WINTER HAVEN, FL – SWAT surrounded a house early this morning after shots were exchanged between an officer and a suspect at the Grapevine Apartments on Bay Street.

Taken by Channel 9 Eyewitness News

The incident happened following a response to a domestic disturbance call to a residence in the complex.

Much is unclear about exactly what happened, but a man allegedly pulled a gun on the officer responding to the call and both exchanged fire.

The incident was quickly brought to an end once the suspect was subdued, and is now in surgery at Orlando Regional Medical Center in stable condition. Three others were taken into custody and their involvement at the scene has yet to be determined.

There was believed to be a fifth suspect barricaded inside the apartment calling upon the department’s SWAT team to evacuated nearby residence and clear area, but turned up to be a false alarm.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement has launched their own investigation into the case.

Link: http://wdbo.com/localnews/2010/03/standoff-in-winter-garden.html

Constituents of Rep. Suzanne Kosmas are making noise, telling her to vote “no” on the health-care reform bill.

The Democrat from U.S. District 24 has been on the fence about her vote on the bill, but a majority of letters posted on a website say “the bill is riddled with problems and the side-effects will far outweigh the benefits.”

The non-partisan news website, Congress.org, posts the letters with permission from the writers and there seems to be an overwhelming amount of support against the bill.

So what are voters and tax payers in her district saying?

A letter from a resident in Port Orange states “This is not about health care reform. This is about changing our country and the way it works… Stand up for truth and honor. Vote no.”

Another from Oviedo says “It’s too big for the government to handle, especially given our current debt… it has absolutely no bipartisan support.”

Finally, an Orlando voter says “I’d like to see a lot of clean-up in area of insurance fraud…” but also says “I am not in favor of the bill… I don’t believe we have enough money to fund everybody’s health care.”

Now, not every letter on the website it a ‘nay’ vote for the health reform package.

A Winter Park small business owner wrote “I am part of the middle class and, along with my colleagues, we are being crushed by the cost of simple health care for ourselves and our employees.”

Rep. Kosmas says she is still unsure how she will vote, and when asked by WDBO’s Mike Synan she would only confirm “I did have a conversation last week about NASA.”

Her staff did confirm the meeting also involved health care but would provide no hints as to how she may vote.

House leaders will attempt to convene on the issue by Sunday, March 21st at 1:00 pm, but they may have to postpone meeting if they can’t attain a full commitment from the majority to pass the bill.

If you’d like to see the letters for yourself, check out the Congress.org website.

To stay informed on how Rep. Kosmas will vote, listen in to AM 580 WDBO for updates and checkout WDBO.com for in depth coverage over the weekend.

Link: http://wdbo.com/localnews/2010/03/letters-to-rep-kosmas-say-no-t.html

ORLANDO — Pub goers in Baldwin Park kicked off St. Patrick’s Day early today with eggs, sausage and pints!

Paddy Murphy’s Irish Pub opened its doors at eight this morning, offering a traditional Irish breakfast and a beer for seven bucks.

This is the second year they’ve held the promotion, and workers say it’s been a great way to get crowds in the Irish spirit.

Appropriately dressed in a green-plaid kilt, sever Michelle Goss says they had over twenty-one hundred people last years, and are expecting greater numbers today.

Kegs ‘n’ Eggs ran until noon, but Murphy’s will continue celebrating with an Irish step-dance group at 5 pm and the fire department will stop by to give a bagpipe concert at 8 pm.

For more information you can visit their website at http://www.originalpaddymurphys.com.

http://www.wdbo.com/localnews/2010/03/beer-for-breakfast-1.html

ORANGE COUNTY – New developments in the Casey Anthony case, involves an alleged affair George Anthony may have had with a woman resembling Zenaida Gonzalez – also known as “Zanny the nanny” – the person Casey claims took her daughter Caylee.

Skye Benhaida informed our affiliate station, WFTV, that her sister told investigators the affair began shortly after Casey was arrested and that it lasted nearly a year.

According to Benhaida, George told her sister that Caylee’s death was an accident that “snowballed” out of control then used her sister to build the image of the nanny. He was even so detailed as to describe the exact tattoo her sister has.

The mistress is also said to have turned over pictures depicting intimate situations and text messages she received on her phone from all of George’s three cell phones.

Benhaida says that George took advantage of her sister, playing on her compassion by complaining of his financial problems, and willingly received almost $5,000 dollars before she was told by investigators he had taken money from other women.

George’s mistress was allegedly questioned by investigators, and even took a lie detector test.

When asked by WFTV, George Anthony’s lawyer said he’s not received any information from investigators about the alleged mistress, but would not confirm nor deny George had an affair.

