Judge clears Florida officer in shooting of UPS driver taken hostage citing "stand your ground"

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — A South Florida judge on Thursday cleared a police officer of wrongdoing in the shooting death of a UPS driver who had been taken hostage during a 2019 robbery.

Broward Circuit Judge Ernest Kollra ruled that Jose Mateo, who had been charged with manslaughter in the death of UPS driver Frank Ordonez, could not be prosecuted because Florida's so-called “stand your ground” law justified the shooting, the South Florida SunSentinel reported.

The Broward State Attorney's Office said they will appeal the ruling.

“It is our belief that Stand Your Ground immunity does not apply in matters involving innocent bystanders, like Frank Ordonez and Richard Cutshaw, who presented no danger to officers. In this incident, two innocent men were killed and the lives of numerous other innocent bystanders were endangered,” the state attorney's statement said.

Cutshaw was also killed in a barrage of gunfire that afternoon.

Ordonez, 27, had been delivering packages in Miami-Dade County on Dec. 5, 2019, when police said two would-be jewelry store robbers abducted him and forced him to drive from the scene. A rush-hour police chase ended at a busy intersection in neighboring Broward County.

Prosecutors said Mateo fired the shots that killed Ordonez. The two robbers and a passerby were also killed in a hail of gunfire at an intersection in Miramar, Florida.

Body-worn camera footage that was played in court showed Mateo's pursuit of the UPS truck that afternoon. His partner could be seen in the passenger seat with a long gun drawn, Miami television station WPLG reported.

The video also showed when Mateo approached the UPS truck. He emptied the magazine of his firearm, reloaded and then pulled Ordonez from the vehicle, WPLG reported.

The judge ruled the officer had reason to believe deadly force was necessary to end the confrontation, the SunSentinel reported.

Mateo is currently suspended from the his job. The cases against the three other officers charged with manslaughter will continue moving forward, the state attorney's office said.

The Broward State Attorney's Office is reviewing the judge's ruling.