2 injured in crash
FOUNTAIN — A driver and passenger have been hospitalized after skidding off the road and overturning several times, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. William Ellis Melvin, 32, who was driving...
View ArticlePolice: Woman burned child as punishment
CALLAWAY — A Callaway woman has been charged with allegedly using lit cigarettes to burn a child’s behind as a form of punishment, according to Panama City Police Department records. Brandon H....
View ArticleUPDATE: Report describes horrific treatment, deaths at Dozier School
TALLAHASSEE (AP) — As the bodies exhumed from dozens of old graves at a shuttered Florida reform school continue to yield grudging answers to stubborn mysteries, researchers investigating the cases...
View ArticleFather says injured child taken without permission
PANAMA CITY — A woman who allegedly burned her daughter with lit cigarettes as punishment had taken the child without permission, the child’s father alleged Thursday. About 20 days before Craig...
View ArticlePolice: Woman arrested, 15 dogs saved from ‘puppy mill’
YOUNGSTOWN — A Youngstown woman operating a “puppy mill” will be facing numerous counts of animal cruelty after authorities found starving dogs and two dead puppies at her home, officials reported....
View ArticlePCBPD to auction seized property
PANAMA CITY BEACH — Seized property will be on the auction block this week, the Panama City Beach Police Department announced Thursday. PCBPD will hold its seized property auction Saturday in the...
View ArticlePolice: Woman skipped out on limo, catering bills
PANAMA CITY — A woman who allegedly ditched a large catering and limo service bill has been brought to Bay County for a grand theft charge, according to a Bay County Sheriff’s Office news release....
View ArticleUPDATE: Officer crashes squad car in parking lot
PANAMA CITY — An officer totaled a patrol car Thursday while attempting to cut through parking spots at a local restaurant, according to Panama City Police Department crash reports. Officer Loretta...
View ArticleFormer county aid ordered to repay $48,000
PANAMA CITY — A former Bay County employee has been ordered to repay her employer — the Bay County Commission — about $48,000 in restitution, according to court documents. Gina Rena Gainey, 43,...
View ArticleBCSO arrest log (Jan. 28-Feb. 2)
Information is provided by the Bay County Sheriff’s Office on people arrested on charges Jan. 28 through Feb. 2. Those arrested can contact The News Herald if charges are dropped or if they are...
View ArticleJail is revolving door for mental health care
PANAMA CITY — Jails and prisons essentially have become modern-day asylums since mental health treatment was deinstitutionalized in the 1950s. Places of incarceration are treating and housing some of...
View Article‘Life is difficult enough’ Mother pleads for legislative change for mentally ill
PANAMA CITY — Linda Rivers’ blood ran cold when she saw the Nov. 30 news story about 46-year-old Michael David Watkins, a Mary Esther man who’d just confessed to a vicious homicide. “This issue needs...
View ArticlePCPD says 2013 killing may be solved soon
PANAMA CITY — A Christmas Day slaying remains unsolved, although the person of interest in the case has been convicted of murder, according to records. Wilbert “Cadillac Will” Faison, 56, was found...
View ArticleTwo arrested on gun, drug charges after brief chase
PANAMA CITY — Police have arrested two men after a brief pursuit, the Panama City Police Department announced Monday. The chase began after officers with the PCPD Street Crimes Unit attempted to make...
View ArticleBurglary suspect seen on video
PANAMA CITY BEACH — Investigators have released a home video in an attempt to solve a burglary that happened last week, according to a Bay County Sheriff’s Office news release. BCSO responded to a...
View ArticleJCSO officer named dispatcher of the year
MARIANNA — An officer with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office has been selected as the state’s 2015 Dispatcher of the Year. The Florida Sheriffs Association announced Friday that Communications...
View ArticleMental exam ordered for attempted murder suspect
PANAMA CITY — A Fountain man accused of plotting to bind and torture his girlfriend in an attempt to kill her will undergo mental evaluations to determine whether he is fit to stand trial, according...
View ArticleJudge: BCSO obtained evidence in ‘illegal search’
PANAMA CITY — A circuit court judge has determined the Bay County Sheriff’s Office conducted an “illegal search” to obtain evidence against a man accused of falsely acting as a bail bond agent,...
View ArticleMan faces trial on gun charge
PANAMA CITY — A man accused of being connected with the shooting death of a 17-year-old is scheduled to face a federal jury on charges of transporting firearms across state lines, according to court...
View ArticleBicyclist critical following crash
PANAMA CITY — A bicyclist was hospitalized Tuesday night after a crash with an SUV on State 77, according to police reports. Trevaris Lamar Ward, 22, was sent to the hospital following the wreck;...
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