Black Florida woman won’t face charges in fatal Walmart shooting under ‘stand your ground’ law

The woman told investigators she acted in self-defense; prosecutors say Florida law does not require her to wait until she is attacked if her fear of serious harm was reasonable.

A Florida woman who fatally shot a man during a confrontation in a Walmart parking lot in North Lauderdale will not face criminal charges, prosecutors announced Thursday.

Melissa Payne shot 62-year-old Bart Diguglielmo once in the abdomen on June 30 after the two became involved in a dispute over a parking space. Diguglielmo later died at a nearby hospital.

According to NBC Miami, the Broward County State Attorney’s Office determined Payne was protected under Florida’s “stand your ground” law, which allows someone to use deadly force if they reasonably believe it is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm.

The confrontation was captured on surveillance and cellphone video, giving prosecutors evidence to review as they considered whether Payne should be charged.

According to the state attorney’s office, Diguglielmo returned to the area after the initial encounter and approached Payne’s vehicle. Witnesses described him as angry, while prosecutors said video showed him “aggressively approach” Payne.

Payne, who was armed, repeatedly warned him to stay away, according to the prosecutor’s report.

“If you keep coming up to me, I’m going to f***ing shoot you!” Payne warned, according to the memo.

Prosecutors said Diguglielmo continued approaching before Payne fired a single shot.

The state attorney’s office ultimately concluded that Payne was “immune from prosecution” under Florida law. Prosecutors said the evidence did not establish by the required legal standard that her claim of self-defense was invalid.

“The video does not demonstrate that [Payne] was in the right,” Assistant State Attorney Stephen Zaccor wrote. Instead, prosecutors said the evidence did not allow them to overcome Payne’s claim that she reasonably feared great bodily harm.

Diguglielmo’s family has disputed the decision.

“My family does not agree with this decision, [our] heart is broken,” the family said in a statement, according to CBS Miami.

The family’s attorney, Melissa Rodriguez, also argued that the confrontation did not warrant “stand your ground” immunity.

Under Florida law, prosecutors face a heightened burden when seeking to overcome a defendant’s claim of immunity. In this case, the Broward County State Attorney’s Office determined that burden had not been met and declined to pursue criminal charges against Payne.