Florida’s judicial ethics commission has brought formal misconduct charges against a recently elected Broward County judge who spotlighted a controversial book and circulated a deepfake audio clip during her 2024 campaign.
Lauren Peffer, who assumed her role as a County Court judge in January following her August 2024 election victory, ran on a platform centered on restoring faith in the judicial system. As part of that message, Peffer drew attention to a self-published exposé titled The Ninth Circus Court of Florida, authored by a former worker within the Orlando-area court system.
She referenced the book during her interview with the South Florida Sun Sentinel Editorial Board while seeking its endorsement—an endorsement the publication ultimately declined to offer.
Though the book portrayed the Ninth Judicial Circuit as rife with corruption, it had little visible impact at the time of Peffer’s campaign. It had no reviews and did not attract any significant media coverage.
When asked by the Sun Sentinel in June about the lack of public or institutional response to the book’s claims, Peffer shared a link to an audio file she said featured a discussion about the book between Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Carlos Muñiz, Ninth Circuit Chief Judge Lisa Munyon, and Justice Renatha Francis of the Florida Supreme Court.
However, the recording was determined to be fabricated. All three judges identified it as a fake, a finding echoed in the official notice of charges filed by the Judicial Qualifications Commission (JQC). The JQC accused Peffer of violating ethical standards by undermining the integrity, impartiality, and independence expected of judicial officeholders.
“Artificially created deepfakes are a tool for misinformation and digital impersonation used to influence elections and spread disinformation,” the commission stated in its charging document. “Your campaign theme was to restore the public’s trust, but your behavior did the opposite and brought harm to the dignity and integrity of the judiciary.”
In a July interview, Peffer admitted the book’s issues and vowed to stop referencing it during her campaign. Despite the controversy, she went on to win her seat with 52.5% of the vote.
Still, the commission asserted that her actions never should have occurred. Peffer reportedly acknowledged she had never contacted the book’s author, never consulted the judges named in the recording, and never verified the authenticity of the audio clip before promoting it.
“Rather than promote public confidence in the judiciary, your actions eroded public confidence by perpetuating a false perception of illegal, unethical, or immoral conduct by Justices of the Florida Supreme Court, a Chief Judge, and others working within the judicial branch,” the JQC wrote.
Peffer has 20 days to respond in writing to the charges.
In a statement issued Friday, Peffer emphasized that she has no connection to the book’s author, who also hosted the deepfake audio on a personal website.
“My sole intent was to provide an example of the scrutiny a judge faces and why the judiciary must hold itself to the highest moral standard,” she said. “While unintentional, I take responsibility for my actions and apologize for the unfortunate effects my reference may have caused my fellow judiciary members.”