Orange County

Markeith Loyd sentenced to death for murder of Orlando police officer, files motion for new trial

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Convicted cop killer Markeith Loyd has filed a motion for a new trial.

The motion claims jurors were excluded who shouldn’t have been and that more information regarding his beating and missing eye should have been heard.

Nearly two weeks ago, a jury recommended Loyd be sentenced to death for the murder of Orlando police Lieutenant Debra Clayton.

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Markeith Loyd’s attorney was back in court today asking for money to pay a psychiatrist who testified before his sentencing that Loyd was not competent.

A judge ruled against that and sentenced Loyd to death for the murder of Clayton.

Loyd filed a 21-page motion asking for a new trial, making arguments that have been brought up in court before.

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The motion now lays those arguments out for the judge, stating that they should start all over.

Loyd claims jurors should not have been excluded because they knew what happened to Loyd during his apprehension.

He also claims jurors that were selected didn’t get the whole story when it came to the beating of Loyd during his capture.

The judge did not allow the 16-minute helicopter video, photographs of Loyd after he was arrested, his interrogation or his written notes he left at the house he was hiding in to be seen. The motion claims the jury should have been able to hear and see those things.

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The defense even brought back the fight to allow blood tests from the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Sade Dixon, to determine where her body fell.

They claim that the prosecution did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he was not defending himself when he showed up at her home. And they blamed the sheriff’s office again for the information it gave to the media about the murder, saying that the jurors should know what deputies said while he was on the run.

Read: Markeith Loyd sentenced to death in killing of Orlando police Lt Debra Clayton

“In Mr. Loyd’s mind, this wildly inaccurate portrayal had a sinister purpose: to paint him as a homicidal maniac, a wild dog who had to be shot on site, no questions asked,” Loyd’s defense attorney said.

The defense believes that information would have helped the jury understand more about why he feared for his life and why he felt the need to kill Clayton when she approached him in the Walmart that day.

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The judge has not yet heard this motion.

Other paperwork also filed suggests an appeal is in the works.

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Shannon Butler

Shannon Butler, WFTV.com

Shannon joined the Eyewitness News team in 2013.