Law and public safety

Prosecutors in Gainesville have dropped a highly publicized felony criminal case against a teenager they accused of sending a bomb threat to his high school last year. They said they could not determine who was at the keyboard of the laptop used to send the threatening message. The case involved 17-year-old Reginald Javon Copeland Jr., who was among several students accused of sending multiple bomb threats over a week’s time to Eastside High last year. The decision to drop the case against the teen came last week in Alachua County Circuit Court, nearly a year after Copeland was initially arrested.

The fire rescue team also partnered with the National Guard to send two full semi-trucks of water and MRE’s (meals-ready-to-eat) to Lee County.

FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Gulf of Mexico swallowed driftwood, stray shoes, split skim boards and the last vestige of Crystal Edge’s mother’s memory in the days following Hurricane Ian’s devastation. The 28-year-old sailboat – a family heirloom – remained trapped below piled debris at a marina under the Fort …

Hurricane Ian has left thousands of Florida residents struggling with basic needs, and many organizations are making donation and volunteer opportunities available to the public. Gov. Ron DeSantis encourages the public to make monetary donations to enable relief organizations to do their work. Within the last 24 hours, people have donated more than $2 million to Florida hurricane relief efforts. The Category 4 hurricane shifted its course to the east before making landfall just after 3 p.m. Wednesday, catching residents off guard. Many people who could not evacuate are experiencing flooding and infrastructure failure.

The Florida National Guard is among several federal and state agencies aiding in response efforts after Hurricane Ian made landfall as a Category 4 storm on Florida’s western coast late Wednesday afternoon. The Florida National Guard announced Wednesday that it has 4,611 Guardsmen activated and ready to help with search and rescue operations, route clearance, aviation and law enforcement support and communication and humanitarian support, including distributing food and water to those in need.

Bradley’s next court appearance is Oct. 25.

Sandbag information is subject to change based on a multitude of factors including restricted hours and component availability. While we will do our best to keep this information as accurate as possible, please verify the provided information with your local municipality, county or local public safety agency. As Hurricane Ian …