Black lawmakers slam Scott for yanking attorney

TALLAHASSEE — Members of the Florida Legislative Black Caucus slammed Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday for removing Orange-Osceola State Attorney Aramis Ayala from the Markeith Loyd case because she won’t seek the death penalty.

“Governor 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,” said Sen. Perry Thurston, D-Fort Lauderdale, chairman of the Black Caucus. “In this way, [his] order operates as little more than an unfettered and uninformed power grab by the governor’s office over a difference of opinion.”

He asked Scott to rescind his order removing Ayala, Florida’s first AfricanAmerican state attorney. But the governor refused.

“Governor Scott stands by his decision to assign State Attorney Brad King to prosecute Markeith Loyd after State Attorney Ayala refused to recuse herself,” Scott spokeswoman Kerri Wyland wrote in an email. “As Governor Scott has continued to say, these families deserve a state attorney who will aggressively prosecute Loyd to the fullest extent of the law and justice must be served.”

Loyd is accused of killing his pregnant girlfriend, Sade Dixon, in December, and Orlando Police Lt. Debra Clayton in January while on the run from authorities.

When Ayala said she would not seek the death penalty for Loyd or in any other case, Scott replaced her on the case with State Attorney Brad King of the Fifth Judicial Circuit, which covers Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Marion and Sumter counties.

During a hearing Monday, Ayala asked for a delay in proceedings while she considers whether to challenge Scott’s order. King on Wednesday filed a motion asking the judge to deny her request.

Ayala’s declaration that she won’t seek the death penalty under any circumstance spurred vocal denunciations from Central Florida Republicans. Rep. Bob Cortes, R-Altamonte Springs, wants Scott to go even further and suspend her from office.

Rep. Scott Plakon, RLongwood, has threatened to cut her office budget.

Reactions to Ayala’s decision are more complex among Democrats.

Sen. Randolph Bracy, DOrlando, a black caucus member, said many in the African-American community disagree with Ayala’s decision not to seek the death penalty for Loyd; Dixon and Clayton were black. But, he said, Scott overstepped his authority in removing her from the case.

“Whether I agree or not, she has the authority to make that decision,” he said. “And if the people disagree with the decision she’s making, they’ll vote her out. But it’s not the governor’s decision to make.”

Sen. Victor Torres, D-Orlando, who is Hispanic and a former New York police officer, disagrees with Ayala’s stance, but also said he respects her discretion as a prosecutor.

“I strongly believe that when any law enforcement officer loses their lives in the line of duty and in the service to others, all available legal consequences should be considered,” he said.

Scott said earlier this week he’s still considering his options regarding Ayala and hasn’t ruled out suspending her from office.

Aramis Ayala has said she will not seek death penalty in Markeith Loyd case.