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Pinellas man arrested in fatal shooting of girlfriend

After receiving a tip, police track down the boyfriend at a rest stop in Pasco County.

By LORRI HELFAND
Published September 29, 2005

LARGO - Amber Bartalino, a tall, slim, redhead with fair skin and freckles, would have celebrated her 21st birthday next month.

But that family celebration will never happen.

Bartalino's boyfriend, 30-year-old Alexander Lee Clayton, fatally shot her with a single-shot shotgun at the couple's mobile home at Whispering Pines in Largo on Tuesday night, said Largo police Sgt. Stephen Slaughter.

Bartalino's aunt, Marianne Bartalino, said her niece was unhappy in the relationship and was making plans to move out.

"She wanted to do a lot of things. Things didn't always go smooth for her. She knew she had to get away from him," Bartalino's aunt said, referring to Clayton, who was captured at a Pasco County rest stop off Interstate 75 early Wednesday morning.

Largo police received a tip about 11:20 p.m. Tuesday from a person whom Clayton had called. Police went to the mobile home park, where they found Bartalino's body, Slaughter said.

During the call, Clayton told the person he planned to get out of town and head for the desert, Slaughter said.

Police investigators were able to trace his location to a phone booth at the rest stop and the Florida Highway Patrol responded to the scene. They took Clayton into custody without resistance shortly after 1 a.m. Wednesday. Troopers also confiscated the weapon allegedly used in the crime.

"To catch someone who is fleeing the state within two hours and take him into custody without incident and without other citizens being injured is just extraordinary," Slaughter said.

According to a police report, Clayton told Largo investigators that he shot Bartalino three times with a shotgun, reloading the weapon twice, after the two had an argument.

Records show that Clayton had previously served in the Army as a corporal or specialist. He has no criminal record in Florida.

Neighbors at the mobile home park said Bartalino and Clayton, who moved into the park in May, were generally a quiet couple. Marianne Bartalino said her niece worked as a cashier at Albertsons grocery.

Four neighbors, including park manager Karen Conduzzi, said they heard the couple yelling at various times Tuesday night, but they did not hear gunshots.

"They were arguing so bad at 7 o'clock, you couldn't understand what they were saying," Bernice Mizell said.

Mizell, who was standing on the porch next door, said the yelling stopped a few hours later, and she saw Clayton leave the home late that night holding a white cat.

--Times researcher Carolyn Edds contributed to this report. Lorri Helfand can be reached at 445-4155 or at lorri@sptimes.com

[Last modified September 29, 2005, 11:22:18]