A Florida state attorney who refused to seek the death penalty lost her court fight Thursday with the Republican governor who reassigned her murder cases to another prosecutor, reports the Associated Press.
The state Supreme Court ruled that Gov. Rick Scott had the power to reassign cases from Orlando-area State Attorney Aramis Ayala.
"Ayala's blanket prohibition against the death penalty provided the Governor with 'good and sufficient reason' to reassign the cases at issue," the court wrote in the 5-2 decision.
The court also noted that Scott didn't mandate that the death penalty be sought in any of the cases he reassigned to neighboring prosecutor Brad King, but left it to King's discretion.
Attorney General Pam Bondi's office represented Scott before the court.
"The Governor has every right to reassign these cases to prosecutors who will uphold the laws of our great state. This year, we have seen the brutal murders of law enforcement officers in State Attorney Aramis Ayala's circuit, and her unconscionable decision to never seek the death penalty will not be tolerated," Bondi said in a prepared statement.
