A Florida man is accused of fatally shooting his stepdaughter after an alleged argument about manners, authorities said.
According to Escambia County Sheriff’s Office online booking records, James Pelzer, 64, of Pensacola, was arrested on April 19. He was charged with murder/dangerous depraved without premeditation in connection with the death of 39-year-old Alanda Cuffee, according to online records and WEAR.
According to Escambia County online court records, an arrest report stated that Pelzer initially called 911 about the shooting. When deputies arrived, he allegedly said, “I messed up. I messed up bad.”
Deputies said the shooting happened during a dispute around 10 a.m. CT at a home in Escambia County.
“It stemmed from some sort of disturbance regarding walking around in the kitchen,” Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons told reporters. “And not getting enough clearance to walk and asking him to say ‘excuse me’ whenever they’re walking in that kitchen area.”
According to the arrest report, Cuffee and her mother, Yvonne Pelzer, were in the kitchen of a residence when James Pelzer tried to “walk around” his stepdaughter.
Yvonne Pelzer told her daughter to move out of the way for James, according to the report.
“Well, Mama, he could say excuse me,” Cuffee allegedly said in response.
The report stated that James Pelzer did not respond and walked back to his bedroom, returning with a handgun. He “immediately began shooting” four or five times at Cuffee.
Deputies responding to the sceen said they observed a small, black Ruger .380, the firearm’s empty magazine, and a .380 round sitting on top of a bible in the living room of the residence, according to the report.
Court records state that Yvonne Pelzer told deputies that her husband had a history of anger issues and threatened to “use his gun” for miscellaneous incidents, However, he had not been physically violent or had threatened to use his weapon her or Cuffee before Sunday’s incident, the woman allegedly said.
Pelzer will be arraigned on May 15, online court records show.