The smoke was reported just before 10:30 a.m., Friday and the Seminole County fire department has been working every since to solve the problem.
Students have been relocated to other buildings on campus as it was only building one that needed to be evacuated, not the whole school.
Fire officials are saying that the problem may have been caused by a faulty air conditioning unit.
No injuries of any kind have been reported.
Two police departments are being accused of covering up black on white hate crimes in order to avoid media coverage. One incident was witnessed the other was caught on video.
On August 12, 2013 police in Memphis arrested three black suspects of which multiple witnesses identified. Dondre Johnson, 19, Mario Patterson, 23, and Jerrica Norfleet, 23, murdered 27-year-old white male David Santucci.
Santucci was walking home after attending a birthday party when the three suspects drove up. Two of the suspects exited the vehicle and shot Santucci from 10 feet away. Santucci was hit with a single 9mm bullet through the heart. The suspects jumped back into their car and drove off according to several eye witnesses.
The Memphis Police Department arrested the three suspects 13 minutes after the murder occurred using the description from the multiple witnesses. Police wrote the report as a “robbery gone bad” but according to witnesses the three did not attempt to rob Santucci. There was no evidence to support a robbery. In fact, all of Santucci’s personal items were still on him after the police searched his body, not even his wallet or cell phone was taken, according to reports.
Santucci’s family said,”calling this a robbery gone bad is absurd and we are not buying it.” adding “This was clearly a hate crime.” The family says they tracked one of the murderers, Mario Patterson, through Facebook and what they found was completely undeniable evidence that Santucci’s murder was in fact a hate crime. Santucci’s family stated that the page indicated the trio were out for revenge for the shooting death of Trayvon Martin. The Facebook page contained several images of Trayvon Martin as well. The Family said the Facebook page of murderer Mario Patterson was mysteriously taken down after the family informed authorities of the discovery.
The residents in the area are calling it a cover-up and want action taken just as action was taken for Trayvon Martin. Unlike Trayvon who had been in trouble and had photos circulating of him with guns and drugs, Santucci had never committed any crimes or been in trouble with the law, according to his family. His life was taken senselessly, said residents of Memphis.
Ocala Post reached out to the Memphis Police Department via e-mail however they have not yet responded.
A separate incident in Baltimore, inside the little town Little Italy is just as disturbing.
A man who wishes not to have his name or face disclosed because he fears for his life was beaten by a mob of more than 10 black males. An incident which was all caught on camera.
In the video you can clearly see the victim trying to get away but every time he gets up he is beaten down again. The thugs are run off after the victim enters a local bar asking for help and patrons run out scaring off the thugs.
The police in Baltimore just like Memphis are also calling it a “robbery” however residents are not convinced. After all , the video speaks for itself. At no point during the video does it appear the mob is trying to rob the victim. It merely appears that they are enjoying beating him senseless, one resident said. Had the victim not gotten away, residents say the mob would have killed him. The mob did take the victims phone because it was dropped during the beating. Hardly a robbery residents say adding the mob were cowards for terrorizing the victim.
Little Italy is short on police presence giving thugs the perfect opportunity to create havoc in the neighborhood.
Residents of Little Italy are now taking matters into their own hands because of the lack of police presence. The community is now hiring a private security firm to protect the neighborhood. It has not yet been confirmed if the guards will be armed however residents say they prefer the guards to carry weapons just as the police do. The arming of the guards is still in talks within the community but many say they will most likely be armed.
Three of the suspects are reported to be juveniles and will be charged as adults for their participation in the crime. The victim sustained injuries that constituted the police to charge them as adults.
Residents of Little Italy pride themselves on being the safest neighborhood in Baltimore and they intend to keep it that way no matter what they have to do to keep the criminals out.
We also reached out to the Baltimore Police Department via e-mail however we have not yet received a response.
What are your thoughts? Do you think the community is wrong for taking action?
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Police in Ocala need your help to solve a mindless crime that occurred at an Ocala learning center.
The Sylvan Learning Center located at 3231 SE Maricamp Rd was found burglarized Tuesday morning by an employee arriving for work around 7:15 a.m. The burglary had apparently taken place in the middle of the night.
The employee arrived to find a window of the building broken out at which time the employee exited the building and called police.
Items taken during the burglary are a total value of $15,420 and include: 25 iPads, a Neat-Receipt Scanner, and a small amount of petty cash.
At this time it is unknown as to who committed the crime, therefore OPD needs your help in solving this crime.
Anyone with information regarding this case is urged to call the Ocala Police Department at (352) 369-7000. You may remain anonymous if you choose to do so.
