ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — On Monday afternoon, Michelle O'Connell's family held a rally at the San Lorenzo Cemetery, where O'Connell is buried. On Monday, she would have turned 29.
Family and friends released balloons in honor of what would have been her birthday.
Last week, Action News learned Gov. Rick Scott assigned Ninth Circuit State Attorney Jeff Ashton, of the Orlando area, to oversee an independent investigation of O'Connell's death
In 2010, she was found dead on the floor of the home of her boyfriend, St. Johns County Sheriff's Office Deputy Jeremy Banks.
Several local and state investigators ruled she died by suicide with his service weapon, but her family maintains she was killed by Banks.
"I'm very confident someone like Jeff Ashton will do the right thing and give this case the look that it deserves and answer any lingering questions and look at all the facts from scratch and not just the former investigation but he will put it together himself," said Ciara Morris, O'Connell's best friend. "It gives us a significant amount of hope."
One of the family attorneys told Action News this will give the case a fresh look.
"I think the police force has to be biased. If somebody from your office got in trouble and you were called upon to make the investigation I don't think anyone could even assume that you would be unbiased. And there's got to be at least subconsciously bias there," said attorney Janet Johnson.
The sheriff issued a statement last week saying he's confident the independent investigation will return the same conclusion.
WJAX
