMG and Grant Thornton International before founding his own firm, Caruso & Caruso, Inc., a Certified Public Accounting firm specializing in forensic accounting; he served as an expert witness in multiple local and national court cases in that capacity. He was appointed FL Clerk of Courts by Gov. DeSantis in August 2025, following service in the Florida House (2018–2025). `[Sunbiz primary-source confirmation NOT COMPLETED — search.sunbiz.org unresponsive this session]`.
- Boca Raton Tribune — "Mike Caruso Takes Office as Palm Beach County's Next Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller" — 2026-08-21
- carusoandcompany.com / caruso-accounting.com — firm history — 2026-08-21
Financial Conflicts of Interest
No government-contract overlap identified for Caruso & Caruso, Inc. `[NOT FOUND — searched: nationwide Google/news search "Caruso & Caruso" OR "Caruso and Company" Palm Beach County government contract — 2026-08-21]`. This section is unrelated to and does not address the pending criminal charges documented in Category 1.
- Nationwide Google/news search — 2026-08-21 — no matches
Bankruptcy History
`[NOT FOUND]`. No personal or business bankruptcy filings located, consistent with the original (pre-arrest) 2026-07-22 PBC Clerk of Courts docket review (10 results, all civil/family/traffic, no bankruptcy).
- CourtListener (courtlistener.com) — search "Caruso & Caruso" forensic accountant — 2026-08-21 — 0 results
Tax Liens
`[NOT FOUND]`. No federal or state tax lien records located. Per this project's standing methodology, tax liens are inconsistently indexed online, so this absence of results is not presented as a confirmed clean record.
- CourtListener (courtlistener.com) — same search as above — 2026-08-21
Board Memberships
Per available reporting, Caruso "was a pillar in the community" contributing accounting expertise to various local organizations over three decades, though specific board names were not identified. `[NOT FOUND — searched: nationwide Google/news search "Mike Caruso" CPA board member nonprofit director Palm Beach — 2026-08-21]`.
- Campaign biography (electmikecaruso.com, archived) — 2026-08-21
- 🔴 This candidate's file remains dominated by the Category 1 PRIORITY finding (pending felony child sexual abuse charges, arrest 8/18/2026, held without bond, suspended from office). This Category 2 section addresses only his pre-arrest professional/business background and does not alter or supersede that finding.
- ⚠️ TOOLING BLOCK: Sunbiz unresponsive this session (2 attempts); recommend a manual recheck of Caruso & Caruso, Inc.'s corporate registration.
- Case status as of 2026-08-21: recheck date set for 9/2/2026 (Orange County transport window); no plea entered; Republican ballot-replacement decision due by 8/27/2026. Recommend continued monitoring.
- Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — no survey response is on file for this candidate.
Policy & Platform Consistency 5 / 20
Voting Record
Caruso served in the FL House (2018–2025, HD-89 then HD-87) before his August 2025 appointment as PBC Clerk. A directly relevant, extensively-reported fact: while representing HD-87, Caruso voted for HB 1297 in April 2023 — Florida's Capital Sexual Battery law, which allows prosecutors to seek the death penalty for adults convicted of sexually battering a child under 12 — which Gov. DeSantis signed into law the following month. This vote has been widely covered by national and local outlets (Newsweek, Raw Story, IBTimes UK, The New American, CBS12, WFLX) following his August 2026 arrest, given the direct juxtaposition between the law he supported and the charges he now faces. As multiple outlets note, he has not (as of this research date) been charged with sexual battery specifically, so the death-penalty provision does not currently apply to his pending charges; application would require an additional charge, grand jury indictment, and likely constitutional challenge. Beyond this vote, `[a comprehensive floor-vote history and full sponsored-bill list were NOT independently compiled this pass, given the file's overriding Category 1 PRIORITY status]`. His pre-suspension Clerk-office priorities and platform are effectively moot given his suspension from office.
- WFLX — "Could Mike Caruso face death penalty? Here's what Florida law says about his charges" — 2026-08-21
- CBS12 — "Could Mike Caruso face the death penalty under a law he voted to pass?" — 2026-08-21
- Newsweek — "Republican Who Backed Death Penalty for Pedophiles Faces Child Sex Charges" — 2026-08-21
Position Consistency
`[NOT ASSESSABLE IN THE ORDINARY SENSE — this candidate's file is dominated by the pending Category 1 PRIORITY finding, which supersedes any ordinary platform-consistency assessment. No further research was conducted here beyond the voting-record fact above.]`
- N/A
Flip-Flops
`[NOT ASSESSED — out of scope given the file's overriding Category 1 PRIORITY status.]`
- N/A
Endorsements
`[NOT ASSESSED — out of scope given the file's overriding Category 1 PRIORITY status and his suspension from office. Per Category 2, a Republican ballot-replacement decision remains pending (deadline 8/27/2026, not yet passed as of this research date).]`
- N/A
- 🔴 PRIORITY (carried from Category 1/2): This entire category is subordinate to the dominant fact of this file — Caruso's arrest on five felony child sexual abuse charges, suspension from office, and the pending Republican ballot-replacement decision. The one substantive Category 3 finding (his vote for the 2023 Capital Sexual Battery death-penalty law) is documented factually per extensive mainstream media coverage, not as editorializing.
