A Kissimmee man who became a national symbol of wrongful conviction after his release from a New York prison is seeking immunity under Florida’s Stand Your Ground law in a July road-rage shooting case in Osceola County.
Attorneys for Richard Rosario, 50, argue he acted in self-defense when shots were allegedly fired from his vehicle during a confrontation with another driver on South Poinciana Boulevard on July 29. A pretrial hearing was scheduled for Tuesday.
Rosario is charged with shooting into a vehicle, shooting from a vehicle, discharging a firearm in public and improper exhibition of a firearm. According to the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to a shooting report after a 29-year-old man said he was driving southbound near Crescent Lakes Way at about 4 p.m. when a road-rage encounter occurred between his vehicle and a Jeep Wrangler. The victim reported hearing several thumping sounds and feeling a burning sensation on his neck. Investigators say multiple rounds struck the vehicle, with one bullet grazing the victim’s neck. He declined medical treatment.
Detectives later identified the Jeep as belonging to Rosario and arrested him on a warrant after locating the vehicle at a Kissimmee residence.
In the immunity motion filed Dec. 26, Rosario’s attorneys assert that the victim, identified as Justin Corley, was the aggressor and Rosario reasonably believed he was in imminent danger of being killed or seriously injured. The motion alleges Corley drove erratically, made aggressive maneuvers toward Rosario’s vehicle, brandished a firearm and blocked Rosario’s path, leaving him unable to safely retreat.
Under Florida law, a person who lawfully uses or threatens deadly force in self-defense may be immune from arrest and prosecution. Stand Your Ground motions, which allow judges to dismiss cases before trial if immunity is granted, have drawn increased attention locally following a recent Osceola County ruling. The ruling by Orange-Osceola Circuit Judge John Beamer ended a fatal shooting case despite conflicting accounts presented in court filings and testimony. In that case, Jovaniel Andres Lopez-Marrero, 21, was granted immunity in the May shooting death of Micah Gabriel Mebane, 35, resulting in dismissal of a homicide charge.
Rosario’s arrest has drawn attention because of his high-profile exoneration in New York. In 2016, he was freed after serving 20 years in prison for the 1996 killing of 17-year-old Jorge Collazo in the Bronx. His conviction was vacated after prosecutors found his trial attorney failed to interview multiple alibi witnesses who said Rosario was in Deltona at the time of the shooting. Rosario later won a $5 million federal civil rights verdict against the city of New York.
The Collazo family has previously disputed Rosario’s innocence in the New York case and has expressed dissatisfaction with his release. Family members have said they plan to closely follow the outcome of the Florida proceedings.
