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Too young for love

She was 17; he was 21. Separated by her mother, they made a plan to run away together. Now he's in jail and facing charges.

By EMILY VASQUEZ
Published July 17, 2005

	[Times photo: Janel Schroeder-Norton]
	At the end of the school year, Leah Deltedesco's mother gave her an ultimatum: She had to stop seeing her boyfriend or move to her grandmother's in Georgia. She chose to move.
	[Special to the Times]
	Kaill Reinschmidt initially denied knowing anything about Leah's disappearance.

NEW PORT RICHEY - He'd just popped open a bottle of Barq's root beer. Carbonated fizz overflowed the lip, poured onto Kaill Reinschmidt's hand and trickled onto the floor of Gulf View Square Mall. Kaill looked down at the puddle and then up again.

A girl stood watching him. She wore a red tank top and jean shorts. Kaill thought she was beautiful. She laughed as his socks turned from white to dark brown.

"That sucks," said Leah Deltedesco.

They talked. Reinschmidt thought she had a sort of sadness to her but found he could make it disappear. He kept the conversation going as long as he could.

That was last summer. By January, Kaill, 21, and Leah, who was then 16, were a couple. But right after Leah's 11th grade prom, Leah's mom decided the age difference was just too much.

She told Leah she could no longer see Kaill.

That brings the story to July 2, the day Leah, now 17, ran away.

From the moment he met Leah, Kaill says, he tried to do things right.

He got to know Leah's mom, Denett. When the Deltedescos moved from Tennessee Avenue to nearby Pine Street in New Port Richey, he made numerous trips to Publix with Leah to get boxes.

The box runs were his chance to be alone with her. On the way back to the house one night, he asked Leah if she'd want to be his girlfriend.

Leah found Kaill (pronounced Kale) more mature than other boys she knew, more affectionate. That's what she wanted.

In the Deltedescos' living room, Kaill eventually asked Denett for permission to date her daughter, recognizing he was almost five years older. Denett set ground rules: They couldn't be at the house alone. They couldn't hang out in Leah's bedroom.

Still, the age difference worried Denett. Kaill was 21 and had already had a series of jobs - telemarketing, carwashing, commercial painting. Leah was just 16, a junior at Gulf High School.

In April, Denett set a rule for prom night: Be home by 1 a.m. The curfew came and passed. Instead of hurrying home, the couple talked about running away to Missouri, where Kaill's older sister lives. Kaill even started packing that night. His mom told him to give up the idea.

He brought Leah home around 4 a.m.

There had been an accident, they said, that caught them up in traffic.

Denett was furious. The relationship, she said, was over.

Kaill didn't quit on Leah. He bought her a cell phone so they could talk. He'd show up at her bedroom window at night.

He'd bring doughnuts to Marchman Technical Education Center, where Leah took morning veterinary assistant classes. Sometimes he drove her back to Gulf High, so she wouldn't have to take the bus. Sometimes, though, they didn't make it back to Gulf.

By the end of the school year, Leah had missed 38 days of class. She would have to repeat 11th grade.

Denett gave Leah an ultimatum: She had to stop seeing Kaill for real or move to Georgia and live with her grandmother in Douglas. Her 18-year-old brother already lived with the grandmother, and a younger sister spent summers in Georgia.

Leah opted for Georgia. The family made plans for her to enroll there for school come fall.

Leah didn't like Douglas. People stared at her baggier, sometimes gothic clothes. She didn't make new friends.

She volunteered at the local Humane Society animal shelter, though. There she had access to a phone. She could call Kaill. Again, they talked about running away.

They hatched a simple plan: Kaill would meet her at the entrance to Wild Adventures Theme Park in Valdosta. That Saturday, July 2, Leah planned to watch a concert while her grandmother and brother and sister rode rides.

If they couldn't find each other, Leah would call him from a pay phone. Her grandmother would never know Kaill was there.

That night, Leah went inside the park while her grandmother and the others parked the car. Kaill saw Leah first. He called her name. She ran to hug him, almost knocking him down.

They sat on a bench, more or less out of sight. They decided they'd really do it.

To steer clear of Leah's family, they watched an ice show. About an hour later, just before 8 p.m., they ran toward Kaill's car.

But they didn't run to Missouri. Their destination was Kaill's New Port Richey apartment, where they arrived around midnight. On the way home Leah's emotions took a roller coaster ride. She was happy. Sad. Scared. She put on headphones and listened to loud techno music, drowning everything out, even Kaill.

Sunday morning, a cell phone call roused Kaill. It was Leah's best friend. Leah was missing. A search was on.

Kaill said he hadn't heard from her.

But after he hung up, he asked Leah to call her friend and tell her she was safe. Leah wouldn't do it.

Later Leah's mother called. Then her grandmother, more friends.

Kaill would try to hand the phone to Leah, but she'd back away. So he lied to them all.

By Sunday, deputies in Georgia were well involved.

That afternoon, the couple went to a pool party in Moon Lake. In case someone might have heard about Leah, Kaill introduced her as "Chloe."

In the first couple of days after Leah "disappeared," they had at least three friends over to the apartment, Kaill said. None of them called police.

Leah had brought no clothes with her from Georgia. So on Monday, July 4, Kaill went out to buy underwear for her. To disguise her appearance, he bought Leah a dye kit to bleach her hair.

Kaill's TV was broken, so they watched the horror movie Resident Evil on DVD, again and again. Leah cleaned some. Mostly, they slept.

Their plan was simple. She would hide out at Kaill's until the search died down. Next May when she turned 18, they'd show up on Denett's doorstep, get Leah's things. Then, they'd leave again and live their lives in the open.

On July 5, New Port Richey police interviewed Kaill for the first time. Kaill also talked to newspaper reporters. He gave a TV interview. To everyone his story was the same: He knew nothing about Leah's whereabouts.

Meanwhile, employees at Alpha Publishing Inc, where Denett works, established a Web site to help with the search. Denett contacted missing children's organizations.

Then Georgia authorities found surveillance camera footage of Leah walking out of the Valdosta theme park. A witness reported seeing the couple outside the park together.

Deputies obtained Kaill's cell phone records. They placed him driving up the interstate to Georgia the same day Leah disappeared.

Kaill went to Leah's vigil Wednesday. He hugged friends and lit a white candle. Teen friend's took turns speaking of their memories of Leah.

Police approached Kaill during the ceremony.

At the station, they showed him the surveillance video and the cell phone records.

With all the evidence in front of him, Kaill told police where Leah was.

They arrested him for aiding a runaway and lying to the authorities, misdemeanor charges. They picked up Leah from his apartment. She told them her mother had a drinking problem and beat her repeatedly. The Department of Children and Families interviewed the family and afterward said the claims were unfounded. Leah recanted her statements.

Kaill remained in the Pasco County jail Saturday, awaiting extradition to Georgia. He faces two felony charges there for his part in the runaway.

Leah isn't allowed to visit Kaill - she's considered the victim in the incident and jail rules prohibit the encounter.

She said she went to Kaill's parents' house to apologize to them for all the trouble she caused and offered to pay Kaill's bail. They didn't take her money.

Leah says she's still in love with Kaill. Kaill said he still wants to marry Leah.

Denett doesn't think Kaill's the right boy for her, and she wants her daughter to go to family counseling.

Leah, Denett says, has a lot of growing up to do.

Emily Vasquez can be reached in west Pasco at 869-6232, or toll free at 800-333-7505, ext. 6232. Her e-mail address is evasquez@sptimes.com

[Last modified July 17, 2005, 01:21:11]