AZUSA - A teenage girl was struck by an unlicensed driver in an intersection Sunday afternoon, authorities said.
The 17-year-old Azusa resident was riding her skateboard in the intersection of Foothill Boulevard and Azusa Avenue at 5:37 p.m. when she was struck by a Dodge van, Sgt. Xavier Torres of the Azusa police said.
The girl was transported to a local hospital, where she was listed in critical condition, he said.
The 31-year-old Azusa resident was an unlicensed driver, police said.
The cause of the collision is still under investigation, Torres said.
Anyone who witnessed the accident may contact Cpl. Randy Schmidt at 626-812-3207.
Published: Monday, September 27, 2010 at 8:26 p.m. Last Modified: Monday, September 27, 2010 at 8:26 p.m.
VALRICO | David James was enjoying an afternoon game of basketball Sunday with his 8-year-old daughter when he was shot and killed in front of her by a neighbor trying to chase away skateboarders, said friends and authorities.
A police officer walks past the body of David James, who was shot and killed in front of his 8-year-old daughter during an altercation at a Valrico basketball court Sunday afternoon. Buy photo
SCOTT MCINTYRE | St. Petersburg Times
Neighbors say James, 41, was defending the skateboarders, telling a man who lives across the street there was no sign to prohibit them from skateboarding on the courts.
"I see a sign," the assailant replied as he pulled a gun, neighbors said.
The suspect, who was not identified by authorities, then waited next to the body for Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office deputies to arrive, neighbors said.
The man was questioned by detectives and the State Attorney's Office officials and released Sunday night, said sheriff's spokesman Deputy Larry McKinnon.
"Additional details of the investigation will not be publicly released at this time," he said.
In some killings, suspects have invoked a "stand your ground" defense, which relies on a state law that allows people to meet force with force when they feel threatened.
"Whether this case meets those guidelines remains to be seen," McKinnon said.
A key witness in the case is likely to be 8-year-old Danielle, who used her father's cell phone to call her mother after the shooting, said the victim's 17-year-old stepson, Garrett.
"At first she wasn't too bad," Garrett James said. But she broke down after being questioned by investigators.
"She's taking it worse than anybody," the younger James said.
Deputies responded Sunday about 4 p.m. to a call about a shooting at 3207 Partridge Point Trail, across the street from the basketball court.
At dusk, neighbors gathered on the usually quiet streets outside the crime tape.
"It's a classic example of someone losing their temper over something silly," said Rhonda Norris, 40, who described her Twin Lakes neighborhood as family-friendly.
A recent concert in the park drew hundreds for free hot dogs and music by the Single Malt Brothers. Christmas brings performances by the high school band.
The suspect, though, had a reputation for nagging neighbors about loose dogs, and yelling and swearing at the skateboarders who like to set up ramps and rails on the community basketball court to practice their moves.
"I'm not surprised it fell out the way it did," Garrett James said.
His stepfather, who retired two years ago after serving 20 years in the Air Force, was the type of man who would stand up for people he thought were being treated unfairly, he said.
"He was a really good man," he said. "If he hadn't been there, you'd probably have two teenage kids dead instead of my dad."
And as one of the neighborhood's many skateboarders, he said he had his own run-ins with the suspect. So did his friend, Bill Myers, 16.
"He's given me a lot of trouble throughout the years," Myers said. "He likes to say he paid for that court himself."
The court, along with tennis courts and an athletic field, are maintained with dues from members of the homeowners association.
Myers and Garrett James say they have tried to petition the Twin Lakes homeowners association to build a skateboard park, collecting signatures from sympathetic parents.
Although there is a no-trespassing sign on the basketball court, they think that applies only to people who don't live in the neighborhood, which has a security booth at its entrance where a guard takes the names of visitors every day after 6 p.m.
"Everybody's lives have been changed by a conflict and an irrational decision," said Derek Matthews, who lives across the street from the scene of the shooting. "It's a terrible, sad situation."
During the day, I work in the mailroom. I deliver mail and packages to editors, writers, publishers, accountants, freelancers, and interns at magazines like Esquire and Marie Claire. I've been working for Hearst Magazines for 13 years now and I'm really happy with my job. I'm a huge fan of magazines, and I love seeing what goes on behind the scenes and finding out what stories the writers are working on. I've seen interns become writers, and fashion assistants turn into huge fashion designers. I get along with everyone and enjoy reading the magazines and books I get at work. I finished high school, but my real education comes from what I've read, the people I talk to, writing in my journal, and, of course, what I see in the streets at night.
I've been a skateboarder for more than 20 years. It's my second choice in life. Work comes first, because without work I couldn't afford sneakers and boards. But when I go from work to skating it's like slipping from one world to another. I work with smart, educated, family-oriented people. When I leave work to go skating in downtown New York, I see all the junkies, lowlifes, and degenerates. Instead of going home to watch TV, I skate and watch all the entertainment going on in the streets. It's like reality TV without the TV.
I leave work at 5:00 p.m. and can skate from 57th Street to Union Square in 11 minutes flat. I fly down Eighth Avenue—laughing at the fat businessmen running to the Port Authority to catch their buses—and turn on 42nd Street and go past the New York Times building (my daily bible), where I cut down Seventh Avenue. They just repaved it over the summer and it's smooth as silk.
I have the street signals timed so if I hit them just right, I can go through four signals no problem. I bust a left on 32nd Street where I make a point to high-five this black Superman I know whose job it is to hold a sign for some bullshit advertisement. I give him props because he's Superman, America's hero. Then I take Broadway the rest of the way to the park.
