July 13, 2010
After lying to Jacksonville police several times in the death of a 1-year-old boy in her care, Shantel Patrice Wilcher promised to tell the baby’s mother the whole truth Tuesday in court.
Wilcher, 39, was running an unlicensed day care and admitted to transporting up to eight children in her pickup truck last June without a valid driver’s license. In the commotion she forgot about baby Bernard J. Davis Jr. still inside the Ford F-150 in the city’s sweltering heat. The...In an effort to get a strong anti-corruption system into the city charter, Jacksonville ethics commissioners have plans they think can get their proposed changes from the drawing board into law.
The strategy they think might be the most effective has the City Council making voters angry.
Though details are still being hashed out, commissioners have expressed interest in securing the Ethics Commission’s inclusion into the city charter, and the creation of an...The last budget Mayor John Peyton takes to the City Council may be the most anticlimactic of all.
Peyton, with whiteboard in tow, has been talking for months to anyone who’d listen about how the city needs to expand its revenue and cut expenses to make the it financially stable.
The mayor who came into office in 2003 on a pledge of not raising taxes will ask for the second consecutive 9 percent property tax rate increase to combat slipping property values....
PONTE VEDRA BEACH - Sawgrass Village’s mortgage holder outbid a national commercial developer Tuesday in a courthouse auction for the ailing but centrally located 26-acre shopping center on Florida A1A.
Massachusetts Mutual Insurance Co.’s $17 million bid for the property beat out Regency Centers, owner and operator of grocery-anchored and community shopping centers, which bid $16.5 million.
David Lauretti, investment manager for...
Jacksonville Beach police are asking for help identifying a man who was pulled from the ocean Tuesday afternoon around 3:30 p.m.
The man was found in front of Latham Plaza in the 100 block of Beach Proper North and is now in critical condition at Beaches Baptist Hospital.
He is a white male, balding, estimated at 55-69 years of age, about 5-9, 180 pounds, blue grey eyes, an 8-10 inch vertical scar on the inside of his right leg and wearing blue Nike shorts.
Anyone with...
The Jaguars signed their first draft pick of the 2010 class Tuesday when they came to terms on a four-year deal with defensive end Larry Hart.
Hart, a fifth-round pick, received a deal with an estimated signing bonus of $192,000 and minimum salaries for four years. The fourth year has an escalator clause that will move him above the minimum if he plays well.
Except for first-round pick Tyson Alualu, the four other draft picks aside from Hart will get a signing bonus with the...
Young artists who know their way around the sidewalk canvas with multi-colored chalk are invited to join Flagler County's "National Night Out" from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 3, at Flagler Palm Coast High School, 5500 E. Florida 100. Co-sponsored by the Flagler County Sheriff's Office and Target, the free crime prevention education event is being held with the help of the Flagler County School District.
The latest addition is a sidewalk...
Thursday is the deadline for buying season tickets to the Riverside Fine Arts 2010-2011 season at a 10 percent discount.
A season ticket to all 10 concerts that normally costs $190 is available for $171 if purchased on or before Thursday. The $80 student tickets are discounted to $71.
A ticket that covers six of the concerts (not including the four Organ Series performances) is discounted from $150 to $135 for adults and to $54 from $60 for students.
Both season ticket...
LOS ANGELES — Character-welcoming USA is attempting to close its personal gender gap by adding a female-driven show to its increasing packaged and increasingly popular Boys of Summer Tour. Starring the very appealing Piper Perabo ("Beverly Hils Chihuahua") as rookie CIA agent Annie Walker, "Covert Affairs" may not have the revenge factor of "Burn Notice" or the bromantic banter of "White Collar," but it's fast-paced, fun and every bit as charming.
In the pilot, writers Matt Corman and...
It's almost time for Jacksonville's senior prom - the 29th Annual Senior Prom for anyone age 60 and older.
The Senior Prom will be held from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, Aug. 6, at the Prime Osborn Convention Center, 1000 Water St. This year's theme is a Masquerade Ball, attendees encouraged to wear masks and festive accessories to the prom. The evening includes dinner, music, dancing and door prizes, tickets $10 in advance or $15 at the door for seniors, and $...