Wife prepares to leave town after husband killed in dog dispute
By Robert Moran
Inquirer Staff Writer
Suspect Tyrirk Harris
Suspect Tyrirk Harris
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Raquel Burgos was on a computer at home when she heard gunshots outside her Tacony apartment. She checked outside and saw her husband, Franklin Manuel Rivera, slumped over a rail on a neighbor's porch, bleeding from his neck and torso.
Rivera, 47, had been shot by Tyrirk Harris, 27, during a confrontation about Harris' not cleaning up after his dogs, police said.
Burgos rushed to her husband and tried to stop the bleeding. He was pronounced dead at the scene minutes later.
Cassandra Perez, 44, Rivera's cousin, recalled what Burgos had told her of the events that unfolded shortly after 4 p.m. Tuesday.
Burgos, who is about 29, was preparing to celebrate Valentine's Day with her husband, Perez said. They had met a few years earlier in Florida. "He called and said he had met this amazing woman and was very happy," Perez said.
About a month ago, they moved to the 6500 block of Torresdale Avenue. Rivera, who was from Yonkers, N.Y., had trouble finding work in Florida. They came to Philadelphia "to start a new life," Perez said.
They had a daughter, Roxanne, just 6 weeks old.
He had a job interview scheduled for Monday, Perez said.
On Tuesday, his wife "had baked a cake and planned a romantic dinner for him," Perez said. "She never got to cut the cake."
Rivera had complained to Harris about the dogs, a German shepherd and a Chihuahua, defecating on Rivera's small front lawn.
That Rivera was shot because of this was "senseless," Perez said.
Harris was arrested at the scene and charged with murder and firearms violations. He had a license to carry a concealed gun, but it had been revoked in January, police said.
He worked for the Philadelphia School District as a per-diem employee on the police force from 2004 until June 30, when he was let go in a mass layoff, a district spokesman said. Harris was not a sworn officer.
Outside Rivera's home on his porch Wednesday night stood five lit prayer candles.
Perez and other relatives were inside, helping to pack Burgos' belongings for a move to New York.
"She's leaving Philadelphia behind forever," Perez said.