Tampa, Florida – The day before John Walter Lay was fatally shot in his favorite Tampa dog park, he recorded a video recounting an encounter with a man who had been harassing him for months, according to Lay’s friends and family. Standing beneath a towering tree in the park, Lay spoke into his phone’s camera, detailing the harassment he had endured from the man, who would hurl homophobic slurs and threats at him.
The shooter, identified as 65-year-old Gerald Declan Radford, has not been arrested or charged as of Thursday. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office has released few details about the incident and only issued a news release about the shooting after being asked by a Times reporter.
Lay, 52, moved to Tampa in the 1990s and had developed a strong sense of community after adopting a dog named Fala. His friends described Lay as the friendliest person you could ever imagine and said he treated everyone with kindness and compassion.
The harassment Lay faced at the dog park was said to have stemmed from differing political views and Lay’s openness about his sexuality. His friends stated that the situation escalated to the point where Lay felt the need to start documenting his interactions with Radford. Radford later claimed in a text message to a Times reporter that he shot Lay in self-defense.
On Friday afternoon, a few hours after the shooting, Radford texted a photo of himself with what appeared to be facial injuries, claiming that Lay had attacked him and he had to defend himself. Lay’s friends, however, do not believe Radford’s account and are calling for justice for Lay.
The circumstances of Lay’s killing are still under investigation, and the details about the incident and the ensuing investigation remain scarce.
In the end, Lay’s family decided to respect his wishes by allowing a friend to take care of Fala, the dog he adopted and loved. Despite the tragedy that ended Lay’s life, his loving companionship with his dog remains a testament to the strong sense of community he had built for himself in Tampa.
The friends who once walked their dogs together with Lay at the park are now left grappling with the loss of a beloved friend, a loss that has raised unanswered questions and uncertainties about the circumstances surrounding his untimely death.