On the streets there are two rules I go by: don't get arrested, and don't get into fights. I do, however, have a bad habit with cars that almost hit me, either punching them or spitting on their windshields. If it's my fault I'll skate right up to them and apologize, but if they're texting or on the phone I'll call them out for it. And don't get me started on pedicabs, because that's a story for another time.
I always refer to Union Square Park as my backyard, even though I live in Jersey (too broke to live in NYC). I spend more time at the park than I do at home. I know all the park rats (regulars). I know the skaters, bikers, junkies, crusties, punks, scenesters (emo music, skinny pants), perverts, scumbags, gravers (gothic ravers), and even the people who clean up the garbage. These people make up for the family I don't have. Union Square is also my skate park and it's fun as shit. Ask anyone: Who rips this park down skating? They'll point to me.
You have to have a street name to be down. I go by Shaggy. Then there's my dad, Signs (pictured left, with me). He's not really my dad, but I can definitely picture him that way, not that I particularly like him. Signs is homeless, always has a cigarette dangling out of his mouth, and he's got the coolest teeth in the park: two really pointy fangs on the bottom of his mouth. I love watching him eat. He eats like my cat, Anna, with his tongue sticking out because he can't chew his food. Having a good set of teeth in this park is a privilege.
Also, to be an official park rat you have to have a gig. My dad's gig is walking around with two cardboard signs. He'll approach people and show a sign that says, "What's the best nation?" Then he'll whip out another sign that says, "Donation." Then he'll hold out a cup and say, "Any change will do." If it's a couple he approaches, he'll tell the girl to dump the dweeb and marry him, because he's a great cook. Sometimes I'll blow his spot up and say, "How can you cook if you don't even have a home?" He usually yells at me to shut up, and then tells the people he's begging change from, "That's my son." I'm starting to think he really believes he's my dad. This is what I do when I'm not skating. Fucking with bums is one of my hobbies.
Then there's a kid we call Dusty. I gave him that name after watching him get high huffing Dust-Off. Every time he took a hit his eyes looked like they were going to pop out of his head. I egged him on, screaming and cheering. I know it's bad, but I did that kind of thing for a couple of years. I worked at a restaurant and sucked the gas out of whipped-cream canisters all the time. And I was better than Dusty because I got to the point where I could do two cans at once. I don't recommend you do that. Anyway, Dusty is really out of his mind but I love him like a brother.
If you hang out in the park, hide your cigarettes. Smoking is bad, but all park rats smoke, and it's a guarantee that once you light up, a line of them will form. Cigarettes are worth more than money at the park. Sometimes I'll carry a pack but just have one cigarette in it, so when I pull out the pack they believe me that I only have one left. Sometimes I tell them I'm out, and since I'm a park rat, they'll come back and give me one. That's the privilege of being a park rat, free cigarettes without begging.
So stop by Union Square Park sometime and say hi. Join the family and become a park rat, or just hang back and enjoy the show.
Bobby Crawford is a writer, skateboarder, office mailroom employee, and New York Times profile subject.
A boy skateboarding south across First Avenue North, at its intersection with North Washington Street, was struck by a car traveling east about 7:44 p.m. Friday, according to Grand Forks Police.
The vehicle driver, a teen female, was cited for care required, police said. The driver's name was not released, nor was the skateboarder's.
The skateboarder was taken to Altru Hospital by his parents to treat minor injuries, according to a police news release.
Beyond Pink and Blue West Roxbury interior designer Rachel Reider, who dreamed up this nursery for her daughter (facing page), recommends decorating with customizable and three-dimensional elements. Vinyl wall graphics are inexpensive and can be arranged to fit the space exactly. Everyday objects – anything from pennants to tree branches – hung on the wall can provide stimulating dimension and texture. Reider says her daughter is mesmerized by the butterflies by Almost Sunday that she found on Etsy, a great source for original, affordable art.
Don't be afraid to push the envelope in terms of color, with brighter and bolder hues and offbeat combinations, Reider advises. The purple, brown, and orange scheme in her daughter's room is a departure from the stereotypical pink or blue. It's girly enough, but feels fresh rather than cloying.
Opting for materials that don't require much upkeep is also a smart move for a child's room, says Reider. The glider is upholstered in easy-to-clean Ultrasuede. The carpet tiles, by Flor, are not only fun to mix and match, they're durable and easily swapped out in case of staining. Reider recommends choosing furniture that will remain useful as your baby grows or that can be easily re-appropriated. This glider is ideal for feeding infants, but when baby becomes a toddler, it's the perfect spot for a parent to perch during story time. Later, kids can curl up with a book on their own. The crib's simple lines and dark color make it easy to use for baby number two, regardless of gender.
Long Live the Theme Interior designer Andra Birkerts says she strives to create spaces that have a design scheme but leave enough leeway for kids to imprint the room with their own style. In this then 11-year-old girl's room in Cambridge that Birkerts designed, the palette and theme are clear, but empty walls and shelves offer opportunity for a child's touches.
Establish a theme with longevity, the Wellesley-based Birkerts advises. For this room, she says, they went with a graphic motif – polka dots – based on a sheet pattern the girl adored. But don't go overboard, Birkerts says. "It's clear what we're doing, but we didn't push the dot thing too much."
While some of the paper lanterns indeed cover light bulbs, others are purely decorative, Birkerts says. "You can add and subtract lanterns in different colors and sizes and hang them at different heights. They're very versatile, not to mention inexpensive."
The loft bed pictured is custom made, but retailers like IKEA also offer loft-style options. By elevating the bed, Birkerts had space to create a distinct area for lounging, key for kids when friends visit. Lights that clip onto the back of the bed can be repositioned. "Kids like to move stuff around and change sides of the bed," Birkerts says.
