But according to Padowitz, Albisu didn’t enter the venue until after he had been awakened by his son and wife, who told him they were physically attacked by angry wedding guests who were refusing to leave, some screaming threats and others “throwing chairs, breaking glasses and ripping door panels off walls.”
Albisu did not display his gun until he was surrounded by irate guests and feared for his life, Padowitz said. After one guest threatens to beat Albisu the same way they beat his son, Albisu “retreats back toward the wall where his arm is grabbed by a much larger man,” Padowitz wrote in the stand your ground motion. “At that point, Mr. Albisu is forced to brandish his weapon.”
By RAFAEL OLMEDA | South Florida Sun Sentinel
A Southwest Ranches property owner accused of waving his gun at the guests of a wedding reception last year is asking a judge to dismiss the case under the state’s “stand your ground” law, claiming the party was supposed to be over and he felt threatened by guests who were reluctant to leave.
Miguel Rodriguez Albisu, 59, is facing nine counts of aggravated assault with a firearm, each of which is punishable by up to five years in prison. He is the owner of Cielo Farms in Southwest Ranches, a private venue that, according to Albisu’s lawyer, operates with a state exemption from zoning rules that would normally not allow the property to be rented for large private parties.
Defense lawyer Ken Padowitz said the March 2023 incident arose from a misunderstanding between Albisu and the wedding party over what time the reception was supposed to end. According to the stand your ground motion, Albisu was required to end the party at 11 p.m. or risk penalties from the town, a largely quiet and wealthy community sandwiched between Davie and Cooper City.
Miguel “Mike” Rodriguez Albisu surrounded by guests after retreating before being grabbed
But the wedding party believed they were contracted to stay for another half hour, so they rebuffed efforts to get the party to end prematurely.
What happened next is in dispute: Prosecutors say Albusi entered the venue with a gun and ordered everyone to leave. Video taken by party guests shows him holding the weapon in one hand and yelling, “Get out!” At several times it appears he is not looking in the same direction as the weapon is pointing.
But according to Padowitz, Albisu didn’t enter the venue until after he had been awakened by his son and wife, who told him they were physically attacked by angry wedding guests who were refusing to leave, some screaming threats and others “throwing chairs, breaking glasses and ripping door panels off walls.”
Albisu did not display his gun until he was surrounded by irate guests and feared for his life, Padowitz said. After one guest threatens to beat Albisu the same way they beat his son, Albisu “retreats back toward the wall where his arm is grabbed by a much larger man,” Padowitz wrote in the stand your ground motion. “At that point, Mr. Albisu is forced to brandish his weapon.”
A still Frame from a Forensic Animation that depicts “Mike” being surrounded and grabbed before defending himself
Video of the incident reviewed by the Sun Sentinel does not show the interaction that led to the display of the gun.
Five wedding guests sued Cielo Farms in civil court, and the case was settled in August 2023, according to court records.
The state’s stand your ground law provides immunity from prosecution to defendants who can show that they had a legal right to be where they were and committed their actions in defense of self or others.
At a hearing in late September, Broward Circuit Judge Edward Merrigan said he would not be able to schedule a stand your ground motion until at least late next spring, 10 months after the self-defense motion was filed.
In the most recent court filing, Padowitz is asking the judge to step away from the case, citing a pattern of what he called unfair treatment and bias. Merrigan has not ruled on that motion and cannot comment on it except to find that it is or is not “legally sufficient” to warrant his removal from the case.
No date has been set for that motion.
