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Monday, November 21, 2011, 1:19 pm
2 badly injured in accident at Fruitville, Beneva
Two people were flown to Bayfront Medical Center following a three-car collision at Fruitville and Beneva roads in Sarasota on Monday, Nov. 21, 2011. According to Sarasota Police Capt. Paul Sutton, a white Toyota was heading east on Fruitville when it attempted to make a left-hand turn, pulling into the path of a SCAT bus. (STAFF PHOTO / ELAINE LITHERLAND)Six people were injured in a three-vehicle crash at Fruitville and Beneva roads in Sarasota shortly after noon today.
Two people were flown to Bayfront Medical Center and a was third taken to Sarasota Memorial Hospital after crash at 12:36 p.m. Three others were treated at the scene, according to police.
A SCAT bus, a pickup and a car collided at the intersection. Sarasota Police Capt. Paul Sutton said a white Toyota was heading east on Fruitville when it attempted to make a left turn onto Beneva and pulled into the path of the SCAT bus.
The bus hit the car on the front passenger side. The car, which Sutton said violated the right of way, took the brunt of the damage. The pickup was slightly damaged after the car and bus collided.
Two passengers in the Toyota were flown to Bayfront, and the driver of the Toyota was taken to Sarasota Memorial.
There was one passenger on the SCAT bus at the time of the accident. The SCAT passenger, the bus driver and the driver of the pickup were treated for injuries at the scene, according to police.
It took 45 minutes to extricate the passenger in the white car. The crash and investigation closed westbound traffic at the Fruitville and Beneva intersection for three hours.
Anyone with information about the crash is asked to call Police Officer Kim Stroud at 941-366-8000 extension 7916. -
Friday, August 26, 2011, 9:46 am
Nokomis man charged in sex abuse of 2 girls
As investigators looked at a Nokomis man in an aggravated assault case, authorities say they discovered evidence that he sexually abused two girls.
Yoni Merida-Errera, 37, was arrested Thursday after two girls, ages 5 and 10, told detectives that he had molested them while babysitting in the past few months, according to a Sarasota Sheriff’s report.
Detectives say Merida-Errera, a native of Guatemala, admitted to touching the girls sexually while intoxicated.
He has been charged with three counts of sexual battery as well as lewd or lascivious molestation and conduct. He was also charged with aggravated assault and battery stemming from a domestic violence incident, the report indicates.
Merida-Errera is being held in the Sarasota County Jail without bond.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement placed a detainer on him because he is an illegal immigrant. -
Saturday, August 06, 2011, 9:48 pm
Top pick Cam Newton wows Carolina fans
Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton throws a pass during the NFL football team's Fan Fest in Charlotte, N.C., Saturday, Aug. 6, 2011. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Cam Newton put on a show for the more than 15,000 Carolina Panthers fans who braved threatening weather Saturday to get a glimpse of the rookie quarterback at the team's annual Fan Fest at Bank of America Stadium.
The No. 1 overall pick looked extremely comfortable in his new home stadium, making short work of a two-minute drill on offense by throwing a 70-yard touchdown pass to tight end Gary Barnidge and then adding a 65-yard scoring strike to David Clowney later on.
It capped an impressive first week for Newton, who led Auburn to a national championship last year and won the Heisman Trophy.
Earlier in training camp, coach Ron Rivera was asked his impressions of Newton and responded, "Wow!" Fans seemed to have the same reaction Saturday, giving Newton a hero's welcome. Many view him as the savior for an offense that finished last in the league in scoring, total offense and passing yards in 2010.
"It felt great," Newton said. "For me this whole process has been a rollercoaster ride — up and down, up and down. But the one thing I've been trying to focus on in practice is being more consistent. ... New plays are going in every day. I'm just trying to learn each day."
Wide receiver Steve Smith, who worked out with Newton in Charlotte during the lockout, said both Newton and Jimmy Clausen are doing well.
When asked about Newton in particular, Smith called him "a superior athlete."
"He's on his back foot throwing 50-yard passes. I mean, c'mon," Smith said. "I'm not going to sit here every week and say how good Cam is. He didn't win the Heisman Trophy because there was bad counting on the ballot. He won because he's good."
Rivera isn't saying who'll start the regular season opener on Sept. 11 against Arizona, but it's pretty easy to tell who the fans' choice is. On Saturday they booed Clausen when he threw incomplete passes and cheered when Newton did just about anything.
Smith said both quarterbacks stand a better chance of succeeding in this year's West Coast offense, run by offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski.
"The quarterbacks are doing what has not been done around here in a long time," Smith said. "The philosophy has been in years past is not to screw it up and now it's put your foot down on the gas pedal and go hard."
Newton praised Chudzinski for being "open-minded" when it comes to the playbook.
Chudzinski, who coached under Norv Turner in San Diego and is using many aspects of the Chargers' offense in Carolina, even installed some zone-read-option plays, something Newton excelled at last year at Auburn.
"That means a lot to me personally," Newton said. "He's always willing to put in things that make everybody excited. Not only me, but everybody. He's willing to capitalize on my strong points of the game."
It's hard to find someone who's not happy with the new offense which is expected to feature tight ends Greg Olsen and Jeremy Shockey.
Smith, in particular, is thrilled after two seasons where his season statistics dropped off dramatically under former offensive coordinator Jeff Davidson.
"Run blocking is not my forte," Smith said. "And it's nice to have layers and have multiple sets and not be standing in one spot for 70 plays during a game. I get to line up at different spots and it's refreshing. I like that. It's not (coaches) saying, hey, we're going to move you around and then never do it. Here they are actually saying it and it's happening."
