A Florida woman who fatally shot a U.S. Army veteran outside a Walmart is immune under the state’s “Stand Your Ground” law.
The dispute this past June at the North Lauderdale Walmart began over a parking space and escalated into a deadly confrontation that will not be charged by prosecutors. They have concluded that she is immune from prosecution under the state’s “Stand Your Ground” law.
The Broward State Attorney’s Office released a memo Sept. 3 declining to charge shooter Melissa Payne in the June 30 death of Bart DiGuglielmo, 62. Prosecutors pointed to Florida’s self-defense law.
The memo was careful about what that conclusion meant, stating that the video evidence “does not demonstrate that [Payne] was in the right.” Rather, prosecutors wrote, the state could not prove by clear and convincing evidence that her fear of great bodily harm was unreasonable.
DiGuglielmo, of Lauderhill, was an Army veteran who spent about 30 years working as an emergency-room trauma nurse, according to his family.
His daughter, Amanda DiGuglielmo, described him as a devoted family man, a father of three, and a twin brother.
The Confrontation
It all started around 12:30 p.m. that June day when Payne and DiGuglielmo tried to park in the same space, according to the prosecutors’ account of the incident, which was captured on multiple recording devices, including cellphones, a Tesla, and a deputy’s body camera.
Payne was in her car with her niece and the niece’s infant daughter. DiGuglielmo was alone.
After a brief standoff, DiGuglielmo left his SUV in a lane of travel and went toward the store, then returned, according to prosecutors. Several witnesses reported hearing him threaten to damage Payne’s car.
He drove away at a high rate of speed, parked two aisles over, then walked back toward Payne’s vehicle rather than going inside the store. Witnesses described him as visibly angry.
Payne got out of her car holding a phone in one hand and a firearm in the other, warning DiGuglielmo not to approach, according to the memo.
Prosecutors said he backed away at one point, then turned and approached again, at which point Payne fired a single shot that struck him in the abdomen. He was taken to a hospital, where he died.
The earlier threat to damage Payne’s car did not form the basis of the finding. Under Florida law, protecting property from ordinary damage does not justify using deadly force.
Prosecutors instead considered whether Payne reasonably feared great bodily harm as DiGuglielmo approached.
Prosecutors Declined to Charge
Florida’s self-defense statute allows a person to use deadly force, without a duty to retreat, if the person is lawfully present, not engaged in criminal activity, and reasonably believes the force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm.
A separate provision grants immunity from prosecution when force is found to be justified.
Prosecutors said Payne did not have to wait until she was physically attacked if her fear was reasonable. They said that the state could not overcome her self-defense claim to the standard the law requires.
Payne remained at the scene, cooperated with investigators, and said she had acted in self-defense, which is why the case went to prosecutorial review rather than resulting in an immediate charge.
DiGuglielmo’s family disputes the decision.
Melissa Rodriguez, his daughter’s attorney, told Local 10 News: “We have maintained that the situation did not warrant stand-your-ground immunity.”
