Like the saga of adverse-possession guru Mark Guerette, another South Florida story has attracted the attention of a New York Times reporter. This time, the tragedy is unquestionable: A man named Lataurus Randall was shot by masked robbers near the 17th hole at the Deerfield Country Club on Thursday, January 13.
Randall and his cousin, Melvin Philpart, were playing golf at the course when robbers approached them. At first, the
men thought it was some kind of joke: Who brings masks and guns onto the assumed sanctuary of a golf course? But in a minute, everything changed. Randall was shot in the back, and Philpart called 911 and waited with his cousin in the parking lot for an ambulance to arrive. Philpart was uninjured, but Randall died in the hospital the following day.
The Times story focuses on the relative tranquility of golf courses and the growing fear among golfers who might otherwise venture out alone onto the links without a second thought. It's certainly scary: Our first thoughts after seeing news of the murder was, "Don't play golf for a while, until they catch these people."
But two months later, nobody has been caught:
South Florida has seen its share of armed robberies in surprising places, including a Fort Lauderdale church where parishioners were robbed at gunpoint during Sunday services a few years ago. But two months after the Deerfield Country Club murder, no one has been arrested and residents are still shocked by the crime.
The attention of a national story may add pressure to solve the case, or it may pass through readers' consciences as just another tale of absurd tragedy in Florida... a state famous for exclusive recreation that's poised to tear up its state parks and use tax money to build a chain of ten golf courses.
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