This page offers local breaking news, traffic reports and weather conditions from the staff of the St. Petersburg Times and tampabay.com. Check back often for the latest news from around the Tampa Bay area. Subscribe
CLEARWATER — The Clearwater Police Department announced Monday it will conduct a traffic safety detail over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend in an effort to reduce the number of vehicle accidents.
Operation Safe Holiday will be in effect Wednesday through Sunday at intersections with high traffic volume or elevated crash rates. Officers will focus on red light violations, speeding and aggressive driving.
CLEARWATER — A 42-year-old restaurant cook who was arrested for possessing child pornography in September now faces 50 additional charges after his computer was analyzed.
Clearwater detectives say Michael M. Miller was in possession of over 700 images ranging from infants to teens. The images were discovered after detectives ran a forensics analysis on two computer towers and miscellaneous electronic storage devices, which were seized after his arrest.
ST. PETERSBURG — A Monday morning fire left a house heavily damaged, officials said.
At 6:02 a.m., firefighters responded to a fire at a two-story house at 821 69th Ave. S. The fire appeared to be on the second floor with flames shooting 25 to 30 feet in the air, firefighters said.
CRYSTAL BEACH — Two men swam more than a mile to shore after their boat overturned in the Intracoastal Waterway on Sunday afternoon, according to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.
Joseph Edward Adamo and Calvin Bell were a mile or farther west of Crystal Beach when Adamo's 12-foot jon boat flipped over in rough waves about 10:30 a.m., the Sheriff's Office said.
In the 217 days since his leg was torn off in a horrific hit-and-run accident, Andrew Hall has longed for the day he could leave the hospital and go home. Sunday was that day. "I'm finally going home. This part of the journey is ending, but I still have a long way to go," said Hall, 20. Hall came to Bayfront Medical Center on April 20, after he was hit by a Honda Accord going an estimated 90 mph on Main Street in Safety Harbor. The alleged driver, 25-year-old Joshua West, was charged with three felonies, including driving under the influence. West is being held at the Pinellas County Jail. A pretrial hearing is scheduled for Nov. 30.
Hall, who has cerebral palsy, had worked his whole life to walk on his own. The impact of the accident severed his left leg, crushed his pelvis, shattered his right arm and snapped the tendons in his right knee. Hall was the subject of a St. Petersburg Times special report in August, called "The Golden Hour," that detailed the efforts of paramedics and the trauma surgeon who saved Hall's life.
A 64-year-old man was killed Friday night when he stepped in front of a car while crossing 62nd Avenue N in St. Petersburg, the Florida Highway Patrol said.
Geoffrey C. Owen, of 3301 58th Ave. N, was trying to cross 62nd Avenue at 33rd Street when he was struck by a westbound Toyota Echo driven by Kathleen Edyth Prince, 59, of St. Petersburg. Prince was not injured. The accident is under investigation.
INDIAN SHORES –– A registered sex offender was charged with molesting a child and possessing child pornography after he was found having sex with a 16-year-old girl on Friday night, Indian Shores police said.
After several hours of questioning, Kenneth E. Rosier, 25, of Largo, admitted to molesting the girl as well as other molestations in other cities and counties, according to Indian Shores police Det. Jason Routzahn. Investigators later charged Rosier with 23 counts of child pornography possession as well as lewd and lascivious molestation.
DUNEDIN –– A Pinellas County sheriff's deputy was injured early Saturday in a head-on crash with a wrong-way driver, the Sheriff's Office said.
Deputy Jana Demperio, 42, was driving north in the 1200 block of Bayshore Boulevard in Dunedin at 12: 11 a.m. Marie Elise Spirtos, 42, of Tarpon Springs was headed south in the northbound lane and struck Demperio's cruiser, according to the Sheriff's Office.
News
