Florida's First District Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday that the grand jury report into the Hope Florida Foundation must be expunged, finding the panel wrongly declared conduct unlawful without indicting anyone and erred in treating $10 million from the Centene Medicaid settlement as taxpayer money.

Governor Ron DeSantis flew to Miami and, per CBS News Miami, spoke uninterrupted for 23 minutes, waving the 19-page ruling and calling the scandal a "hoax" and the process a "kangaroo court."

On social media he called the opinion the "judicial equivalent of a death-by-firing squad to the Hope Florida Hoax."

The reversal is striking on its face. The opinion was written by Judge Lance Neff, the newest member of the appeals court, whom DeSantis appointed in March — and even DeSantis admitted it was rare for a court to come in so strongly against the idea of misappropriation.

According to CBS News Miami, the appeal was argued entirely in secret, by attorneys all opposed to the grand jury's findings — including Chris Kise, a former Donald Trump criminal defense attorney — while Leon County State Attorney Jack Campbell chose not to participate.

The Florida Trident reported the lawyers were paid $895 an hour with tax dollars, exceeding $330,000 so far.

At the core is the $10 million Centene added to its settlement with Florida over an estimated $57 million in overbilling. The court held the money "was never public money" because it went directly from Centene to the Hope Florida Foundation, never becoming state property.

The grand jury, legislative Democrats and Republicans alike — including Sen. Rick Scott, who wrote that "millions in tax dollars for poor kids have no business funding political ads" — saw it as taxpayer money.

The ruling landed 27 days before the Nov. 3 election, blunting a Democratic attack line against Attorney General James Uthmeier and U.S. Sen.

Ashley Moody, both on the ballot and both tied to the saga in the grand jury's account. Still, Rick Scott told the Tampa Bay Times the issue "still needs to be" examined and suggested the federal government should get the facts.

Democratic nominees Angie Nixon and Jose Javier Rodriguez pledged to push for investigations, with Rodriguez vowing to "go after" the $10 million if elected.GOP gubernatorial nominee Byron Donalds, by contrast, said it was time to move on.

DeSantis and his circle are now demanding criminal charges against whoever leaked the sealed grand jury report — the same report CBS News Miami published last month, for which the governor said the outlet has "a responsibility to correct the record."

Democrats continue to demand state and federal investigations, and David Jolly's campaign frames the saga as part of a broader "culture of corruption" in Tallahassee.

The court also left largely unaddressed, per CBS News Miami, that administration officials treated the $10 million as Medicaid money and reimbursed the federal government for its share. Whether voters accept the court's verdict or keep digging may now be decided at the ballot box.