Link: http://wdbo.com/localnews/2010/03/sister-of-george-anthonys-alle-1.html

WFTV, Original Story: http://www.wftv.com/news/22825765/detail.html

OSCEOLA COUNTY – A third suspect, 18-year-old Daniel Wilson (middle), has been arrested in connection to a home invasion in St. Cloud.

According to Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, detectives charged Wilson and two others, Timothy Shafer (left), 19, of Kissimmee and Garrett Lewis (right), 21, (pictured) with armed home invasion, grand theft and petit theft. The incident was retaliation from a drug-related incident.

At about 2:30 a.m., Monday, deputies responded to a residence off Neptune Bay Circle and upon arrival spoke with four victims who said they were sleeping when three masked gunmen entered the apartment.

The suspects took personal items and fled the area in a black Chevrolet Trailblazer.

Deputies searched the area and located the vehicle at a nearby Wal-Mart.

All three are in lockup at the Osceola County jail.

Link: http://wdbo.com/localnews/2010/03/two-arrested-in-osceola-county.html

APOPKA, Fla. — Several suspects are still on the loose in Orange County after they killed a teen late Sunday.

According to WFTV.com, witnesses said three masked men attempted to rob 18-year-old Marco Martinez and Robert Cusser at a home in the Oak Tree trailer park on Plymouth-Sorrento Road.

The two men were first held at gun point outside the home, but soon the altercation moved inside where two children were located.

Cussor told Eyewitness News “, my wife was telling me that Marco said, ‘hey, get that gun away from the kids,’ and he went to stab the guy and the guy shot him.”

Investigators are still confirming facts in the case, but the Orange County Sheriff’s department says it will be releasing names and information shortly.

Referenced Link: http://wdbo.com/localnews/2010/03/deputies-searching-for-murder.html

Allstate Insurance Company and Discovery Channel’s 2006 Biker Build-off champ, Dave Perewitz, have teamed up to educate and save lives at Daytona’s Bike Week.

The “Once is Never Enough (ONE)” campaign will setup shop at the Allstate Garage located in the Daytona International Speedway and display several custom choppers, including one built by Perewitz that will be raffled off at the end of tour.

To drive home biker safety and lowering accidents during the event, the insurer will place yellow diamond-shaped caution signs with the word “LOOK” complimented by a silhouette of a motorcycle at three Central Florida intersections said to have caused over a dozen fatalities.

Perewitz shared his excitement about the tour, saying “I’ve been building bikes for well over 30 years and a lot of stuff has changed in the industry – but the one thing that hasn’t changed is the need for greater motorcycle awareness.”

Those hoping to win the custom chopper can head to the Allstate Garage from February 27th to March 7th, or register online at www.AllStateGarage.com.

Direct Link to Story: http://wdbo.com/localnews/2010/02/allstate-launches-lifesaving-c.html

The 2010 Census Portrait of America Road Tour will roll into Daytona Beach tomorrow, putting citizens on the fast-track to census awareness.

Making more than 800 stops nationwide, the U.S. Census Department will partner with the No. 16 Ford Fusion, to hopefully drive up census participation.

As part of a $340 million public relations campaign, the car, driven by Greg Biffle, will display the logo “, United States Census 2010,” just above the left rear tire during three Sprint Cup events next month in Atlanta, Ga., Bristol, Tenn. and Martinsville, Va.

Those wanting to see the car should head to turn 4 outside the track, where the census tour will be handing out information from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m..

From information about the tour or the census, head to http://2010.census.gov/2010census/roadtour.

Reference: http://wdbo.com/localnews/2010/02/2010-cenus-road-tour-will-unve.html

Seminole County Health Department reported another H1N1 Swine Flu related death today.

Still unidentified to the public, the 49-year-old man is the fifth person to succumb to the illness in the county.

Administrator of the Seminole County Health Department, Mike Napier, warned that “Swine flu season is not over and unfortunately we are still having cases that result in tragic outcomes.

For more information about H1N1, visit www.seminolecohealth.com or call 407.665.3281.

Reference: http://wdbo.com/localnews/2010/02/h1n1-related-death-in-seminole-county.html

Next Tuesday, February 9th, at 12:30 pm, three-to-five hundred dancers will begin gathering around SkyCoaster Lake to partake in the park’s newest commercial.

Fun Spot CEO, John Arie, said “We want to make a HUGE impression.”

For those unfamiliar with a mob dance, it is essentially a flash mob of people that gather, seemingly “out of the blue,” and begin performing a choreographed dance number.

T-Mobile sucked up the concept and turned it into a series of successful advertising campaigns. Made January of last year, organizers turned Liverpool Street Station into a mass dance scene, prompting onlookers to scramble for their own camera phones to document the experience.

