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Devoted Mom Killed In Palmetto Home

ERIC HAUSMANN / News Channel 8

Neighbors watch as deputies collect evidence after a deadly home invasion on 6th Avenue East in Palmetto.

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By KEVIN O'HORAN, Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Published: November 20, 2007

Video: Friends Shocked By The Violence | Crime Scene Photos

PALMETTO - Machelle Brinson was a hard-working single mother who put in as many as 90 hours a week at the Tropicana juice plant to make life better for her three teenage daughters, family and friends said.

   Machelle Brinson

Brinson, 41, doted on her daughters, taking them on shopping trips, to modeling classes and to concerts.

Two of Brinson's daughters were present Monday when she was shot and killed in her Palmetto home, the victim of an early-morning home invasion.

The masked gunman who entered the home around 4 a.m. Monday left Brinson dead, her youngest daughter recovering from a pistol-whipping, and a close-knit community struggling to understand.

"She was a good person, a sweet person, a hard worker," said Jackie Thomas, a family friend. "She didn't have any enemies. Whoever did this, they need to catch them."

According to police reports and family members, a masked man entered Brinson's one-story home in the 2800 block of Sixth Avenue East while the family slept. Along with Brinson, 19-year-old Shakera and 13-year-old Danielle were home; Briana, 15, was staying with friends.

Shakera and Danielle woke up after hearing a loud noise and discovered the intruder still in the house. Sometime during the invasion, the man smashed Danielle above her left eye with a handgun.

Danielle was taken to Manatee Memorial Hospital, where she was treated and released.

Neighbors reported hearing what sounded like a single gunshot early Monday.

The slaying left Briana and Danielle orphaned. Their father, Ricardo Silva, died of an unspecified illness two years ago.

"She's with Daddy now," Danielle said softly of her mother, standing outside the family home Monday.

No Arrests Made

No arrests had been made as of late Monday in the slaying, the 14th in Manatee County this year, matching the figure from all of last year.

Police believe the invasion was not random, and that the killer picked the Brinson home, said Manatee County Sheriff's Office spokesman Dave Bristow. He declined to specify a possible motive, but said investigators were working on several theories.

Identifying suspects could be difficult. The only description of the suspect, based on witness reports, is that of a black man in a mask, authorities said.

"I wish I could tell you he was 5-foot-10, with a two-day growth and tattoos, but we just don't have that," Bristow said.

Hours after the shooting, the scene was still closed by crime tape as deputies combed the home for clues.

Brinson's family and friends gathered in groups to shed tears, share hugs and swap stories up and down Sixth Avenue East.

"The whole family lives here; every house on this street," said friend Maggie Melgoza.

"Her cousins, her mother, aunts, uncles, everyone,"

Melgoza, a Bradenton resident, worked with Brinson at Tropicana, along with Thomas and another friend, Vernice Johnson.

Brinson was a "caser" who ran equipment that puts the juice bottles into cases.

The four became friends there, bonding over the long hours spent working at the juice plant in the past 15 years.

After learning of the shooting, Melgoza, Thomas and Johnson met outside Brinson's home.

They spoke of spending time together with their families, about trips to Busch Gardens and malls and other places that their children would enjoy.

They also talked of the weekly trips they would make to the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Tampa to play the slot machines, hoping to ride Brinson's luck.

"She was the jackpot-hitter," Johnson said. "She was very lucky."

A Devoted Parent

Mostly, though, they talked about how devoted Brinson was as a parent.

"She worked hard to take care of her kids," Thomas said. "She'd just keep on going, keep on working."

Briana also remembered her mother that way.

"She worked hard to take care of us," she said.

On Monday, family and friends took over that duty, closing ranks around the girls and ushering them from home to home for a few words of advice here, a somber moment there.

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