Prominent Springs surgeon stabbed to death in home

A Colorado Springs surgeon was fatally stabbed in his home early Thursday in what police described as a clash with his son.

Dr. Edward M. Fitzgerald, 63, was found dead when officers were called about 2:21 a.m. to investigate a family disturbance at 1349 Lindenrose Grove off East San Miguel Street, just east of the intersection with North Wahsatch Avenue.

His son, Sean A. Fitzgerald, 36, surrendered to police and was arrested on suspicion of first-degree murder, police said. He is being held without bond at the El Paso County jail and is expected to appear in court Friday.

Police declined to comment on a possible motive, and no further details were released.

Dr. Fitzgerald began practicing orthopedic surgery in Colorado Springs in 1978, specializing in the treatment of ankles and feet, and worked at Front Range Orthopaedics for the past 10 years.

He sat on a number of professional boards, including as past president of El Paso County Medical Society, and helped write legislation on the care of dying patients, according to a biography on the practice's Web site.

"As a group we're all devastated because we've lost not only a very talented physician but also a very dear friend," said Marquesa Hobbs, a spokeswoman for the practice.

Fitzgerald was remembered Thursday as kindhearted and generous, with a dry sense of a humor, ebullient smile and a passion for caring for his patients. He left a legacy of volunteerism, friends and colleagues said, sometimes offering his services free at an outreach clinic in La Junta and washing dishes at soup kitchens.

In his free time, he enjoyed traveling, reading and spending time with his grandchildren.

"He was a great guy - very warm, very generous," said Bryan Rommel-Ruiz, a neighbor in Casa Verde Commons, a "co-housing" community in which residents share management duties such as landscaping and upkeep.

Fitzgerald and his wife, Kim, lived in a large, cream-colored duplex next door to a common building where residents share dinner twice a week. He could often be seen playing baseball with his grandson in the complex and liked to include other young children from the community, neighbors said.

He received his medical degree in 1970 from Tufts University in Boston and served his residency at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., before moving to Colorado Springs.

Results of an autopsy Thursday were not released. If the coroner rules the death a homicide, it will be the 21st of the year in Colorado Springs, matching the year-to-date total from 2007, when the city tallied a record-tying 27 slayings.

contact the writer: 636-0366 or lance.benzel@gazette.com