Judge: Businesses won't have to return BP oil spill payouts
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — BP wants its money back — hundreds of millions of dollars of it — but a federal judge said Wednesday that the oil giant must keep its promises to the companies it compensated for...
View ArticleFather charged after crash
PANAMA CITY - Police have arrested a Panama City father suspected of intoxicated driving with his wife and children in the vehicle, Panama City Police Department officials announced Wednesday. James...
View ArticleUPDATE: Former PCB pastor jailed on drug, sex charges (AFFIDAVIT)
PANAMA CITY — The former pastor of a Panama City Beach church is in jail again after allegedly giving a 16-year-old marijuana and then forcing sexual advances upon the minor, according to court...
View ArticleSuspect captured, but UVa student still missing
GALVESTON, Texas (AP) — A man charged with abducting a missing University of Virginia sophomore has been captured in Texas and is awaiting extradition — but there is still no sign of the student,...
View ArticleBlotter: A drunken flash for passing eyes
The Blotter is a look at some of the unusual things that happen on the crime beat in Bay County. Spring Break isn’t the only time girls go wild. A mother was recently driving past a local homeless...
View ArticleMan charged after drive through cemetery
BASCOM - Deputies have caught up with the driver of a Ford Thunderbird who left the scene of a crash after running over several tombstones and grave markers, the Florida Highway Patrol announced...
View ArticleMom injured in crash with log truck
CHIPLEY - An early morning mother and daughter drive was interrupted Thursday after a log crashed through their windshield, according to Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) reports. Jennifer Weber, 39, and...
View ArticleUPDATE: Investigators ID 2 more sets of remains from Dozier School
TAMPA (AP) — Researchers have identified two more sets of remains buried on the grounds of a former Florida Panhandle reform school for over a half-century, the team announced Thursday. The University...
View ArticlePolice: Woman beheaded at Oklahoma workplace
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A man fired from an Oklahoma food processing plant beheaded a woman with a knife and was attacking another worker when he was shot and wounded by a company official, police said...
View ArticleCourt throws out lawsuit stemming from inmate’s suicide
PANAMA CITY — A federal court has thrown out the lawsuit of a man whose wife committed suicide while in jail. Maureen Joyce Bearden threaded the sheet from her jail cot through the door grate of her...
View ArticleFCHS teacher accused of molesting student
EASTPOINT — A Franklin County High School and assistant football coach has been arrested and charged with lewd and lascivious molestation of an underage female student. Gerald Tate was arrested...
View ArticleUPDATE: Jeffries receives death penalty, accomplice 20 years
PANAMA CITY — An Alabama couple has been sentenced for plotting the torture of a 90-year-old Lynn Haven veteran for his bank account information before killing and robbing him when he refused. Circuit...
View ArticleCase in Taylor County ties guards, gangs, attempted inmate hit
TALLAHASSEE — Florida Department of Corrections Secretary Mike Crews has made a public show of his attempts to purge the agency of abusive prison guards in the wake of news reports about inmates’...
View ArticleUPDATE: Report: Scott's top inspector told about cover-up; Franklin prison...
TALLAHASSEE — A widening scandal focusing on the treatment of Florida prison inmates includes new allegations that Gov. Rick Scott's own top watchdog was warned about the possible cover-up of two...
View ArticleUPDATE: Family member finds 2 dead at Southport home
SOUTHPORT — Investigators were working the scene of a Southport home late Friday where two bodies were found, the Bay County Sheriff's Office reported. BCSO was callled to 1327 10th St. in Southport...
View ArticleWomen voters rally to support Steve Southerland
PANAMA CITY BEACH — Congressman Steve Southerland serenaded a couple hundred supporters Saturday with his own rendition of Ben E. King’s classic “Stand by Me” at the close of a Women for Southerland...
View ArticleAlzheimer’s patient reported missing
PANAMA CITY — Panama City police have issued an alert to be on the lookout for an Alzheimer’s patient reported missing Saturday. James Dale Carter drove away from his retirement home about 6 a.m....
View ArticleCircumstances of Southport couple’s death still a mystery
SOUTHPORT — The brick house shared by 46-year-old John Steve Bowen and 44-year-old Donna Maria Merendino sat calm and quiet Saturday. Bowen’s van and Merendino’s Buick sat in the driveway, collecting...
View ArticleBack Beach intersection upgrade coming
PANAMA CITY — During the busy summer season, eastbound traffic can be backed up for miles from the intersection of Back Beach Road (U.S. 98) and State 79. So many drivers are trying to turn northbound...
View ArticleFDOT projects may cause delays, detours
PANAMA CITY — The Florida Department of Transportation announced several projects that could affect local motorists. Construction crews will install poles for traffic cameras along U.S. 231 on...
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