State won’t seek death penalty against Orlando, Fla., office shooting suspect
By APFriday, May 21, 2010
No death penalty for accused Fla. office shooter
ORLANDO, Fla. — The man charged with killing a former colleague and wounding five others in a downtown Orlando shooting spree won’t face the death penalty.
The State Attorney’s Office took the death penalty off the table this week after reviewing evaluations of doctors and Jason Rodriguez’s prior mental illness. He’s being held in a mental hospital. A judge had declared him incompetent to stand trial.
The 40-year-old Rodriguez is charged with first-degree murder and five counts of attempted murder for the Nov. 6 shooting. Police say he walked into an engineering firm where he used to work, pulled out a gun and fired more than 20 rounds before leaving the building.
According to police documents, Rodriguez’s mental health had been declining two years before the shooting.
Information from: Orlando Sentinel, www.orlandosentinel.com
