In 1911 , Governor Albert W. Gilchrist appointed Swearingen , a Democrat , to Jacksonville 's municipal court . He served on the court until 1913 , when he successfully ran for mayor of Jacksonville , defeating Socialist Thomas W. Cox with over 92 % of the vote . As mayor , Swearingen began cracking down on vice , closing the bordellos and keeping minors out of pool halls . This struck a nerve with many in Jacksonville who saw value in the city 's red light district . Swearingen even used spies in the form of undercover police officers to help find hidden bordellos . Swearingen sought reelection in 1915 , though he faced three challengers in the Democratic primary : businessman Rudolph Grunthal , physician Charles Johnson , and former mayor J. E. T. Bowden . Though Swearingen came in first during the first round of the primary , he was defeated in the runoff by Bowden , receiving just 41.5 % of the vote . Bowden would go on to win in the general election , defeating Socialist I. C. Baldwin . In 1917 , newly elected Governor Sidney Johnston Catts , a member of the Prohibition Party , appointed the incumbent Florida Attorney General , Thomas F. West , to the Florida Supreme Court . Seeing Swearingen 's efforts in cracking down on Jacksonville 's red light district , Catts appointed him to finish the remaining 3 years of West 's term . Swearingen 's tenure as Florida Attorney General remains controversial , Swearingen oversaw the implementation of prohibition in Florida . Despite making use of his spy network from Jacksonville , Swearingen was unable to combat rum runners coming from Cuba and the Bahamas . Additionally , the Ocoee massacre occurred near the end of Swearingen 's tenure . In response to African-Americans attempting to vote in November of 1920 in the town of Ocoee , Florida , the entire black community of North Ocoee was razed to the ground , with as many as 56 blacks lynched or burned in their own homes . Swearingen , a noted racist , did nothing in the aftermath of the massacre to bring the perpetrators to justice . In 1920 , Swearingen did not run for reelection , instead deciding to run for Florida governor . Swearingen faced the Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives Cary A. Hardee and State Senator Lincoln Hulley in the Democratic primary . Swearingen was defeated by Hardee by over 22,000 votes . Hardee would go on to win in the general election . After this loss , Swearingen retired , moving to Miami , Florida in 1925 . Swearingen married Alice Padgett on January 1 , 1899 . They had 6 children together . Additionally , Swearingen was a member of multiple fraternal orders , including the Freemasons , the Shriners from Jacksonville 's Morocco Temple , the Independent Order of Odd Fellows , and the Knights of Pythias
Ocoee massacre
Ocoee massacre
Van C. Swearingen