Tampa Uncuffed

TV provides dog's view on murder

TAMPA UNCUFFED E-mail: Christoper Goffard Tamara Lush

© St. Petersburg Times
published March 27, 2003

Turns out, the real heroes of the notorious Vicki Robinson case weren't the detectives who solved her murder, the officers who stopped her killers on a Texas highway, or the prosecutors who put them away.

It was Lady, Robinson's pet sheltie.

At least, that's the impression left by "As Dog As My Witness," a half-hour segment of the Animal Planet series Busted that has been airing recently.

In it, actors re-enact the Carrollwood woman's June 1998 murder at the hands of her daughter, Valessa, Valessa's boyfriend Adam Davis, and Jon Whispel, as well as the subsequent hunt for them. A doggie double plays Lady, who is now deceased.

The sheltie's real role in the case was minimal. Seen roaming free after Robinson's murder, she alerted a neighbor something might be amiss. And prosecutors pinned up her picture in their offices.

But Animal Planet's version is distinctly dog-centric, turning Lady's bit part into grist for a half-hour show. Lady becomes the "one witness who knew the terrible truth," the dog who "survived to see the guilty put behind bars."

"Justice for Lady's owner," the narrator dramatically intones, "took over two years."

Prosecutor Pam Bondi, who is interviewed in the segment, noted it contained a number of Hollywood embellishments.

"They give the dog more credit than the homicide detectives who actually solved the case," she said.

LAWYER/AUTHOR: Attorney Steve Yerrid has been named Lawyer of the Year for 2002-03 by the Hillsborough County Bar Association. The bar noted Yerrid's involvement in the community, with the bar, and in mentoring other lawyers.

Yerrid, 53, recounts eight of the biggest cases of his 28-year career in When Justice Prevails, a book expected to hit stands this summer from Yorkville Press. His cases have included battles against the tobacco industry, medical malpractice claims, and the defense of the pilot whose boat knocked down the Sunshine Skyway bridge.

Yerrid said his book won't resemble many other lawyer-penned tomes.

"A lot of those books are ego-oriented, (as in) 'Let me tell you about me,"' he said. "This is more like, 'Let me tell you a story of what happened on this particular day."

-- Got a tip? For cops, contact Tamara Lush at (813) 226-3373 or lush@sptimes.com. For courts, contact Christopher Goffard at (813) 226-337 or goffard@sptimes.com .

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