Broward prosecutor under fire for faking supervisor’s signature
A Broward prosecutor is under fire for faking a supervisor’s signature on a document reducing charges for a drunk driving defendant — a document that was never submitted but was discovered when the lawyer accidentally left the original in a copy machine.
Chandler Lefevere, an attorney in the felony trial unit at the Broward State Attorney’s Office, was suspended without pay for five days, starting on July 1, and will be required to take an ethics course, according to a complaint filed with the Florida Bar.
The infraction also compelled the State Attorney’s Office to notify all defense lawyers handling cases that crossed Lefevere’s desk. Although there’s no indication that this has happened before, supervisors are reviewing her previous cases.
Lefevere was admitted to the Bar in 2021 after graduating from Florida International University.
According to the Bar complaint, Lefevere was handling the downgrading of charges last summer against a three-time offender of driving under the influence of alcohol. The third-degree felony was eventually converted to a misdemeanor, and the woman was eventually sentenced to nine months in jail. Her probation on an earlier charge was also revoked. She remains in custody in Broward County.
Lefevere was supposed to handle the paperwork explaining the reduction from felony to misdemeanor charge, but instead of getting her supervisor’s signature, she copied it from a separate memo, taped it onto the document she needed and made a copy.
She never submitted it.
The copy with the taped signature was discovered in an office copier and given to the supervisor whose name was forged. The copy Lefevere made was found on her desk, according to the Bar complaint.
When originally confronted by higher-ranking supervisors, Lefevere said she obtained the proper authorization and signature. When shown the forged copy and its taped source, she tearfully admitted her actions and said, truthfully (according to the Bar complaint), that she never submitted the forged copy to anyone.
Even in complaining to the Florida Bar, Deputy Chief Assistant State Attorney Neva Rainford-Smith had kind words for Lefevere, saying she had a “stellar reputation” and calling her “well-regarded by her peers and supervisors alike.”
“As such, we ask for leniency,” … including a diversion program and “any other penalties as the Bar sees fit, as this would enable her to salvage her career and rebuild her reputation.”
Defense lawyer Anthony Bruno, who handled the DUI case, said there were good reasons to downgrade the charges because there was no valid legal reason to stop his client. He said Lefevere was a tough prosecutor. “I understand the need for discipline,” Bruno said. “But knowing how that office operates, I can understand why she felt she was under pressure to get things done. For lack of a better word, she did it for the right reasons.”
Rafael Olmeda can be reached at rolmeda@sunsentinel.com or 954-356-4457.