In a press release on Wednesday, Governor DeSantis blamed the Biden administration’s “dangerous immigration policies” for the recent murder of Terry and Brenda Aultman in Daytona Beach.
The press release referenced the arrest on March 10, 2022 of Jean R. Macean, a citizen of Haiti and an illegal immigrant, who was charged with two counts of first-degree murder.
Investigators say the Aultmans were riding their bikes home from Bike Week earlier this month when Macean picked them at random and stabbed them to death. Daytona Beach Police Chief Jakari Young described these killings as “one of the most vicious attacks I’ve ever seen in my 20 years.”
According to the release, the “Aultmans suffered at the hands of an illegal immigrant due to open border policies that are failing our citizens. The Biden administration announced a new Temporary Protected Status designation for Haiti last year, a reversal of the policy of the previous administration. The policy allowed Macean to stay in the country.”
DeSantis also implicated State Attorney Aramis Ayala.
Macean had previously been arrested in Orange County prior to the murders, but the charges were dropped by the State Attorney’s Office under former State Attorney Aramis Ayala.
“Floridians should not be subject to the reckless open border policies that the Biden administration is imposing on this country,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “These policies are deadly — we also need answers as to why the State Attorney’s Office dropped charges against the defendant.”
Ayala, who is running for Florida attorney general, released a statement to Fox News Orlando saying DeSantis and State Attorney General Ashley Moody don’t “have the slightest idea of how to keep our communities safe, which explains why violent crime and murders have increased under their watch.”
“Even if prosecuted for a low-level drug offense, Jean R. Macean would have still been free at the time he committed these heinous murders, which is why our entire crime strategy can’t rest on prosecutions alone. We need first and foremost a strong attorney general who understands how to coordinate all our resources, including long-term drug treatment and ensuring that when necessary, violent offenders are held for immigration officials,” Ayala said.
In September 2021, Governor DeSantis signed Executive Order 21-223 declaring the Biden Border Crisis. Following that, the governor and Attorney General Ashley Moody announced that the attorney general had filed an amended complaint challenging President Joe Biden’s unlawful catch-and-release policy called “Parole + Alternatives to Detention,” which allowed for the release of illegal immigrants who are apprehended at the southern border.
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Steve Stewart is a senior contributor at The Florida Capital Star. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Ron DeSantis” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0. Photo “Joe Biden” by The White House. Background Photo “Daytona Beach, Florida” by paulbr75.
