The 39-year-old was killed in an Escambia County home after a brief dispute, deputies said.
ESCAMBIA COUNTY, Fla. — Friends described Alanda Cuffee as selfless after deputies said the 39-year-old was shot and killed by her stepfather during a brief dispute inside an Escambia County kitchen.
Cuffee’s death on April 19 turned a home on Gulf Breeze Avenue into the scene of a murder case and left her mother as the main witness. James Pelzer, 64, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. Investigators said the shooting followed Cuffee’s comment that Pelzer could have said “excuse me” while trying to move around her.
The public picture of Cuffee in the first days after the shooting came mostly from those who knew her. A friend said, “Alanda was selfless,” and said she loved her mother, her friends and her family. That description stood in sharp contrast to the police account of how she died. Deputies said Cuffee was in the kitchen with her mother, Yvonne Pelzer, when James Pelzer entered and tried to walk around her. Yvonne Pelzer told her daughter to move out of the way. Cuffee replied that he could say “excuse me,” according to investigators. Moments later, deputies said, Pelzer returned from a bedroom with a handgun.
The shooting happened Sunday morning at a residence in the 2500 block of Gulf Breeze Avenue, near Gulf Beach Highway. Deputies said Pelzer called 911 himself after the shooting. When law enforcement arrived around 10:30 a.m., he was outside and surrendered without incident. Deputies said he told them, “I messed up. I messed up bad.” He also told them where to find the gun. Officers recovered the firearm on top of a Bible near the front door. Inside, first responders found Cuffee on the floor, unconscious and unresponsive, with multiple gunshot wounds. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Yvonne Pelzer told investigators her husband fired about four to five shots at Cuffee. The arrest report did not describe a long argument, a physical struggle or a warning before the gunfire. It described a short exchange in a kitchen, a walk to the bedroom and a return with a weapon. After Cuffee was shot, her mother began praying out loud over her. James Pelzer told her to “be quiet,” investigators said. Yvonne Pelzer also told deputies that he had anger issues and had made threats in the past about using his gun during different incidents. She said he had not previously been physically violent toward her or Cuffee.
Sheriff Chip Simmons later summed up the case as a dispute about movement inside the home. He said it involved whether people could pass each other without bumping into one another and the expectation that Pelzer say “excuse me.” His comments gave the community a brief explanation for a killing that investigators said began with an ordinary household moment. The sheriff also said Pelzer went to his room, got a revolver and returned before firing several times. Authorities did not say another person was sought in the shooting, and no other injuries were reported in the early accounts.
The Gulf Breeze Avenue home became important not because of a public threat, but because of what investigators say happened in its private spaces. The kitchen was where the exchange took place. The bedroom was where deputies said Pelzer went before returning with the gun. The front door area was where the firearm was later found resting on a Bible. The floor was where first responders found Cuffee. Those locations now form the map of the case, and they are likely to be revisited through reports, photographs, testimony and any later court hearing where evidence is discussed.
Pelzer was booked into the Escambia County Jail without bond. The charge of second-degree murder means prosecutors are alleging a killing done by an act dangerous to another person and showing a depraved mind, without alleging that it was planned in advance. Pelzer spoke briefly to deputies after his arrest, according to reports, but later asked for an attorney and did not continue answering questions. A public defender was listed, and no full defense statement had been released in the first reports. A court appearance was set for May 8.
For Cuffee’s loved ones, the court process began as they were still dealing with the sudden loss. The arrest report made her mother both a witness and a survivor of the scene. The friend’s words about Cuffee’s devotion to family gave the case a human frame beyond the charge and jail record. Investigators still had to complete the work of documenting the shooting, preserving evidence and turning the file over for prosecution. The public record had not yet explained what defense arguments may be raised or whether additional statements would be released.
Pelzer remained jailed without bond as the case moved toward its next hearing. Cuffee’s death remained the focus of a second-degree murder case in Escambia County, where investigators said a comment about courtesy preceded the fatal shots.
Author note: Last updated May 10, 2026.