Florida's gay Republican triple murder-suicide - gone but not forgotten [View All]

Two months ago Jason Robert Drake, 30, shot and killed roommates Ralph Gonzales and David Abrami, both 36, in Orlando, Florida. Police say he then turned the gun on himself. The Orlando police have so much conflicting information they say they may never find the motive. As I read the stories of their connections, it seems as if I'm reading a real page-turner of a mystery novel, and I'd like to know how the story ends. Meanwhile, it's fun to speculate. What was the motive?

David Abrami was an attorney who, as Vice President of the Central Florida Young Republicans, came to the attention of the Secret Service for organizing a fundraiser that charged people for the privilege of shooting at photos of Bill Clinton. Other than this, he has a background that is not notable. However, his former business partner, Doug Guetzloe, is quite a shady character. Guetzloe is a conservative talk show host on Fox Radio and head of an Orlando anti-tax group. He has been jailed for extortion and election law violations and was recently indicted for perjury. Guetzlowe left boxes of files behind in a storage unit. They were auctioned off and ultimately landed in the hands of Orlando's Channel 6. Prosecutors now are suing to get these files because they contain evidence of crimes, as shown by Channel 6's series on Guetzlowe. As an attorney, Guetzlowe also represented strip clubs and Congressman Tom Feeney.

The second victim, Ralph Gonzales, was a political consultant for Republican candidates. Although he was a gay man, his claim to fame was the anti-gay marriage Adam and Steve ad campaign. Gonzales was the executive director of Georgia's Republican Party at the same time that Ralph Reed was the state party's chair and executive director of the Christian Coalition. Reed is under FBI investigation for his role in the Jack Abramoff affair. (Abramoff is currently in federal prison after pleading guilty to fraud, conspiracy and tax evasion. He is cooperating in multiple corruption investigations and testifying about a mob-related murder of a casino owner.)

Gonzales also managed the campaign for Congressman Feeny who, like Reed, is under FBI investigation in the Abramoff affair. He has been named three years in a row by CREW as one of the most corrupt members of Congress. After a failed bid for Lieutenant Governor as Jeb Bush's running mate, Feeney worked as general counsel for Yang Enterprises (YEI), which employed an illegal alien from China who pled guilty to spying for the Chinese government. Clint Curtis, the whistleblower who reported him, also testified under oath that Feeney asked him to write a program to rig the vote in South Florida. Curtis also charged that YEI was over-billing the Florida DOT. Before the Florida Inspector General could issue his report, he was found dead in a Georgia motel room. The death was ruled a suicide, but the ruling has been questioned as inconsistent with the evidence.