According to documents, a woman was sexually harassed in DeSantis’ Florida State Guard

TALLAHASSEE – The leader of a small unit deployed by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Florida State Guard to the Texas-Mexico border repeatedly made unwanted sexual advances toward a woman he was supervising, according to the woman’s attorney. He says the organization responded to the complaints by retaliating against the victim and a witness who reported the behavior.

Michael DiGiacomo, a high-ranking member of the State Guard, is accused of making vulgar remarks about the woman’s genitals and body and other degrading comments in front of other State Guard members.

“Daddy gets what daddy wants,” DiGiacomo told the woman in the presence of another State Guard member during the drive to Texas, according to testimony. Later, in a phone call played over Bluetooth in the car, he allegedly asked her, “Are you going to make daddy a sandwich?” while another State Guard member laughed in the background.

The sexual harassment continued for at least four months, witnesses said, and escalated in March during deployment to Texas, where a five-man unit was sent to combat immigration. While there, the woman told another state guard member she was “scared and needed help.” At one point, she called police in Del Rio, Texas, and said she feared someone had broken into her hotel room, a police report said.

After the alleged harassment was reported to State Guard superiors, the woman was relieved of her post, which she viewed as punishment for reporting the behavior, her attorney, Tiffany Cruz, told the Times/Herald. The woman’s name is being withheld because she is allegedly a victim of sexual harassment.

“My client courageously reported sexual harassment within the Florida State Guard and expected that leadership would handle the matter appropriately,” Cruz said. “Instead, my client was met with retaliation that is both unlawful and unacceptable.”

Cruz said DeSantis’ office was also informed of the allegations via email in March. His office did not respond to a request for comment.

The incident – the second known case of alleged sexual harassment and retaliation within DeSantis’ paramilitary force since its reactivation in 2022 – threatens to further damage the reputation of the young organization that DeSantis has placed at the center of his immigration enforcement program.

Since its founding, it has suffered from high staff turnover and accusations of unprofessionalism and questionable recruitment. The members of the State Guard are volunteers who receive a daily salary.

The State Guard acknowledged that it is currently investigating the sexual misconduct case, but declined to comment on what actions it has taken in response to the sexual harassment allegations.

Sierra Dean, a State Guard spokeswoman, said of the latest case that once the investigation is complete, “we will take the necessary actions to maintain a safe environment for our members and the people we serve.”

However, Cruz said that state Guard leadership promoted DiGiacomo after being made aware of the sexual harassment allegations.

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“We are committed to ensuring their rights are protected and those responsible are held accountable for their actions,” Cruz said. “This situation underscores the urgent need for employers to take allegations of harassment seriously and support those who come forward, rather than punish them.”

Bad behavior reported

The Times/Herald contacted each State Guard member named in this article. None of them responded to this story, and some left unanswered messages. According to State Guard policy, members are “strictly prohibited from engaging with media” without approval from their chain of command. If they speak to reporters, members can be disciplined.

DiGiacomo, a South Florida boat captain who owns a yacht insurance agency, is an E-9 grade sergeant major in the State Guard, the highest rank a soldier can attain. In the U.S. Army, holders of this rank serve as senior advisers for developing strategies and ensuring that the commander’s vision and mission intent are carried out.

According to witnesses, several members of the State Guard noticed that he began to show unusual interest in the Guard members during a month-long training camp in February.

A witness reported that DiGiacomo, 52, repeatedly called the woman, mentioned her in casual conversations and made every effort to spend time with her.

At one point, DiGiacomo accused a member, Axl David, of “spreading rumors” that he and the woman had been in a room together during training camp — a claim David denied, according to his statement. Days later, DiGiacomo told David that he had been in her room once. He explained that he had helped the woman with some personal issues and that David was “jeopardizing her healing/recovery,” David wrote in his statement.

DiGiacomo then said he planned to take the woman with him on the deployment in Texas, “apparently so he could be with her for the entire duration of the deployment,” David wrote.

“I feel DiGiacomo is abusing his power and authority and is distracting from his obvious wrongdoing by targeting others,” he wrote.

In another instance, DiGiacomo boasted to a state guard under his command that he had revved his white Camaro while she was in the car with him in order to “make her pussy purr with the roar of the engine,” according to testimony obtained by the Times/Herald.

“I felt extremely uncomfortable during the conversation,” Joshua Nelson, a State Guard member and former Tampa police officer, wrote in a statement.

On the road trip to Texas in March, DiGiacomo asked the woman what she found attractive in men. She did not participate in the conversation, but DiGiacomo told her that he “likes a woman’s assets, strongly emphasizing the ‘ass’ part of the word,” Nelson’s report states.

While in Texas, the woman confided in Nelson that DiGiacomo would not leave her alone and continued to sexually harass her with vulgar comments, Nelson wrote. She later explained that at one point, DiGiacomo tried to hold her hand as he told her he wanted to “‘manifest’ things into existence” with her, the report said.

Retribution in the game?

In witness statements, those who reported the harassment stated that there had been attempts at intimidation.

After learning of the alleged harassment, Nelson monitored the situation more closely to ensure DiGiacomo “was not left alone with her for safety reasons.” At that point, the woman began avoiding DiGiacomo and told Nelson she did not feel safe around him, Nelson wrote in a report.

Patrick McDonough, one of DiGiacomo’s friends, then told Nelson not to let the woman “influence” him. He then added: “Tell her if she fights back, I’ll fight back too,” his statement said.

When Nelson reported the situation to his supervisors, one of them said the comments could be perceived as a threat. Although Nelson said he personally took the comments as a “passive-aggressive threat,” another supervisor advised him to stay in his hotel room in Del Rio, Texas, lock the door and await further instructions, the report said.

Previous harassment alleged

The incident occurred nearly a year after a State Guard officer filed a harassment complaint against Lt. Col. Peter Jennison of the Florida National Guard, who led the State Guard’s first training course last year.

Within two weeks, she was isolated from her coworkers, excluded from meetings, not informed of schedule changes and denied access to the State Guard training grounds, she wrote in her July 27 resignation letter.

She wrote that then-State Guard Chief of Staff Ben Fairbrother also retaliated against her by giving her a poor performance review, according to her resignation letter.

“The harassment and retaliation directed against me by the leadership of the Florida State Guard has caused irreparable harm to my health and personal well-being,” she wrote in her resignation letter, obtained through a public records request. “Mr. Fairbrother has engaged in a practice of deception and falsehoods to damage my reputation and diminish the value of my experience to the team.”

Details of the alleged harassment were not included in the letter. The military department’s inspector general investigated her claim of retaliation and dismissed it because she did not have enough evidence, the department’s report said. The woman declined to comment.

Fairbrother, who was selected for the post by DeSantis’ office, resigned in September. Jennison has since retired from the Florida National Guard. Neither responded to calls or text messages seeking comment.

In 2019, the Florida National Guard was embroiled in a series of sexual misconduct allegations and cover-ups dating back a decade, and the organization’s deputy commander resigned during the investigation.