ORLANDO, Fla. _ The upcoming trial for convicted killer Markeith Loyd in the 2017 shooting of Orlando police Lt. Debra Clayton was postponed Monday due to public health concerns over the coronavirus.
Circuit Judge Leticia Marques issued an order canceling Loyd's jury trial, which was scheduled to start May 1, because of the "current coronavirus crisis," court records show. In response to the pandemic, Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles Canady suspended most face-to-face legal proceedings for at least two weeks in state courts on March 13, including all grand jury proceedings, jury selection proceedings, and criminal and civil jury trials.
In her order, Marques said Loyd's trial would be rescheduled once the ban on limited trial court proceedings was lifted.
Loyd, 44, could face execution if convicted of first-degree murder in Clayton's killing. Police say Loyd fatally shot Clayton on Jan. 9, 2017, at a Walmart store after she tried to arrest him for murdering his pregnant ex-girlfriend Sade Dixon in December 2016.
A sergeant when she was killed, Clayton was posthumously promoted to lieutenant.
A 12-person jury found Loyd guilty of first-degree murder last year for fatally shooting Dixon and her unborn child, but he avoided the death penalty after the same jury recommended he be sentenced to life in prison without parole.
