STATE OF FLORIDA ASHLEY MOODY ATTORNEY GENERAL January 17, 2020 By Hand Delivery Govemor Ron DeSantis Govemor, State of Florida 400 S Monroe St Tallahassee, FL 32399-6536 RE: Angel Rivera and Christopher Otero-Rivera Dear Governor DeSantis: The purpose of this letter is to bring to your attention a situation in Osceola County that exists between the Sherifffand State Attomey that seems to be escalating in a manner that is not conducive to the ends of justice. The Office of Attorney General was recently contacted by Osceola County Sheriff Gibson about the murder of Nicole Montalvo. His office arrested Angel Rivera and Christopher Otera-Rivera, for the murder of Nicole Montalvo. Subsequent to Rivera’s and Otera-Rivera’s arrest charges ‘were not filed by State Attomey Ayala.! The Sheriff expressed concerns about the lack of charging decision and indicated that there was disagreement between his personnel and State Attomey Ayala’s personnel about the ease. ‘The Office of Statewide Prosecution met with the Sheriff's office to review the case and key evidence to see if it could be helpful. The Office of Statewide Prosecution then requested a ' The lack of timely charges resulted in Rivera’s and Otera-Rivera's release from custody on bond, Rivera’s bond is. now revoked. PL-O1, The Capitol, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1050, Telephone (850) 414-3300 Fax (850) 487meeting with State Attorney Ayala to discuss the case and offer assistance, State Attorney Ayala accepted the meeting initially, but subsequently cancelled that meeting this morning. This moming, State Attorney Ayala held a press conference. You and your office can review that press conference in its entirety, but it is safe to say that the dispute between Sheriff Gibson and State Attomey Ayala is now public, personal, and appears to be acrimonious. Such acrimony is not conducive to the administration of fair and effective justice. While there would be much work to be done and questions to answer, the Office of Statewide Prosecution’s preliminary opinion was that there are charges that could be filed against Rivera and Otera-Rivera. To be clear that opinion could change based on what the additional work and answers showed and the prosecutors in the end could reach the same result as State Attorney Ayala, In any event, the speedy trial timeline is running and I am concemed that the dispute and disagreement between the Sheriff and State Attomey, which now appears to be personal, could result in a miscarriage of justice. Sincerely, APrdaay Mirrdy- Ashley Moody Attorney General ce: Joseph Jacquot, General Counsel, Executive Office of the Governor