For the second time since 1996 an Ocala neighborhood located at the intersection of Southeast 17th Street and 25th Avenue, has fallen victim to a sinkhole.
Wes Harren, the property manager of Woodland Village said that on Tuesday afternoon something appeared wrong with the lake located in the community.
Harren said by 4:30 he had an overwhelming amount of calls to his phone from residents telling him that the lake was “essentially gone.”
“I just watched it going down and down,” he said. Harren closed the pool and clubhouse which is closest to the sinkhole for the residents safety.
Ocala engineers, area contractors, and the city’s public works department were called out to help.
By Tuesday night the lake was completely drained. It once took up five acres of the property and measured eight feet deep in some spots. All that was left was mud and fish flopping about for the birds to feast on.
Woodland Village contains patio homes, condominiums, townhomes and estate homes, with a total of about 700 residents living in them. Residents are concerned that there may be an underlying problem that has yet to be detected.
Woodland Village has had this lake since 1984, the time in which the development was established.
A senseless murder leaves a girlfriend, family , and friends searching for answers.
Three teens ,two black males, Edward James- 15-years-old, Chancey Luna- 16-years-old, and white male Michael Jones- 17-years-old (who some say may or may not be a mixed race) shot and killed white Australian baseball player Christopher Lane for sport. A bright and upcoming star that did not deserve to die. The teens claim they were bored and wanted to kill somebody. They hunted down Christopher Lane like an animal, shot him in the back, and left him for dead in the middle of the street. Prior to murdering Lane the trio admitted to having just killed an animal and said they had plan to kill again after killing Lane.
Christopher Lane’s girlfriend, Sarah Harper is devastated.
“He didn’t deserve any of this,” Lane’s girlfriend, Sarah Harper, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. “It’s heartbreaking that it was such a random choice those guys made that drastically altered so many lives in the process.” “This is unbearable.”
Lane’s Father said, “There’s not going to be any good come out of this because it was just so senseless. There wasn’t anything he did or could have done. He was an athlete going for a jog, like he would do five or six days a week in terms of his training schedule.”
“It’s happened. It’s wrong and we just try and deal with it the best we can.”
Police Chief Dan Ford has said, “the boys had the simplest of motives — overcoming a boring end to their summer vacation. Ford said in a variety of interviews that the 17-year-old had told officers that they were bored and killed Lane for [the fun of it].”
Facebook photos of the teens paint the perfect picture of wanna’be gang members. One picture even showing off a semi-auto hand gun while showing a gang sign with his hand. It is unclear if it is the weapon used to kill Christopher Lane.
Other messages written by the teens on Facebook and Twiiter have been called pure hatred. Messages like, “Kill all white people” and “White people stink.” According to authorities, they plan to comb through the teens accounts as part of their investigation.
One resident said, “What are the parents doing while their teens are running the streets, posting photos on Facebook with guns, and throwing up gang signs? Do the parents not check their kids Facebook pages?” These questions are on the minds of many Oklahoma residents as well as on the mind of the family of Christopher Lane.
Chancey Luna’s Mom said, “My son is a good child, he didn’t do this, he isn’t capable of murder.”
It is rumored that at least two of the teens have prior criminal records. However the fact that they are juveniles makes the records unavailable and may even be sealed.
Chancey Luna-16-years-old and Edward James-15-years old will be charged with first degree murder and held without bond. Michael Jones-17-years-old is being held without bond pending his charges according to his role in the murder. Although he said in open court “I pulled the trigger” he was told by the judge to remain quiet at that time.
Christopher Lane and his girlfriend had just returned from a vacation in Australia. Lane was in Duncan, Oklahoma visiting Harper, his longtime girlfriend. Lane is from Melbourne, Australia but came to Oklahoma on a baseball scholarship after giving up his football career in Australia.
This senseless murder leaves a girlfriend, family , and friends on two continents asking the question, why?
Christopher Lane was just 22-years-old.
Feel free to express your thoughts with comments below.
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On Monday Bargo testified for over two hours, recalling events leading up to the murder of Jackson as well as what transpired after the killing took place.
Bargo put the blame on his co-defendants saying that he was not at the home when Jackson was murdered, claiming it was Kyle Hooper who fired the shots that killed Jackson.
Bargo testified that when he arrived at the home where Jackson was killed, the murder had already taken place. He claimed his gun had gone missing hours before Jackson was killed and when he arrived at the home on April 17, co-defendant Amber Wright was crying, Charlie Ely was trying to clean the crime scene with bleach, and Kyle Hooper was outside in the backyard tending to a huge bonfire. “It’s so hot I can’t get within 15 feet of the damn thing,” said Bargo.
