Man Shot To Death By Deputies In Brevard County
(Titusville, FL)-- A man is dead after he was shot by deputies in Brevard County. It happened Wednesday night on SR 528.Sheriff Wayne Ivey says deputies were investigating a report of a suspicious person at the Sunset Bay Apartments in Merritt Island. They came across Richard Ruiz, who was wanted for domestic violence involving a woman who lived at the complex on South Tropical Trail. Deputies tried to talk to Ruiz, but he drove off and allegedly tried to run over a deputy with his pickup truck. That led to a chase, and after using a pit maneuver, Ruiz' truck flipped onto its side. As deputies approached, they reportedly heard a gunshot from the truck. Ivey says deputies opened fire and killed 36-year-old Ruiz. No deputies were hurt.
Florida Could See Wide-Range Of Tax Breaks Under New Legislation
(Tallahassee, FL) -- Floridians could see a wide-range of tax breaks under new legislation moving through the Legislature. A state House committee approved a more than one-billion dollar package. It includes additional sales-tax holidays and exemptions on baby products. Under the measure, consumers could avoid paying sales-tax on clothes, school supplies and computers under 15-hundred dollars. The state Senate is expected to release its plan next week. Negotiations between both chambers toward a final package should start in the coming weeks.
House Approves Death Penalty Change
(Tallahassee, FL) --The House yesterday approved a bill that allows for the death penalty so long as eight out of twelve jurors agree. SB 450 passed the senate last month. It now goes to the governor's desk, and Governor Ron DeSantis has said he'll sign the bill. If he does, Florida will have the lowest threshold for the death penalty in the country, and it will join Alabama as the only states that don't require juries to be unanimous.
FSC Student Develops App To Help Women Joggers Feel Safe
(Lakeland, FL) --A college student in Polk County has a new invention she says will give women their freedom back. Florida Southern College student Brooke Lierman [[ LEE-er-min ]] is an avid jogger, but she's always worried about who might be approaching from behind. She developed a device called Over The Shoulder that can attach to leggings. It's designed to alert you if there's someone behind you and how far away they are. The 21-year-old says it's like a Ring doorbell for runners. Lierman hopes the app will be available this year. She recently told ABC Action News running is supposed to be fun, but it can't be fun when you're worried about your own safety.
DNR Says Look Out For Drunk Birds
(Atlanta, GA) --Georgia wildlife officials are warning people to look out for drunk birds. The Department of Natural Resources says some birds will eat fruit that has begun to ferment around this time of year. It affects coordination, which leads the birds to fly into windows. Eating the fruit can even lead to alcohol poisoning and death.
TODAY IN HISTORY
1985, a record television audience watched Geraldo Rivera open Al Capone's vault at Chicago's Lexington Hotel. He found only broken bottles.
1912, the "unsinkable" ship, R-M-S Titanic, struck an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean and began sinking.
1865, President Abraham Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth at Washington's Ford Theatre.
1828, the first edition of Noah Webster's "American Dictionary of the English Language" was published.