A Florida woman who fatally shot a man approaching her following a confrontation over a Walmart parking space will not face criminal charges. This comes after prosecutors determined her use of deadly force was legally justified.
According to Local 10 News, the Broward County State Attorney’s Office stated in a closeout memo that prosecutors would not charge Melissa Payne in the June 30 shooting death of Bart Diguglielmo outside a Walmart in North Lauderdale, Florida.
As previously reported by BOSSIP, Payne and Diguglielmo argued before the shooting, which unfolded outside the Walmart at 7900 W. McNab Road. Prosecutors said multiple recording devices captured the encounter, providing video evidence investigators reviewed as they considered whether Payne’s actions amounted to a crime. The confrontation began when Payne and Diguglielmo attempted to park in the same space.
Payne was traveling with her niece and her niece’s baby, while Diguglielmo was alone in his white Kia SUV. Prosecutors described the initial parking dispute as a “brief stalemate” before both drivers exited their vehicles.
Diguglielmo left his SUV in the travel lane and entered the store with a shopping cart, while Payne parked her Chevy Malibu in the space at the center of the dispute.
About 90 seconds later, prosecutors said, Diguglielmo returned.
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