North Port News

Airman Devon Martin , the son of Douglas Martin of Cape Coral and a 2006 graduate of North Fort Myers High School.

A man suspected in a string of crimes that started in Manatee County early Saturday and ended after a three-hour standoff in south Sarasota County late Saturday afternoon remained in Venice Regional Medical Center this morning, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office.

SUN PHOTO BY CAROL SAKOWITZ, csakowitz@sun-herald.com Frank Sledjeski of Englewood, back turned, American Red Cross regional logistics lead, talks to Larry Palmer of the Charlotte County chapter as they prepare Saturday to survey New Hope Community Church in North Port as a possible emergency shelter site.

Southeast's Larry Cannon continued his stellar season during Saturday's Class 1A-Region 3 meet at Naples Golden Gate.

The cities of North Port and Venice will have to jump through bureaucratic hoops before current and future businesses there can become eligible to receive financial incentives through the county's proposed Energy Economic Zone pilot program.

The National Weather Service said Friday that area residents can expect cold temperatures and rain over the weekend - one crammed with events from the Charlotte County Fair in Murdock, which ends Sunday, to fundraisers for Relay for Life and local youth sports in North Port and a district picnic at AMVETS Post 2000 in Warm Mineral Springs.

The Sarasota County Fire-Rescue and Emergency Medical Services District Advisory Board is looking for members to serve.

Calling Denise Amber Lee's murder "unquestionably cold and cruel," the Florida Supreme Court on Thursday upheld Michael King's death sentence.

A North Port man allegedly kidnapped and threatened a woman he met on the dating website Plenty of Fish, according to a report from the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.

Thomas Ranch will be conducting a 300-acre prescribed burn today, part of the ranch's land management program.

The Sarasota County School Board unanimously approved a change in the North Port school district's configuration Tuesday evening, in a move to strike a better balance between the number of children attending Heron Creek and Woodland middle schools.

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla.- Charlotte County Sheriff's Major Crimes detectives arrested a North Port man in connection with a drive-by shooting into a Port Charlotte home.

After returning nearly its whole squad from an undefeated regular-season a year ago, Lemon Bay High School entered this season unwilling to accept any less than another perfect record.

With the first IHRA Summit Pro-Am event of 2012 in the books, some drivers are already looking ahead to an October date with the Summit Tournament of Champions at Memphis International Raceway after winning the first TOC qualifier of the year over the weekend at Immokalee Regional Raceway during the Division 2 Heat Wave season opener.

I received the following information from Florida Field Investigator Gary Mansfield: Lon - having recently investigated several bizarre cases in southwest Florida, I found myself caught up in a progression of close observational sightings in Charlotte and Desoto counties.

SUN PHOTO BY SANDY PRAY Tyler Gray, 2, rides the merry-go-round with his grandfather, Dick Johnson.

SUN PHOTO BY TAMI GARCIA, tgarcia@sun-herald.com More than 230 runners of all ages participated in the Sixth Annual Run for the Lions 5K Race, sponsored by Lamarque Elementary School, also coordinated and officiated by Zoomers Running Club.

"Effort is, without a doubt, your responsibility," Gugliemini said. "Not to point fingers, but there's some individuals that need to give a little more effort, and it needs to matter a little more to them." Manatee's lone title came courtesy of 138-pounder Jesse Fulk, who defeated North Port's David Towers 7-2 in the finals.

SUN PHOTO BY ANNE KLOCKENKEMPER, annek@sun-herald.com Jeppe Bennetsen, speaking to an assembly of Imagine School at North Port staff, parents and students, was named the school's new football coach at the school's junior high campus Friday morning.

Passions ran as deep as the spring itself Thursday evening as 35 people gathered at the Gulfcoast Event and Conference Center in Sarasota to discuss the future of the Warm Mineral Springs Day Spa.