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Brawl Ignited Fatal Series Of Events

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By KEITH MORELLI, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 15, 2008

Updated: 01/15/2008 12:15 am

LAKELAND - The 19th Tee is a neighborhood roadhouse where patrons and bartenders mingle easily. Owner Richard Oaks bought the place two years ago, and for him and his wife of six years, Stephanie, it was a labor of love.
Alan Pierce was a regular, but he was more than a paying customer to the Oakses. He was a neighbor who socialized with them. Their children played and the families barbecued together. Pierce's older stepdaughter even worked at the bar on occasion.

Saturday night, however, as the NFL playoffs played on TV in the bar, too much booze led to a fight between the men. Pierce ended up in the hospital. Friends of another of Pierce's daughter's, seeking vengeance, went to Oaks' house and beat him to death, Polk County sheriff's deputies said.

Monday morning, Stephanie Oaks was back at the bar, weeping as she talked about her husband. She said her two daughters, both teenagers, "are afraid to go home."

Pierce and her husband had been such close friends, she said. A picture of Pierce from a recent Halloween party at the 19th Tee is part of a framed collage hanging in a dark corner, next to a photo of Richard Oaks.

"They were even sitting together that night," Stephanie Oaks said.

She pointed to a table in the corner, where they watched as the Green Bay Packers defeated the Seattle Seahawks. Oaks, who is from Wisconsin, was a big Packers fan. The outside of the bar is painted in Packer green and yellow.

Oaks "was wearing his Packer jersey," his widow said.

She said the tragic series of events unfolded after Pierce told Oaks he had had too much to drink. He urged his pal to go home.

Pierce eventually "started to manhandle" Oaks, Stephanie Oaks said, "and, I guess, he fought back."

Richard Oaks ended up smashing a beer bottle over Pierce's head. The injured man was taken to Lakeland Regional Medical Center, where he was treated.

Sheriff's deputies gave this account of what happened next:

Pierce received 13 stitches. While in the hospital, he called his 17-year-old daughter, Alexia, who was home hanging out with three friends, identified as Tiffanie Hemness, 19; Charles Bonfiglio, 21; and Cody Scarpa.

The four of them drove to the hospital and ran into another friend, Brock Winkler, 17, who was visiting someone else.

The five discussed the barroom incident and became enraged, vowing vengeance.

Oaks, meanwhile, was taken home by friends after the fight.
Deputies said the suspects went to Oaks' home sometime after midnight Sunday. The girls remained in the car while the three men entered the home and fatally beat Oaks with their fists and an umbrella, deputies said.

Stephanie Oaks closed the bar and went home to find her husband badly beaten and lying on the floor.

Bonfiglio, Scarpa and Winkler each were charged with murder and burglary. Hemness and Alexia Pierce were charged as accessories to burglary.

Bonfiglio and Hemness were booked into the Polk County Jail. The others were taken to the Juvenile Assessment Center, deputies said. Alan Pierce was not charged.

Darren and Tina Depledge sat with Stephanie Oaks on Monday morning, offering what support they could.

Tina Depledge said she has known Stephanie Oaks for 25 years and Richard Oaks for about eight.

"He was a very decent person," Depledge said, sobbing. "He would give you the shirt off his back. He certainly didn't deserve this."

Stephanie Oaks said she will continue to run the bar and live on Lakewood Road.

"I'm staying in my home," she said. "It's my home."

Reporter Keith Morelli can be reached at (813) 259-7760 or kmorelli@tampatrib.com.

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