FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — — A fired Florida health department data manager charged with illegally accessing state computers after she publicly accused officials of wanting to make COVID-19 statistics look less dire has reached an agreement with prosecutors that should result in the case being dropped.
Jones, who lost a bid for Congress last month, was charged in January 2021 with one count of offenses against users of computers, computer systems, computer networks and electronic devices. Investigators say that in late 2020, months after she was fired, Jones illegally accessed a state emergency-alert messaging system known as ReadyOp.
“We try to resolve most cases outside of trial,” she said. If convicted at trial, Jones would have faced up to five years in prison, though any significant time behind bars would have been unlikely.criticizing her plea agreement, saying"no justice would be served by continuing the charade." She accused Gov. Ron DeSantis of personally ordering the raid, and said agents pointed guns at her two young children.
She publicly suggested that she pushed back when health department managers wanted her to manipulate information to paint a rosier picture as DeSantis pushed to reopen Florida businesses earlier than most other states and keep restrictions light in small, rural counties.
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