Post by cviller on Dec 24, 2008 12:23:08 GMT -5
Gerald Bruce Taylor, Jr., an avid Mountaineer football fan and former West Virginia University cheerleader, died as a result of a shooting in Pinellas County, Fla., authorities said.
Taylor, 43, had lived and worked in Tampa for years but still had strong ties to the Mountain State and his alma mater. He kept in touch with friends in West Virginia and followed Mountaineer football loyally.
Family members said they're still trying to understand the circumstances that led to his death Saturday night.
Police and emergency crews responded about 7 p.m. to a 911 call from the home of Elizabeth Evans, 44, said Marianne Pasha, public information coordinator for the Pinellas County Sheriff's Department.
At the scene, they found Evans dead and Taylor with a faint pulse, Pasha said. He was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Autopsies conducted Sunday revealed both victims had been shot once in the neck, authorities said.
The woman's estranged husband, Patrick Evans, 41, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder in their deaths and is being held in the Pinellas County Jail without bond, Pasha said. The suspect was found at his residence at St. Pete Beach following the shooting, but the gun used in the incident has not been recovered, she said.
Detectives say Elizabeth and Patrick Evans had been estranged for about eight months, but they had a rocky past and he was having financial trouble. Authorities speculate one problem compounded the other, Pasha said.
Gerald Taylor and Elizabeth Evans had recently started to date, she said.
Now, Taylor's family and friends are mourning his death.
Rick Fath, of Elkins, said he and Taylor have been best friends since they met at West Virginia University and have remained in touch along with a handful of other college friends.
They first met in 1984 and formed bonds that have remained intact, a rarity in a transient world, he pointed out. Evans, who was very athletic, served as a WVU cheerleader for a couple of years but decided he preferred to watch the games from the sidelines with his friends.
Throughout the years they have talked by phone during WVU games and sometimes attended them together, Fath said. When WVU played South Florida, Fath would travel there to watch the game with his friend.
Fath said Taylor's top priority in life was being a father.
"He was married a short time and was blessed with a daughter," Fath said.
Taylor traveled to Pittsburgh once or twice every month to see the 7-year-old girl, Fath said.
Fath and the rest of the group of friends have vowed to look out for her.
"His friends are devastated," Fath said. "He was a great person. He was brought up right and stood for what is right. He was very driven and focused on his career."
Taylor traveled as a supervisor in distributions for various companies and ended up in St. Petersburg where he directed distribution for the Home Shopping Network. About a year ago he took a job at Tech Data, a worldwide distribution firm.
"I talked to Jerry every week," Fath said. "In this day and age that says a lot when people are so busy. You always have time for a friend like Jerry. He was doing everything right. None of this makes any sense."
Taylor lived in Tampa about 10 miles from his father, whose name is also Gerald Taylor. The elder Taylor's voice was strained with emotion when he talked about his son and his interests, including their mutual passion for Mountaineer football.
"When they played down here, we would go to every game," he said. "This past year he flew to Colorado to see them."
His son loved sports and he dearly loved family.
Taylor has two brothers and two sisters. A service will be held in early January in Georgia where a sister lives.
Fath said his friend was a man with all of his priorities in order and others looked up to him.
"He'll have to guide us from above," he said.