State Attorney Gladson: Circuit growth outpaces prosecutor’s office staffing

File photo: State Attorney for the Fifth Judicial Circuit Bill Gladson speaks during the Marion County Legislative Delegation at the Klein Conference Center at the College of Cenral Florida in Ocala, Fla. on Wednesday, January 8, 2025. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2025.

State Attorney William Gladson warned state legislators during a recent meeting that population growth and case filings in the Fifth Circuit have far exceeded his office’s ability to hire prosecutors and staff, even as the level of crimes against the elderly has soared.

“Since the year 2000, the circuit [population] has grown 79.65%,” Gladson told Marion County’s state legislative delegation during its annual meeting held Oct. 1 at the College of Central Florida. “In the past 10 years, the population of the circuit has grown by 29%. The number of full-time equivalents, FTEs — those are employees that I have — has grown 2.9%. We have a massive increase in population and not a corresponding increase in funding for prosecutor positions.”

Gladson said the shortage extends beyond attorneys.

“It’s not just prosecutors, it’s victim advocates, support staff, it’s investigators, it’s all of those things,” he said.

The state attorney, who oversees roughly 104 prosecutors and 242 employees across Marion, Sumter, Lake, Citrus and Hernando counties, added that his office’s funding lags other judicial circuits.

“If you were to take our total budget — total GR budget — divided by population, we are the lowest funded of all the circuits in the whole state, at around $15 and something change per person. The average is around $22,” he said.

As previously reported, during a budget workshop on July 23, Gladson told commissioners the budget request for the Fifth Circuit was “4.6% less than our request from last year.”

Gladson said he made the cut by doing away with the early intervention program and by spreading that work among all of the attorneys who work in his office.

Gladson acknowledged then the county was getting a couple more judges but that his request to the state to fund an additional 28 positions was not granted.

“I don’t know if [the new judges] are going to be assigned a criminal [docket] or not, but if they are, that’s an issue for us. We don’t have the staffing to add to the [new] dockets. If you create a whole new docket, you’ve created a secretary, investigator, victim advocate and three or four lawyers,” he said during the workshop.

Elder exploitation on the rise

Gladson told legislators that the region’s aging population is changing the nature of crime in Marion County.

“The amount of theft for our elderly population from exploitation and things like that that is reported in Marion County is around $1 million a month, if not more, just from exploitation-type cases,” he said. “If you go back 10 years, the total theft — you know, talking everything, all losses — were around $11 million for the whole year. So we have … the growth has had an impact.”

Rep. Ryan Chamberlin, R–District 24, followed up on Gladson’s figures.

“Just so I’m clear, you said circuit growth has been 79% and staff growth has been 2.9%?” he asked.

“Since 2000, it was 79%. Since 2010 it’s a 29% increase in population, but our FTEs have only grown by 2.9%,” Gladson confirmed.

“Has that created a backlog for Marion County … and would the funding help?” Chamberlin asked.

“To be completely candid, it’s helped us be a lot more efficient. I think I wouldn’t use the word backlog. … We moved through cases quickly here in this circuit and in this county,” Gladson replied.

He said Marion County prosecutors handled roughly 39,000 complaints last year with about 35 lawyers, but that the volume limits specialization.

“I don’t have a specialized unit to prosecute crimes against the elderly. All I have is elderly people between The Villages and On Top of the World … That’s what I’ve got.”

Rep. J.J. Grow, R–District 23, praised Gladson’s collaboration with law enforcement.

“Bill and I have gotten to know each other really well, and the one thing I appreciate is how close you work with law enforcement. Crime is a terrible thing, justice is a beautiful thing, but without your office working closely with law enforcement to prosecute and get these things done, it doesn’t happen.”

Rep. Richard Gentry, R–District 27, asked about workload per attorney.

Gladson answered, “The average felony caseload was around 200 per person. It could be much higher … much lower … but on average around 200. That’s a rotating, too. It’s not just 200 for the year — it’s every day they have 200 cases.”

“As an attorney myself, I think that’s overwhelming,” Gentry responded.

Gladson closed by underscoring his commitment to local safety.

“I just want to keep this community safe. It’s where my children were born, it’s where I live. It’s important to me.”

Data shows how caseload has increased

State Attorney’s Office records show that despite fluctuations, felony and misdemeanor filings across the Fifth Judicial Circuit have grown.