Broward man says he was trying to defend his mom, not kill her

Alexander Deltoro, Jr., said that when he grabbed a gun in 2019 it misfired as he was trying to defend his mother from his father — not kill her.

Deltoro, 33, testified during his manslaughter trial on Monday in Broward County Circuit Judge Lorena V. Mastrarrigo’s courtroom.

“I told him to ‘Leave us alone!’ and ‘Get away from us!’ And at the time, when I went to raise the gun, that’s when he came in with his left arm, and he smacked the gun out of my hand and that’s when it went off.”

The domestic violence tragedy was after Deltoro celebrated his 28th birthday dinner with his family on Dec. 14, 2019.

Detectives blamed Deltoro for his 60-year-old mother’s death during a fight with his father at their home in Margate.

Last week, jurors watched a video showing Deltoro’s interrogation at the Margate Police Department before his arrest on Dec. 15, 2019.

After the detective asked if he had pulled out the gun to scare his father during the fight, Deltoro said, “Why would I do that?”

Prosecutors said the conflict started when Deltoro allegedly elbowed his father in the face to stop him from singing while he was driving them home after dinner and it escalated at home after he threw a water bottle.

According to Lt. Sean Cobban’s arrest report, the argument in the car had escalated to a fight at home when Deltoro’s glasses fell off and he grabbed a 9mm Glock.

Deltoro said he “pulled out the firearm but did not mean to discharge it,” Cobban wrote, according to the report.

His mother, Cindy Deltoro, was shot in the head, while physically trying to stop him and his father from fighting, according to Margate detectives.

Prosecutors filed a case against him on Dec. 16, 2019, for manslaughter, a first-degree felony; carrying a concealed firearm, a third-degree felony; and battery, a first-degree misdemeanor.

County court records show his arraignment was on Jan. 16, 2020, and Broward County Sheriff’s Office correctional deputies released him a day later on a $40,000 bond.

The World Health Organization declared the pandemic on March 11, 2020, and the public health emergency delayed court cases, including Deltoro’s case, in Broward County.

Last year, Deltoro’s defense claimed it was a self-defense shooting because he saw his father reaching for a gun, but the judge sided with the prosecution and denied a Stand Your Ground motion to dismiss the case.