- New detail this pass: reporting clarifies the alleged victim is Caruso's own grandson.
- Recommend continued monitoring per the existing Category 1/2 flags (9/2/2026 recheck date; 8/27/2026 ballot-replacement deadline, not yet passed as of this research date).
- Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — no survey response is on file for this candidate.
Community Engagement & Character 5 / 25
Community Involvement
Per his own official legislative biography (Florida House of Representatives member page), Caruso is documented as a Little League coach for over 30 years and a Cub Scout / Boy Scout leader — long-term, youth-focused volunteer roles. This is documented here as a sourced biographical fact, not as an adverse finding in itself; per this project's standard of presenting charges factually without presuming guilt, no conclusion is drawn connecting this history to the pending charges described in Category 1. The juxtaposition is noted for the operator's awareness given the nature of those pending charges (which, per Category 3, involve his own grandson).
- Florida House of Representatives — official member biography, Michael A. "Mike" Caruso — 2026-08-24
Veteran / First Responder Service
`[NOT ASSESSED — out of scope given the file's overriding Category 1 PRIORITY status.]`
- N/A
Faith-Based Involvement (scored on character consistency)
A Florida Association of Counties member directory lists Caruso's religious affiliation as Protestant; no further detail on a specific church or faith-community involvement was located, and per this category's overriding scope note, no character-consistency assessment is meaningful given the dominant Category 1 finding.
- Florida Association of Counties — member directory — 2026-08-24
Debates / Town Halls
`[NOT ASSESSED — out of scope given the file's overriding Category 1 PRIORITY status and his suspension from office.]`
- N/A
Social Media Presence & Consistency
`[NOT ASSESSED — out of scope given the file's overriding Category 1 PRIORITY status. His official Clerk's-office and legislative social media accounts (e.g. @ClerkMikeCaruso) remain publicly visible but are not meaningfully assessable for character/consistency purposes given his suspension.]`
- N/A
- 🔴 PRIORITY (carried from Category 1/2/3): This entire category is subordinate to the dominant fact of this file. The one substantive Category 4 finding — a decades-long youth-focused volunteer history (Little League coach, Scout leader) — is documented factually per his own official biography, presented for operator awareness given its direct relevance to the pending charges, and not as an adjudication of guilt.
- Recommend continued monitoring per the existing Category 1/2/3 flags (9/2/2026 recheck date; 8/27/2026 ballot-replacement deadline).
- Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — no survey response is on file for this candidate.
Campaign Transparency 5 / 25
Top Donors / Donor Composition
Pre-arrest reporting shows Caruso had raised approximately $27,000-$55,900 across various 2025-2026 filings. `[NOT ASSESSED FURTHER — moot given his suspension from office and pending Republican ballot-replacement decision — 2026-08-26]`.
- Florida Politics — pre-arrest fundraising coverage — 2026-08-26
PAC / LLC / Funneling Structures
`[NOT ASSESSED — out of scope given the file's overriding Category 1 PRIORITY status.]`
- N/A
Advertising Spend
`[NOT ASSESSED — moot given his suspension from office.]`
- N/A
Grassroots Engagement
`[NOT ASSESSED — moot given his suspension from office.]`
- N/A
Donations to Political Figures
`[NOT ASSESSED — out of scope given the file's overriding circumstances.]`
- N/A
- 🔴 PRIORITY (carried from Category 1/2/3/4): This entire category is subordinate to the dominant fact of this file — Caruso's arrest on five felony child sexual abuse charges, suspension from office, and the pending Republican ballot-replacement decision.
- Recommend continued monitoring per the existing Category 1/2/3/4 flags.
- Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — no survey response is on file for this candidate.
Issue-Based Positions 8 / 40
No detailed findings recorded yet for this category.
- 🔴 PRIORITY, MONITOR (carried forward): candidate remains suspended and facing felony charges as of this research date; recheck scheduled 9/2/26 per prior categories. No plea entered; GOP ballot-replacement window (through 8/27/26) had not yet passed as of the last check.
- Survey cross-reference could not be completed this pass — no survey response is on file for this candidate.