Toys in the Attic Involve teens in the design process. That's the lesson Boston-based Andrew Terrat of Terrat Elms learned when he designed this room for the teenage son of a client in Wayland. To his surprise, the boy and his two sisters, whose rooms Terrat also designed, were really interested. They sent him links to pieces they liked, having shopped it all online. The PB Teen Vintage Camo Quilt was one of the client's son's finds, as was a set of skateboard shelves.
The boy's bedroom is an entire attic floor and includes an en suite bathroom. "It's like an apartment for a 15-year-old," Terrat says. If you have the space, you can echo the layout of a studio or loft, as Terrat did, by splitting up the room into distinct zones. There's an area with a desk for doing homework, two beds (one of them for sleepovers) with throw pillows for hanging out, as well as a TV and video-game area.
There's also a wide-open space where the teen can work on his project of the moment. "It's important to leave room for new interests," Terrat says. Not long after the room was complete, its young occupant set up a tent to prepare for an upcoming camping trip. He recently added an electronic drum set.
Terrat played into the teen's main pastime when creating the room's focal point: the gaming area. The specialized gaming chairs rock, vibrate, and have speakers built into the headrests, helping players feel as if they're really in on the action. The soda-can pillows were chosen as much for the feel as the design. "They're like beanbags," Terrat says. "They feel creepy to touch, but kids love them because they mold to their heads."
Marni Elyse Katz is a regular contributor to the Globe Magazine and blogs about design at stylecarrot.com. Send comments to magazine@globe.com.
Every Christmas there is that one hot toy that adults just don't understand. Remember The Furby? Well, this year, that toy would be Sing-A-Ma-Jigs. Kids love them and parents just don't understand why. Sing-A-Ma-Jigs
are colorful plus dolls that chatter and sing, and when placed with other Sing-A-Ma-Jig toys, sing in harmony. The more the merrier, and the louder the chorus! Be sure to pick up yours soon because these colorful little creatures are going to be on of the hottest toys for 2010.
But Sing-A-Ma-Jigs at retailers such as Amazon, Walmart, Toys R Us, KB Toys, and other retailers.
Silly Bandz have been one of the hottest toys for 2010 all year long, and you can believe they will be on most children's Christmas list too. What are they? They are plastic bands that fit around the wrist that come in fun colors and shapes. Why are they popular? No one knows! But they are inexpensive, which is surprising because kids never like anything cheap!
You can find Silly Bandz EVERYWHERE! Walmart, Target, Kmart, gas stations, beauty salons...virtually everywhere you go you'll find some kind of Silly Bandz on sale.
The crazy hamsters that were hot last year are back on the list of the hot toys for 2010. What's different this year, though, is that there are Zhu Zhu Pets for boys, called Kung Zhu Pets. Now boys and girls alike can enjoy playing with their furry friends. Boys can battle their King Zhu Pets on the ground or in specially made arenas, or by riding them on skateboards. Girls can enjoy playing with theirs in cute little hamster houses and by accessorizing them with cute girly toys.
Be sure to buy these hot toys for Christmas 2010 before they disappear from store shelves. Find them at stores like Walmart, Kmart, Target, and online at Amazon, Ebay, and so on.
Hurry! These hot toys for Christmas 2010 will go fast, so secure yours before the big Christmas shopping rush
During the day, I work in the mailroom. I deliver mail and packages to editors, writers, publishers, accountants, freelancers, and interns at magazines like Esquire and Marie Claire. I've been working for Hearst Magazines for 13 years now and I'm really happy with my job. I'm a huge fan of magazines, and I love seeing what goes on behind the scenes and finding out what stories the writers are working on. I've seen interns become writers, and fashion assistants turn into huge fashion designers. I get along with everyone and enjoy reading the magazines and books I get at work. I finished high school, but my real education comes from what I've read, the people I talk to, writing in my journal, and, of course, what I see in the streets at night.
I've been a skateboarder for more than 20 years. It's my second choice in life. Work comes first, because without work I couldn't afford sneakers and boards. But when I go from work to skating it's like slipping from one world to another. I work with smart, educated, family-oriented people. When I leave work to go skating in downtown New York, I see all the junkies, lowlifes, and degenerates. Instead of going home to watch TV, I skate and watch all the entertainment going on in the streets. It's like reality TV without the TV.
I leave work at 5:00 p.m. and can skate from 57th Street to Union Square in 11 minutes flat. I fly down Eighth Avenue—laughing at the fat businessmen running to the Port Authority to catch their buses—and turn on 42nd Street and go past the New York Times building (my daily bible), where I cut down Seventh Avenue. They just repaved it over the summer and it's smooth as silk.
I have the street signals timed so if I hit them just right, I can go through four signals no problem. I bust a left on 32nd Street where I make a point to high-five this black Superman I know whose job it is to hold a sign for some bullshit advertisement. I give him props because he's Superman, America's hero. Then I take Broadway the rest of the way to the park.
On the streets there are two rules I go by: don't get arrested, and don't get into fights. I do, however, have a bad habit with cars that almost hit me, either punching them or spitting on their windshields. If it's my fault I'll skate right up to them and apologize, but if they're texting or on the phone I'll call them out for it. And don't get me started on pedicabs, because that's a story for another time.
I always refer to Union Square Park as my backyard, even though I live in Jersey (too broke to live in NYC). I spend more time at the park than I do at home. I know all the park rats (regulars). I know the skaters, bikers, junkies, crusties, punks, scenesters (emo music, skinny pants), perverts, scumbags, gravers (gothic ravers), and even the people who clean up the garbage. These people make up for the family I don't have. Union Square is also my skate park and it's fun as shit. Ask anyone: Who rips this park down skating? They'll point to me.
