Florida’s ‘Stand Your Ground’ Law Clears Police in UPS Driver Shooting, Raising Alarm Over Accountability

A Broward Circuit judge has dismissed manslaughter charges against three Miami-Dade police officers in the 2019 shooting death of UPS driver Frank Ordonez, ruling that Florida’s “stand your ground” law grants them immunity. The decision, which extends to a fourth officer cleared earlier, effectively shields officers who killed Ordonez and bystander Richard Cutshaw during a chaotic shootout, igniting a firestorm over the law’s application to police and its erosion of accountability.

In a ruling that sends shockwaves through Florida’s criminal justice system, Broward Circuit Judge Ernest Kollra on Monday cleared three Miami-Dade police officers of any wrongdoing in the fatal shooting of Frank Ordonez, a 27-year-old UPS driver who was taken hostage during a robbery attempt in December 2019.

The judge determined that Florida’s “stand your ground” statute—which grants individuals immunity if they reasonably believe deadly force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm—justified the officers’ use of force. This legal shield now protects Officers Richard Santiesteban, Leslie Lee, and Rodolfo Mirabal, who were charged with manslaughter after participating in a hail of gunfire that also killed bystander Richard Cutshaw.

The shooting unfolded on December 5, 2019, when two men attempting to rob a Miami jewelry store abducted Ordonez and forced him to drive away in his UPS truck. A high-speed police chase through rush-hour traffic ended at a busy intersection in Miramar, where officers from multiple agencies surrounded the vehicle.

According to court footage, Officer Jose Mateo—who was cleared in a separate ruling in September—pursued the UPS truck, emptied his firearm, reloaded, and then pulled Ordonez from the vehicle. The subsequent gunfire, involving several officers, struck Ordonez, Cutshaw, the two robbery suspects, and a passerby. In total, five people died at the scene.

Judge Kollra’s decision extends the controversial “stand your ground” defense to law enforcement in situations involving innocent bystanders, a move that could dramatically limit prosecutors’ ability to hold officers accountable for excessive force. The Broward State Attorney’s Office, which will appeal all four dismissals, argued that “Immunity from prosecution is not the same as a defense presented to a jury from this community” and that the law “does not apply in matters involving innocent bystanders, like Frank Ordonez and Richard Cutshaw, who presented no danger to officers.”

This is the second time Judge Kollra has applied the “stand your ground” law to dismiss charges against officers involved in the same incident. In September, he cleared Officer Jose Mateo, whose pursuit and gunfire were captured on body camera, as reported by Associated Press. The kidnapping of Frank Ordonez by robbery suspects, which sparked the chase, was also detailed by Associated Press.

While the four officers involved remain suspended from their duties, the immunity granted by “stand your ground” means they cannot face criminal prosecution. The decision has sparked outrage among civil rights groups and community leaders, who see it as a dangerous expansion of a law already criticized for disproportionately affecting minorities and encouraging violence.

For Frank Ordonez’s family and other victims’ relatives, the rulings compound their grief with a sense of profound injustice. “Two innocent men were killed, and the lives of numerous other innocent bystanders were endangered,” the State Attorney’s Office noted, underscoring the human cost of a legal doctrine now enshrined as a shield for police.

The fallout from this case will likely influence similar litigation across Florida and potentially beyond, as courts grapple with the intersection of “stand your ground” and police accountability. With appeals pending, the ultimate fate of this interpretation may rest with higher courts—but for now, the message from Broward County is clear: in Florida, “stand your ground” can stand above the law when it comes to law enforcement.

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