Lawyer: Fla. office shooting suspect mentally ill
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The engineer accused of fatally shooting one employee and wounding five others at the firm where he once worked is "very mentally ill" and crumbled under the stress of his divorce, bankruptcy and unemployment, his attorney said Saturday.
Jason Rodriguez, 40, was ordered held without bail at the Orange County Jail, where he is under suicide watch after Friday's shooting. His mother, Ana Rodriguez, also apologized Saturday, telling reporters she is "so sorry for everything that has happened."
"Sorry for the families involved. I'm really very sorry, it is very hurtful," she said.
Public defender Bob Wesley asked the judge at a brief court appearance Saturday that police and prosecutors have no contact with Rodriguez without his permission.
Wesley told reporters that Rodriguez "is a very, very mentally ill person" who lost his emotional stability because of the deep financial problems he was having.
"This guy is a compilation of the front page of the entire year — unemployment, foreclosure, bankruptcy, divorce — all of the stresses," Wesley said. "He has been declining in mental health. There is no logic whatsoever, which points to a mental health case. It looks like a classic case of stress overload."
Employees at Reynolds, Smith and Hills recognized their former co-worker when he drew a handgun from a holster under his shirt, police said, and killed Otis Beckford, 26, next to a receptionist's desk in an office at a downtown Orlando tower. He then walked into the office and unloaded several more rounds, wounding five other employees at the company he had been fired from two years ago.
Rodriguez was taken into custody several hours after the shooting. He has been charged with first-degree murder.
Police said Rodriguez told detectives he blamed the firm for recent trouble he had receiving unemployment benefits. As officers led him handcuffed into a police station Friday, a reporter asked him why he had attacked his former colleagues.
"Because they left me to rot," said Rodriguez, who recently told a bankruptcy judge he was making less than $30,000 a year at a Subway sandwich shop and had debts of nearly $90,000. He is the divorced father of a young son.
All the victims worked at Reynolds, Smith and Hills, where Rodriguez was an entry-level engineer for 11 months before he was fired in June 2007, the company said.
Beckford was hit by at least two bullets. The gunman then went into the common work area and opened fire on his other victims. The Orlando Sentinel reported that Beckford had a young daughter and a fiancee.
Recent comments
Advocating the death penalty for people who are severely mentally ill...
Mental Illness Everywhere | Nov. 7, 2009 at 1:12 p.m.
There is no better healer than Jesus. Send this man to Jesus to be...
Death Penalty | Nov. 7, 2009 at 11:03 a.m.
- Education budget gridlocked 4:47 p.m.
- SSL studies new redevelopment area 4:46 p.m.
- Spielberg, Hanks team up 4:39 p.m.
- Is 'Avatar' biggest moneymaker? 4:39 p.m.
- Pattinson unsure of life after Twilight 4:37 p.m.
- Nelson's priority is on the song itself 4:37 p.m.
- Tommy Castro stopping in S.L. 4:37 p.m.
- 'Devil' spreads Christian message 4:37 p.m.
- Chieftains, Cooder merge stylings 4:37 p.m.
- 'Astro Boy' among DVD releases 4:36 p.m.
- BYU's Hall, Pitta show off for NFL
- Aggie great Merlin Olsen dies at 69
- Y. 1st on U.S. News most popular
- Prom off after gay student's request
- BYU aims to win MWC Tournament
- Utah crashes leave 4 dead
- Man allegedly steals with store items
- D-Will, Boozer enjoy short respite
- Utahn fights for health insurance
- Williams leads Jazz over Pistons
- Hobson edges Fredette for POY
206 - Prom off after gay student's request
200 - Are Utah charter schools a success?
187 - Health care a human wish, not right
165 - Services for Marie Osmond's son
132 - Student argues with officers over gun
128 - LDS, S.L. work to transform land
118 - Letters: Pushing atheist views
115 - Y. 1st on U.S. News most popular
111 - Teacher questions tattoo dress code
110
I was having a rough day last week due to some pregnancy concerns, and I...
Imagine, your husband or wife is quickly dying. The only way to save...
Not to get political (this isn’t the proper thread) but people in...
Severe corporal punishment and deportation to a mexican jail. Let mexico...
So then we care about God why?
If this horrible bill passes dem's are doomed in November. I wouldn't be...
Charter schools absolutely do not hand pick the students! I wish they did!...
obviously a zoobie - Boise was coming on strong at the seasons end, and if...
The rich can and will always buy a better education for their children....
Ahhh, the old argument that consecration is a form of socialism. The...
I am no fan of Harry Reid politically but this is different. A broken back...
I find it very interesting that 9 out of 10 posters are Utah fans. Something...



