A Port St. John man who was shown on video calmly shooting  his brother-in-law in the head has been sentenced to life in prison.

Brevard County prosecutors convicted DANIEL K. DIEMER, 32, of second-degree murder at trial in February for killing Kyle Zepeda, 45.

In December of 2019, Diemer was causing a disturbance in the garage apartment of his mother’s house on Camberly Street, and his sister and Zepeda went there to check on him and calm things down, investigators said. 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 face, and pulling the trigger.  Diemer briefly looked down at the dying victim as his sister screamed in panic. Then he closed the door.

At his June 4 sentencing hearing in Viera, Diemer’s attorneys called for a prison sentence shorter than life and presented testimony from psychologists who said Diemer had struggled with schizophrenia, although they had not formally diagnosed or treated the defendant.  Circuit Judge Steve Henderson had earlier ruled that Diemer was competent to stand trial based on a court-ordered psychiatric evaluation, and a jury found Diemer guilty as charged.

Said Assistant State Attorney Samantha Barrett: “I am thankful that the court helped safeguard the community and provided justice to Mr. Zepeda’s family by sentencing the defendant to life in prison.”