WEST BOYNTON, Fla. -- When an 18-year-old couldn't convince his girlfriend that George W. Bush was the right choice for president, he became enraged, put a screwdriver to her throat and threatened to kill her, sheriff's officials said.
"You won't live to see the next election," Steven Soper told Stacey Silveira Tuesday night as the two fought inside his gray, two-story home west of Boynton Beach, according to a police report.
Palm Beach County Circuit Court Judge William Bollinger ordered Wednesday that Soper be held without bond in the Palm Beach County Jail pending a mental health assessment. His next court date is Friday.
According to Silveira, Tuesday night was not the first time the two had discussed politics, but it was the first time Soper became aware she supported John Kerry for president. Before that, she was undecided and considered voting for Bush to appease Soper, she said.
There on-again, off-again relationship had been volatile but nothing like Tuesday, she said. On Tuesday, Soper stormed off furious after Silveira's brother mentioned the family, including Silveira, supported Kerry, family members said.
Soper called and ended the relationship, so Silveira drove to his house to return his belongings. That's where things turned violent.
He dragged Silveira into the house kicking and screaming, a police report said. Neighbor Lisa Belout was watching television, heard the commotion and called 911.
Inside, Soper threw Silveira to the ground, spit in her face and bit her cheek, she said, pointing to the brown bruise on the left side of her face.
"He went and got a knife and put the knife in my hand and said, `Kill me because if you vote for Kerry I'm going to die anyway,"' she said while standing outside her home, which has a Kerry/Edwards campaign sign in the yard.
Deputies found an enraged Soper with a screwdriver to Silveira's throat threatening to stab her, a police report said. He was ordered to put the tool down but refused, so they used Taser stun guns to subdue him, officials said.
"He shoved a Marine (video) tape in my face and said that's what I was going to be ruining for him if I went for Kerry," Silveira said Wednesday, having just returned from filing a restraining order against him.
Soper enlisted in the Marine Corps on Saturday and was to begin basic training in January.
After her son's court appearance, Diane Camarda said he was patriotic and hard working.
"He's got a brother in Iraq. My entire family comes from the military, and he would very much like to go do his service," she said.
Soper faces charges of aggravated battery, false imprisonment and resisting arrest without violence.
Soper likely will be discharged from the Marines, Sgt. David Salazar said. --------- I wonder if he has an alias on this website the way some of the members go back and forth... :rolleyes:
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