ORLANDO, Fla. — The mother of accused downtown shooter Jason Rodriguez testified Wednesday about her son's strange behavior.
Prosecutors said Rodriguez, 44, went on a shooting spree at a downtown Orlando office in 2009 to get revenge for being fired, but his attorneys said he was insane at the time.
Otis Beckford was killed in the shooting spree and five others were injured.
Anna Rodriguez recounted strange behavior from her son a few years prior to the downtown shooting. She testified Jason Rodriguez pointed a gun at her just before dawn in their apartment because he was afraid.
"In Spanish, I said, 'Jason. Jason. It's mom,'" said Anna Rodriguez.
"What kind of things did you notice that made you think he had some mental health issues?" an attorney asked.
"Well, he was saying that he was hearing voices, and he felt he was being followed and stalked," said Anna Rodriguez.
Anna Rodriguez said it began around 2005 when she shared an apartment with her son. It was Nov. 6, 2009, when prosecutors said her son stormed the offices of an architectural firm that had fired him two years before, killing Beckford.
The state insists he was bent on revenge, but the defense said Rodriguez heard a voice in his head that tormented him and told him what to do.
His mother testified that two years prior to the shootings, she called police to have guns he used for hunting taken away.
"Because I began to notice that my son was insane. He was going to kill himself. He was suicidal," she said. "His eyes were bulging out. He was sweating. He was trembling."
The defense called a psychologist to the stand Tuesday, who evaluated Rodriguez.
Randy Otto said Rodriguez believed he was the one under attack.
"I think his thinking was confused and impaired by his mental disorder," said Otto.
The state is not seeking the death penalty.
WFTV
