A Port St. John man who shot and killed his brother-in-law, who had come to check on him, has been convicted at trial of second-degree murder.

A Brevard County jury deliberated for less than 30 minutes before finding DANIEL K. DIEMER, 32, guilty of the unprovoked killing of Kyle Zepeda, 45, in December 2019. Diemer had been causing a disturbance in the garage apartment of his mother’s house on Camberly Street, and his sister and Zepeda went there to calm things down, investigators said.

Prosecutors Samantha Barrett and Trevor Persenaire showed jurors conclusive evidence of what  happened next:  Phone video taken by the sister showed Diemer meeting his unarmed brother-in-law at the door, immediately retrieving a handgun from a table inside, pointing it at the victim’s head, and pulling the trigger.  Diemer briefly looked down at the dying victim as his sister screamed in panic. Then he closed the door.

 A neighbor who heard the commotion confronted Diemer in front of the house moments later and held him at gunpoint until Brevard Sheriff’s Office deputies arrived and took him into custody. 

Diemer told the neighbor he shot Zepeda because he didn’t like him. Other evidence showed that Diemer’s mother wanted him to move out of her house, and Zepeda and Diemer’s sister refused to let him move in with them.

“I am grateful to the jury for following the oath they took to uphold the law and glad that Mr. Zepeda’s family received justice,” Barrett said. The six-day trial concluded Feb. 11.

Circuit Judge Steve Henderson had earlier found Diemer competent to stand trial based on a court-ordered evaluation.

Diemer’s sentencing has not yet been scheduled. Henderson set a status hearing for Feb. 26.