A fatal parking-lot confrontation at a North Lauderdale Walmart ended with no criminal charges after prosecutors cited Florida’s Stand Your Ground law.
On June 30, 2026, Melissa Payne and Bart DiGuglielmo, a 62-year-old U.S. Army veteran and retired staff sergeant, argued over the same parking space at the Walmart at 7900 W. McNab Road. Payne, who was with her niece and an infant, backed into the spot in her Chevrolet Malibu. DiGuglielmo, driving a Kia SUV alone, left his vehicle in the travel lane, entered the store briefly, then returned. Witnesses said he threatened to “mess up” or “f*** up” Payne’s vehicle and allegedly used a racial slur. He later parked nearby, lingered while smoking, and approached her car multiple times.
Payne exited her vehicle holding a phone and a handgun. She warned him repeatedly not to come closer, including saying she would shoot if he continued. Video from surveillance cameras and bystanders showed DiGuglielmo advancing despite the warnings and her visible firearm; he made hand gestures and, according to some accounts, motioned as if he might damage her car. Payne fired a single shot that struck him in the abdomen. He was taken to a hospital and later died. A medical examiner ruled the death a homicide by gunshot wound. Toxicology results showed amphetamines, THC, and an antidepressant in his system. Payne remained at the scene, called her husband, and told investigators she acted in self-defense because she feared for herself and the child in her car. She was detained and released.
In early September 2026, the Broward County State Attorney’s Office issued a close-out memo declining to file charges. Prosecutors said Payne was in a place she had a right to be and was not committing a crime. Under Florida’s Stand Your Ground statute, a person does not have to retreat if they reasonably fear imminent death or great bodily harm. A 2017 amendment requires the state to disprove a self-defense claim by clear and convincing evidence. Assistant State Attorney Stephen Zaccor wrote that the videos showed DiGuglielmo continuing to approach aggressively even after Payne displayed the gun, and that the state could not meet that burden. “The video does not demonstrate that [Payne] was in the right, rather it demonstrates that the State of Florida cannot overcome her claim that she was in reasonable fear of great bodily harm,” the memo stated. Payne did not have to wait to be physically attacked.
DiGuglielmo, originally from Hammonton, New Jersey, had served more than 16 years in the Army, including as a combat medic and in Operation Desert Storm, and later worked as an emergency-room trauma nurse. He had moved to Florida a few years earlier to be nearer family. His daughter Amanda and her attorney, Melissa Rodriguez, expressed disappointment. They described him as a devoted father and grandfather and argued the situation did not justify deadly force, noting that the threats centered on property rather than an immediate physical attack. “This is not a situation in which deadly force was reasonable,” Rodriguez said.
The case highlights how Florida’s self-defense law, combined with extensive video evidence, can lead prosecutors to close a fatal shooting without charges when they cannot clearly disprove a claim of reasonable fear. The victim’s family continues to dispute that conclusion.
SOURCES:
Woman won’t face charges in fatal parking dispute shooting at North Lauderdale Walmart – NBC 6 South Florida
Stand Your Ground claim succeeds in Broward Walmart death | Miami Herald
Florida woman cleared under ‘Stand Your Ground’ after deadly Walmart parking spot fight
Walmart shopper who killed Army vet in parking lot won’t face charges because of ‘stand your ground’
Florida woman who fatally shot man to not face charges due to ‘stand your ground’ law | Florida | The Guardian
