Barney the Purple Dinosaur and his friends on the Barney & Friends TV show, the popular children’s show, was created by Sheryl Lyna Stamps Leach. Kathy Parker and Dennis DeShazer are the other two creators. She stated that she came up with the idea of the show to entertain her then 2 year old son, Patrick:
“I was always looking for products and programs that I felt good about and that would entertain my young son and hold his attention, because very few things would hold his attention,” remembers Sheryl, who had the idea for Barney when she was a new mom living in Plano, Texas, in the ’80s.
Now Sheryl’s son, 27-year-old Patrick Leach, is being accused of trying to murder a 49-year-old man in Malibu and was arrested in Agoura Hills, C.A., for allegedly shooting a man in the chest on January 9.
The victim is 49-year-old Eric Shanks, and reportedly Leach and Shanks are Malibu neighbors. The case erupted as an alleged trespass dispute in West Winding Way in Malibu. Detective Tom Lewis tells the Malibu Times that Shanks suffered a single bullet wound to the chest and his condition remains unknown.
Police received a 911 call after the shooting. Leach was pulled over after allegedly leaving the crime scene in a black SUV. The arrest was effectuated near the “Kanan and Cornell roads in Agoura Hills”, reports the Malibu Times.
Police say they arrested Patrick after they collected enough information to prove his guilt and that they are still trying to determine the causes. According to The Acorn, the victim was treated at UCLA and is expected to recover from his wounds.
Leach was booked at the Lost Hills Station and released on one million dollars bail. Leach is next due in court for a Feb. 7 arraignment in Van Nuys.
Lt. Matthew Squire of the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff ’s Station said in a news statement to the Malibu Times:
“Our deputies did a fantastic job apprehending this dangerous suspect. There was no vehicular pursuit and the suspect exhibited no threatening behavior while being taken into custody.”
Well, it seems that her mother’s show, which had as main theme the song “I love you, you love me…”, and singing and hugging its primary activities, didn’t make so much of a positive impact on Patrick after all!
Join the Conversation