Ayala cited numerous problems with the death penalty — on hold for more than a year statewide because of court rulings — as the rationale for her decision, which she said she reached after “extensive and painstaking thought and consideration.”
The death penalty has not proven to be a deterrent to crime and the cases drag on for years, adding to victims’ anguish, according to Ayala.
“I do understand that this is a controversial issue but what is not controversial is the evidence that led me to this decision,” she said.
But Republican state House members from the region held a hurriedly scheduled news conference Thursday morning and attacked Ayala for failing to pursue the death penalty against Loyd.
The lawmakers accused the prosecutor of failing to do her job, which they maintain requires her to seek the death penalty in certain instances, including cases in which law-enforcement officers were killed.
Rep. Bob Cortes, an Altamonte Springs Republican whose district includes part of Orange County, said he was outraged and called it “a slap in the face” to Loyd’s alleged victims and the law-enforcement community at large.
