A felony manslaughter charge has been dismissed against a Miami-Dade County Sheriff’s deputy who shot a UPS driver during a shootout in Miramar.
In an order issued Thursday morning, Judge Ernest Kollra ruled that deputy Jose Mateo was “justified” in using deadly force when he participated in a violent shootout with an armed robber, leading to the death of bystander Frank Ordonez.
“The Court finds the facts and testimony support the application of immunity under Florida's ‘Stand Your Ground’ law,” Kollra wrote. “Under Florida law, a person is justified in using or threatening to use deadly force if they reasonably believe that such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to themselves or another.”
The shooting occurred in 2019 when a jewelry store robber led deputies on a chase from Coral Gables to Miramar, the Broward city across the county line with Miami-Dade. It was there that police exchanged upwards of 90 bullets with the robber.
Five bullets fired by police struck and killed Ordonez, who was driving a UPS truck the robbers hijacked, becoming their hostage. Rick Cutshaw, a motorist and innocent bystander, was also killed during the shooting. A bullet found during his autopsy was linked to deputy Rodolfo Mirabal.
Ordonez’s family argued the police should have waited for a hostage negotiator to arrive before firing their weapons.
The officers, including Mateo, were indicted on manslaughter charges last June.
Mateo’s lawyers argued he was justified in his use of force under Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law — a self defense statute often used to protect people who use deadly force to protect their homes from intruders.
Judge Kollra agreed.
“The testimony of the collective witnesses … all reach the same conclusion: that this was an unusual and highly aggressive situation beginning with two armed convicted felons committing multiple forcible felonies at the jewelry store then shooting first at civilians and escalating the situation by hijacking a UPS truck and taking its driver as a hostage,” Kollra wrote in his dismissal order.
Felony cases against the other three deputies are ongoing.