You have to have a street name to be down. I go by Shaggy. Then there's my dad, Signs (pictured left, with me). He's not really my dad, but I can definitely picture him that way, not that I particularly like him. Signs is homeless, always has a cigarette dangling out of his mouth, and he's got the coolest teeth in the park: two really pointy fangs on the bottom of his mouth. I love watching him eat. He eats like my cat, Anna, with his tongue sticking out because he can't chew his food. Having a good set of teeth in this park is a privilege.
Also, to be an official park rat you have to have a gig. My dad's gig is walking around with two cardboard signs. He'll approach people and show a sign that says, "What's the best nation?" Then he'll whip out another sign that says, "Donation." Then he'll hold out a cup and say, "Any change will do." If it's a couple he approaches, he'll tell the girl to dump the dweeb and marry him, because he's a great cook. Sometimes I'll blow his spot up and say, "How can you cook if you don't even have a home?" He usually yells at me to shut up, and then tells the people he's begging change from, "That's my son." I'm starting to think he really believes he's my dad. This is what I do when I'm not skating. Fucking with bums is one of my hobbies.
Then there's a kid we call Dusty. I gave him that name after watching him get high huffing Dust-Off. Every time he took a hit his eyes looked like they were going to pop out of his head. I egged him on, screaming and cheering. I know it's bad, but I did that kind of thing for a couple of years. I worked at a restaurant and sucked the gas out of whipped-cream canisters all the time. And I was better than Dusty because I got to the point where I could do two cans at once. I don't recommend you do that. Anyway, Dusty is really out of his mind but I love him like a brother.
If you hang out in the park, hide your cigarettes. Smoking is bad, but all park rats smoke, and it's a guarantee that once you light up, a line of them will form. Cigarettes are worth more than money at the park. Sometimes I'll carry a pack but just have one cigarette in it, so when I pull out the pack they believe me that I only have one left. Sometimes I tell them I'm out, and since I'm a park rat, they'll come back and give me one. That's the privilege of being a park rat, free cigarettes without begging.
So stop by Union Square Park sometime and say hi. Join the family and become a park rat, or just hang back and enjoy the show.
Bobby Crawford is a writer, skateboarder, office mailroom employee, and New York Times profile subject.
Kanina James, wife of Valrico shooting victim David James, said she can't understand why there's been no arrest in her husband's killing. Her son Garrett, 17, at right, said he had had confrontations with the neighbor they say shot James. Buy photo
Hillsborough sheriff's deputies have arrested Trevor Dooley, left, and charged him with manslaughter. During Sunday's fatal argument, Chief Deputy Jose Docobo said, Dooley took the gun from his waistband and confronted David James, who reached for the gun. Then, Docobo said, Dooley fired. Buy photo
Willie J. Allen Jr. | St. Petersburg Times
School bus driver Trevor Dooley was led in handcuffs from his home on Partridge Point Trail and booked into the Hillsborough County jail.
"The suspect fired the gun. There's no indication the victim pulled the trigger," sheriff's Deputy Chief Jose Docobo said in a news conference this afternoon.
The shooting stemmed from a dispute over skateboarders.
David James, 41, was killed Sunday in front of his 8-year-old daughter.
Dooley and James started arguing Sunday afternoon after Dooley confronted a boy riding a skateboard across a basketball court and James defended him, neighbors and authorities said.
The men got into a "physical confrontation," according to Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies. Dooley was carrying a gun, and James was fatally shot.
The Sheriff's Office had not earlier named Dooley as a suspect or charged him with a crime.
Authorities said they were investigating who pulled the trigger or whether the shooting was justified.
Dooley did not drive his bus route this morning, a school district spokeswoman said.
He and his wife, Patricia, who also drives a bus for the school district, called in sick Tuesday.
The morning after the shooting, Dooley drove his regular school bus route.
Cobbe said the Sheriff's Office did not notify the school district of Dooley's involvement in the shooting until after he finished his route
The incident began when Dooley walked out of his suburban house Sunday afternoon, past his trimmed lawn and nice landscaping, to confront a boy riding a skateboard on the basketball court across the street. That's against the rules in this neighborhood, and Dooley was carrying a gun.
James, with 20 years in the Air Force, was playing basketball with his 8-year-old daughter. They played every Sunday.
James stood up for the skateboarder, neighbors said. The men argued and got into a "physical confrontation," the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said. Then, in front of his daughter, James was shot dead.
What authorities don't know is who pulled the trigger, or whether it was justified.
The Sheriff's Office has not named Dooley as a suspect or charged him with a crime. When police arrived around 4 p.m., he was waiting with the dead man. He invoked his right to remain silent and called his lawyer.
"We haven't named him yet as a suspect. I'm not going to say he's not," said sheriff's Col. Albert Frost. "We have various witnesses and various conflicting statements at this point to start with. Obviously, that doesn't help us. We're trying to sort out the facts and trying to determine what really happened."
Neighbors said Dooley is a fine man with good intentions. They couldn't understand how a man wound up dead.
"It's just really sad and it's stupid," said Sam Romano, 50, a neighbor. "None of it made any sense to any of us."
Mark Cox, a State Attorney's Office spokesman, said he couldn't yet explain why no charges have been filed.
"It's still very much a pending investigation," he said. "We're working on it diligently."
Neighbors said James was defending skateboarders, who they said have had multiple run-ins with Dooley.
"We've gone off on each other before," said James' stepson, 17-year-old Garrett James.
James' wife, Kanina James, can't understand why Dooley is free.
"It's over and it's done and it can't be undone," she said on the phone to a friend Monday morning. "Yeah, they caught him and they let him go. I don't know why."
