Here is a Great "Last Minute" Christmas gift: 


Italian dinner in a colander: Buy a colander from your favorite store add four or five different-sized packages of pasta and a couple jars of sauces, put it in the colander wrap with colored cellophane and tie with a bow. 
Looks pretty and is very practical.. 

December 19, 2006 Authorities are looking for a former Mongols motorcycle club member who is accused of strangling his wife and failed to appear in court to face sentencing for her death.

Karl Schnueringer, 44, of Stead, was released in September on $5,000 bail after he pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the March strangulation death of his wife, Debbie Kay, 44.

On Dec. 1, a warrant was issued for his arrest because he failed to check in with court services officials and had not completed counseling for his methamphetamine abuse, according to court records.

Schnueringer was supposed to be sentenced Thursday for his wife's death but did not appear, Deputy District Attorney Elliot Sattler said. Washoe District Judge Connie Steinheimer ordered his bail be increased to $100,000, cash only.

Schnueringer faced a sentence of one to 10 years in prison or possibly probation, Sattler said. He likely will face an additional felony charge for not showing up to court.

Police said her sister, teenage daughter, the teen's friend and a teenage niece were in other rooms when Debbie Kay Schnueringer was killed in her bedroom. Paramedics found the woman's body on the floor about 4 a.m. March 
26. Her husband claimed she had been using diet pills and became ill after helping him cut wood earlier in the day.

An autopsy would later show Debbie Kay Schnueringer was strangled and covered in bruises from her head to her legs.

 Hundreds of mourners packed his funeral on Friday, but it was the array of different motorcycle clubs in attendance that spoke volumes about Robert Amchir's positive influence on South Florida's biker community.

"He's going to be missed totally," said Eddie Petress, president of the South Florida Outlaws motorcycle club and a member of the South Florida Presidents Council, an umbrella organization of motorcycle groups Amchir had led.

Amchir, 67, was known publicly for his fundraising efforts such as the Toy Run to benefit Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital, but his friends say he was a man whose diplomatic ways helped smooth relations among the nearly 40 motorcycle clubs here.

The founder of the massive Christmas Toys in the Sun Run charity fundraiser and national president of the Wings of Gold motorcycle club, Amchir died on Dec. 6 of leukemia.

To those who knew him, it was all about respect.

"If there was an internal problem among any two clubs, it would be brought up at the Presidents Council," Petress said. "With his diplomacy, it would be handled in a peaceful manner. He brought it all together for the clubs."

So many bikers showed up at his wake on Thursday at Forest Lawn Funeral Home South, a line remained at 10:30 p.m.

On Friday, a rumbling procession of more than 500 motorcycles accompanied Amchir's body on a last ride through the town of Davie.

Petress said Amchir helped the Outlaws become more publicly accepted in South Florida after years of being viewed as a haven for criminals. Amchir did so by directing attention to their charity work and other community deeds, Petress said. "The Outlaws were always looked at as a criminal organization, and he helped change a lot of people's opinions," 

Jim "Pinball" Agnew, an Outlaws member who's known Amchir since the late 70s, said Amchir's participation in the Presidents Council helped the clubs work with each other instead of against each other. "It was a collective effort with Bob at the head to pull everybody together," Agnew said. "He built something good and we're going to keep it going."

Herb Cohen, a longtime friend of Amchir and a criminal defense attorney who has represented motorcycle club members, said Amchir bridged the gap between the clubs and law enforcement. Amchir was once a New York City police officer. "He told it straight and tough. I think part of it was that every faction in the community respected him. Law enforcement knew that if Bob was involved, the different motorcycle clubs were going to listen to him," Cohen said. "It turned out to be such a unique balance."

Broward Sheriff's Office Sgt. Pete Geary said Amchir got respect because he gave it. About 50 Sheriff's Office motorcycle units rode in the Friday funeral procession. "You respect people's turf, people's beliefs, people's ideals and opinions and he did," Geary said. "Bob would listen. Bob knew what he wanted to accomplish."

Davie Police Chief John George, also Amchir's friend for years, agreed. "He had charisma, he had respect, and he had connections," said George, at Amchir's funeral. "The man had heart. The challenge will be the burden [his son] Dave has to carry. He's got big shoes to fill. But I feel the same way about David as I do about Bob. He's grown into his father's clone."

Speaking at his father's service, Dave Amchir assured everyone his father's legacy would remain.
"We will continue to go on, and better," Dave Amchir said.

Sallie James can be reached at Sjames@sun-sentinel.com or 954-572-2019.
Copyright © 2006, South Florida Sun-Sentinel.