By Amber Jurgensen | Associate Editor
A bonfire burns in the backyard of the home at 7427 Burnt Barn Ave. It crackles and flickers — much like the bonfire the Thorpe family started on Nov. 24. That was the night Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office received a call from 17-year-old Channing Thorpe, who reported he had just shot his father, Christopher Thorpe, to stop him from beating his mother, Jill Thorpe.
According to Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office reports, Channing Thorpe called 911 at about 10:15 p.m.
When officers arrived, they discovered Christopher Thorpe, 36, dead in the master bedroom of the home.
Family members, including Channing Thorpe and Christopher Thorpe, mother Jill Thorpe and grandmother Dorothy Williamson, along with two friends, were outside enjoying a bonfire earlier in the evening. Jill Thorpe went into the home, and then Christopher Thorpe followed her.
Once inside, the two began arguing in the living room. Christopher Thorpe began beating his wife, and the violence continued into the master bedroom. He was strangling her when Channing Thorpe came into the bedroom with a handgun. He fired several shots, killing his father. One of the bullets hit Jill Thorpe in the right thigh. She was taken to Lakeland Regional Medical Center. Christopher Thorpe died at the scene.
So far, no charges have been filed against Channing Thorpe.
Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Debbie Carter said the family did not have a recorded history of domestic violence. Carter said detectives still are investigating details regarding the shooting, including factors such as alcohol.
Neighbors Linda and Bill Dunlap awoke to the sound of sirens that night.
“I didn’t want to know what was going on,” said Bill Dunlap, who had worked with Christopher Thorpe for five years.
The Dunlaps said police knocked on their door about 1:30 a.m. to ask questions about the incident. When they learned of what had happened, they were saddened — but not surprised.
“I thought, ‘Wow,’” Bill Dunlap said. “It shocked me, but I wasn’t surprised as fixated with guns as he (Christopher) was.”
“I just keep thinking about poor Channing and how this will affect the rest of his life,” Linda Dunlap said.
The Dunlaps said they could hear gunshots coming from the back of the Thorpes’ property on a regular basis. Christopher Thorpe was an avid hunter and had many guns in the house. He often would shoot target practice with friends, and he always carried a pistol.
Christopher and Jill Thorpe had just returned from a hunting trip in Kentucky the Sunday before Thanksgiving, according to the Dunlaps. Jill Thorpe recently had started sharing the hobby more often with her husband. She even butchered the deer they brought back from Kentucky.
Bonfires were a common activity at the residence, and the Dunlaps said Christopher Thorpe cut down on drinking beer after being diagnosed recently with diabetes.
There were never any signs of domestic abuse that the Dunlaps saw or heard in the seven years they lived across the street from the Thorpes. But the Dunlaps did describe Christopher Thorpe as a “Jekyll and Hyde character.”
Christopher Thorpe could be helpful. He would bring meat from his hunting outings to sick co-workers at Sensenich Wood Propeller Company, off Wood Court in Plant City, where he worked as a quality control inspector for 15 years. Anytime the Dunlaps needed help in their yard or home, Christopher Thorpe would make himself available.
But Christopher Thorpe, who was a husky build, was also confrontational, according to the Dunlaps. He talked down to women and had a conceited attitude.
“I didn’t want to be around him at all, because of his attitude,” Linda Dunlap said.
Linda Dunlap knew Channing Thorpe the best out of all the Thorpe family members,
“He’s a good kid,” Linda Dunlap said.
“He’s very industrious,” Bill Dunlap said.
Channing Thorpe, a Plant City High School student, works at Sensenich Wood Propeller Company after school about five days a week. He also works on Saturdays with his mother, a manager at Strawberry Hut.
Representatives from both Sensenich Wood Propeller Company and Strawberry Hut declined to comment.
Except for two workers cutting carpet in the back of the home, the Thorpe house was quiet Nov. 26. Several cars were parked outside. American and Confederate flags waved atop a pole in the front yard.
“It’s sad … it really is,” Linda Dunlap said. “But like Bill said, a surprise … No.”
Contact Amber Jurgensen at ajurgensen@plantcityobserver.com.cheat2014.ru