In Alachua County, stunning by law enforcement happens nearly on a weekly basis. Many experts said they are concerned about the health effects of stun guns and how their use by law enforcement can damage residents’ perspectives of police officers.
Lee has had nine previous felony convictions, including a count of possession of narcotics, a count of driving while license suspended and two counts of possession of weapon by convicted felon.
A Gainesville man was arrested on suspicion of inappropriately touching a minor.
Matthew Hernandez, 18, was arrested after reportedly sexually battering the victim in a house party at the Theta Chi Fraternity house Oct. 5.
Florida’s 2024 legislative session saw an unprecedented and extensive wave of criminal justice reform efforts, many of which were vetoed by Gov. Ron DeSantis. The vetoes have sparked concerns from prison rights advocates and previously incarcerated individuals in Alachua County.
An 18-year-old Gainesville High School student, Andre Steven Foster, was arrested Friday for accusations of sexual battery involving a 14-year-old girl at the GHS 9th Grade Center.
In the messages, the student stated, "I will go to your school tomorrow... There is going to be a shootout," prompting immediate concern from school staff and law enforcement.
Gainesville Police Department officers responded to reports of domestic aggravated assault Friday involving two siblings.
Upon arrival, the woman, who is six months pregnant, informed law enforcement that she had been assaulted by a coworker, identified as Keyly Suazo-Garcia, 39.
Moya began his career in Palm Bay, Florida, where he served as the department’s chief in 2019. He moved to Suffolk County, New York, in 2022, where he led various justice intervention efforts and launched the county's first Threat Assessment and Management team.
The charges arose from an investigation that began after Joel Bruce Searby, 48, engaged in inappropriate conversations with a juvenile through Snapchat.
Loran Kenstley Cole, 57, became the first person to be executed in Florida in 2024, marking the 13th execution this year and the 106th in Florida since the United States Supreme Court’s reinstatement of the death penalty in 1976.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a cybertip from Kik, an online messaging app, on “child exploitation” May 29 related to a user under the name “jamestk91.” The tip included 18 pornographic videos depicting both pre-pubescent and pubescent minors shared in private chats from April 19 to April 22, according to the arrest report.
The Gainesville Police Department arrested a pastor Sunday on suspicion of raping his 15-year-old niece, who was booked into UF Health Shands Hospital for examination a day after the incident.
From fiscal years 2018 to 2022, 3,996 minors like Mikhail Lawson have been transferred to the adult judicial system. During the same period in the 8th Judicial Circuit, 132 minors have been taken to criminal court, with approximately 63% being Black, according to the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice.
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