Father charged with third-degree murder in son's fatal overdose

SPRING HILL — Steven Alfano wanted to teach 15-year-old son Vincent "how to party right,'' witnesses say. They say he gave Vincent a cocktail of powerful prescription drugs and showed him how to crush and snort the pills.

Alfano, 47, was arrested on Friday, more than one month after deputies found Vincent dead from an accidental overdose in the family's home.

Spokeswomen for Partnership for a Drug-Free America and the Office of National Drug Control Policy could not recall a similar case of a parent charged with murder in an accidental overdose death.

When deputies arrived at the Alfano home at 11718 Linden Drive about 9 a.m. June 27, the father told them he had found Vincent in his bedroom and had tried to perform CPR.

Vincent, who turned 15 on June 9 and was an eighth-grade student at Challenger K-8 school, was later found to have six types of drugs in his system, according to the medical examiner's office. They included painkillers such as oxycodone, hydrocodone and methadone and a form of the antianxiety drug Xanax.

Alfano told deputies that he kept his prescribed medications locked away "so no one other than himself had access to them," according to an arrest affidavit. However, deputies found hundreds of pills easily accessible.

More than a week later, Alfano told two of Vincent's friends that he knowingly gave the drugs to his son, according to authorities.

"I tried to teach him how to party right," Alfano told the two friends, who wore wires as confidential informants for the Hernando County Sheriff's Office. The two friends told investigators they had previously purchased prescription drugs from Alfano.

The two informants and another of Vincent's friends told investigators they saw Alfano give prescription drugs to his son. All three witnesses said they saw the father and son crush and snort pills together.

Alfano was charged with third-degree murder, which according to Florida statute can occur when the killing of a person "resulted from the unlawful distribution" of narcotics. He was also charged with one count of child abuse. He was being held without bail Friday at the Hernando County Jail.

Authorities said Alfano obtained the many kinds of pills by giving false information to pharmacists. He was charged with withholding information from a medical practitioner, according to an arrest affidavit.

Alfano has a lengthy criminal record that includes one arrest for assault on a law enforcement officer, one arrest for battery on a police officer and multiple DUI arrests, among others.

Experts said Vincent's death is an example of the myth that prescription drugs are safer than illegal drugs.

"It's very tragic," said Jennifer de Vallance, spokeswoman for the Office of National Drug Control Policy. "But it's far too common."

About 70 percent of people who abuse prescription drugs get them through a friend or family member, and most teens get prescription drugs by stealing them from their home medicine cabinet. Rarely do parents give them pills, said Hallie Deaktor, director of public affairs for Partnership for a Drug-Free America.

Neither de Vallance nor Deaktor could remember a case in which a parent was charged with murder in the accidental overdose death of a child.

Michael Sanserino can be reached at msanserino@sptimes.com or (352) 848-1430. Researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report.

Comments on this article

by kelsey	Aug 7, 2008 9:02 PM
vincet "vinnie" alfano was my friend. I hope his dad gets what he deserves all of his friends and i miss him dearly. Love you VINNIE, REST IN PEACE MAN.

by Kathy	Aug 6, 2008 1:43 PM
Hey Shelly, don't judge a book by it's cover. My house is kept up as far as I can afford & there are 6 cars in front...reason being put/putting all my kids thru college and all of us have cars. You just might like us as neighbors!

by shari	Aug 6, 2008 6:40 AM
It is so easy to judge. The man did something ignorant. That just shows you how convoluted thoughts can become. If only he got help for his drug addiction, instead of getting passed off by facilities. It's a sad situation all around. RIP Vinnie

by jen	Aug 5, 2008 7:36 PM
Parents are supposed to protect thier children. In this case they destroyed him. Even if his friends would have reported this, the parents would have denied it and nothing would have happened. It's so aweful how these parents betrayed their child.

by tony	Aug 4, 2008 6:51 PM
my son knew vinny. i let him read this article. i hope that he will think twice before he thinks about doing drugs. its a very sad lesson to learn, but maybe some kids will learn from this

by billy	Aug 4, 2008 4:33 PM
it is so tragic that so many men in this society equate masculinity with drugs, drunkenness and crime.

by Malaia	Aug 4, 2008 4:32 PM
THIS "FATHER" HAS BEEN AN INSTRUMENT OF MURDER AND HE SHOULD BE CHARGED WITH FIRST DEGREE - THIS WAS PRE-MEDITATED....HOW COULD HE TRY TO GIVE HIS OWN SON A LIFE OF HELL LIKE HE WAS LIVING - DRUG ADDICT!!!! FRY THE BASTARD - CHARGE THE MOTHER TOO!!!

by sally	Aug 4, 2008 4:22 PM
why have they not looked into the mother , whom never raised vinny, it was steven, i hope they investagate her. may the lord be with the alfano family, and may steven repent and i know he is suffering from this, he made a horrible mistake .

by LDH	Aug 4, 2008 3:29 PM
Pain killer abuse is epidemic and unfortunately the pharmacists know all too well who's getting the over abundent prescriptions but hey, they are making money and why ruin that? Laws must be in place to stop this abuse.

