Orlando Echo
OrlandoEcho.com Saturday 4th February 2012 Volume 057/10
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Ocoee Police Seek Suspects In Home Shooting
Ocoee police said a shooting occurred at a home Friday night at 1298 Plumgrass Circle in the Reserve of Meadow Lakes subdivision.Officers said several assailants rang the doorbell, and when the...


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Police: Homeowner shot through door in attempted home invasion
Ocoee police say a homeowner was shot through his front door when he tried to stop two suspects from forcing their way inside his home Friday evening.The incident happened at a home on Plumgrass...
Daytona State College hit by layoffs
DAYTONA BEACH -- Daytona State College is hit with layoffs. According to News 13's partners at the Daytona Beach News Journal, 14 employees at the school's television station have been...
Sonny's restaurant assistant manager confesses to scheme
PALM BAY -- In Brevard County, police say the assistant manager of a Sonny's Real Pit Bar-B-Q restaurant confessed to taking thousands of dollars from the restaurant. Anthony Bellafonte,...
Former high school coach sentenced to 50 years for underage sex
BELLVIEW -- Aformer Marion Countyhigh school basketball coach is sentenced to 50 years in prison after admitting he had sex with underage girls. Omar Curry, 33,pleaded guilty to three counts of...
Man shot in attempted Ocoee home invasion
OCOEE -- The search is on for two suspects after police say they shot at a home, injuring a man inside. Ocoee officials said several suspects rang the doorbell to a home in...
Competitive races ahead in Orlando spring elections
The final slate of candidates for Orlando's spring election was set Friday, and no incumbent is safe. In the past, some members of the City Council have easily slid into another four-year...
Legislation could save Seminole schools from closing
Parents of Seminole County school students expressed their optimism on Friday night over a bill in the State Legislature that could stop two schools from closing."It is exciting that this might...
NAACP claims children in adult jails treated harshly
Several civil rights groups are raising concerns about housing children in adult jails.Both Marion and Polk counties recently started putting child inmates in adult jails to save money. Now, Seminole...
Howard's Big Night Leads Magic Past Cavs
: 18933 Dwight Howard piled up 19 points, 16 rebounds and eight blocks as the Orlando Magic held on for a 102-94 victory over the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.Hedo Turkoglu chipped in 18...
Family Gives Marine-In-Training Belated Christmas
The family of a young Marine-in-training kept Christmas alive after the man spent the holidays without his loved ones for the first time.Corey Russell was in boot camp training during...
Central Florida Teen Avoids Jail For Fatal Crash That Left Two Friends Dead
<p>A Central Florida teen will not go to jail for a car crash that left two of his friends dead. </p><p>A Volusia County judge sentenced 19-year-old Joshua Ritter as a youthful...
Boy Killed by Car Walking to School in Volusia County
Volusia County school officials said they'll step up an awareness campaign after a 16-year-old student was hit by a car and died while walking to...
Nutritionists say Internet diet phenomenon not accurate
ORLANDO, Fla. - The weight loss industry is a multi-billion dollar industry for a reason. People are always trying to find a way to drop those extra pounds,There's a dietphenomenon on the...
Armed woman robs convenience store
TITUSVILLE, Fla. - Police are looking for an armed woman who robbed a convenience store in Titusville on Friday.Titusville police said the robbery happened at the M and B Discount Beverage store in...
Volusia County man says thieves break into pen, steal pigs
PORT ORANGE, Fla. - A Volusia County pig farmer said people are willing to anything to make ends meet in a tough economy, but stealing his livestock is a new low.Deputies said John D'hondt of...
Melbourne mom gets DUI picking son up from school
MELBOURNE, Fla. - A Brevard County woman was charged with driving under the influence on Thursday after being arrested near a school.Florida Highway Patrol troopers said Heather Brodeur was picking...
Howard's big night leads Magic past Cavs 102-94
ORLANDO, Fla. - Dwight Howard scored 19 points, had 16 rebounds and blocked eight shots as the Orlando Magic outlasted the Cleveland Cavaliers 102-94 on Friday night.Jason Richardson also added 19...
Half a million in valuables stolen
MERRITT ISLAND -- The Brevard County Sheriff's Office is asking the public's assistance with a residential burglary. According to authorities, the burglary occurred on December 9 between...
Lawn and Garden: Caring for your petunias
ORLANDO -- They can be one of the most colorful plants in the garden. We're talking about petunias! But, how do you keep them looking their best? Petunias provide great cool season color,...
Parents on alert after string of attempted child abductions
ORLANDO -- The number of attempted child abductions now rises to six across Central Florida in less than a month. Emotions are high among parents worried that number will continue to rise. The...
2 houses, 10 arrests after marijuana grow operation discovered
POINCIANA -- Osceola County Sheriff's deputies say they busted two grow houses in Poinciana and arrested ten people. The two houses are on Swan Court and East Flag Way. Deputies said they...
Concert at Lakeland Center raises funds for family of Ofc. Crispin
LAKELAND -- Family, friends and the Lakeland area community came together to honor the life of murdered Lakeland Police officer Arnulfo Crispin and help bring support to the family he left behind. ...
Woman moves into new home from Habitat for Humanity
ALTAMONTE SPRINGS -- Habitat for Humanity of Seminole County and Greater Apopka is building the community in Altamonte Springs. Thanks to a unique partnership between habitat and the city of...
Florida congressman leads Planned Parenthood investigation
ORLANDO -- Just days after a controversial decision by the Susan G. Komen foundation to pull grant money from Planned Parenthood, the foundation makes an about face to keep the funds flowing. The...
