ORLANDO, Fla. – Authorities are dropping one misdemeanor count against a man charged with fatally shooting an Orlando police officer.
Prosecutors on Friday dropped a charge of resisting a law enforcement officer without violence against Markeith Loyd.
Loyd's case has prompted a legal skirmish between Orange-Osceola State Attorney Aramis Ayala and Gov. Rick Scott.
The charge stemmed from Loyd's arrest in January following a weeklong manhunt after the fatal shooting of Orlando Police Lt. Debra Clayton.
An arrest video appears to show an officer kicking Loyd after he crawled out of a home where he'd been hiding. Loyd is blind in one eye, apparently as a result of his arrest.
“This was as a result of the injuries Loyd received during his response to resistance,” Lt. Dan Brady emailed Orlando Police Chief Chief John Mina on Jan. 18.
Ayala announced in March that she wouldn't seek the death penalty in Loyd's case or any others.
Scott responded by transferring almost two dozen death penalty cases, including Loyd's, to neighboring State Attorney Brad King.
An Orlando Police Department spokeswoman said that the resisting arrest charge was dropped because King's office is pursuing the death penalty on the other, more serious charges.
"The fact is that Loyd is facing several serious felonies and SA King is seeking the death penalty," the police spokeswoman said. "The resisting charges are the least serious charges in a slew of violent capital and life felony charges he faces."
News 6 legal analyst said the resisting arrest charge would have distracted from the more severe charges Loyd faces.
"It's an insignificant charge, it means nothing, it has no bearing on the case otherwise," Kramer said. "The only thing it's going to do is make things more confusing for the jury."
Loyd's next court hearing in connection with the Clayton case is scheduled for May 31, according to court records.
Loyd is also accused of murder in the shooting death of his pregnant ex-girlfriend, Sade Dixon.
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