MURDER SUSPECT JEKYLL-HYDE COURT PAPERS, EX-WIFE TELL OF VIOLENT RAGES LINKED WITH DRINKING.

Byline: EUGENE TONG Staff Writer

Everyone remembers David Del Toro's green eyes.

They're the eyes of a 23-year Los Angeles Fire Department veteran who has witnessed countless blazes and moments when life and death hung by a thread, a distinguishing feature on his muscular frame.

But Melissa Dale, who dated Del Toro for more than a decade and was married to him for two years, saw something else.

``You can see a difference in the demeanor when the drinking starts -- the physical changes,'' Dale, who divorced him in 1997 and obtained a temporary restraining order against him, said in a recent interview.

``It's like the green eyes turn yellow. ... You just don't push any buttons because you don't know what the button is.''

There have always been two sides to Del Toro. As a Los Angeles fire captain, he trained recruits, won commendations and served the public well. Away from the department, he could become violent when he drank, especially toward women, according to interviews and court documents.

Together, they paint a picture of a conflicted man, now charged with murder, accused of beating and strangling a San Gabriel woman and dragging her down an Eagle Rock street.

The nude body of Jennifer Flores, 42, was found Aug. 16 on the 5200 block of Loleta Avenue. A trail of blood and tire tracks led from the scene to Del Toro's home a mile away.

For Dale, who said Del Toro struck her 10 to 12 times during their 12- year relationship, news of the slaying unearthed memories she thought were long buried.

``I was shocked, but not surprised,'' she said. ``I'm convinced if I stayed in that relationship, I would've ended up in a hospital.''

Del Toro, 50, appeared Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court, where prosecutors tried a second time to increase his bail from $1 million to $5 million, claiming he's a danger to the public. In seeking the bail increase, prosecutors cited domestic-violence cases filed in 1997 involving Dale and in 2002 involving former girlfriend Monica Gibo.

Commissioner James Bianco refused to hike bail, but he ordered Del Toro confined to his home, except for court appearances. He also must submit to twice-daily alcohol tests and a weekly drug test, and is required to stay at least 100 yards from Dale and Gibo.

Defense attorney Michael Bess said Del Toro, who is under electronic monitoring, poses no threat.

``He is, for all intents and purposes, detained in a private residence,'' Bess said. ``He can't even step outdoors.''

Moving forward

Del Toro grew up in Highland Park, the youngest of eight children. He graduated in 1974 from Franklin High School, where he was captain of the football team.

``He has a charismatic personality,'' said a friend who has known Del Toro for more than three decades but asked not to be identified. ``It wasn't hard for him to meet somebody.''

Del Toro attended California State University, Northridge, but dropped out after a year. He became a Los Angeles firefighter in 1983.

``David is never satisfied with not moving forward,'' the friend said. ``He's going to move up as high as he can.''

Over the next 23 years, Del Toro worked his way up from firefighter to captain. He was assigned to the Recruit Training Academy in 2002.

According to a transcript from a 2005 disciplinary hearing, Del Toro received six ``satisfactory'' performance evaluations as a firefighter; four ``satisfactory'' and six ``excellent'' evaluations as an engineer; and two ``satisfactory'' and two ``excellent'' reviews as a captain.

But the transcript also notes that he received a five-day suspension in March 2003 for a ``police matter.'' Charges were dropped.

A police report shows Del Toro was arrested in February 2002 after Gibo accused him of threatening her with a knife and kicking her in the back. Four charges of misdemeanor spousal abuse were later dropped.

The 2005 transcript was from a Board of Rights hearing at which Del Toro was suspended for 14 days without pay after attending a pre-graduation party thrown by fire recruits in October 2004 -- an incident that brought ``discredit'' to the department, the transcript said.

Seven of the recruits showed up late the next morning. Four of the rookies were disciplined and three were forced to resign before they even started their job, the transcript said.

Before his arrest, Del Toro was the supervisor of Fire Station 1 in Lincoln Heights. Two weeks later, on Sept. 1, he filed for retirement.

`Nice enough guy'

Dale met Del Toro in 1984, when a co-worker, Del Toro's sister, suggested a blind date.

``Nice enough guy, charming,'' she recalled. ``He was a rookie firefighter and talked a lot about his new job.''

The relationship moved swiftly, and they were soon a couple. About two years into the relationship, when Del Toro fell asleep at a friend's house, he slapped Dale in the face when she tried to wake him.

``It was very shocking that it, actually, came to a physical blow that first time,'' she said. ``The next morning, my first instinct was to flee. Do not pass go, do not go back there.''

She stayed the night at the friend's house but returned home the next day, hoping he would apologize. Instead, Del Toro was in a ``pretty exaggerated rage,'' and he had put her clothes into garbage bags.

But the two eventually married in 1994.

During the final incident in 1997 -- the only one reported to police -- Dale told police Del Toro held her down and tried to burn her face with a cigarette he took from her hand. He then punched her in the face, she said.

She filed for divorce less than a month later.

``You wonder, `How could I, an intelligent person, be brought to that submissive role?' You're convinced you're somehow responsible.''

Dale last heard about Del Toro in 2002, when a fire official investigating Gibo's abuse allegations came to question her. She cooperated, but feared retribution.

`Something bad'

Del Toro's friend said the veteran firefighter was not dealing well with his 50th birthday this summer, which was followed by the death of his mother earlier this month.

``He had been feeling the stress of turning 50,'' the friend said.

``We recognize there is a tragic loss for Ms. Flores' family,'' the friend said. ``David is a big boy and he is going to deal with it. ... We're reserving judgment on it, and even then, we have to somehow come to grips (that) something bad happened that night.''

eugene.tong(at)dailynews.com

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