2 deputies cleared in shooting of Holiday man

By Times Staff Writer
Published January 19, 2008

HOLIDAY - The Florida Department of Law Enforcement has cleared two deputies in the October shooting of a Holiday man armed with a butter knife and a spatula.

Dorothy Miholics called for help on Oct. 17 because her son, Stephen, was drunk and tearing up the house on Devonshire Drive, according to the FDLE's report. When Pasco deputies John Ardolino and Rodney Linville arrived, Stephen Miholics came out holding a metal spatula and a knife. He was angry and threatening, daring them to shoot him. Ardolino did, striking Miholics in the chest, the report said. A day later, Miholics was listed in fair condition in a St. Petersburg hospital. Ardolino, per Sheriff's Office policy, was placed on paid administrative leave while the shooting was investigated. In its report, the FDLE said the deputies were "in the legal performance of their law enforcement duties" and believed Miholics "posed an imminent threat of death or great bodily harm."

[Last modified January 18, 2008, 21:50:11]