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150 mourn 6-year-old, 'an angel here on Earth

North Port police continue to search for her killer.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published September 26, 2006

NORTH PORT - A 6-year-old girl found slain near her home more than a week ago was remembered during a funeral service Monday as police searched for her killer.

A man walking his dog found the body of Coralrose Fullwood near a home construction site two blocks from her home Sept. 17, hours after her family awoke to find her missing from her bed.

About 150 people attended a service for her Monday at a Fort Myers funeral home.

"She was just a joy," said her mother, Ellen-Beth Fullwood. "She was truly an angel here on Earth, and she went home."

Police have released few details of the investigation.

Authorities visiting the home after Coralrose's death found filthy conditions, prompting the state's child welfare agency to remove the four remaining children. Those children, ages 4 to 12, were placed with their grandparents after a hearing.

Dale Fullwood, 40, and his stepson, Seaton VanderWoude, returned to the home Saturday, two days after the police released it back to them. He acknowledged that the house had not been clean but said it wasn't as bad as investigators said during the hearing last week.

"I don't see us as bad parents," he said.

Investigators spent days scouring the family's home and the neighborhood for clues. Dale Fullwood said they seized four computers and all of his and Coralrose's clothes.

He said no one in his family had anything to do with the disappearance and slaying of Coralrose.

[Last modified September 26, 2006, 07:17:59]