It always seems as though the craziest of articles are about my home state of Florida. Thank God I got out of there.
@WhatTheFlorida
Good news, anyone?Submit
One mom is upset that the Great American Teach-In guest speaker at her child’s school — a Clearwater K-12 public school that serves students with emotional and behavioral disabilities — was a Hooter’s waitress, reports theSt. Petersburg Times.
The Great American teach-In is a day where professionals all over the country go to schools to talk a bit about their jobs.
The waitress opted to wear sweatpants and a sweater instead of her Hooter’s girl uniform consisting of a white Hooters tank top (usually tight fitting), orange shorts (shiny and skimpy), according to the Times.
The mom told the St. Petersburg Times, “I’m not knocking waitresses. They’re very hard-working. My point is, these kids should have higher goals.”
One person is dead, a second hospitalized in critical condition after a shooting at the popular La Cuerva USA Café on Bird Road in west Miami-Dade, CBS-Ch. 4 reported.
Miami-Dade police spokesman Det. Javier Baez said it started with a fight between four individuals. During the confrontation, one of the individuals pulled out a gun and fired several shots at the restaurant at 8870 Bird Road.
One person died after being taken to Kendall Regional Medical Center. A second wounded man was taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition.
Police have not released the names of those involved. No arrests have been made in the shooting.
A retired Catholic priest was one of six men arrested in Holly Hill as part of a sex sting in a public bathroom.
According to our news partners at the Daytona Beach News-Journal, Paige Blakely was arrested last Thursday after an undercover officer said the 61-year-old exposed himself inside the bathroom.
Blakely is a former pastor at St. Ann’s Catholic Church, in DeBary. He retired in 2007.
According to an arrest report obtained by the News-Journal, Blakely told police he was in the bathroom to ”experience what it was like,” and that he was trying to get a “thrill.”
Blakely has been charged with misdemeanor indecent exposure.
A Carnival Cruise Lines employee has been charged with engaging in sexual acts with a minor, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern United States said in a releaseTuesday.
According to the criminal complaint filed, Kert Clyde Jordan, 35 of Grenada engaged in a sexual acts with a 14-year old while she was on vacation with her family aboard the Carnival Liberty.
Jordan – a waiter on the ship – allegedly engaged in sexual acts with the victim while the ship was sailing in international waters on November 4 and 5, according to the release.
The victim reported the incident to her family on her return home.
Pinellas County Sheriff’s deputies say a dog bit a 4-year-old girl and then the girl’s grandfather stabbed the dog twice in the neck with a pocket knife.
The incident happened shortly before noon on Monday at an outdoor seating area of a McDonald’s restaurant.
Authorities say the dog, the dog’s owners, the child and her grandfather all knew each other. The dog approached Shayna Lydick and bit her on the lip, which is when Shayna’s grandfather stabbed the dog.
Shayna was taken to the hospital for treatment. The Golden Retriever dog was treated by fire-rescue workers. Pinellas County Animal Services responded to the scene, took custody of the dog and will investigate.
Authorities say two men fighting in the middle of a southwest Florida road were fatally hit by an SUV.
The Florida Highway Patrol reports that 47-year-old John William Barr and 45-year-old Jerry Bramlett were involved in a physical altercation Sunday night in the middle of a North Fort Myers road.
As two vehicles were approaching the men, officials say the lead vehicle swerved into another lane to avoid them, but the second apparently didn’t see the fighters in time and hit them with her SUV. Both men were reported dead at the scene. Authorities were investigating the cause of their fight.
The SUV’s driver was taken to a nearby hospital with minor injuries. No charges were immediately reported for the crash.
The weapons, some appearing more menacing than others, all have their own history, but the majority ended up in the same place: in the hands of convicted criminals.
On Monday, members of a special gun squad with the Broward Sheriff’s Office unveiled an arsenal of weapons they said they seized during a one-month campaign called “Operation Bullseye.”
A purse containing a firearm was stolen from a woman while she was shopping in a West Melbourne Wal-Mart on Sunday, police report today.
According to a press release from the West Melbourne Police Department, two women were shopping in the produce section of the store, which is at 845 Palm Bay Road. When the women turned their backs on their shopping cart, an unidentified female grabbed the purse and fled.
The thief was described as having brown hair tied up in a bun, wearing a black shirt with an American flag logo on the front and pink shorts.
Be wary of men tying their shoes — especially if their shoes have velcro with no laces in them.
Like this guy. Armando Tiburcio Pineda, 30, was busted for up-skirting at a Lee County park, reports the Naples Daily News.
The Bonnita Springs man allegedly told deputies he took the videos while he would tie his shoes; deputies noted Pineda’s shoes were fastened by velcro, with no laces in them.
Deputies say he told them, “They’re just pictures. I did nothing wrong.”
When her neighbor wouldn’t give her some cash, an Oakland Park woman used a steak knife to avenge her financial rejection, authorities said.
Dorothy Cooper, 59, stands accused of stabbing her neighbor, Robert Martin, after he refused to give her $5, according to a Broward Sheriff’s Office affidavit.
At a first appearance hearing on Monday, Judge John “Jay” Hurley ordered Cooper held without bond on one count of attempted murder.
A woman had the fright of her life after she found a stranger inside of her home at Orlando’s 55 West apartment complex.
Police said at about 10:50 p.m., the 24-year-old was in bed asleep when she heard footsteps coming down her hallway. She told them at first she thought it was her roommate, but she then saw that it was a stranger in her home. The victim then yelled, “who the hell are you?”
The suspect then walked out of the apartment. The victim called the security officer at the front desk and reported the incident to him. The suspect was not caught.
During the investigation, officers determined that the victim’s roommate left the door unlocked, allowing the suspect to get inside.
A 13-year-old is charged with arson, after deputies said she was caught setting a fire in her middle school bathroom.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Department said it happened Monday, just before 1:30 p.m. in the girl’s locker room at Eustis Middle School. Investigators said she started the fire by pouring gasoline on the floor out of a bottle.
The teen’s gym teacher told deputies she noticed the girl wasn’t in class, and when she went to see what was keeping her, she saw the teen running out of the restroom with her shoe on fire. Fortunately, the flames were put out with only some damage to a few stalls and a toilet.
Authorities say dozens of cats that snuck into a Florida prison will be found new homes before the facility closes next month.
As many as 80 cats have burrowed under fences and taken up residence at the state-run prison in Belle Glade. Prisoners have been feeding the animals, even though rules prohibit that.
The 1,000-inmate prison closes Dec. 1. Officials tell The Palm Beach Post ( http://bit.ly/tb03sC) that as of Monday, there are more cats than prisoners at the facility. Just 69 inmates remain awaiting transfers.
Deputies say a Tampa man called 911 67 times over a two-hour period.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s office arrested 37-year-old Clarence McDonald on Tuesday after deputies pulled over the car he was riding in. They say he started calling 911 operators on Monday night, reporting that he had been shot at and was being shot.
Officials say McDonald never provided his location.
The St. Petersburg Times ( http://bit.ly/stJ4P8) reports the first call came in about 10 p.m. Monday. Deputies say McDonald continued to call and stayed on the line for 30 seconds to a minute.
When deputies stopped the car, they found the cell phone he used to call 911 and cocaine.