According to Bargo’s testimony it was at that point when Hooper took him inside and told Bargo what had happened.
The jury was apparently not very persuaded by the testimony of Michael Bargo, coming back with a guilty verdict after deliberating for only three hours Tuesday morning.
The jury will now be in recess until Friday. At that point they will pick up with the penalty phase for the capital murder case.
If Bargo receives the death penalty, it will make him the youngest person in history to be put on Florida’s death row.
Jesse Jackson Jr’s lawyers argued for leniency, citing his reported health concerns, his two children, and his continued treatment for bipolar disorder.
That was the plea of the attorneys that represented the crooked politician. A politician who’s Dad Jesse Jackson is blaming bipolar disorder and his sons pursuit to be great for the cause of his greediness.
Jesse Jackson Jr. was sentenced to 30 months in prison, a prison in which Jackson was allowed to choose. And a prison that Forbes recently named one of the ‘cushiest’ prisons in the U.S.
Many hard working Americans feel that Jesse Jackson Jr. should be treated as any other criminal. Why should he be any different? One person commented , “Why should Jesse Jackson Jr. be allowed to have special treatment and get to choose his prison?”
Jesse Jackson Jr. was sentenced to 30 months in prison Wednesday after pleading guilty to charges related to illegally spending $750,000 in campaign funds on personal purchases. Jackson’s wife Sandi Jackson plead guilty to failing to report $600,000 in taxable income.
U.S. Attorney Ronald Machen, who was responsible for prosecuting Jackson, said the case should be a “wake-up call” for other politicians and that Jackson squandered his career for personal gain.
“Jackson’s political potential was unlimited, but he instead chose to treat his campaign account as a personal slush fund, stealing from the people who believed in him so he could live extravagantly,” said Machen.
“He squandered his great capacity for public service through outright theft. The prison sentence imposed today should serve as a wake-up call to other public officials who believe there are no consequences for betraying the public trust.”
There have been accusations that Jesse Jackson Jr. and Rev. Jesse Jackson paid doctors to fake his bipolar disorder in order to try and escape Federal Charges. However those accusations have not yet been proven. While many Americans are also calling for an audit of Rev. Jesse Jackson citing he too has taken advantage of his position many times in the past, there has not been any talk of actual legal action.
Let us know your thoughts and position. Drop a few comments below.
Ocala, Florida — Jury selection began Monday in the murder trial of Michael Bargo, a suspected ringleader of the group of teens who killed a teenage boy in Marion County over two years ago.
April 17, 2011 was the day a group of teens committed a gruesome murder that would forever change the lives of so many people. It was at the home located at 13896 Southeast 53rd Avenue, where Charlie Kay Ely-21, Justin Edward Soto-22, Kyle Hooper-19, Amber E. Wright-17, and accused ringleader Michael Bargo-21, beat, tortured, shot, and burned 15-year-old Seath Tyler Jackson.
Bargo will be the last to stand trial in the murder of Jackson as his four co-defendants are all serving life sentences after being convicted of first degree murder for their part in the killing. James Haven III-38 was ruled incompetent to stand trial on charges of accessory after the fact to murder for attempting to help the teens cover up the murder.
If Bargo is convicted he will be facing the death penalty, making him the youngest death row inmate in the state of Florida.
Defense attorney Charles Hollowman was asked this past week how Bargo was doing, he said,”Iguess he’s doing as well as to be expected considering the fact that his life has barely begun and the suggestion is by the state that they want it to come to an abrupt end much sooner than he had hoped for.”
When the jury selection started Monday morning, there were two faces that Bargo recognized in the second floor court room of Judge David Eddy. One, a former classmate of Bargo’s, 20-year-old Shannon Herer and a former driver’s education instructor from Belleview high School, were among the several groups of potential jurors.
Herer was excused from the jury because he knew the defendant. Once outside the courtroom, Herer said, “I used to eat lunch with Bargo and other classmates but I never had a class with him. He was a normal kid. He never stood out or anything.”
Bargo’s former instructor whose name is not being released as he is still among potential jurors told the judge that if he was selected as a juror, that he could remain impartial since he only supervised the driving portion of the course and not the classroom portion.
However there is a new level of athlete being targeted when it comes to the fight against steroid use in sports. The difference is, these athletes are not professionals; they are not even on the collegiate level, in fact they are only high school students participating in their schools athletic programs.
This comes after a clinic that reportedly provided performance enhancing drugs to Major League Baseball players was learned by the Florida High School Athletic Association to have allegedly also given the same drugs to students.
