ORLANDO, Fla. — Editor's Note: The photo above is from a previous hearing of Markeith Loyd. It does not depict Monday's outburst.
Markeith Loyd, the man convicted of murder in the 2017 killing of an Orlando police officer, was back in court Monday where things appear to have gotten a bit out of control.
During the Spencer hearing, where an expert for the defense was set to evaluate Loyd's competence, the man in question suddenly became agitated before having an outburst in court.
A clip shared by WKMG of the court feed shows Loyd standing while surrounded by several uniform law enforcement officers. The audio does not immediately kick in, but when it does Loyd can be heard saying "I'm leaving" as he pulled his arm away from an officer before exiting the courtroom.
The 46-year-old can be heard repeating the phrase several times while in a hallway off camera. Law enforcement in the courtroom quickly followed after Loyd.
Court proceedings were reported to have taken a break following Loyd's outburst. When things resumed, Loyd was not in the courtroom. WKMG reports he instead watched the hearing from a holding cell with a camera.
WESH reports the court was dealing with a technical issue when Loyd's outburst suddenly began.
The judge, who is set to sentence Loyd to life or death, is reported to have said "Mr. Loyd has actually went into the hallway that leads to the holding cells. The court has not given him permission to leave," following the courtroom scene.
In December 2021, a jury recommended the death penalty for Loyd after he was found guilty of the first-degree murder of Orlando Police Lt. Debra Clayton.
The judge could disregard the jury's recommendation and stick with life in prison.
Loyd is already serving a life sentence for murdering his pregnant ex-girlfriend, Sade Dixon. In fact, Clayton was trying to arrest him for that crime when prosecutors say Loyd shot her outside a Walmart in 2017.
