Vampires, Gators, and Wackos

A journalist covered every atrocity that man or nature could unleash during decades of crime reporting in Central Florida. These are his stories . . .

Teens savagely murder a couple in the name of their vampire cult.

A sex-starved teacher cannot get enough of her young male student.

The case of a missing child keeps cops awake at night for years after his confounding disappearance.

Vampires, Gators, and Wackos: A Florida Newspaperman's Life recounts some of the frequently craven, and at times downright stupid, crimes Stanfield covered during his time in the field. He somehow made it through without winding up more mental than the crackpots he tracked. However, his unvarnished, no-holds-barred account of news events reveals just how crazy making a case can be when you are dead set on nailing the truth.

"Here's a tip for young reporters: Don't beat the cops to a homicide. Crowds at murder scenes are sometimes wildly angry, drunk, high, confused and looking at a face that is decidedly out of place in their neighborhood. In those days we wore nice clothes, even ties, if not jackets, to a crime scene. 'Who are you?' they asked, figuring I must be a cop, because surely, no sane person would show up unarmed in the middle of a melee." —Frank Stanfield