View daily updates of news and sports online at www.hometownlife.com PINK Diabetes cooking Sparks fly at classes part of Ribbon pilot project LIFE - CI HEALTH -C6 LOCAL NEWS -A6 INSERTED SECTION SUNDAY Your hometown newspaper^ October 15r 2006 serving Westland for •,> 42 years 75 cents WINNERS OF OVER 100 STATE AND NATIONAL AWARDS SINCE 2001 www.hometownlife.com Dispute ends Sports bars death of to sports shops, anything Tigers Detroit man BY DARRELL CLEM BYDARRELLCLEM STAFF WRITER AND SUE MASON ''STAFF WRITERS A Detroit man's shooting death Wednesday snapped a 32-month streak of no killings in Westland Detroit Tigers fans are letting out - traffic deaths aside, police said. a thunderous roar - the loudest Eduardo Enrique Garcia, 31, was shot and killed since the baseball team won the early Wednesday when he confronted his ex-girl­ World Series in 1984. friend's new boyfriend inside a Westland apartment, They can't spend money fast police confirmed. enough on Tigers clothing, and Garcia was shot in the upper torso and face during they're bellying up to sports bars in a dispute inside a first-floor apartment at Greenwood droves. Villa, near Nankin Boulevard and Central City Even when he's in the back office Parkway, police Lt. James Ridener said. of Malarkeys- Irish Pub in Westland, Garcia was declared dead at the scene. manager Joel Coiner can hear the The shooting happened around 8 a.m. Wednesday, roar. Ridener said the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office 'Anytime something good hap­ decided that the shooter should be released as the pens in the game, you can hear the investigation continues. exuberance of the crowd," he said.~ Under a new state law that took effect Oct. 1, the "We have absolutely had an increase shooter was released because he wasn't the aggressor in business every night during the and, in fact, was retreating from Garcia, Ridener games. We've literally had all seats said. taken." TOM HAWLEY STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER "The prosecutor's office decided he should be Coiner scrambled to rearrange his released pending further investigation," Ridener said. workers' schedules after learning Is it Superman? Not on this T-shirt. It's Joel Zumaya, super relief pitcher of the Detroit Tigers. These shirts are the hot item Garcia, a resident of southwest Detroit, went to his at Fanatic U in Garden City, according td owner Greg Every. Here, Alicia Reyes of Detroit came with friend David Micklash to ex-girlfriend's apartment and found the new PLEASE SEE HOT, A5 pick up a shirt boyfriend there, Ridener said. "He (Garcia) backed the other guy down a hallway," resulting in the shooter ultimately pulling out a .38- caliber revolver and firing it, Ridener said. "It's not clear why Garcia went there, but it ended up in a confrontation," the lieutenant said. The new boyfriend had been staying at the BYDARRELLCLEM Somerville said. woman's apartment at least part time and had spent STAFF WRITER Kaden answers quickly when asked to name Tuesday night there, Ridener said. his favorite player. Garcia's ex-girlfriend and a neighbor called 9-1-1 Kaden Dailide of Westland may be the "Magglio," he said, referring to right-fielder when the dispute erupted, and a Westland police dis­ biggest little Tiger fan. Magglio Ordonez. patcher could hear the shots being fired in the back­ He's only 3 years old, but he already had been Why Ordonez? ground, Ridener said. to 21 Tigers games this season - even before Kaden mumbled his response, prompting his The shooter also called the police department after the American League championship series mother, Tawny Somerville, to translate. firing at Garcia, Ridener said. He had a license to started with the Oakland Athletics. "I think it started with my dad," she said. carry the gun used in the killing, Ridener said. "When I take naps, I get to go to the game," "They would go to the games, and my dad According to Ridener, Westland had its last homi­ Kaden said Friday. would scream, 'Come on, Magglio.' Now, all cide in February 2004, when Anthony Pulley's body He became a Tigers fan even before the team Kaden talks about is Magglio." was found slashed and tied up in his basement on the hit its winning streak. Almost. But he also likes pitcher Joel city's southeast side. His killer, Dalion Davis, is serv­ "I took him to his first Tigers game when he Zumaya. ing 20-40 years in prison for robbing Pulley and was 5 months old," grandfather Bud Somerville Little Tiger fan Kaden Dailide, 3, of Westland is Kaden seems humble for a youngster with