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Too many tears, tragedies

By JON WILSON
Published August 5, 2006

TOO MANY TEARS, TRAGEDIES

War in the Middle East throws long shadows that veil human tragedy in our own neighborhoods. But violence devastates, whether at home or a world away.

In the span of a week, someone shot two young men in Pasco County. In Tampa, police found a man and his wife shot to death outside a middle school. In Palm Harbor, a grinding traffic crash slaughtered two men. Someone killed a semiretired couple in their Clearwater home. In St. Petersburg, police arrested several adults for crimes against children, including starving a 9-year-old until she looked like a famine victim and burning a 10-year-old 50 times on his face with a cigarette.

They are not war victims. But someone loves them. Someone remembers them.

Friday, July 28

1. Raymond Veluz, 18, was a teen from a nice neighborhood. Derek Pieper, 17, was a churchgoer and lacrosse player. Both were found face-down in the sand of a county road in Trilby in Pasco County. They lay close enough to have touched each other. Both apparently were shot to death.

Monday

2. Ada Campos Rodriguez, 38, and her husband, Alfredo Rodriguez, 54, the parents of six children ages 5 to 19, were found shot to death outside Young Middle Magnet school in east Tampa. Their kids remember them as happy and loving. Police said they can't rule out murder-suicide.

3. The body of Rafael Garcia, 55, was found in West Tampa inside his burning SUV near a hospital. Garcia helped operate his family's Palm Harbor cleaning service.

Tuesday

4. The debris field stretched for 100 yards: the aftermath of a crash that killed David R. Smithers, 33, of New Port Richey and Maynard Bindscheattel III, 18, of Tampa along U.S. 19 in Palm Harbor. Investigators suspect the drivers were racing.

Wednesday

5. A semiretired couple, friendly and generous with neighbors, were found slain in their partly burned Clearwater home. Police said the bodies of Linda and Frank Deluca "showed obvious signs of criminal violence."

6. St. Petersburg police arrest Melissa Samoraj, 27, and her partner, Raymond LaFountain, 31, saying the couple starved Samoraj's 9-year-old daughter. The girl was at least 18 pounds underweight. She also had been bound and forced to wear diapers.

7. The scars on the face of the doe-eyed 10-year-old boy will be with him for life. Police believe Robert Bligen, 46, recruited the boy to sell drugs, then burned his face with cigarettes when he didn't do a good enough job. Story, 3B

[Last modified August 5, 2006, 07:57:19]