April 11, 2017

Black female prosecutor in Orlando refuses to seek death penalty for perp who killed two women--one a police officer


Last December in Orlando a charmless goblin by the name of "Markeith Loyd" fatally shot his girlfriend, critically wounded her brother, and vanished.  On January 9th a female police officer spotted Loyd and tried to arrest him.  He fatally shot the officer, then hijacked a car and fled.  He was captured ten days later.

Now, with his trial approaching, the Florida prosecutor who was handling the case has said she won't seek the death penalty in *any* capital cases, even though Florida law allows the death penalty. 

Democrat Aramis Ayala won an upset victory in November after receiving $1.38 million from a political-action committee called Florida Safety & Justice PAC.  About $1 million of her funds came from liberal billionaire George Soros.

Ms. Ayala was one of at least 11 candidates for prosecutor in 2015 and 2016 who received generous contributions from a network of state Safety & Justice committees funded by Mr. Soros, a staunch opponent of the death penalty and supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement.  Nine of the 11 candidates, most of whom were black or Hispanic, in 10 states won their races thanks in part to large contributions from Soros, allowing them to vastly outspend their opponents.

At a March 16 press conference Ayala said "While I currently do have discretion to pursue death sentences, I have determined that doing so is not in the best interest of this community or in the best interests of justice.”

Florida governor Rick Scott responded by removing Ayala from all 21 first-degree murder cases she was assigned to.  Ms. Ayala countered by accusing the governor of abusing his power.  Her attorney said she plans to fight the governor’s order.

The NAACP's Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the Florida Legislative Black Caucus are supporting Ayala.  Members of the Black Caucus held a press conference last month blasting Mr. Scott’s decision to pull the Loyd case “an unfettered and uninformed power grab.”  Democratic state Sen. Perry Thurston, chairman of the black caucus, said “Gov. Scott’s hasty response to State Attorney Ayala’s announcement set a dangerous precedent and is a slap in the face of the voters who carried her into office,”
Here are pics of Ayala and Markeith Loyd:


So let's review:  Perp kills a black female police officer, as well as his girlfriend, nearly kills the girlfriend's brother, hijacks a car and so on.  But the state's attorney says seeking the death penalty "is not in the best interest of this community or in the best interests of justice.”

Hmmm...I wonder if she expressed her opposition to the death penalty before her "upset election"?

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