Facebook Posts Ruled Admissible In Cop Killer Case
(Kissimmee, FL) -- An Osceola County man's Facebook posts could help prosecutors send him to prison. Everett Miller is accused of killing two Kissimmee police officers two years ago and a judge recently ruled that prosecutors can use his Facebook posts as evidence. A legal analyst tells Channel 9 prosecutors will likely use the posts to show Miller was motivated by a hatred for law enforcement.
Public Health Emergency Declared Over Hepatitis A
(Undated) -- State officials are declaring a public health emergency after the rise of Hepatitis A cases in Florida. The Florida Department of Health made the announcement yesterday, saying it builds upon the public health advisory issued on November of 2018. The Florida Surgeon General says the emergency is being declared in an effort to prevent further spread of Hepatitis A. It also means that the state will ask for the CDC's help in addressing the outbreak.
University Of Florida To Pay Settlement, Change Policy After Free Speech Lawsuit
(Gainesville, FL) -- The University of Florida is set to pay a settlement after being sued by campus conservatives. The Young Americans for Freedom announced yesterday they were being paid 66-thousand dollars in legal damages by the school. The Gainesville campus will also be changing a policy that caused the group to sue over free speech concerns. The Young Americans for Freedom filed suit against the university in December on claims that the school blocked its funding to bring conservative speakers to campus.
Paramedic Denied Service At McDonald's
(Madeira Beach, FL) -- McDonald's is sorry for what it calls an unfortunate incident in Pinellas County. A paramedic went into a Madeira Beach restaurant this week on 150th Ave, and he claims he was told by an employee they don't serve anyone with a badge. The paramedic posted about the incident on Facebook, and McDonald's says it has since fired the employee. McDonald's says it's upset and disappointed, and the employee's actions don't reflect the company's values.
Girl Falls From Third Floor Of Hotel
(Orlando, FL) -- A girl is lucky a recent fall in Orange County wasn't worse. An eight-year-old girl fell from the third floor window of a hotel yesterday afternoon on Palm Parkway. She escaped with just a minor knee injury, though, because some hedges broke her fall. She was taken to the hospital as a precaution.
Universal Announces Epic Park
(Orlando, FL) -- An epic new adventure is coming to Central Florida. Universal Studios Orlando announced yesterday it plans to open its fourth theme park, but we don't know when Epic Universe will open or what attractions it will include. The company, though, says its vision for the park is historic, and it will surpass its other parks. The park is expected to add 14-thousand jobs and create 300-million dollars in tax revenue.
Family Reunited With Lost WW2 Love Letters
(Pensacola, FL) -- A fateful find at a Pensacola mall is responsible for revealing the beginnings of a decades-long love story. Jason Boatwright and Chelsea Parker bought some old letters at Miles Antique Mall two weeks ago, and they discovered they were love letters World War Two soldier Clayton Franklin wrote to a girl in Tennessee he didn't even know. Romance blossomed through the letters, and the couple eventually married for 60 years before they passed away. Thanks to Facebook, Boatwright and Parker were able to return the letters to the couple's lone surviving child recently, and the Franklins' granddaughter tells the News Journal she was moved to tears when she received the letters.
KY Man Says He Fired His Gun At Bigfoot
(Mammoth Cave National Park, KY) -- A Kentucky man says he had to fire his gun at Bigfoot recently. Campers at Mammoth Cave National Park south of Louisville say they were woken up in their tent by a man claiming an ape-like monster had lunged at him, and he fired his gun at it. Law enforcement rangers responded to the Sunday incident. Authorities could not confirm the sighting of the legendary woodlands ape, and said no threat remains in the park.
TODAY IN HISTORY:
2017, the crypto-currency Bitcoin Cash was created.
1984, Charles Schultz's comic strip "Peanuts" was picked up by the "Daily Times" in Portsmouth, Ohio. It became the first comic strip to appear in two-thousand newspapers.
1943, United States Navy P-T 109 was rammed and sunk by a Japanese destroyer. Lieutenant John F. Kennedy was in command of the vessel.
1858, the first mailboxes in the United States were installed along the streets of Boston and New York City.