She smoked Marlboro Golds on her back porch in the Twin Lakes neighborhood, on a white wicker bench, blotting her eyes with a paper towel and trying to make sense of how a father-daughter basketball game turned deadly.
Kanina James said her husband was a good man. "He would help anybody out. I think that's what happened yesterday. I think he was just trying to help someone out."
The two met when Kanina worked as a cocktail waitress in Las Vegas. She was taken by his big muscles and his eyes. "I remember thinking, 'He's just so beautiful.' His eyes were so pretty." They married a few years later, in 1998.
James loved his daughter Danielle. The two played basketball every Sunday and rode around the neighborhood on a Kawasaki Vulcan motorcycle with a special seat for Danielle.
"He and Danielle were so close," Kanina said. "He was her best friend."
Kanina said she learned her husband had been shot when a woman called from his cell phone. She hurried to the park and noticed that paramedics were not working on him. She tried to run to him but deputies held her back.
At the scene, Danielle asked her mother why no one was helping her dad. "I just said, 'He already went up to heaven.' "
Detectives interviewed the girl Monday. The Sheriff's Office said she was traumatized, which complicates the investigation.
"The minute we can reach a point we have a finding and something we can move on, we will," said Frost, the sheriff's colonel.
Back in 1975, photographer Hugh Holland was driving up Laurel Canyon when he saw a strange sight. Bobbing bodies off to the side of the road.
When he moved closer, he realized that they were skateboarders using a drainage ditch that was mostly below street-level. Their figures rose and fell as they glided by. Holland was fascinated by this display of speed and grace. He parked, took out his camera and approached them.
"As soon as the skaters saw the camera they perked up. I was immediately welcome," he tells interviewer Steve Crist in "Locals Only: California Skateboarding 1975-1978" (Ammo: $39.95). "In those days, there were far fewer cameras around, so the camera was my 'in.' "
With that invitation, Holland went on to hang out with skaters all over Southern California, taking action shots of their spectacular feats in drainage ditches, empty pools, schoolyards and skate parks, in places such as Hollywood, Balboa, Reseda and Del Mar. "Locals Only" is the result — Holland's big, oversized, glorious photographic tribute to what skateboarding was all about in the pre- Tony Hawk, pre-extreme sports days. Skateboarding wasn't about video game or clothing endorsement deals, it was about scrapes and dirty feet, about risk and getting to know gravity in a very personal way. There were no rolling waves of water under you if you fell — only the street. Forget surfing. Especially if you were a kid growing up far from the beach, had no way to get there and couldn't afford it, surfing was just a pipe dream. But you still had your skateboard.
"Locals Only" offers fantastic images of flexibility and balance — there's Danny Kwok doing a handstand on his board at Balboa and an unidentified kid shooting past two bikini-clad girls on a sidewalk in Huntington Beach. Holland's book also captures the mood of a brief time period — his photos span just three years in the middle of a decade — and that special feeling of freedom you felt if you were fortunate enough to find yourself in the late afternoon at the top of a hill with, say, half a mile of smooth asphalt ahead of you.
Any fortysomething who still gets out there with the kids might feel like a traitor to don a helmet now or to hear sensible questions popping into his head: What's the best way to fall to avoid spinal injury? What if I pull a hamstring? No one in Holland's book probably sweated over these things — like Trey Hall, whom Holland photographs wheeling up to the coping of a drained swimming pool. Awesome.
Holland explains that he used ultra-wide lenses to "capture the drama — using the slight distortion to advantage — with the limbs flying out and the boards flying everywhere. The drama was outstanding."
"Locals Only" is a celebration of youth. Muscles, wiry bodies, long, tangled hair. A kid might have been in one of the most awkward stages of adolescence, but when he was sailing around an empty pool, Holland reminds us, he was something else entirely. He was perfection.
By Ben Montgomery, Danny Valentine, Shelley Rossetter and Jessica Vander Velde, Times Staff Writers In Print: Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Kanina James, wife of Valrico shooting victim David James, talks Monday on the phone with James' former wife about his death as son Garrett, 17, sits at right. David James was shot and killed Sunday after an argument over skateboarding.
[EDMUND D. FOUNTAIN | Times]
VALRICO
Trevor Dooley walked out of his suburban house Sunday afternoon, past his trimmed lawn and nice landscaping, to confront a boy riding a skateboard on the basketball court across the street. That's against the rules in this neighborhood, and Dooley, 69, was carrying a gun.
David James, 41, with 20 years in the Air Force, was playing basketball with his 8-year-old daughter. They played every Sunday.
James stood up for the skateboarder, neighbors said. The men argued and got into a "physical confrontation," the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said. Then, in front of his daughter, James was shot dead.
What authorities don't know is who pulled the trigger, or whether it was justified.
The Sheriff's Office has not named Dooley as a suspect or charged him with a crime. When police arrived around 4 p.m., he was waiting with the dead man. He invoked his right to remain silent and called his lawyer.
"We haven't named him yet as a suspect. I'm not going to say he's not," said sheriff's Col. Albert Frost. "We have various witnesses and various conflicting statements at this point to start with. Obviously, that doesn't help us. We're trying to sort out the facts and trying to determine what really happened."
So Dooley went back to work Monday morning, driving a school bus loaded with kids.
Hillsborough schools spokeswoman Linda Cobbe said the Sheriff's Office did not notify the school district of Dooley's involvement in the shooting.
"We didn't know of any kind of allegations until we got a call from someone," Cobbe said. "Then I talked to the transportation manager, but by then he was done with his route for the day."
Would they have acted differently had they known about Dooley's involvement?
