Florida Prosecutor Opposed to Death Penalty Receives Racist Threats
Authorities in Florida are attempting to determine the source of racist letters鈥攐ne containing a noose鈥攎ailed to a state prosecutor who announced her opposition to the death penalty while handling a high-profile cop-killing case.
Aramis Ayala, Florida鈥檚 first African American state attorney, received the racist threats in the mail in late March after she announced she聽 would not seek the death penalty against any defendant, including accused cop-killer Markeith Loyd, according to various media reports.
Loyd, 41, whose courtroom statements suggest he鈥檚 a sovereign citizen, is charged with first-degree murder in the Jan. 9 death of Orlando police Lt. Debra Clayton who was trying to arrest him for killing his pregnant girlfriend in December.
When Ayala announced she wouldn鈥檛 pursue the death penalty against Loyd, Florida Gov. Rick Scott removed her from prosecuting the Loyd case and 22 other first-degree murder cases, the reported.
The Republican governor said he took the unusual action because the Orange-Osceola State Attorney聽鈥渨on't fight for justice.鈥� Ayala subsequently filed聽state and federal lawsuits challenging his decision removing the cases from her office.
As that controversy boiled, the racist threats began, Ayala has said in media interviews.
鈥淚 have gotten a lot of pushback,鈥� Ayala told Orlando radio station . 鈥淚 received a noose that was mailed to my office. I received several types of derogatory and racist remarks to me, personally and professionally.鈥�
The first threatening letter arrived at her office on March 20, the Orlando Weekly reported. It contained a statement that said: 鈥淪OONER OR LATER A N-----聽WILL BE A N-----.鈥� 聽
鈥淭he envelope also contained three white business cards with the words 鈥榊ou are an Honorary Member of S.P.O.N.G.E.鈥� on one side and 鈥楽ociety for the Prevention of N------聽Getting Everything鈥� on the other side,鈥� the weekly newspaper reported.
Another mailing sent to Ayala鈥檚 office contained a small-scale noose made of heavy twine.
The elected prosecutor said she 鈥渂elieves the hangman鈥檚 noose was meant as a threat to her as a public official鈥� and that the mailings are hate crimes, the Orlando newspaper reported.
Sheriff detectives and U.S. Postal Service inspectors are attempting to determine the source of the mailings, but there have been no arrests, the newspaper reported.
Florida radio station reported that more than 40 former judges and prosecutors are supporting Ayala in her lawsuit against the Florida governor, describing the legal challenge as a 鈥渄e facto political battle over the death penalty.鈥�
