A petition to remove Judge Michelle Sisco from the Julio Foolio murder case has been granted by an appellate court in Florida.
After being found guilty of manslaughter in October following an eight-day trial, Alicia Andrews' lawyer Jeremy McLymont called for a delay in sentencing, as well as the disqualification of Sisco due to "hostile comments" and "obvious bias," as reported by Legal Affairs and Trial with Meghann Cuniff.
Chief Judge Christopher Sabella has been ordered to appoint a new judge.
According to Cuniff, McLymont argued in its petition that Sisco failed to act with "cold neutrality" and "did everything in its power to ensure that Ms. Andrews was convicted" by humiliating her legal team, and treating the defense's witnesses more harshly than the prosecution's witnesses.
Even though Andrews was acquitted of first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Julio Foolio, she still faced up to 15 years on a manslaughter conviction. Three days prior to Judge Sisco's scheduled sentencing date, an appellate court granted McLymont's request for a delay, while prosecutors were given 30 days to "show cause" why the judge should not be disqualified.
McLymont applauded the court for making "the right decision," and suggested plans to push for a new trial.
"Everyone is entitled to a fair trial, including Ms. Andrews," McLymont said. "We are convinced that a new trial should and will be granted after some litigation at the trial and or appellate level."