Roger Dearing, the FHSAA executive director, said, “school districts simply cannot tolerate coaches who encourage or look the other way when they know student-athletes are using performance-enhancing drugs. Therefore, these coaches should not be allowed by their school district policies to influence and coach these students in the future,” during a conference call.
According to the Miami Herald, the agency is putting a 16 person committee together to come up with an idea for a new testing policy.
This is where the controversy weighs in. Drug tests will cost $150 each; there are around 283,000 student athletes in Florida high schools, therefore it would cost an estimated $42 million each year for schools if the drug tests are required. This proposal coming only months after Florida having announced mass layoffs of thousands of teachers and other school employees across the state.
This has a large number of parents wondering what is more important to officials in their children’s schools; education or sports?
One parent, who is also a teacher, spoke with Ocala Post wished to remain anonymous and had this to say:
“I’m all for making sure our children don’t get involved with taking performance-enhancing drugs, but at a high school level it should be totally up to the parents of the students to say whether or not their kid gets tested for steroids. I would much rather see the board of education use the $42 million towards getting good teachers back in the classrooms. I think that sports are an important factor in school, especially with the high rate of obesity in children today. I just think that putting budget cuts in place that cause thousands of teachers to lose their jobs and then proposing a multimillion dollar drug testing plan to makes sure student athletes aren’t using performance-enhancing drugs, sends the wrong message to students who don’t play any sports. To me it says we don’t care about your education, pick up a ball and that’s not right.”
It is still unclear when and if the proposed $42 million drug testing plan will be approved.
Police are searching for a man driving a truck after he ran over a man killing him and did not stop.
According to an Ocala Police news release, Joseph F. Lack, Jr.-51 of Tampa and his friend were on their way to Tampa and stopped in the parking lot of the old Krystal restaurant located at 3751 NW Blitchton Road/ U.S. 27, to rest before continuing on their trip.
The two men were sleeping on the ground near the tree line at the rear of the parking lot at around 11:40 p.m. when a large single-axle dual rear-wheel truck passed through the parking lot and ran over the two men.
Lack sustained only minor injuries that were caused by the undercarriage of the truck grazing him as it passed completely over the top of his body. The second man whose name is not being released pending a contact of next of kin was pinned under the truck and dragged for approximately 65 feet before his body was dislodged.
The man in the truck, without stopping, pulled back onto U.S. 27 and entered I-75 from the northbound ramp.
Ocala police say that their investigation is ongoing and that their investigators are working with neighboring businesses trying to obtain surveillance videos that can help them identify the truck.
Authorities are asking anyone with information to call the Ocala police traffic homicide Investigator Harold Compton at 352-369-7110 or 352-369-7000. You can submit a tip through Crime Stoppers of Marion County by calling 352-368-STOP (7867) or by using the new Ocala Police Department app, MyPD, which allows for anonymous tip submissions.
Ocklawaha–An Ocklawaha man died Thursday after his vehicle struck a tree stump.
According to Florida Highway Patrol, John Michael Roberts-66 of Ocklawaha was traveling north on County Road 314A in his 2008 Ford Focus, when somehow his vehicle strayed onto the shoulder.
The crash occurred at Southeast 17th Street and CR 314A at approximately 6:20PM.
It is unknown as to what caused Roberts to drive onto the shoulder or if he was wearing a seatbelt, but once his car reached the side of the road Roberts was unable to gain control and hit a tree stump with the right front tire.
Roberts was transported to Ocala Regional Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.
The teenager who shot Julius Jacobs-40, July 5th in Ocala will not be facing charges for the killing.
The State Attorney’s Office released a statement Tuesday saying that the shooting was legal under Florida’s “stand your ground” law.
On July 5th according to witnesses, 40 year-old Jacobs got out of his SUV on the 1900 block of Southwest Third Street and went after 17-year-old Tyrone Pierson and two other teens with a stick after a verbal confrontation as they walked down the street. Pierson then pulled out a handgun and shot Jacobs one time in the head.
“A person is justified in the use of deadly force and does not have a duty to retreat if he or she reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm, or to prevent the imminent commission of a forcible felony,” said prosecutors as they quoted Florida Statute 776.012.
“In this case, Jacobs’ threats and his attempt to hit the teen would cause a reasonable person to fear imminent death or great bodily harm,” said prosecutors.
The 17-year-old will however be facing charges of possession of a concealed weapon by a minor and carrying a concealed firearm.
Family of Jacob’s have made him out to be a good man and a regular at church. Unfortunately a search of Jacob’s SUV tells a different story. Reports that he had pulled over to do a drug deal prior to chasing down the teens proved to be true. Jacob’s SUV contained drugs, however it is not clear if Jacob’s was the dealer or the buyer in the drug exchange just moments prior to his death.