by tricia	Aug 4, 2008 3:25 PM
Typical Florida child abuse. My 14 yr old niece called the police, her mom was buying & smoking crack at the house. The cops DID SHOW UP & checked on my niece, DIDN'T arrest my sister, off scott free, NO DRUG TEST, TYPICAL FLORIDA. POOR NIECE!

by vikki	Aug 4, 2008 3:19 PM
thats real sad that a dad would take his innocent sons life away from him and then be selfish to only think about being in jail.ha hes lucky hes in jail if it were up to me he would have been DEAD ALREADY!he doesnt deserve to live.rest in peace vinny

by Don	Aug 4, 2008 3:14 PM
Who cares. A kid dead with a passion for drugs,future thief criminal. And a Dad druggie off the street. Good for both of them. Tami,stop sniveling,you should have stepped up to the plate before today. Maybe you could have made a change.

by john	Aug 3, 2008 11:25 AM
BUBBA WILL HAVE HIM FOR LUNCH ROT IN HELL.

by dionysis	Aug 3, 2008 11:25 AM
The charge feels real good but it will not stick. Kid was alone, dad gone. Contributing to delinquency and Dr. shopping will be the charges that stick.

by Tami	Aug 3, 2008 8:58 AM
Carol - please do not comment on things you do not know about. I know these kids..my heart breaks for these kids. They were brave and full of love for Vinny to work with the police to bring Vinny's death justice.

by Cathy	Aug 3, 2008 8:58 AM
Another example of a quality human being

by Robyn	Aug 2, 2008 11:07 PM
Thank God they got this guy!!!!! How dare you ruin your sons life like you have your own. YOU ARE

by Amoeba	Aug 2, 2008 11:07 PM
Yeah.. f' ing idiot ... how about teaching how to inhale noxious gas while you're at it or some freon. Hope you rot in the cell for your imbecility! MORON!

by Smalls	Aug 2, 2008 11:07 PM
Some father! Wasn't his stupidity detected in kindergarten?

by Pasco Mom	Aug 2, 2008 11:06 PM
RIP Vinnie. Prayer for those who miss him.

by allie	Aug 2, 2008 11:06 PM
What was this idiot of a father thinking? He does not deserve freedom. EVER AGAIN!!!

by Tom	Aug 2, 2008 11:06 PM
Where was his mother when this was going on? She had to know this was happening? There should be no mercy on his father. This is probably the 1st time since his son died that he can realize what he's done, since he can't do drugs in jail.

by Carol	Aug 2, 2008 11:06 PM
Dear Lisa, Snap out of it Honey!! Florida doesn't have the money to keep non violent criminals locked up. Think about it next time you vote NO on a tax increase, or YES to class size ammendment. It costs money to build and keep jail space.

by Pete	Aug 2, 2008 11:05 PM
In this case, the legacy of stupidity has been stopped in its tracks.Imagine if this boy had lived, how he could have grown up to breed many more idiots like this one.

by Mimi	Aug 2, 2008 11:05 PM
It used to be that people living immoral and criminal lifestyles would lose custody of their kids.Not anymore.There are no more morals or standards of parental behavior.Free for all with many child victims.

by Mals	Aug 2, 2008 11:05 PM
Why was this idiot on the street?I'm so glad we are out of there.To think we lived just down the street from them 5 yrs ago(if they were there then.So glad my girls did'nt know them and they wouldn't touch Rx & they would have truned him in for it.

by pat	Aug 2, 2008 5:31 PM
OK I'm going to take a wild guess here and say hmmm The teaching him to party right was a failure

by vinnys cousin	Aug 2, 2008 5:29 PM
I can't even begin to wrap my mind around this. My cousin was a good boy who wanted nothing more than to be a normal kid with a normal family. I am ashamed at the stupidity my uncle has exhibited costing his own son his life. My family is devastated.

by parent	Aug 2, 2008 5:26 PM
I knew it.. Look at the comments from the previous article. Someone said that the results came back with "no drugs" in his system.....

by Carol	Aug 2, 2008 5:25 PM
And as far as the two friends go...stop calling yourself his friends - cause if you truely were...you would have reported this before it was too late!! But OH -that's right, you were doing it right along with him -- Jack-___es!!!

by Amber	Aug 2, 2008 5:21 PM
I knew Vinny... I hope you rot in HELL Steve!!!!

by Sheri	Aug 2, 2008 5:19 PM
Horrifying...I have no other words. I feel sick after reading this. The poor boy. Kids have it bad enough from peer pressure and what they are exposed to at school, etc. But for his own father who is supposed to protect him....just horrifying.

by caroline	Aug 2, 2008 5:18 PM
Some people should never be parents...so sad that this boy was brought up by an irresponsible father. It sounds like the father has been an addict for quite some time if he could possible reason it was ok to show his son how to use drugs. Very sad!

by saddened	Aug 2, 2008 8:04 AM
"Party right"? I knew Vincent. He was a good kid that needed a father, not a dealer in his life to help him with his problems. Im 41 and have lived in Hernando County for 27 years. Most of my friends have deteriorated or died from "partying right"!

by cara	Aug 2, 2008 8:02 AM
If you think perscription pills are OKAY because the Feds say so,you're an idiot. If you give some to your kids willingly you are an even bigger idiot. I hope dad FEELS the pain of his stupidity everyday and does NOT numb the pain with MORE pills.