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By candlelight, they hope for justice, pray for comfort

Neighbors, family and friends of a slain 13-year-old say they'll gather every night till his killer is found.

By SHERRI DAY
Published December 12, 2005

TAMPA - The friends and family of Stephen Tomlinson pledge to gather every night until sheriff's deputies arrest the person responsible for his death.

Stephen, 13, was found dead in Logan Gate Park in Carrollwood on Thursday night. Late Sunday, Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies continued to investigate his death. A "person of interest" has been questioned, but, so far, there have been no arrests, sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter said.

So about 60 people continued the third night of their candlelight vigil at the park Sunday evening. Those assembled were Stephen's aunts and uncles, his friends and neighbors. There were infants, toddlers, classmates and an elderly man who came dragging his oxygen tank.

Cloaked in darkness, the group huddled around a white cross, which bore Stephen's name in black letters. They had created a makeshift altar illuminated by church candles. Someone had draped rosary beads around the cross and pasted pictures of Stephen on its crossbar. A host of roses, lilies, daisies and poinsettias sat at the cross' base.

At 7 p.m., the hour the family has designated for the nightly vigil to begin, the crowd drew closer. Someone led a prayer for those who had heavy hearts and still searched for comfort. The crowd heartily sang the first verse of Amazing Grace , and then turned to I'll Fly Away, a song that revels in the joys of heaven.

Kevin Whiteley, 21, told the group that Stephen would always be with them. Their task, he said, was to stay on the hunt for justice.

"I'm going to be here every night until this murder is solved," said Whiteley, who says he was with a group of neighborhood youth who found Stephen as he lay dying in the park. "I know his soul is not going to rest, and my soul is not going to rest, until it is."

While still grieving, Ron Tomlinson, Stephen's father, has begun to ask for improvements at the county park. He wants the park to bear his son's name. But more important, he said, the park needs increased lighting and a fence to separate its heavy woods from a jogging trail and open playing field.

Like many in the neighborhood, Tomlinson, 45, also wants answers. He appreciates investigators' efforts but finds their silence frustrating. He often blames himself for letting Stephen ride his bike in the park on Thursday.

"Part of my heart has been lifed out," said Tomlinson, a stay-at-home father who collects disability payments. "It can never be replaced. I don't want this to happen to another child."

Shirley Smith, a neighbor, remembered Stephen as a quiet boy who wanted to buy a 1969 Camaro and eventually go to college.

"I come every night that I can," she said, glancing around at the crowd. "They've got to find an answer to why this happened. It could have been my granddaughter or some other (child). You never know."

Smith and other neighbors went door to door over the weekend collecting money for Stephen's funeral. They collected about $500, she said.

It will cost much more to bury Stephen.

Later today, Tomlinson plans to announce the creation of a fund to help offset burial expenses.

--Sherri Day can be reached at 813 226-3405 or sday@sptimes.com

[Last modified December 12, 2005, 04:00:30]