Orlando Sentinel by Beth Kassab
September 20, 2019
State Attorney Aramis Ayala asked Gov. Ron DeSantis to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate whether the board that oversees Orlando International Airport violated the Sunshine Law after a state law enforcement agency declined to open a probe.
A spokeswoman for DeSantis said Friday the governor’s general counsel received the request and is reviewing it.
Ayala’s office did not respond when asked why she decided to take the step of asking the case be reassigned to another state attorney after the Florida Department of Law Enforcement decided against an investigation.
The First Amendment Foundation, a nonprofit Sunshine Law watchdog group, asked Ayala to investigate after Orlando Sentinel reports on an Aug. 28 meeting of the Greater Orlando Aviation authority, during which DeSantis appointees approved a no-bid plan to hire new co-general counsels, something that had not been on the board’s agenda.
The First Amendment group is funded by media organizations, including the Orlando Sentinel.