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Man charged with trying to pull waitress’ shirt off

Wed, 08 Sep 2010 10:56:00 +0000

Nicholas Robert Curcio, 21, was arrested early Saturday after deputies say he tried to pull off a waitress’ shirt at a Gulf Coast Town Center restaurant in Lee County, reports the Naples Daily News . Deputies working off-duty at the mall were notified of a disturbance at the Fire Pit. An 18-year-old waitress told deputies a man lunged at her, grabbed the straps to her shirt and tried to pull it down. She said he smiled, said: “woah a few times with a smirk on his face," reports the Naples Daily News. Curcio, of Naples, was found sitting on a bench outside the restaurant. The deputy wrote he believed “Curcio was extremely impaired and under the influence of alcohol,” according to the Naples Daily News. He was charged with battery. Photo: Nickolas Robert Curcio / Lee Couonty Sheriff's Office More FloriDUH

Caught! Woman puts fishing reel, flashlight down pants

Fri, 03 Sep 2010 18:33:00 +0000

The Panhandle again! A 39-year-old woman was charged with retail theft after she was seen putting Walmart merchandise down her pants, rpeorts the Northwest Florida Daily News in Fort Walton Beach. About 3 p.m. Aug. 20, a Fort Walton Beach Walmart employee saw the woman conceal a fishing reel in the front of her pants and a flashlight in the back of her pants, according to an Okaloosa County notice to appear. The woman left the store without paying for the items, which were valued at $53.84, reports the Daily News. She is due in court Sept. 7. Maybe she was planning on doing some night fishing. More FloriDUH

Miami Has the Sixth Most Troubled Housing Market

Kyle Munzenrieder — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:45:57 +0000

Hey Richard Florida of the Daily Beast, what depressing ranking of cities do you have for us today? Oh, “The 20 Worst Places to Sell Your Home.” Delightful. Unsurprisingly, Miami came in high on … Continue reading “Miami Has the Sixth Most Troubled Housing Read More

Miami Commission Looks To Hack Salaries and Pensions Today As Unions Promise A Fight

Beach Blogger — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 13:36:37 +0000

Like a blackjack fiend down to his last, filthy dollar bill at 3 a.m., the City of Miami has gone through most of the stages of grief over its budget disaster. First came denial (illegally s… Continue reading “Miami Commission Looks To Hack Salaries and Pensions Today As Unions Read More

Woman identifies stolen teeth at pawn shop

admin — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 11:48:00 +0000

According to the victim, Michael Wayne Barrows, 39, had asked the woman to try on a different pair of earrings than what she was wearing in her Fort Walton Beach home, reports the Northwest Florida Daily News in Fort Walton Beach. The woman said she took off her diamond earrings and instead wore earrings that Barrows had chosen. The next day, the woman checked her jewelry box and found several items missing, according to the Daily News. Later, with the help of law enforcement officers, the woman took a bite out of crime by positively identifying her stolen jewelry — and her gold teeth — from a pawn shop called The Diamond Exchange, according to reports. Barrows is being held on $9,000 bail in the Okaloosa County jail. More FloriDUH

Man, 107, celebrates B-day at McDonald’s

admin — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 11:30:00 +0000

One good thing about turning 107-years-old — it seems you don't have to worry about cholesterol. Last Thursday, Harold Bergman, of Jacksonville, celebrated his 107th birthday. And he celebrated it at the same place he has been celebrating it for the past three years — McDonald's. Bergman hand his wife Lillian, 85, indulge in regular visits to the Golden Arches near the home they share at Cypress Village. When he visited McDonald's on his birthday, balloons ,birthday decorations and a huge Big Mac-shaped cake awaited him, reports the Florida Times-Union in Jacksonville. Bergman, the oldest resident at Cypress Village, began celebrating birthdays at McDonald's three years ago, reports the Times-Union. He also got a special gift from Ronald McDonald - an "I'm Lovin' it!" T-shirt and visor. Ray Kroc opened his first McDonald's when Bergman was 52, reports the Times-Union. Happy Belated Birthday, Harold! Photo: RAYMA JENKINS/The Florida Times-Union More FloriDUH

Turns out Brandon Marshall doesn’t just punt after incompletions

Tue, 17 Aug 2010 15:49:24 +0000

Apparently, Brandon Marshall is an equal opportunity punter. After booting a ball over a fence after a dropped pass in Monday’s workout, Marshall punted one a short distance Tuesday morning after making a catch. Of course, Marshall did the same thing after a drop in Denver last season and it became a major story, one in a long series of missteps that ultimately got him traded to Miami. Marshall caught 3-of-4 passes thrown his way in a practice that heavily accented offensive execution. The other was knocked away by cornerback Vontae Davis. Linebacker Tim Dobbins and running back Patrick Cobbs returned to practice after missing the majority of workouts in recent days, Dobbins making a nice play to disrupt a pass to Ricky Williams. WR Greg Camarillo and RB Tristan Davis missed the workout but did quite a bit of work on the side, riding stationery bikes, jogging and pushing a blocking sled. Chad Henne was up-and-down in the drills, looking sharp on one series in which he went 4-for-4 passing, completing passes to Marshall, Williams and two to Anthony Fasano, but ragged in another in which he was high on back-to-back throws to Brian Hartline. Dan Carpenter was 6-for-6 on field goals from 38 yards but was wide left on one from 41. We’ll come back with more after coach Tony Sparano holds his daily press briefing at 12:30.