Jacob’s relatives are not happy with the State Attorney’s decision to not charge the teen with homicide.
On August 8, 2013, Detective Gauthier received information that Erika Nunez and a black male were seen leaving her residence in a gray Chevrolet Impala with a Texas license plate. Detective Gauthier located the vehicle and called for a marked unit to conduct a traffic stop at SW 19th Ave and W. SR40. The person driving the vehicle was a black male by the name of Geron Rashad Jones, Born July 30, 1991.
Jones was driving on a revoked drivers license at the time he was pulled over. He was arrested and charged with driving while license are suspended or revoked [DWLSR]. Jones was then transported to the Ocala Police Department to be questioned in the robbery of Panera Bread.
Nunez, who was also in the car at the time, was charged with possession of marijuana. Nunez was also brought to the Ocala Police Station for questioning.
Nunez confessed to having set up the robbery with her boyfriend Jones because she was broke and needed the money. Roughly $900 was recovered from Nunez that was taken during the robbery.
The vehicle that Jones was driving was reported in a hit and run on Monday, August 5, 2013 following the time of the robbery. Jones would not speak about the robbery but did admit to leaving the scene of the crash therefore placing him behind the wheel after the robbery. In addition to being charged with [DWLSR], Jones was hit with leaving the scene of a crash and violation of Right of Way.
Both Nunez and Jones were booked and are now sitting in the Marion County Jail.
The community is outraged and want to see the Robinson brothers die in prison for what they did to 12-year-old Autumn Pasquale.
Autumn Pasquale was riding her bike after she left from her Dad’s house in Clayton, NJ when she was lured into a home after being promised new bicycle parts. Unfortunately the Robinson brothers had something else in mind that tragic day.
After a massive search for Autumn after she was reported missing, the families worst fear became a reality. Autumn’s body was discovered in a recycling bin on abandoned property next to the Robinson’s house. Autumn had been discarded like trash after being brutally strangled to death by evil.
Investigators were led to the body which then led to the Robinson brothers after the suspects Mom saw a message on Facebook that just didn’t seem right. She called authorities which led them straight to her son’s arrests.
Justin Robinson was finally charged as an adult, however under a plea agreement of aggravated manslaughter, Justin Robinson only faces a 17-year prison sentence with no chance of parole for more than 14 years. This seemingly light sentence leaves family, friends, and the community outraged. Had the case remained in juvenile court, the maximum sentence would have been 20 years, but he would have had a chance of parole in less than seven years. Justin Robinson ‘claims’ he acted alone in the murder and made a full confession.
“Autumn’s death was senseless and it shook the community to its core. There will never be punishment commensurate with her brutal killing,” said Prosecutor Warren Faulk.
Dante Robinson’s case is still pending in Juvenile Court, making the details of the case unavailable to the media.
South Miami — Facebook, a place where friends and family usually catch up after a hard day’s work was a different scene today.
An indescribable murder photo was uploaded by Derek Medina, 31 of South Miami with a confession attached to it.
At first it appeared as if it were a horrible thought out prank, however after Medina turned himself in claiming he had murdered his wife after a domestic dispute, police quickly realized it was not a prank at all. Police found the woman’s body in the townhouse at 5555 SW 67 Avenue. Police also discovered a 10 year old girl in the home, the girl was not harmed in the shooting.
Jennifer Alfonso, bent over backwards at the knees with her head in the corner of what appears to be a kitchen was covered in blood. She had been fatally shot by Medina. Alfonso was married to Medina for just a short time.
The statement on Medina’s Facebook page came roughly at the same time as the photo of the body was published. Medina’s page was active on the site for several hours before Facebook officials took it down.
Facebook had this to say:
“The content was reported to us. We took action on the profile – removing the content and disabling the profile, and we reached out to law enforcement. We take action on all content that violates our terms, which are clearly laid out on our site.”
Neighbors describe Medina as a ‘shady person’. Neighbors say Medina was constantly watching the neighborhood as if he were a neighborhood watchman, always wanting to protect the area.
Several of Derek Medina’s uploaded Facebook photos seem to also back up what neighbors are saying about him.
A gruesome scene for officers and family, who are now searching for answers.
Marion Oaks–Shortly after 12 a.m., August 8, 2013, deputies received a call after two bicyclists doing their nightly bike ride heard moaning and squeaking coming from the woods.
According to reports, one of the bicyclists shined a flashlight in the direction of the noise and discovered that a completely nude man — who is not identified — was in the woods behind the convenience store, located on Marion Oaks Dr. and Marion Oaks Blvd.
