State Attorney Aramis Ayala's petition to stay on almost two dozen death penalty cases has been denied.
- State Attorney Aramis Ayala wants Supreme Court to keep her assigned death penalty cases
- Florida Supreme Court has denied her request
- READ: Ayala Petition to Supreme Court Denied
- READ: State Attorney Aramis Ayala's Petition to Stay Cases Handed to Brad King
In March, Gov. Rick Scott used his executive authority to remove Ayala from 22 cases following her announcement that she would not seek the death penalty in any case she prosecutes in the 9th Judicial Circuit.
Ayala is fighting that decision through the state Supreme Court. She requested the court to temporarily keep her assigned to those 22 cases despite the governor's order.
On Tuesday, the Florida Supreme Court denied her petition, explaining that the court would not decide to temporarily go against the governor's order until it has evaluated his decision in a separate court petition.
"The Petition asks this Court to answer the same question of law, on a temporary basis, that the Court is asked to address in the separately filed Petition for Writ of Quo Warranto. That question is more properly addressed after both parties have been heard in the Quo Warranto action and will not be answered on a 'temporary' basis," The Florida Supreme Court denial reads.
The Quo Warranto action filed by Ayala challenges the governor's authority to interfere with her prosecutorial discretion.
Scott reassigned those 22 death penalty cases to State Attorney Brad King. For now, King will continue to handle those cases, which include the Markeith Loyd case and the Juan Rosario case.
News 13 has reached out to Ayala's office at the courthouse for reaction to the Supreme Court's decision. Her office has yet to respond.