Mom: Why are these students cleaning toilets?

Sun, 15 Aug 2010 14:21:00 +0000

Sharon Zilberman has been trying to find the right school for her son, a special needs fourth-grader in Fort Walton Beach. She visited Wright Elementary School on Monday and was told by a teacher and a classroom aide for emotionally and behaviorally challenged fourth-and fifth-graders that students routinely cleaned the room and the bathroom — even scrubbing the toilet, reports the Northwest Florida Daily News (Fort Walton Beach). But school officials maintain it is a life skill. “The children are exposed to life skills curriculum because of the nature of their disabilities,” Kaye McKinley, deputy superintendent of schools told the Daily News. “Not all the kids participate, and certainly they’re gloved. If that’s what they want to do, they can clean the toilet.” Mom wasn't buying it — she filed complaints with the Okaloosa County School District and the state, reports the Daily News. Life skills or hogwash? You decide. More FloriDUH

FloriDUH: Zombies ruled last night in Melbourne

Sun, 15 Aug 2010 14:10:00 +0000

Saturday night was Zombie Night in downtown Melbourne. Hundreds of zombies -- actually people of all ages from children to adults -- showed up covered in fake blood, fake wounds, heavy makeup and shredded clothes to parade around, reports Florida Today (Melbourne). Zombie Walk organizer Paul Lucas' one rule: Do not break character. "It's a pointless event for anyone to come, take a break from their daily lives, and act crazy," Lucas told the Times-Union. Organized over Facebook, participants wore ripped clothes and showed off fake wounds. Teddi Trejo, 16, squirted fake blood on her friends. "You can never have enough blood," she told the Times-Union. Many created back stories for the event, tales of how their characters became a zombies. And Joann Pinkley's character was trying to fix a loose screw when she fell off a ladder. The tool's handle was rubber cemented to her forehead, the pointy end rubber cemented to her cheek. "It sounded like fun," Pinkley told the Times-Union. "(It's) different, unique." Photo: (Malcolm Denemark, FLORIDA TODAY) Some of the people eating dinner at Matt's Casbah watch the zombies walk past. More FloriDUH

Talking points: Channing Crowder sure to be in Rex Ryan’s crosshairs again

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 11:30:14 +0000

Channing Crowder can’t keep his mouth shut — not that anyone would want him to. Crowder and Rex Ryan had a war of words in the media last year and, after Crowder called Jason Taylor a “pretty boy” on Monday, it’s almost a sure bet Jets coach Rex Ryan will jump at the chance to fire back. That’s where we begin our Tuesday talking points: 1. Channing Crowder is a breath of fresh air during the dog days of training camp. Coach Tony Sparano is well aware of Crowder’s exuberant personality - he said Monday that Crowder is the one who keeps him entertained during the daily team stretching periods. He’s probably not a big fan of some of Crowder’s outrageous comments, such as the charge that Taylor will be wearing makeup when HBO begins airing its Hard Knocks series from New York Jets camp Wednesday night. Still, everybody needs a laugh once in awhile, and with tempers short and bodies getting more sore by the day in the 90-degree heat, Crowder is usually the one to provide it. “You need that in the locker room, because every day we come out here and it’s hot,” Sparano said. “We’re at practice 21 and there’s no light at the end of the tunnel. Every once in awhile you need someone who can get a spark going a little bit and break the ice and this is that type of guy. Rarely is there a down day for Channing Crowder.” 2. Roberto Wallace is a receiver who bears watching. Probably haven’t heard his name much with the attention being paid the guys ahead of him on the depth chart, but with Patrick Turner fading a bit in recent days, Wallace may yet make a run at the fifth wide receiver spot. Born in Panama, Wallace, who was signed as an undrafted free agent, didn’t start playing football until his junior year of high school after moving to the U.S. Last year he caught 36 passes for 463 yards and three touchdowns. Those who have come out to camp have almost undoubtedly mistaken Wallace for Brandon Marshall on occasion. While Wallace is three inches shorter at 6-foot-1, he has the same lanky frame and he wears No. 18, easily confused with Marshall’s No. 19. Even Sparano admitted he’s made that mistake. “There was a play today (Monday) where Brandon was in the second group and caught a deep ball and I thought it was Roberto,” he said. “I would imagine that’s a compliment.” For guys like Marshall and Marlon Moore, excelling in camp situations is nice, but they can really make a case for making the roster in the upcoming exhibitions. 3. Saturday’s preseason opener against Tampa Bay can’t come soon enough for the players. Think about it: Offseason workouts began March 1, followed by OTAs, the rookie and veteran mini-camps and now more than 20 training camp sessions. These guys can’t wait to line up against somebody other than their teammates, if only to see what all the work they’ve put in has accomplished. “It’s gonna be real exciting,” Davone Bess said Monday. “We’ve been seeing the same guys for the last couple months. Now we want to get out there and pretty much play ball; we can use the techniques we’ve learned from our coaches and just go out and have fun.” Asked if the preseason games are more important than practices, Bess replied, “From a player’s standpoint, the coaches want to see how the guys handle themselves in game situations. For us it’s an eye-opener to evaluate ourselves as players, to get ready for the regular season because it’s right around the corner.”