(This is Florida. AG Uthmeier is absolutely correct and Tina Allgeo was 'Standing Her Ground.' This road-rage incident has NO BEARING in the fact that Mihail Tsvetkov got out of his car, approached Allgeo's car, snatched the door open and physically attacked her, punching her multiple times, and tried to drag her from her vehicle. She shot him with a legally owned weapon while she was being attacked and in fear of her life. End Of Story.)
ORLANDO, Fla. —
Florida's attorney general on Monday slammed a decision made by the Orange-Osceola state attorney involving a 2024 shooting in Orlando.
James Uthmeier said he was "troubled and puzzled" by the prosecution of Tina Allgeo, who on Dec. 2 was arrested in a road-rage shooting and charged with second-degree murder.
The victim, Mihail Tsvetkov, was shot and killed during an incident near Primrose Drive and Colonial Drive.
The Orange-Osceola state attorney, Monique Worrell,
According to investigators, the incident began when Tsvetkov was following closely behind Allgeo’s vehicle on Colonial Drive, allegedly bumping her car before attempting to drive off.
Allgeo told police she followed him to obtain his license plate number and accidentally bumped his Lexus. Police say that is when Tsvetkov got out of his car, approached Allgeo’s vehicle and was shot by Allgeo.
Documents say she said she shot him once because she feared for her life as he punched her multiple times.
Her attorney, Mark O'Mara, argued that Allgeo acted in self-defense. He said the video shows the victim opening her car door before the shooting.
In a post on X, Uthmeier said:
"Monique Worrell may not like Florida’s Stand Your Ground laws, but those laws reflect our God-given right to self-defense. In the case of Tina Allgeo, State Attorney Worrell should reconsider her prosecution."
O'Mara told WESH 2, "I don’t want whatever is going on between the two of them to impact on my ability to resolve the case."
O'Mara went on to say that while he sides with the attorney general’s opposition to charging Allgeo, he also doesn’t want a dispute to interfere with justice.
"I’m a bit troubled," O'Mara said. "I don’t feel the need to have Tina or this case be part of the politics between the two offices. I know they have been tussling. I mean, leave Tina out of it. But I don’t disagree with his interpretation of the of the statute and the facts of this case.
O'Mara will seek a “stand your ground” hearing, which could eliminate the need for a trial, now set for next year.
Worrell released the following statement shortly after:
"Every day, the Attorney General's inexperience with criminal prosecution becomes more abundantly clear; it risks the public safety and credibility of our criminal legal system for every Floridian. State Attorneys are constitutionally empowered to exercise discretion in determining when charges should be brought.
"That discretion requires prosecutors to evaluate whether sufficient evidence exists to establish probable cause, and whether the matter should properly be presented to a grand jury or court. In a homicide case, where one individual's life has been taken, the gravity of the circumstances demands thorough evaluation.
"Florida's self-defense laws, including the 'Stand Your Ground' statute, provide certain immunities when the use of force is justified; however, whether that justification applies in any given case is a matter for judicial determination, not partisan politics. Prosecutors do not serve as extensions of the Governor or the Attorney General; we serve the people of our circuit in accordance with Florida law.
"The Attorney General's attempts to intimidate or override independent prosecutorial judgment erode public trust in the impartial administration of justice."
Attorney General James Uthmeier’s response.
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