"Possibly," she said. "It didn't become evident to us until we started getting all of these calls. … We err on the side of caution when student safety or employee safety is at risk."
Dooley, a New York City transplant, drives a route for Barrington Middle School and Newsome High School, both in Lithia. He also picks up elementary children who missed the bus.
Cobbe said he will be reassigned "for his safety and the students'."
School Board member Candy Olson struggled to put her surprise into words.
"He's a school bus driver who drove — oh, my gosh," she said.
Olson said the Sheriff's Office should have immediately contacted the district if it knew a bus driver had been involved in such an incident. "They certainly owe us the information that they have," she said.
"For his safety and the safety of his students," said board member April Griffin. "People are angry about this. There are definitely some questions that need to be answered."
Dooley, who listed his previous employer as Ted's Transport Services in the Bronx when he applied here to drive buses, didn't answer his door Monday afternoon.
Neighbors said Dooley is a fine man with good intentions. They couldn't understand how a man wound up dead.
"It's just really sad and it's stupid," said Sam Romano, 50, a neighbor. "None of it made any sense to any of us."
Mark Cox, a State Attorney's Office spokesman, said he couldn't yet explain why no charges have been filed.
"It's still very much a pending investigation," he said. "We're working on it diligently."
Neighbors said James was defending skateboarders, who they said have had multiple run-ins with Dooley.
"We've gone off on each other before," said James' stepson, 17-year-old Garrett James.
James' wife, Kanina James, can't understand why Dooley is free.
"It's over and it's done and it can't be undone," she said on the phone to a friend Monday morning. "Yeah, they caught him and they let him go. I don't know why."
She smoked Marlboro Golds on her back porch in the Twin Lakes neighborhood, on a white wicker bench, blotting her eyes with a paper towel and trying to make sense of how a father-daughter basketball game turned deadly.
Kanina James said her husband was a good man. "He would help anybody out. I think that's what happened yesterday. I think he was just trying to help someone out."
The two met when Kanina worked as a cocktail waitress in Las Vegas. She was taken by his big muscles and his eyes. "I remember thinking, 'He's just so beautiful.' His eyes were so pretty." They married a few years later, in 1998.
James loved his daughter Danielle. The two played basketball every Sunday and rode around the neighborhood on a Kawasaki Vulcan motorcycle with a special seat for Danielle.
"He and Danielle were so close," Kanina said. "He was her best friend."
Kanina said she learned her husband had been shot when a woman called from his cell phone. She hurried to the park and noticed that paramedics were not working on him. She tried to run to him but deputies held her back.
At the scene, Danielle asked her mother why no one was helping her dad. "I just said, 'He already went up to heaven.' "
Detectives interviewed the girl Monday. The Sheriff's Office said she was traumatized, which complicates the investigation.
"The minute we can reach a point we have a finding and something we can move on, we will," said Frost, the sheriff's colonel.
Times staff writer Tom Marshall and researcher John Martin contributed to this report. Ben Montgomery can be reached at bmontgomery@sptimes.com or (813) 310-6066.
Published: Monday, September 27, 2010 at 8:26 p.m. Last Modified: Monday, September 27, 2010 at 8:26 p.m.
VALRICO | David James was enjoying an afternoon game of basketball Sunday with his 8-year-old daughter when he was shot and killed in front of her by a neighbor trying to chase away skateboarders, said friends and authorities.
A police officer walks past the body of David James, who was shot and killed in front of his 8-year-old daughter during an altercation at a Valrico basketball court Sunday afternoon. Buy photo
SCOTT MCINTYRE | St. Petersburg Times
Neighbors say James, 41, was defending the skateboarders, telling a man who lives across the street there was no sign to prohibit them from skateboarding on the courts.
"I see a sign," the assailant replied as he pulled a gun, neighbors said.
The suspect, who was not identified by authorities, then waited next to the body for Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office deputies to arrive, neighbors said.
The man was questioned by detectives and the State Attorney's Office officials and released Sunday night, said sheriff's spokesman Deputy Larry McKinnon.
"Additional details of the investigation will not be publicly released at this time," he said.
In some killings, suspects have invoked a "stand your ground" defense, which relies on a state law that allows people to meet force with force when they feel threatened.
"Whether this case meets those guidelines remains to be seen," McKinnon said.
A key witness in the case is likely to be 8-year-old Danielle, who used her father's cell phone to call her mother after the shooting, said the victim's 17-year-old stepson, Garrett.
"At first she wasn't too bad," Garrett James said. But she broke down after being questioned by investigators.
"She's taking it worse than anybody," the younger James said.
Deputies responded Sunday about 4 p.m. to a call about a shooting at 3207 Partridge Point Trail, across the street from the basketball court.
At dusk, neighbors gathered on the usually quiet streets outside the crime tape.
"It's a classic example of someone losing their temper over something silly," said Rhonda Norris, 40, who described her Twin Lakes neighborhood as family-friendly.
A recent concert in the park drew hundreds for free hot dogs and music by the Single Malt Brothers. Christmas brings performances by the high school band.
The suspect, though, had a reputation for nagging neighbors about loose dogs, and yelling and swearing at the skateboarders who like to set up ramps and rails on the community basketball court to practice their moves.
"I'm not surprised it fell out the way it did," Garrett James said.
His stepfather, who retired two years ago after serving 20 years in the Air Force, was the type of man who would stand up for people he thought were being treated unfairly, he said.
"He was a really good man," he said. "If he hadn't been there, you'd probably have two teenage kids dead instead of my dad."
And as one of the neighborhood's many skateboarders, he said he had his own run-ins with the suspect. So did his friend, Bill Myers, 16.