The man was reportedly pleasuring himself on top of a picnic table that appeared to have been dragged into the wooded area.
By the time deputies arrived on the scene, the nude man had fully clothed himself. The nude man was intoxicated, and after being questioned by deputies denied that he had been nude or having masturbated on the table.
After approximately 15 to 20 minutes, the nude man, who was drenched in sweat, was sent on his way carrying only a white plastic bag and what appeared to be a small cardboard box.
Deputies inspected the area and discovered what could only be described as a “perverts hangout spot.” Articles left behind painted a very disturbing story as to what had been taking place in the wooded area, which is only a block or two from a daycare and right next door to a church.
Items discovered included a self-masturbation toy, rubber gloves, soft foam, two tables (one of which is a child’s table), dozens of empty beer cans, Vaseline (not photographed), and a bottle of anal lube.
The photos demonstrate how worn down the area is, therefore indicating it was a high traffic area.
Even more disturbing, was the fact that a person could actually see the daycare from the area.
A passing motorist told Ocala Post that, “In a sane person’s mind this would be unacceptable. The area clearly needs to be cleaned up and closed off.”
Residents of Marion Oaks wonder why thousands of dollars were spent restoring the fountain at the main entrance when there are parts of the neighborhood that need more attention.
With daycare and schools in the area, residents feel they have the right to a safe environment for their children.
It is unclear at this time why deputies released the man, as this is not the first time the “masturbating bandit” has struck.
We want to know what you think. Do you feel someone who commits this type of offense should be arrested?
All it took was a few swipes from an excavator to demolish the house in Ohio where three women were held captive for a decade.
Cheers and applause filled the streets in the Cleveland neighborhood were the house of Ariel Castro, the man who held three women against their will for over a decade while beating, raping, and even fathering a child by one of the women, once stood. The demolition started Wednesday morning lasting only 20 minutes. It was part of a plea deal that kept Castro-62 from receiving the death penalty. Castro was sentenced to life in prison plus 1,000 years last week.
Victim Michelle Knight showed up early Wednesday morning before the demolition started. After making a brief statement, she released balloons into the air.
With rosary beads hanging from her neck, Knight said, “Dear Lord, give the missing people strength and power to know that they are loved. We hear their cry, they are never forgotten in my heart. They are caterpillars waiting to turn into a butterfly. They are never forgotten, they are loved.”
“The balloons represent the millions of children that were never found and the ones who passed away that were never heard,” said Knight.
A relative of one of the victims represented the three women and took the controls of the excavator for the first smash at the top of the house with the wrecking crane. Later, as the demolition reached the basement where the women were held, church bells rang out.
“Tearing the house down was important for the neighborhood, to show that monster that he is behind bars and that he’s never going to get out,” said Katie Mae Brown-62, a former resident of the neighborhood.
According to Cuyahoga County prosecutor Tim McGinty, the two houses to the left of Castro’s are also being torn down. That site will eventually be developed into a park or whatever the residents there agree on.
As Castro signed over the deed to the house, he cried while recalling his “many happy memories” there with the women. Prosecutors used the teary-eyed scene to show Castro’s “distorted and twisted” personality calling him “one evil guy”.
Monday Castro’s son, Anthony Castro along with other relatives showed up to the house to collect personal items from the residence including photographs, guitars and bicycles. They said that the demolition of the house was part of a healing process for them.
“It’s sad and hard but it’s necessary for us to move on,” said Anthony Castro.
At the sentencing of Castro, prosecutors showed photo’s of what the rooms looked like where the three women were kept inside the home.
In the room where Amanda Berry lived with her young, who was father by Castro, there were stuffed animals along the bed, a drawing on a shelf that read, “Happy Birthday”, and numerous drawings with crayon taped to the walls. The windows had boards on them, door knobs were replaced with locks and small holes in the door were meant for circulation.
The photo of the room shared by Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight, showed a portable toilet, a clock radio and multiple chains.
The house had been fenced off and guarded by police 24 hours a day due to threats of arson after the women were found.
The Florida School for Boys, also known as the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys (AGDS), was a reform school operated by the state of Florida in the panhandle town of Marianna from January 1, 1900, to June 30, 2011. For a time, it was the largest juvenile reform institution in the United States. A second campus was opened in the town of Okeechobee in 1955.
Throughout its 111-year history, the school gained a reputation for abuse, beatings, rapes, torture, and even murder of students by staff. Despite periodic investigations, changes of leadership, and promises to improve, the allegations of cruelty and abuse continued. Many of the allegations were confirmed by separate investigations by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement in 2010 and the Civil Rights Division of the United States Department of Justice in 2011.State authorities closed the school permanently in June 2011.