Driver sentenced in deadly car-surfing crash
DEBARY -- His friends died in a fiery car-surfing crash, and now the man who was driving will not serve any jail time. Joshua Ritter was charged with two counts of vehicular homicide and reckless...
White House officials converge at UT summit to talk Hispanic issues
TAMPA -- Bay area Hispanics had a direct line to the White House at the University of Tampa on Friday. Tampa native Francisco Sanchez, now a top White House official, knows how important the...
NBA: Orlando 102, Cleveland 94
Dwight Howard powered Orlando to a comfortable second-half lead Friday and the Magic easily held on to down Cleveland 102-94. Howard scored 19 points, had 16 rebounds and blocked eight shots as part...
Wi-Fi likely to return to hacked Lynx buses Tuesday
Two "Lynx" commuter buses that had their free Wi-Fi systems disabled last month could be Internet-ready again as early as Tuesday, a spokeswoman for the transit agency WestCAT said...
Teen Sentenced In Car Surfing Deaths
A 19-year-old man pleaded no contest Friday to two counts of vehicular homicide and one count of reckless driving after a deadly car surfing incident last year.Two of the five friends involved in the...
Man Takes Plea Deal In Somer Thompson Death
A 26-year-old man has pleaded guilty in the abduction and killing a 7-year-old Florida girl who was found in a landfill in 2009.Jarred Harrell pleaded guilty Friday in the death of Somer Thompson and...
Woman Says Her Chest Too Big To Perform Field-Sobriety Test
A woman was arrested in Martin County after failing a DUI field-sobriety test during which she blamed the size of her breasts for being unable to perform the tasks.Maureen Raymond, of Port St. Lucie,...
Man Tries To Lure Girl In Altamonte
Authorities said a 14-year-old girl said she was walking home from school on Feb. 2 when a Hispanic male approached her near 434 and San Marie.The 14-year-old told investigators that the man made...
Man Pleads To Bribing Property Appraiser
Authorities said the owner of an Orlando mansion was caught on camera trying to skirt taxes.Officials with the state attorney's office released an undercover video of the incident.Prosecutors...
DeLand Police Search For Purse Snatcher
The suspect is caught on surveillance video following a woman out to her car at the store on State Road 17.As the woman stood at her car, police said the man grabbed her purse, but the woman...
Two More Teens Accused In Valencia Acid Bomb Incidents
The Orlando Police department said they have made two more arrests on Friday in connection with the Valencia College acid bomb incidents.The latest arrests bring the total to seven juveniles ranging...
Fatal car-surfing crash video released, teen sentenced
Dramatic video was released Friday that showed the final, fatal moments for two teenagers who died when the car he was riding on top of crashed. The video was released during the sentencing hearing...
Oviedo wants new community center
The city of Oviedo is set to spend $250,000 to turn an old post office building into a new recreation center. But there's already a fairly new recreation center down the road on Oviedo...
Police dogs search for firefighter missing since 2006
Brevard County for the past five years. Brandy Hall disappeared on Aug. 16, 2006. She was a volunteer firefighter for the Malabar Fire Department.Police dogs searched through a lot full of palmettos,...
Ban on texting while driving stalls at House
The third time may be the charm for supporters of a ban on texting while driving. The bill has failed twice already, but Eyewitness News learned an important change may push it through this time.Pick...
Orange County man accepts plea deal in bribery case
An Orange County resident accepted a plea deal in a bribery case Friday.WFTV broke the story of a man who, prosecutors say, tried to bribe a county worker.Gamel Badreg lives in a lavish $1.7 million...
Remaining victims of I-75 crash identified
The final three of 11 total victims in Sunday morning's deadly I-75 pileup have been identified.Michael James Hughes, 39, Lori Lynne Brock-Hughes, 46, and Sabryna Dawn Louise Hughes-Gilley, 17,...
Occupy Orlando trial ends with guilty, not guilty verdicts
It was a split decision in the trial of an Occupy Orlando member Friday morning.After a brief deliberation an Orange County jury found Megan Vermeer not guilty of trespassing, but did find her guilty...
Florida Highway Patrol begs drivers to 'Move Over'
Orange County last week, and is still in intensive care. And Friday, he made an emotional plea from his hospital bed to all drivers: Move over. The driver who hit Rodriguez is being charged because...
Skin cells as stem cells
Stem cells are the body's raw materials - cells from which all other cells with specialized functions are generated. Under the right conditions, stem cells divide to form more cells, called...
9-year-olds accused of setting off acid bombs at Valencia to face judge
Orange County judge Friday morning. Police arrested the young suspects while three other teenagers also accused in the crime were in court on Thursday. The bombs were detonated on campus several...
Seminole Tribe says state could forfeit millions
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The Seminole Tribe of Florida could stop paying tens of millions to the state if legislators move ahead with a bill to regulate sweepstakes operations known as Internet...
Orlando Club Scene: Feb 3rd – Feb 5th
Hey! It’s the weekend baby! Woo hoo! There are quite a few great events going on, including the Super Bowl. You should get out there and have a blast! Feb 3,...
Jarred Harrell pleads guilty to murdering Somer Thompson
CLAY COUNTY, Fla. - Jarred Harrell, the man accused of killing 7-year-old Somer Thompson in October 2009 pleaded guilty to all charges, including...
Magic suspend 'Big Baby' Davis
ORLANDO, Fla. - The Orlando Magic will be without the services of Glen "Big Baby" Davis for the next two games.Late Friday afternoon, the team announced it suspended the forward due to...