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Orlando Shooting Suspect Indicted

Jason Rodriguez Charged With 1st-Degree Murder, Attempted Murder

POSTED: Tuesday, November 17, 2009
UPDATED: 7:27 pm EST November 17, 2009

Downtown Orlando office shooting suspect Jason Rodriguez was indicted on charges that could lead to the death penalty on Tuesday.

An Orange County grand jury charged Rodriguez with one count of first-degree murder and five counts of attempted murder, one count for each of the people shot Nov. 6 in the offices of Reynolds, Smith and Hills engineering firm.

Otis Beckford was killed in the shooting. He left behind a fiancé and a 7-month-old child.

State attorney Lawson Lamar said no decision has yet been made on whether to seek the death penalty for Rodriguez, who remains in the county jail without bond. Lamar said he will confer with senior prosecutors before deciding.

"When we look at Otis Beckford, we have a victim who is really, really innocent. We have other innocent victims today, but it's poignant when somebody is at work with their work group and one of them is shot dead and five others wounded for no good reason," Lamar said.

Lamar said Rodriguez's mental health is a factor he will have to consider as well.

"We always look at not only the culpability of the defendant, but his state in life and what's happening to him or her," Lamar said.

Rodriguez was a former employee at engineering firm Reynolds, Smith and Hills. He was let go two years ago. The firm is located in high-rise office building the Gateway Center.

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