Right now, 577 public attorney jobs are sitting vacant across Florida. We’re talking about assistant state attorneys who prosecute people accused of crimes, and public defenders who represent those who are accused and can’t afford a private attorney. With that understaffing and turnover, the attorneys left behind wind up with higher caseloads. That can mean delays in getting cases into courtrooms and more plea deals instead of trials. As a ballet dancer, Katerina De Lawyer is used to knowing all the right steps to take. So, when she reported to police that another dancer at her studio drugged and raped her, she was intentional about every move. “I bagged up my clothes. And I didn't touch anything in my back seat,” De Lawyer said. A Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner documented she had a vaginal tear and bruises. Police arrested her coworker from the ballet studio a few months later. “It was just, like, delay after delay,” she said. Three years later, her former coworker got a plea deal for Unlawful Use of a Two-Way Communication Device. A judge sentenced him to 60 days in jail, five years of probation, 150 community service hours, and restitution. He does not have to register as a sex offender. “You had the evidence," De Lawyer said. "You had somebody who was willing to speak up. You had somebody who was willing and, like, wanting to go to trial. And to not even take that chance to give me that opportunity, it just was, like, such a slap in the face." 10 Investigates found five different assistant state attorneys were assigned to prosecute this case. “[Each new assistant state attorney] meant finding time out of work to sit down and basically get, like, re-interviewed all over again,” De Lawyer said. “It felt like I had to try to convince every new attorney why this was important and why I wanted to go to trial.” MORE: https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/investigations/10-investigates/florida-attorney-shortage-delays-justice/67-34f0f89a-129d-4723-860f-9faa872e6999 ►Subscribe: https://on.wtsp.com/youtube ►Website: https://www.wtsp.com/ ►Facebook: https://facebook.com/10TampaBay ►X: https://twitter.com/10TampaBay