"He's given me a lot of trouble throughout the years," Myers said. "He likes to say he paid for that court himself."
The court, along with tennis courts and an athletic field, are maintained with dues from members of the homeowners association.
Myers and Garrett James say they have tried to petition the Twin Lakes homeowners association to build a skateboard park, collecting signatures from sympathetic parents.
Although there is a no-trespassing sign on the basketball court, they think that applies only to people who don't live in the neighborhood, which has a security booth at its entrance where a guard takes the names of visitors every day after 6 p.m.
"Everybody's lives have been changed by a conflict and an irrational decision," said Derek Matthews, who lives across the street from the scene of the shooting. "It's a terrible, sad situation."
Back in 1975, photographer Hugh Holland was driving up Laurel Canyon when he saw a strange sight. Bobbing bodies off to the side of the road.
When he moved closer, he realized that they were skateboarders using a drainage ditch that was mostly below street-level. Their figures rose and fell as they glided by. Holland was fascinated by this display of speed and grace. He parked, took out his camera and approached them.
"As soon as the skaters saw the camera they perked up. I was immediately welcome," he tells interviewer Steve Crist in "Locals Only: California Skateboarding 1975-1978" (Ammo: $39.95). "In those days, there were far fewer cameras around, so the camera was my 'in.' "
With that invitation, Holland went on to hang out with skaters all over Southern California, taking action shots of their spectacular feats in drainage ditches, empty pools, schoolyards and skate parks, in places such as Hollywood, Balboa, Reseda and Del Mar. "Locals Only" is the result — Holland's big, oversized, glorious photographic tribute to what skateboarding was all about in the pre- Tony Hawk, pre-extreme sports days. Skateboarding wasn't about video game or clothing endorsement deals, it was about scrapes and dirty feet, about risk and getting to know gravity in a very personal way. There were no rolling waves of water under you if you fell — only the street. Forget surfing. Especially if you were a kid growing up far from the beach, had no way to get there and couldn't afford it, surfing was just a pipe dream. But you still had your skateboard.
"Locals Only" offers fantastic images of flexibility and balance — there's Danny Kwok doing a handstand on his board at Balboa and an unidentified kid shooting past two bikini-clad girls on a sidewalk in Huntington Beach. Holland's book also captures the mood of a brief time period — his photos span just three years in the middle of a decade — and that special feeling of freedom you felt if you were fortunate enough to find yourself in the late afternoon at the top of a hill with, say, half a mile of smooth asphalt ahead of you.
Any fortysomething who still gets out there with the kids might feel like a traitor to don a helmet now or to hear sensible questions popping into his head: What's the best way to fall to avoid spinal injury? What if I pull a hamstring? No one in Holland's book probably sweated over these things — like Trey Hall, whom Holland photographs wheeling up to the coping of a drained swimming pool. Awesome.
Holland explains that he used ultra-wide lenses to "capture the drama — using the slight distortion to advantage — with the limbs flying out and the boards flying everywhere. The drama was outstanding."
"Locals Only" is a celebration of youth. Muscles, wiry bodies, long, tangled hair. A kid might have been in one of the most awkward stages of adolescence, but when he was sailing around an empty pool, Holland reminds us, he was something else entirely. He was perfection.
By Ben Montgomery, Danny Valentine, Shelley Rossetter and Jessica Vander Velde, Times Staff Writers In Print: Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Kanina James, wife of Valrico shooting victim David James, talks Monday on the phone with James' former wife about his death as son Garrett, 17, sits at right. David James was shot and killed Sunday after an argument over skateboarding.
[EDMUND D. FOUNTAIN | Times]
VALRICO
Trevor Dooley walked out of his suburban house Sunday afternoon, past his trimmed lawn and nice landscaping, to confront a boy riding a skateboard on the basketball court across the street. That's against the rules in this neighborhood, and Dooley, 69, was carrying a gun.
David James, 41, with 20 years in the Air Force, was playing basketball with his 8-year-old daughter. They played every Sunday.
James stood up for the skateboarder, neighbors said. The men argued and got into a "physical confrontation," the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said. Then, in front of his daughter, James was shot dead.
What authorities don't know is who pulled the trigger, or whether it was justified.
The Sheriff's Office has not named Dooley as a suspect or charged him with a crime. When police arrived around 4 p.m., he was waiting with the dead man. He invoked his right to remain silent and called his lawyer.
"We haven't named him yet as a suspect. I'm not going to say he's not," said sheriff's Col. Albert Frost. "We have various witnesses and various conflicting statements at this point to start with. Obviously, that doesn't help us. We're trying to sort out the facts and trying to determine what really happened."
So Dooley went back to work Monday morning, driving a school bus loaded with kids.
Hillsborough schools spokeswoman Linda Cobbe said the Sheriff's Office did not notify the school district of Dooley's involvement in the shooting.
"We didn't know of any kind of allegations until we got a call from someone," Cobbe said. "Then I talked to the transportation manager, but by then he was done with his route for the day."
Would they have acted differently had they known about Dooley's involvement?
"Possibly," she said. "It didn't become evident to us until we started getting all of these calls. … We err on the side of caution when student safety or employee safety is at risk."
Dooley, a New York City transplant, drives a route for Barrington Middle School and Newsome High School, both in Lithia. He also picks up elementary children who missed the bus.
Cobbe said he will be reassigned "for his safety and the students'."
School Board member Candy Olson struggled to put her surprise into words.
"He's a school bus driver who drove — oh, my gosh," she said.
Olson said the Sheriff's Office should have immediately contacted the district if it knew a bus driver had been involved in such an incident. "They certainly owe us the information that they have," she said.
