WASHINGTON >> Florida is suing the Justice Department to stop federal authorities from blocking the state’s investigation into the second attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.

On Wednesday, the state’s Republican Attorney General Ashley Moody filed a complaint against Attorney General Merrick Garland after the Justice Department told Florida to temporarily halt its investigation until the federal probe concluded. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis previously said that Florida would pursue state charges against the suspect, Ryan Routh, who is already facing federal charges.

Florida officials were told to not interview witnesses and that they could only cooperate with the federal investigation, the lawsuit says. Justice Department officials cited the federal law, which says an attempted assassination of a political candidate shall be investigated by the FBI and that state jurisdiction is suspended if the federal government steps in, according to the complaint.

Florida says it’s suing to “vindicate its sovereign interest to investigate violations of state law, as delay may impact the outcome of any prosecution.”

The Justice Department declined to comment. Markenzy Lapointe, the top federal prosecutor for the Southern District of Florida, noted in a letter to Moody that was filed in court that the law doesn’t prevent Florida from prosecuting once the federal case is over. And the law “in no way prevents the sharing of federal evidence with state authorities after the federal matter has ended,” he wrote.