murdering him. of Westland said. "We almost got hit by a foul drawing attention everywhere he goes. sudden star power. ball." • When asked what he thinks of his costume [email protected] I (734) 953-2110 Kaden has become quite the celebrity since and face paint. and face paint, he said, "It's fun." then. Television cameras can't get enough of him, Who knows? Kaden may graduate to don­ No wonder. Just look at his Tigers costume and he even graced an inside page of Sports ning a real Tigers uniform one day. His grand­ Illustrated that recently hit news­ father, long active in the Westland Youth stands. Athletic Association, plans to sign Kaden up "Full families stop him on the street with WYAA when he's old enough at age 5. Halloween sales to get their picture taken with him," Until then, he'll have to settle for being the strong in spite Fair ball: City lets inflatable tiger stay of bad economy BY DARRELL CLEM great, they're fantastic, and this is our way of sup­ '-"iSTAFF WRITER porting them." BY SUE MASON. Not to worry. STAFF WRITER The owners of Play Ball Mayor Sandra Cicirelli confirmed Friday that no Sports Co. in Westland just tickets will be issued against the company, which "How about Lightening? Do you want to be wanted to show support for will be allowed to display its towering tiger until ... Lightening?" Bob Douponce asked his son Craig, 31/2. Detroit's hometown baseball until... Questions like that are the norm for kids at. team by putting a huge, inflat­ Detroit wins the World Series? Halloween U.S A„ where there's more costumes than able tiger atop their building. Cicirelli moved quickly to show her team spirit. flavors of Faygo pop. Then came a city worker, Although she couldn't attend Friday's game against But being at the Westland store last week was a bit warning Thursday that the Oakland, she said she attended all the other home more than picking out a costume for Douponce's son. owners didn't follow proper' playoff games. The Livonia resident, who lives and breathes costumes, procedure by asking permis­ "We're not anti-Tigers," she said of city employees. was also there as the district manager for Gags and sion for what's considered a "I've got Tigers fever, too. I'm a big Tigers fan, and Games, the parent company of Party USA — the former temporary sign. I'm really rooting them on." Gags and Gifts — and Halloween USA. "We're just supporting the team" manag­ The city received a complaint about the inflatable Located in vacant box store on Cowan west of Wayne A huge tiger towers over Play Ball Sports Co. in er Rema Aneed said. "The Tigers haven't Westland. done anything in 18 years. Now they're PLEASE SEE TIGER, A5 PLEASE SEE HALLOWEEN, A3 © The Observer Coming Thursday & Eccentric INDEX in Filter For Home Newspapers APARTMENTS E7 Delivery call: AUTOMOTIVE fl (866) 887-2737 Volume 42 HOMETOWNUFE C1 Party hop­ Number 41 CROSSWORD E6 ping this. CLASSIFIEDS D2-F6 Halloween? D2 JOBS The coolest NEW HOMES El OBITUARIES C4 events are /^ PERSPECTIVES A9 listed in REAL ESTATE E5 SERVICE GUISE D5 SPORTS B1 (W) Observer S Eccentric | Sunday, October 15,2006 www.hometoivnltfe.com AROUND WESTLAND | Inventor lights up Attention, shoppers ; BY DIANE GALE ANDREASSI there and we have all this scrap "I've played Pine Knob dozens Westland Shopping Center ;;; CORRESPONDENT oak flooring and there was this of times" he added. and Macy's will sponsor a half- y; weed whacker twine," he said. "I Being the bassist, Badynee day "shopping extravaganza" '•? Chris Badynee's Web site sim­ started to wonder what would said, he's not used to being the starting at 9 a.m. Friday, Nov. 17, 'J ply states that his cardboard happen if I put that stick with center of attention, which goes at the mall. The cost is $25, and j!j! upright bass rivals in sound that box with that string. I to the singer or maybe the the event is open to the first 100 J quality with basses that sell for videotaped myself and posted it drummer. But when he has his people who respond. 4 $6,000. on the Web." cardboard bass, all eyes are on The event is being presented 1. The Westland man developed That was last July and he has him and the unusual instru­ by the Westland Chamber of ' f and sells the Bogdon Box Bass generated about 370,000 hits ment. Commerce. | in kit form for $49.95. That's on the Web site since. So far, he's Like when he was at Buca di Guests will report to Macy's | right. A bass, made of card­ filled 18 orders, including one Beppo restaurant in Livonia for a continental breakfast pro- h board, that can be plugged in request from Italy.