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Murder Trial Set To Start Monday

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By TODD LESKANIC

tleskanic@tampatrib.com

Published: November 15, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY - On July 10, 2004, Sharon Sprout aimed a .38-caliber pistol at the back of her sleeping boyfriend's head and pulled the trigger, detectives say she told them.

Anthony Candiano, 64, died in his own bed.

Jurors chosen Monday to hear Sprout's second-degree murder trial will be given diametrically opposed perspectives of the 51-year-old. Prosecutors will present Sprout as a conniving, manipulative girlfriend who killed her boyfriend of more than 20 years because she thought he was cheating on her and planned to leave.

Assistant Public Defender Phil Cohen will paint Sprout as the faithful girlfriend who endured Candiano's abuse for years. He plans to argue that the abuse resulted in battered spouse syndrome, a psychological disorder in which the abused eventually believes she has no choice but to kill her abuser.

Sprout faces a maximum of life in prison should jurors find her guilty of second-degree murder. If jurors believe Sprout suffered from battered spouse syndrome and shot Candiano in self-defense, she could walk free.

Court documents offer very little evidence that supports the contention that Sprout was abused by Candiano.

People who knew the couple or lived nearby said they never witnessed any abuse or saw Sprout with bruises. Investigators could find no instances of Sprout being admitted to a hospital with injuries nor had there been calls for service to the couple's residences.

Candiano's daughter, Carol, said Thursday that many things being said about her father simply aren't true.

"I'm not going to build a case to you why my father was a good person, but he was," she said.

In a deposition, Sprout's brother, Paul, said his sister had told him that Candiano would hit her and confine her to their house. Paul Sprout said he told his sister many times over the years to get out of the relationship, but she often didn't want to discuss it.

Paul Sprout also said he couldn't locate his sister for about three years after she moved from New York to Florida. He found her only after hiring a private investigator. When he finally contacted her, she told him Candiano didn't allow her to use the phone to call him, according to his deposition.

When asked whether he was surprised by the events of July 10, 2004, Paul Sprout said, "I wasn't shocked at all." Asked why, he said, "Just because of the conversations her and I had a couple months prior to that, when I was down trying to get her to come back to PA."

Like other witnesses, Paul Sprout said he never witnessed any abuse or saw injuries on his sister.

Candiano's death brought an end to a relationship that began more than 30 years ago. Candiano was living in New York City. He was married with two daughters but, according to depositions given by members of his family, Candiano and his wife separated when she learned he was having an affair with Sharon Sprout.

Sprout and Candiano lived together in New York until about 1999. Sprout moved to west Pasco first; Candiano, who had owned property in Pasco for years, joined her a short time later. The couple lived in the house at 7105 Heath Drive in the Regency Park neighborhood of Port Richey.

That's where Candiano was shot and killed. Sprout stayed in the house without calling authorities until the next day.

When paramedics and investigators with the Pasco County Sheriff's Office arrived, she told them an array of stories about what had happened to Candiano. First, she said Candiano shot himself. Sprout then said she and Candiano were fighting over the gun and it had gone off.

Later, she told a detective that she went into a bedroom and got the gun out of a desk drawer about 6:30 a.m. When Sprout returned to where Candiano was sleeping, he awoke and made derogatory remarks about her, according to a report. Sprout said she responded by shooting him.

Reporter Todd Leskanic can be reached at (727) 815-1084.

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