North Port Police Department hopes to win money for K-9 unit

The public now has a chance to help protect dogs who are part of the law enforcement family. The biohazard and trauma cleanup company Aftermath Services is giving out a total of $15,000 in grants to first responder agencies’ K-9 units.

Police investigating Sarasota shooting

At around 5 pm on Saturday, Sarasota police responded to a shooting in the 1800 block of John Rivers St.

FWC: Venice man faces felony charges for destroying sea turtle nest

After nearly 10 months, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission says it has located and charged a man they say was caught on camera disturbing a sea turtle nest in Nokomis Beach State Park. 

Gabby Petito case: Brian Laundrie's mother promised son shovel, garbage bag, jailhouse cake in love letter

The Florida woman, through her attorney, claims the missive was penned before her son embarked on a June 2021 cross country trip with his 22-year-old fiancee Gabby Petito, who was found dead September 19, 2021 near Wyoming's Grand Teton National Park.

2 North Port daycare center employees arrested on allegations of child abuse

Two women, including one who authorities say has been fired from childcare facilities in the past, are facing felony charges in connection with suspected child abuse.

Gabby Petito civil case: Roberta Laundrie’s ‘Burn after Reading’ letter will be allowed in court

The legal dispute between the families of Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie was back to court Wednesday in Sarasota. At the center of the civil case is whether Laundrie's family secretly knew Petito was dead while posturing publicly as though she could still be alive.

Local doctors hope to protect firefighters from cancer with new initiative

Cancer has become the leading cause of death among firefighters and the Sarasota Memorial Hospital's Brian D. Jellison Cancer Institute is working to help Sarasota and Manatee fire crews.

Bay Area law enforcement officers cracking down on seat belt violators

The Sarasota Police Department and the Pinellas County Sheriff's Department are urging drivers to buckle up during the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) national ‘Click It or Ticket’ high-visibility enforcement effort.

Residents concerned for properties as deep holes form in Nokomis neighborhood

Homeowners in Nokomis are concerned about the appearance of holes that continue to expand. Geologists are surveying the area to find out why these holes are forming.