After decades of questions and allegations about boys buried on the grounds of the state’s first, oldest, and now abandoned reform school on the outskirts of the Panhandle town of Marianna, a team of forensics experts will finally exhume all of the bodies. The University of South Florida may soon be able to use science to answer allegations that the boys were not returned to their families after they died. The fear is they were not returned because there would have been signs of death by beating.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott and the Florida Cabinet had previously blocked the University of Florida from exhuming the bodies. Pressure from grieving parents and State Attorney General Pam Bondi, who filed a petition to try and convince Rick Scott to allow the bodies to be examined, paid off. The permit was finally granted today and now families can maybe find answers they have been looking for.
At the Cabinet meeting Bondi said, “We know something happened there and know it wasn’t good, we as Floridians cannot ignore it.”
There could be more than 100 burials in and around a clandestine graveyard surrounded by thick pines. The true number is not yet known however the unmarked graves tell a gruesome story.
This could potentially turn out to be a part of Florida history. A Part of history that Florida does not need nor want.
The skeletal remains of the boys will hopefully be used to identify each and every boy that was buried, maybe even answer questions as to whether or not they were beaten to death while they were imprisoned at the school. There is no question about the abuse that went on in the school however the extent of the abuse has never really been known.
For many families, the answers cannot come fast enough.
especially from mosquitoes. Mosquitoes in Florida carry four types of virus called arboviruses.
These viruses are; St. Louis encephalitis (SLE), Eastern equine encephalomyelitis(EEE), Western equine encephalitis , and West Nile Virus (WN).
SLE is the most common of these diseases in Florida. In an average year,
one to 10 cases of SLE are reported. EEE occurs sporadically in Florida. WN is
newly reported in the state, but it is quickly becoming a health concern.
Many people may not even know they are infected with an arbovirus. When
symptoms do occur (2-15 days from the bite of an infected mosquito), they may
include fever, headache, fatigue, dizziness, weakness and confusion. WN may
also cause rash or muscle weakness.
People 50 and older tend to be more severely affected by SLE or WN viruses.
At this time, there are no human vaccines against SLE or EEE, although a
WN vaccine is being developed.
SLE, EEE, and WN pass back and forth between birds and mosquitoes.
Mosquito control agencies located throughout the state monitor mosquito
populations. In many areas, these agencies and county health departments also
keep chicken flocks and monitor these chickens for evidence of exposure to
arboviruses. Chicken make good sentinels because they do not get sick from
these viruses or transmit them to people. Dead birds are an indicator the WN virus may be in an area. Please report dead birds on the internet site www.wildflorida.org/bird/ (or call your county
health department or local Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission office). Another indicator that WN or EEE may be present is through horses.
Arboviruses:
What is a virus? Virus is a germ which sneaks into your system. Viruses have to
live inside an animal or human. Once inside the host, they produce other
viruses.
West Nile Virus:
This virus originated in Africa near the Nile River. Mosquitoes bit
infected birds and in turn bit people. There is not a vaccine for West Nile, at this
time, however, a doctor can treat the systems. There is a vaccine for horses.
Eastern Equine Encephalitis: This virus is found in wild birds. This virus can be
located along the eastern seaboard of the United States and is associated with
horses. It is usually fatal in horses if they are not given a vaccine. There is no
vaccine for humans.
St. Louis Encephalitis:
It was discovered in St. Louis, Missouri in 1937. It is
usually found in the mid west and eastern United States. Cold or flu like
symptoms results if a person is bitten by an infected mosquito.
Culexnigripalpus:
This type of mosquito is found in Florida. It infects birds and
people and needs high humidity. It mainly flies at dawn and dusk.
Malaria:
This is the number one insect-borne disease to human in the world.
Florida, however, has fewer than 100 cases.
Natural habitats that promote breeding are ones that hold a week of water
such as salt marches, mangroves, swamps, fresh water marshes, lakes, ponds,
streams, rain pools, tree holes, bromeliads, pitcher plants and crab holes. Some
man-made created mosquito habitats that hold water a week or more are storm
water control ditches, swales, and storm water ponds. Also, mosquito larvae and
pupa attach themselves to the roots of aquatic plants, water hyacinth, cattail and
water lettuce.
Prevention of Mosquito Bites:
Due to the mild weather in Florida, outdoor activities extend from dawn to
dusk. Prevention of mosquito bites is the key.
