Retired prosecutor Dave Phelps will be sworn in Monday as provisional interim Third Circuit State Attorney.
Third Circuit Chief Judge Mark Feagle made the announcement Sunday afternoon.
Feagle, who made the appointment, will swear Phelps in at 9 a.m. in Courtroom 1 of the Columbia County Courthouse.
Phelps, a resident of Taylor County, has been a member of the Florida Bar since 1978, Feagle said in a press release. He spent his entire 35-year career in the Third Circuit and served under four state attorneys. Phelps retired in 2013.
"Mr. Phelps is a legal scholar who is certain to have the respect of his staff, the citizens and all branches of our government," Feagle said in the release. "On behalf of the Third Judicial Circuit, I wish to express my sincerest appreciation to Mr. Phelps for graciously accepting this honorable position for the benefit of the citizens of the Third Circuit."
It is not clear how long Phelps will serve. Governor Ron DeSantis has the option to appoint a permanent interim state attorney to finish the term of Jeff Siegmeister, who resigned last week. His term lasts through 2020.
DeSantis told Feagle that he will not make such an appointment before Jan. 1, and that should he do so he will "vet multiple candidates" beforehand.
See full coverage in Tuesday's Lake City Reporter.