Florida Woman Granted Immunity After Fatal Walmart Parking-Lot Shooting; 'Stand Your Ground' Memo Cites Self-Defense

Melissa Payne will not be prosecuted for the June 30 fatal shooting of 65-year-old Bart DiGuglielmo during a dispute over a parking space outside a Walmart in North Lauderdale, Florida, the Broward County State Attorney's Office announced on Sept. 3.

Melissa PayneCredit: Broward County State Attorney's Office

A Sept. 1 stand-your-ground immunity memorandum prepared by Stephen Zaccor, division chief of the homicide trial unit, concluded Payne was legally immune from prosecution because the evidence shows she "had the right to stand her ground if she was in reasonable fear of death or great bodily harm." Under Florida law, the defendant does not have to prove that belief was reasonable; prosecutors must disprove it by "clear and convincing evidence."

Bart DiGuglielmoCredit: Bart DiGuglielmo/Facebook

What the Office Found

The office relied on video footage and witness statements that, according to the memo, show DiGuglielmo initiated the confrontation, threatened to damage Payne's vehicle, and later continued to pursue her after she tried to move away. The footage reportedly captures most of the encounter and was central to the immunity finding.

Evidence from a Sept. 1, 2026, stand your ground immunity memoCredit: Broward County State Attorney's Office

Video reviewed by investigators shows both drivers attempting to claim the same space around 12:19 p.m. Payne, who had her niece and the niece's infant daughter in the car, parked after DiGuglielmo briefly left his vehicle and walked toward the store. About 90 seconds later, DiGuglielmo returned, shouted threats, drove briefly at speed, parked in a nearby handicap spot and walked toward Payne, where witnesses described him as "visibly angry" and shaking.

The Confrontation

As DiGuglielmo approached, Payne exited her vehicle holding a phone in one hand and a firearm in the other. A witness quoted in the memo said Payne warned him, "If you keep coming up to me, I'm going to f---ing shoot you!" According to investigators, DiGuglielmo ignored repeated warnings and at one point raised car keys as if to damage her vehicle. When he turned back toward Payne, she fired one shot, striking him in the abdomen.

Payne placed the gun on top of her car and remained at the scene. Deputies from the Broward Sheriff's Office briefly detained her and later released her after she claimed self-defense. Payne told her husband on the phone after the shooting to call law enforcement. DiGuglielmo was transported to Broward General Hospital, where he died; the Medical Examiner ruled the cause of death a gunshot wound and the manner of death a homicide. A toxicology report detected amphetamines, THC and sertraline in his system.

Prosecutors' Conclusion

The memo called the circumstances "as tragic as they are absurd" and emphasized that video evidence left "relatively no dispute about what actually happened." Because prosecutors could not meet the high "clear and convincing" standard required to prove Payne's fear was unreasonable, the Broward State Attorney's Office concluded she is immune from prosecution under Florida's stand-your-ground law. The file remains closed unless new, credible evidence emerges that would overcome the immunity finding.

DiGuglielmo's daughter described her father as a military veteran, a former ER trauma nurse and a father of three, saying nobody "deserves to lose their life over a parking spot."