TAMPA - A 35-year-old man is accused of striking a friend in the face with a shovel during a robbery. Eric Ernsberger, of 10706 N. Central Ave., was held at Orient Road Jail this morning, charged with felony robbery and felony aggravated battery. His bail was set at $23,513, jail records show. ...more

May 29, 2008

Regarding "Congregation Weeps For Pastor, His Son" (front page, May 14): Forrest Pollock will be remembered by the greater Brandon community as a leader who inspired many and whose faith in the Lord helped to focus the church he led. But to the neighborhood to which he belonged, he will be remembered as Dawn's husband and the father to Brooke, Courtney, Preston, Hope, Blake, and Kirk. He was the neighbor at the end of the circle, who took evening walks with his wife, borrowed your shovel to do some landscaping, and drove a little too fast around the corners. He was a man who always showed interest in the lives of his neighbors and his neighbors' children. ...more

May 19, 2008

CHARLOTTE COUNTY - Sheriff's deputies arrested a 25-year-old man last week on suspicion of sexually assaulting a 3-year-old girl and using knives and a machete to threaten her mother. ...more

May 5, 2008

NORTH PORT - A witness called 911 and said she saw a woman banging on the window of a Camaro and screaming for help as a car made its way down U.S. 41 on Thursday night, but the information apparently never got to officers searching for Denise Amber Lee. ...more

January 23, 2008

At least two people saw Denise Amber Lee struggle with the man charged in her killing before she was shot in the head and left in a shallow grave, according to documents released Tuesday that reveal the last harrowing hours of the North Port mother's life. ...more

January 22, 2008

Hours before Michael Lee King was captured Thursday, police entered his North Port home, prompted by a harrowing 911 call in which Denise Amber Lee could be heard crying and begging to be set free. ...more

January 22, 2008

According to a probable-cause affidavit, here's what happened in the disappearance of Denise Amber Lee: ...more

January 18, 2008

Jim Epley, who turned 74 last week, watched as his neighbor used a .22-caliber handgun to dispatch the Eastern diamondback. He knew it would take more firepower. He fetched his .44-caliber Magnum. Two shots later, the snake was dead, although it continued to squirm for hours. ...more

January 17, 2008

Earlier blooms. Less snow to shovel. Unseasonable warm spells. Signs that winters in the Northeast are losing their bite have been abundant in recent years, and now researchers have nailed down numbers to show just how big the changes have been. ...more

January 13, 2008

After meeting with six licensed and insured pool contractors, we have selected the firm we want to build our dream in-ground concrete pool. What happens after the contracts are signed? ...more

January 12, 2008