Five rules to follow for prevention of mosquito bites are:
1. Dawn to Dusk: Avoid being outdoors during this time.
2. Dress: Wear protective clothing if you must be outdoors.
3. DEET: Use products containing DEET to prevent mosquito bites.
4. Drain: Drain containers such as wading pools, wheelbarrows, empty plant
containers, garbage cans and their lids, birdbaths, rain gutters and other
areas in the yard where water may collect undisturbed for a week or more.
5. Screen: Make sure house windows are closed and sealed with a screen.
2012 was the largest and most deadly outbreak of West Nile virus (WNV) since 1999 when it first appeared in New York. The best way to prevent West Nile virus disease is to avoid mosquito bites.
It only takes a single mosquito bite to make you or your family member sick with West Nile virus – just one bite could make you or your loved one sick, cause severe illness, or even death. Don’t risk your health this summer!
Know the facts
More than 37,000 people in the U.S. have been reported with West Nile virus disease since 1999, and of those over 16,000 have been seriously ill and more than 1,500 have died. Many more cases of illness are not reported to CDC. It is estimated that over three million people from every state (except Alaska and Hawaii) have been infected (780,000 became sick) in the 14 years since West Nile virus came to the U.S.
Know your risk
All 48 states in the continental U.S. have had human West Nile virus cases. Though anyone can get infected with West Nile virus, there are people at higher risk for severe disease. People over the age of 50 are at higher risk for encephalitis. The reasons one person becomes severely ill and another doesn’t aren’t entirely known.
West Nile virus (WNV) neuroinvasive disease incidence reported to ArboNET, by state, United States, 2012
Where is West Nile virus a problem?
Some states, such as those in highlighted in black on the map to the right, had greater concentrations of cases of severe disease than others represented in lighter colors in 2012. This can change each year. Some areas of the U.S. are affected by other viruses such as eastern equine encephalitisvirus, LaCrosse encephalitis virus, and dengue.
Insect repellent: What you need to know
Why take a chance? Prevention is up to you. No one is safe from West Nile virus, but there are steps you can take to help prevent an infection. Avoid the weeks even months of aches and fatigue that come with West Nile fever, or the more severe problems of being hospitalized with encephalitis or meningitis (inflammation of the brain and surrounding tissues).
What repellent should I use?
CDC recommends a variety of effective repellents. The most important step is to pick one and use it. There are those that can protect you for a short while in the backyard or a long while in the woods. DEET, picaridin, IR3535 and the plant-based oil of lemon eucalyptus are all repellents recommended by CDC. All contain an EPA-registered active ingredient and have been evaluated for efficacy and safety. EPA has a long listing of every registered repellent brand in the U.S. There are good repellents for every budget, age and preference.
Know the symptoms of West Nile infection
No symptoms in most people.
Most people (70-80%) who become infected with West Nile virus do not develop any symptoms.
Fever in some people.
About 1 in 5 people who are infected will develop a fever with other symptoms such as headache, body aches, joint pains, vomiting, diarrhea, or rash. Most people with this type of West Nile virus disease recover completely, but fatigue and weakness can last for weeks or months.
Severe symptoms in a few people.
Less than 1% of people who are infected will develop a serious neurologic illness such as encephalitis or meningitis (inflammation of the brain or surrounding tissues). The symptoms of neurologic illness can include headache, high fever, neck stiffness, disorientation, coma, tremors, seizures, or paralysis. See your healthcare professional if you think you have the symptoms of West Nile infection.
[Source: CDC]
Orlando-Georgia Aquarium and its partners, including SeaWorld, may file an appeal against NOAA’s decision to deny the group permission to bring 18 beluga whales to the US.
Georgia Aquarium asked to transport the group of whales from Russia. The whales would then be separated and sent to partner aquariums across the country, including SeaWorld Orlando.
SeaWorld parks would receive its whales on loan from the George Aquarium.
In the group’s application, it said that the whales faced a number of threats in its natural habitat but the whales were not going to be imported for their protection. The whales would be imported for the sole reason of increasing the theme parks profit although the park claims it is to promote conservation and education about the whales.
NOAA, however, says it could not determine whether importing the belugas would have a negative impact on the stock of wild beluga whales. They also say five of the belugas were possibly still nursing, and therefore not independent. NOAA received thousands of comments in regard to importing the whales and was most likely a deciding factor in the agency’s decision.
NOAA says this is the first application for a permit to import wild marine mammals in more than 20 years.
SeaWorld Orlando currently has four beluga whales. SeaWorld is already under fire for its use of killer whales in its parks, particularly those caught in the wild. In 2010, Dawn Brancheau, a trainer at SeaWorld was killed by the killer whale Tilikum that was born in the wild but transported to SeaWorld.
There is no word yet on whether the appeal will actually be filed.
