Katherine Fernandez Rundle (born March 5, 1950) is the current State Attorney for Miami-Dade County in Florida.
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Education
Rundle received a BA and MA in Criminology from the University of Miami and an LLB from the Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge.
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Career
Prior to her appointment in 1993 as Florida's first hispanic female State Attorney, Rundle served as an Assistant State Attorney for 15 years. In her role as Chief Assistant, she acted as legal counsel to the Miami-Dade County Grand Jury and created the State's first domestic violence unit.
Rundle helped write and pass the Florida Punishment Code, and was involved in the formation of Dade County's Drug Court, Truancy Intervention Program, and Juvenile Assessment Center.
Child Support Program
State Attorney Fernandez Rundle is the only State Attorney in Florida operating a Child Support Enforcement Office, with over 65,000 cases processed annually by her staff. She created legislation which added child support orders to the Florida Crime Information Computer (FCIC) making them accessible to every Florida police officer.
Seal and Expunge Program
In 2006, partnering with the Clerk of the Miami-Dade Courts Harvey Ruvin, the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, Miami Dade Elections Department, and South Florida Workforce, State Attorney Fernandez Rundle created the "Second Chance" Seal and Expunge Program. Monthly workshops held in different parts of the county offer free assistance to eligible ex-offenders in completing the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's (FDLE) application for the sealing or expungement of a single qualifying case. In many instances, eligible ex-offenders are also able to apply to have their civil rights restored once FDLE has determined their eligibility.
Human Trafficking Task Force
In 2012 State Attorney Fernandez Rundle created a broad coalition of law enforcement agencies and community services to combat human trafficking including a prosecution unit of specialized attorneys and investigators to target human traffickers.
Veterans Court
In January 2017, State Attorney Fernandez Rundle marked the creation of a Miami-Dade Veterans Court along with numerous partner stakeholders. After years of planning and coordination and receiving a U.S. Department of Justice grant, the Veteran's Court got off the ground with a liaison staffer, stationed at the jail, to help identify veterans and refer them to necessary services within hours of their arrest.
Darren Rainey investigation
Rundle's office declined to prosecute four prison guards who were alleged to be responsible for the death of Darren Rainey, an African-American prisoner who suffered from schizophrenia. In 2012, the prison guards locked Rainey inside of a shower for nearly two hours after he smeared feces on himself. Another inmate said he heard Rainey yelling and kicking the door and asking to be taken out. Prosecutors claimed that the inmate's claims were not supported by other evidence from the prison, including video footage. Nurses said that when his body was pulled out, burns covered 90 percent of his body.
Witnesses said that Rainey's skin appeared to be peeled back or reddish, but an autopsy found the marks were caused by friction, including possibly during efforts to revive him. Rundle's report concluded that Rainey's death was an accident resulting from his mental condition, a heart condition, and "confinement in the shower."
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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