"For his safety and the safety of his students," said board member April Griffin. "People are angry about this. There are definitely some questions that need to be answered."
Dooley, who listed his previous employer as Ted's Transport Services in the Bronx when he applied here to drive buses, didn't answer his door Monday afternoon.
Neighbors said Dooley is a fine man with good intentions. They couldn't understand how a man wound up dead.
"It's just really sad and it's stupid," said Sam Romano, 50, a neighbor. "None of it made any sense to any of us."
Mark Cox, a State Attorney's Office spokesman, said he couldn't yet explain why no charges have been filed.
"It's still very much a pending investigation," he said. "We're working on it diligently."
Neighbors said James was defending skateboarders, who they said have had multiple run-ins with Dooley.
"We've gone off on each other before," said James' stepson, 17-year-old Garrett James.
James' wife, Kanina James, can't understand why Dooley is free.
"It's over and it's done and it can't be undone," she said on the phone to a friend Monday morning. "Yeah, they caught him and they let him go. I don't know why."
She smoked Marlboro Golds on her back porch in the Twin Lakes neighborhood, on a white wicker bench, blotting her eyes with a paper towel and trying to make sense of how a father-daughter basketball game turned deadly.
Kanina James said her husband was a good man. "He would help anybody out. I think that's what happened yesterday. I think he was just trying to help someone out."
The two met when Kanina worked as a cocktail waitress in Las Vegas. She was taken by his big muscles and his eyes. "I remember thinking, 'He's just so beautiful.' His eyes were so pretty." They married a few years later, in 1998.
James loved his daughter Danielle. The two played basketball every Sunday and rode around the neighborhood on a Kawasaki Vulcan motorcycle with a special seat for Danielle.
"He and Danielle were so close," Kanina said. "He was her best friend."
Kanina said she learned her husband had been shot when a woman called from his cell phone. She hurried to the park and noticed that paramedics were not working on him. She tried to run to him but deputies held her back.
At the scene, Danielle asked her mother why no one was helping her dad. "I just said, 'He already went up to heaven.' "
Detectives interviewed the girl Monday. The Sheriff's Office said she was traumatized, which complicates the investigation.
"The minute we can reach a point we have a finding and something we can move on, we will," said Frost, the sheriff's colonel.
Times staff writer Tom Marshall and researcher John Martin contributed to this report. Ben Montgomery can be reached at bmontgomery@sptimes.com or (813) 310-6066.
Published: Monday, September 27, 2010 at 8:26 p.m. Last Modified: Monday, September 27, 2010 at 8:26 p.m.
VALRICO | David James was enjoying an afternoon game of basketball Sunday with his 8-year-old daughter when he was shot and killed in front of her by a neighbor trying to chase away skateboarders, said friends and authorities.
A police officer walks past the body of David James, who was shot and killed in front of his 8-year-old daughter during an altercation at a Valrico basketball court Sunday afternoon. Buy photo
SCOTT MCINTYRE | St. Petersburg Times
Neighbors say James, 41, was defending the skateboarders, telling a man who lives across the street there was no sign to prohibit them from skateboarding on the courts.
"I see a sign," the assailant replied as he pulled a gun, neighbors said.
The suspect, who was not identified by authorities, then waited next to the body for Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office deputies to arrive, neighbors said.
The man was questioned by detectives and the State Attorney's Office officials and released Sunday night, said sheriff's spokesman Deputy Larry McKinnon.
"Additional details of the investigation will not be publicly released at this time," he said.
In some killings, suspects have invoked a "stand your ground" defense, which relies on a state law that allows people to meet force with force when they feel threatened.
"Whether this case meets those guidelines remains to be seen," McKinnon said.
A key witness in the case is likely to be 8-year-old Danielle, who used her father's cell phone to call her mother after the shooting, said the victim's 17-year-old stepson, Garrett.
"At first she wasn't too bad," Garrett James said. But she broke down after being questioned by investigators.
"She's taking it worse than anybody," the younger James said.
Deputies responded Sunday about 4 p.m. to a call about a shooting at 3207 Partridge Point Trail, across the street from the basketball court.
At dusk, neighbors gathered on the usually quiet streets outside the crime tape.
"It's a classic example of someone losing their temper over something silly," said Rhonda Norris, 40, who described her Twin Lakes neighborhood as family-friendly.
A recent concert in the park drew hundreds for free hot dogs and music by the Single Malt Brothers. Christmas brings performances by the high school band.
The suspect, though, had a reputation for nagging neighbors about loose dogs, and yelling and swearing at the skateboarders who like to set up ramps and rails on the community basketball court to practice their moves.
"I'm not surprised it fell out the way it did," Garrett James said.
His stepfather, who retired two years ago after serving 20 years in the Air Force, was the type of man who would stand up for people he thought were being treated unfairly, he said.
"He was a really good man," he said. "If he hadn't been there, you'd probably have two teenage kids dead instead of my dad."
And as one of the neighborhood's many skateboarders, he said he had his own run-ins with the suspect. So did his friend, Bill Myers, 16.
"He's given me a lot of trouble throughout the years," Myers said. "He likes to say he paid for that court himself."
The court, along with tennis courts and an athletic field, are maintained with dues from members of the homeowners association.
Myers and Garrett James say they have tried to petition the Twin Lakes homeowners association to build a skateboard park, collecting signatures from sympathetic parents.
Although there is a no-trespassing sign on the basketball court, they think that applies only to people who don't live in the neighborhood, which has a security booth at its entrance where a guard takes the names of visitors every day after 6 p.m.
"Everybody's lives have been changed by a conflict and an irrational decision," said Derek Matthews, who lives across the street from the scene of the shooting. "It's a terrible, sad situation."
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