Lawyers for the man killed last year by Osceola County deputy sheriffs as he tried to leave the scene of an alleged shoplifting is preparing a lawsuit against the Sheriff’s Office, citing “excessive, unreasonable and unnecessary force.”
The pending federal lawsuit, which names Sheriff Marcos López, comes a year since 20-year-old Jayden Baez was gunned down by deputies Scott Koffinas and Ramy Yacoub, who for the first time since the incident have been publicly named.
Attorneys Mark NeJame and Albert Yonfa also claimed the Orange-Osceola State Attorney’s Office is investigating the Sheriff’s Office for its handling of the shooting. NeJame and Yonfa previously criticized OCSO as trying to engage in a cover-up, including falsifying reports.
The legal complaint will be filed in the coming days, NeJame said.
“State Attorney Monique Worrell and her team have quietly been acting on this,” NeJame told reporters. “We have learned through our sources and investigation that her office has issued subpoenas to various deputies of the department.”
Keisha Mulfort, spokesperson for the State Attorney’s Office, didn’t confirm or deny the attorneys’ claims but said details of its investigation into the shooting are “not currently available for public consumption.
“We will be sure to provide a full report once that investigation has concluded,” she said.
In April 2022, deputies in unmarked vehicles participating in a nearby training exercise converged on the car driven by Baez after reports of shoplifting involving about $46 worth of pizza and trading cards. Deputies opened fire as Baez tried to flee, killing Baez and injuring two passengers. Charges against the two passengers for the alleged shoplifting were later dropped.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement, tasked with investigating the shooting, submitted its report to the State Attorney’s Office months later, but Worrell has yet to issue a decision regarding any charges. Past attempts to obtain FDLE’s investigative file and Baez’s autopsy report have been denied.
But Baez’s family’s lawyers have accused the Sheriff’s Office of covering up the events leading to and following the shooting, pointing to reports filed on the same day at the same time more than a week after it happened. Experts have criticized the deputies’ tactics in the shooting, calling it a “tactical nightmare” to use force in response to shoplifting.
Despite the length of the investigation, Alejandro Baez, Jayden Baez’s father, supports Worrell’s investigation. Sitting alongside NeJame and Yonfa, Baez said the year since his son was killed has been painful.
“Any parent would want the truth if they lost a child, like I did,” he said. “I will never know what it is to be called ‘abuelo.’ The truth has to come out.”
In April 2022, deputies in unmarked vehicles participating in a nearby training exercise converged on the car driven by Baez after reports of shoplifting involving about $46 worth of pizza and trading cards. Deputies opened fire as Baez tried to flee, killing Baez and injuring two passengers. Charges against the two passengers for the alleged shoplifting were later dropped.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement, tasked with investigating the shooting, submitted its report to the State Attorney’s Office months later, but Worrell has yet to issue a decision regarding any charges. Past attempts to obtain FDLE’s investigative file and Baez’s autopsy report have been denied.
But Baez’s family’s lawyers have accused the Sheriff’s Office of covering up the events leading to and following the shooting, pointing to reports filed on the same day at the same time more than a week after it happened. Experts have criticized the deputies’ tactics in the shooting, calling it a “tactical nightmare” to use force in response to shoplifting.
Despite the length of the investigation, Alejandro Baez, Jayden Baez’s father, supports Worrell’s investigation. Sitting alongside NeJame and Yonfa, Baez said the year since his son was killed has been painful.
“Any parent would want the truth if they lost a child, like I did,” he said. “I will never know what it is to be called ‘abuelo.’ The truth has to come out.”
The pending lawsuit also comes as Gov. Ron DeSantis continues to gather information on Worrell’s office, in what she has repeatedly said is an attempt to remove her from office with the help of local law enforcement heads.
Lopez, who denied being part of that effort, previously accused her of unnecessarily dropping drug trafficking cases, which Worrell has refuted.
NeJame said his office had been delaying filing the lawsuit as Worrell’s investigation continued, but felt it best to speak up amid the governor’s scrutiny.
“We believe we need to take action now,” NeJame said. “She has the support and appreciation of all the victims’ families as she is seeking to uncover the truth and proceeding on what appears to be glaring issues of integrity and truthfulness. If Ms. Worrell is removed from office, it will compromise and hinder the investigation.”
Source: Orlando Sentinel
