Cruz Nuz For 7.8.10
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There are new developments in the murder of a local cartoonist. A Spring Hill child abuser is going to jail. Tampa Police Chief updates investigation into officers’ murders.  The Magic game is ranked as one of the best experiences in sports.

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New information has been released about the brutal murder of a Pasco County cartoon writer who disappeared in May. The Zephyrhills Police Department announced that Stephen Perry’s body was found completely dismembered and they’re looking at one of his roommates, James Davis, as the prime suspect in his murder.  Police are also confirming that the body parts found scattered around the Bay area belong to the former Thundercats screenwriter.  Most of his body parts are still missing and police think Davis dismembered Perry’s body to make it easier to hide.  The motives could have been drugs and money.

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Tai Ling Gigliotti of Spring Hill is going to prison for the abuse of her 17-year-old nephew.  Instead of giving her the minimum sentence of eight years in prison, the judge gave her two 12-year prison terms on Wednesrday.  The 51-year-old woman was convicted of beating and imprisoning the teen in May.  Her attorney argued that the judge should have declared a mistrail, due to allegations that information about the teen’s troubled past were not presented in court.  The judge said the case is about Gigliotti’s abuse of the teen, not his past history. The teen victim said he was locked inside a bathroom in their Spring Hill home for more than a year until he escaped in February of 2009.

The lawyers for a Spring Hill woman who was found guilty of beating and holding captive her 17-year-old nephew were trying to convince a judge to declare a mistrial. They say they have proof showing that the alleged victim is a habitual liar with disciplinary problems. The 51-year-old woman was found guilty in May on two counts of aggravated child abuse.  

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Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor says people helped Dontae Morris survive while he was on the run after allegedly shooting two police officers, and those accomplices will be charged. The chief says the investigation continues. Meanwhile, Castor says a confidential informant will be paid 90-thousand of the 100-thousand-dollar reward  for helping to coordinate Morris’ surrender last Friday night.

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Bond is being denied to the Polk County woman charged in her young son’s death.  Marcia Ashe was indicted for last month’s death of her two-year-old son, Deondray.  The boy was found not breathing in the family’s Lakeland home.  An autopsy determined he died from blunt force trauma to the head; but Deondray also had 30  other injuries all over his body.  The toddler’s stepfather, Marcus Brown was arrested just days after the boy’s death and charged with first-degree murder.

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A bizarre jobsite accident killed a man in Polk County early yesterday morning.  The sheriff’s office says that 61-year-old Ronald Lewis was working on a metal structure when it suddenly fell on him.  Lewis was employed by Marden Industries on Bradshaw Industrial Parkway.  An autopsy will be performed, but foul play is not suspected. 

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The Obama administration will face off against the oil industry today in a court battle over deepwater drilling.  The Justice Department is asking a federal appeals court in New Orleans to reinstate a six-month drilling moratorium imposed in response to the April explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig.  A federal judge tossed out the drilling ban last month.

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There are talks of a spy swap between the U.S. and Russia.  Ten alleged spies arrested by U.S. authorities last month are scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon in a lower Manhattan federal courtroom.  The suspects are accused of conspiring to act as unlawful agents of Russia.  Several are also accused of conspiracy to commit money laundering.  

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A new survey ranks an Orlando Magic game as one of the best fan experiences in all of sports.  “ESPN The Magazine” just came out with its 2010 Ultimate Standings and ranked the Magic best among all NBA franchises and second best among all four of the big professional sports.  The calculation is based on affordability, quality of the players, and treatment of the fans.  Only the NFL’s New Orleans Saints finished better with a number one ranking overall.  The fan experience will change completely this fall when the Magic move into the new 380-million-dollar Amway Center, which is now under construction.