The Fun Spot Marketing Director Mark Brisson is hoping for the same result, saying “we know this will be fun to do and fun for people to see.”

 Currently, organizers are still looking for dancers and those wanting to participate are encouraged to contact Brisson at (407) 363-3867 x110.

Stay tuned to AM 580 WDBO and The Ernde for a follow up report on the day of the event.

Evacuation flights from Haiti continue to roll in today at Orlando Sanford International Airport.

Carrie Hoeppner with the Florida Department of Children and Families says they are working around-the-clock to assist those coming off the plane.

“For the most part the medical issues we were seeing in the first few days were really due to exhaustion, dehydration and people who hadn’t slept in a number of days.”

So far thirty-two flights have landed, carrying about twenty-one hundred Americans and seven hundred and thirty foreign nationals.

The earthquake in Haiti hits home for Orlando’s Catholic community, as their own Father Jean Gaetan Boursiquot has become unreachable in the wake of the disaster.

Central Florida Bishop Wenski

Serving primarily at St. James, St. Andrews and St. Frances, Father Boursiquot is the Catholic Diocese of Orlando’s leading voice to its Haitian members.

“Right now I have a priest that’s working here in Orlando that was in Haiti right after the New Year to visit friends and relatives and I have no news of him,” said Orlando Bishop Thomas Wenski.

Also attempting to contact other friends and colleges in Haiti, Bishop Wenski feels that we are all in the same boat when it comes to contacting those in the country and said that “we have a special obligation to reach out and help this neighbor.”

Catholic churches throughout Central Florida will take up a special collection over the next few weeks that will go straight to disaster relief efforts.

Students at UCF who don’t fit the traditional standards of a young student straight out of high school can easily feel out of place on campus.

However, programs like the Non-Traditional Knights Project have students of all kinds feeling more at home.

Caitlin Bush, UCF Police Department uses the NTK Project to inform others throughout UCF on safety and crime prevention.

The NTK Project is an interdepartmental collaboration of faculty, administrators and students who seek to assist students who don’t subscribe to the traditional student lifestyle. 

According to an analysis done in 2002 by the National Center for Education Statistics, nontraditional students are generally those who delay enrollment after high school, work full time, attend a higher educational institution part time, are established financially as an independent or who have dependents beyond a spouse. These categories are expanded by the NTK Project to include students seeking a second degree, enlisted or veteran military personnel, registered disabled students and international students.

Chantel Carter, committee chair of the NTK Project, said that one cannot clearly define what a nontraditional student is, but feels its slogan “ever changing, ever evolving” is flexible enough to encompass as many students as possible.

“Depending on who you talk to, different people have different definitions on what a nontraditional student is, and we do not want to have a precise definition that would deter those students who might be nontraditional into thinking they don’t qualify,” Carter said.

The NTK Project does not just offer services tailored specifically toward helping nontraditional students, but rather serves as a way to better network those who work with these students on a day-to-day basis and better prepare them with information that will enrich a student’s academic experience.

Some of these services include helping students get to know the campus, providing up-to-date information about daycare services at the Creative School for Children and assisting with international student services.

Established in 2008 by Student Development and Enrollment Services, the NTK Project is headed by Carter and a handful of volunteers as a way to reach out to UCF’s nontraditional student body. A mixed group of faculty, staff and students meet once a month to discuss ways they can best assist students.

Officer Jeannette Emert of the UCF Police Department, a NTK member, said she feels her participation in the project has better equipped her with information specific to her duties as an officer.

“I try to share the information with people I know are nontraditional students, like some of the officers who are attending master’s degree programs here at UCF and offer suggestions at the meetings on what links can be added to improve safety,” Emert said.

Aimee Booth, the designer of the NTK Web site, identifies herself as a nontraditional Knight. Booth is seeking a second degree in digital media after receiving a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Florida State University.

 “In my first year at UCF, I was commuting 30 miles every day. I wasn’t able to participate in any of the clubs or activities on campus,” Booth said. “While this didn’t have a negative impact on my academic performance, I did feel distant from other students because I didn’t share as much in common with them.”

Aside from maintaining the Web site, Booth said that she also maintains a list service that is tailored toward delivering campus information to nontraditional students.

 “Because we all work with students, we often work with the same students,” Carter said.

“So if we can connect and network with each other, we can direct them to departments and offices to better provide students with the services and resources at UCF.”

Carter said she also feels that this aspect will better lines of communication and cohesion among faculty, administrators and departments on campus. 

“The NTK Project wants every Knight to have a positive experience at UCF,” Booth said.

The NTK Project is continually updating its Web site and looking for new ways to approach and serve UCF’s nontraditional student body. For more information about the program visit www. ntk.getinvolveducf.edu.