A Florida woman will not face charges after fatally shooting a man in a parking lot.

Melissa Payne will not be prosecuted for shooting Bart Diguglielmo during an argument over a parking space at a Walmart in North Lauderdale, Fla., on June 30, according to a Sept. 3 news release from the Broward County State Attorney’s Office.

She is immune from prosecution due to the state’s “stand your ground” law, which allows people to use deadly force in acts of self-defense, according to the state attorney. After the incident, Payne was briefly detained by law enforcement and released after she claimed self-defense.

Melissa Payne.Broward County State Attorney’s Office
A Sept. 1 stand your ground immunity memo from Stephen Zaccor, the division chief of the homicide trial unit for the Broward State Attorney’s Office, states that Payne “had the right to stand her ground if she was in reasonable fear of death or great bodily harm.”

Per the law, the defendant does not have to prove that her belief was reasonable. Instead, the prosecutors bear the burden to prove with “clear and convincing evidence” that her belief was not reasonable.

In the case, the state was unable to prove that her “fear of great bodily harm was not reasonable” due to Diguglielmo’s actions.

Bart DiGuglielmo.Bart DiGuglielmo/Facebook
The 65-year-old man, according to video evidence and witness statements, threatened to damage Payne’s vehicle and initiated the confrontation. He also continued to pursue Payne even after she moved away, and later, drew her weapon.

The woman notably had an infant in her vehicle at the time of the altercation.

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The memo states that the facts surrounding the incident “are as tragic as they are absurd.”

It continues, “There is relatively no dispute about what actually happened because the entire incident was captured by various video recording devices.”

Video evidence showed that Payne was driving a white Chevrolet Malibu in the parking lot around 12:19 p.m. with her niece and her niece’s infant daughter. At the same time, DiGuglielmo was driving a white Kia SUV with no passengers.

The drivers were seen attempting to park in the same place. Both drivers exited their vehicles during the brief stalemate. The man then abandoned his car in the lane, grabbed a shopping cart and walked into the store. While he did so, Payne parked her vehicle.

Evidence from a Sept. 1, 2026, stand your ground immunity memo.Broward County State Attorney’s Office
About 90 seconds later, DiGuglielmo returned to his car and was heard threatening to damage Payne’s property. He entered his car and drove away “at a high rate of speed,” per the memo. The man parked in a nearby handicap spot and he walked toward Payne, who was in her vehicle with the infant.

He stopped under a tree for a brief moment, where he smoked a cigarette. Witnesses described him as “visibly angry” and shaking, per the memo.

DiGuglielmo began to walk toward Payne, who exited her vehicle while holding a phone in her left hand and a firearm in her right hand. The woman told him, according to a witness, per the memo, “If you keep coming up to me, I’m going to f—ing shoot you!”

The witness said the man continued to approach Payne despite the warning. She then allegedly warned him to back away multiple times.

A video showed that DiGuglielmo initially backed away but then continued to approach the woman. A vehicle parked next to Payne pulled away and Payne moved into the new space while the man continued to advance toward her.

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At one point, DiGuglielmo walked up to Payne’s vehicle with keys in his hand as if he was going to damage it. When he turned back toward Payne, she fired her weapon and struck him in the abdomen. The woman placed her gun on top of her car and was taken into custody by the Broward Sheriff’s Office upon their arrival.

Payne was on the phone with her husband, and after the gunshot, he said she told him to call the cops.

DiGuglielmo was taken to Broward General Hospital where he died. The Medical Examiner’s Office determined the cause of death was a gunshot wound and the manner of death was homicide. A toxicology report found amphetamines, THC and sertraline in his system.

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A prior news release of the incident stated that Payne remained on the scene and cooperated with detectives.

Diguglielmo’s daughter, Amanda, previously told Local 10, that her father was a “good man.” She said he had served in the military and was a former ER trauma nurse. He was also a father of three.

Amanda also said nobody “deserves to lose their life over a parking spot.”