Newton, who signed a four-year, $22 million contract with a team option for a fifth season, spent a good portion of Saturday flashing his million-dollar smile and soaking things in.
"In kindergarten they always said kids do something that you want to wake up and do in the morning and enjoy doing that for the rest of your life," Newton said. "I'm under contract for a couple of years so every single day I'm going to enjoy playing football. I'm going to be the person I am and that's enjoying life and playing football." -
Tuesday, June 28, 2011, 5:46 pm
Bradenton man, 79, dies in 2-car crash
A 79-year-old Bradenton man died in a two-car crash Tuesday morning at U.S. 301 and 51st Avenue East, the Florida Highway Patrol said.
A Honda Civic headed south on U.S. 301 entered the intersection and collided with a Chevy Uplander driven by Robert Zandstra, 79, who died after being flown to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg, the FHP said.
Zandstra was driving east on 51st Avenue East and had stopped his Uplander at the intersection, and then entered on a steady green signal, the FHP said.
But the driver of the Civic, 68-year-old Sarasota resident Darla Clark, told investigators she had a steady green signal when she entered the intersection, according to the FHP release.
Crash investigators say they do not know at this time who ran the red light, and charges are pending further investigation.
Clark and her passenger, 40-year-old Darrin Clark of Sarasota, both had minor injuries and were taken to Manatee Memorial Hospital. A passenger in Zandstra's Uplander, 63-year-old Joy Clyde of Bradenton, also had minor injuries and went to Manatee Memorial. -
Tuesday, March 22, 2011, 1:01 pm
Jackson Lab answers a $129 million question
Scene from the Jackson Laboratory campus in Maine.Jackson Laboratory would employ 432 at its proposed Sarasota County research institute generating more than enough in new state tax revenues to justify a $100 million investment from the Florida Legislature, according to figures released by Jackson and Sarasota County today.
The long-awaited numbers — some have criticized the lab for delays in releasing them — will immediately be featured in efforts by the researcher and the county to garner support for the project in Tallahassee.
Over 20 years, the genetics lab would generate $105 million in sales and corporate income taxes for the state and another $24 million in other state taxes.
The estimate, which Sarasota County Administrator Jim Ley termed “conservative,” apparently meets Gov. Rick Scott's requirement that state taxpayers get their money back from any investment in Jackson's personalized medicine institute.
The numbers assume that over 20 years, the researcher will be the catalyst for seven successful spin-off businesses in the medical, biomedical and pharmaceutical sector of the economy.
The positive estimate by Sarasota County appears to be in contrast to economic impact analyses done by Collier and Hillsborough counties that showed a Jackson operation in those counties would not generate enough in new tax dollars to justify the state investment.
Although Jackson and county officials have repeatedly said Scott's support of the project is key to its success, a meeting with the governor has yet to occur even though this year's legislative session is nearly one-third over.
Also, key legislative leaders, and Scott, have made only tepid comments about the project.
Ley acknowledged that the groundswell of state government support for this project is missing at this point.
“Everybody's looking for political enthusiasm,” he said.
“We have to paddle the canoe in the waters we are thrown into. It changes year to year and we have to deal with relationship issues we have no control over and we can only make presumptions about.”
Ley and Deputy County Administrator Dave Bullock noted that many times in previous sessions deals have come together in the final weeks.
Jackson vice president Mike Hyde said that while the Maine-based lab believes Florida will become the center of the nation's biomedical industry in the coming decades and Jackson wants to build it here, a deal must be made this year.
“This is a project that has already been through the Legislature,” he said, referring to last session when $50 million was put into the state budget for a research center in Collier County. That deal, however, fell apart and the money reverted to the state March 1. A new deal will require a new appropriation of state money, and that needs to happen this year, Hyde said.
“There's a limit to the amount of time and money” Jackson will expend in arriving at a Florida deal, Hyde said.
Jackson officials have acknowledged having previous discussions with officials in Texas and Utah.
The county also announced today that it had hired Battelle, a 22,000-employee research, development and consulting behemoth, as an adviser during negotiations with Jackson.
The county also has hired University of Central Florida economist Sean Snaith to help assess the growth potential of the biomedical sector in the region. -
Wednesday, March 09, 2011, 5:31 pm
Davis to appear at Sarasota Film Festival
Geena Davis (ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVE)To read this story on the Herald-Tribune's new entertainment website, go to:
www.ticketsarasota.com -
Wednesday, February 09, 2011, 5:47 pm
Former Manatee deputy charged in wife's murder
A former Manatee County corrections deputy is under arrest for second-degree murder and accused of killing his wife.
Missouri State Police, Manatee detectives and Morgan County, Mo., detectives arrested Robert Taylor, 55, at his home in Gravois Mills, Mo.,on Tuesday.
According to the Manatee Sheriff's Office: On Sept. 11, 2008, Pamela Taylor, 63, was found dead in the swimming pool of the Taylors' south county home in the 7300 block of Caladesia Drive. Robert Taylor reportedly told deputies that he woke that morning and discovered his wife dead in the pool.
The Medical Examiner's Office later determined that Pamela Taylor had injuries caused by blunt trauma and the death was ruled a homicide.
Manatee detectives who interviewed Taylor reported there were inconsistencies in his statements. Taylor reportedly told them he had no life insurance policies on his wife. They say he had two, including one applied for two weeks before her death.
Authorities believe Pamela Taylor had been the victim of repeated domestic violence.
Taylor worked as a Manatee County corrections deputy from 1994 to 2007.