Free Republic

PORT CHARLOTTE - Two men, armed with a knife and a tire iron, reportedly forced their way inside a Port Charlotte home Saturday night, only to find the occupants had guns. The botched home invasion robbery ended quickly when one of the suspects sustained a nonfatal gunshot wound to the stomach, according to the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office. Authorities have arrested one man and intend to charge the other upon his release from a Fort Myers-area hospital in connection to the attempted robbery at the 21000 block of Beaverton Avenue. The incident occurred around 10 p.m. at the home of...

<p>TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — In a case being called Twittergate, a Republican Party county chairman wants to know whether state party leaders new about a fake Twitter account set up to defame him.</p>

Talk about desperation. Charlie Crist has set up a fake website to cover the “truth” about Marco Rubio.. Why do I call it a fake website?The website has blog posts time stamped all the way back to 2007 even thought it was only created yesterday. (http://truthaboutrubio.com/) It tries to tie Marco Rubio to a Hitler video parody of Charlie Crist — a video Rubio condemned upon finding out about it (he should have gone after it for a lack of comedic value other than the sun tan jab), but that this Charlie Crist backed site is fixated on. Funny how...

PALM BAY, Fla. -- An illegal immigrant in Palm Bay faces multiple counts of sexual battery after officers say he sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl. David Sanchez, 28, investigators say, used a family friendship to rape the child. Sanchez is an illegal immigrant from El Salvador who has already been deported once for doing the same thing to another child in Alabama. Investigators say he returned to the U.S. in mid-2008 where he began having an unlawful sexual relationship with a then, 12-year-old child. On Sunday detectives arrested Sanchez after the girl’s father found him having sex with his daughter...

While many people were wondering what President Barack Obama did to deserve the Nobel Peace Prize, U.S. Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite began researching another question: Can he even accept the award? Yes, she concluded, but only if he asks her for permission. Well, her and the rest the lawmakers on Capitol Hill. So on Tuesday the Brooksville Republican sent a letter to Obama requesting that he fulfill a "Constitutional obligation to obtain Congress' consent." The letter, co-signed by Republican Reps. Cliff Stearns of Ocala and Ron Paul of Texas, sets off debate about an obscure provision of the U.S. Constitution that...

As expected, Marco Rubio has won another county Republican Party straw poll by a huge margin over Gov. Charlie Crist—this one in Palm Beach County by 90-17 — leaving Republicans and others to continue to debate over whether such votes matter. Rubio has already won straw polls of county Republican parties in Bay, Gilchrist, Hernando, Highlands, Jefferson, Lee and Pasco counties, many by lopsided margins — 75-1 in Highlands, for example. The vote tonight was different, however. The earlier ones were all in rural or suburban counties. Palm Beach is the first big urban county in which the Republican Party...

Pinellas Park, Florida-- A six year old girl sent to live with her grandparents as a baby is now being evicted from her home, for being too young. The grandparents, Jimmy and Judie Stottler, live in a Pinellas Park retirement community that doesn't allow children. The Home Owners Association now wants the child removed. "For some reason, there's a few, just a few who don't want Kimberly. And I just don't get it," said Judie Stottler. The granddaughter was taken from her home at just six months old after the state discovered her mother was abusing drugs. She's lived with...

Based on legislation and case law, the U.S. government's attitude toward increased rights for gun owners has been more favorable in recent years than ever before. In the 2008 case District of Columbia v. Heller, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Second Amendment to the Constitution protects an individual's right to possess a firearm for private use. It was the first Supreme Court case in U.S. history to directly address whether the right to keep and bear arms is a right of individuals in addition to a collective right that applies to state-regulated militias. As a result, additional pleas...

PORT ST. JOE, Fla. — Seventeen-year-old Simone Davis of Port St. Joe, Fla., is like most teenage girls. She enjoys school and is active in her church’s youth group. But while her senior class peers at Port St. Joe High School fuss over which club to join or who will be elected homecoming queen, Davis is battling for her religious freedom and the right to stay in the country.Born in Colchester, England, she has lived in the U.S. for the last 10 years as a resident alien and recently applied for full U.S. citizenship. This summer the Bureau of Citizenship...

After being knocked halfway to kingdom come, Tim Tebow knew that millions of college football fans would be paying close attention to his eyes the next time he led the Florida Gators into action. Viewers would be looking for signs that the quarterback was OK after a nasty concussion. Many would also want to see which Bible reference would be written in the patches of eye black that would be visible whenever television cameras focused on the face of America's most famous muscular Christian. Tebow was wearing Isaiah 40:31 when he got hurt against Kentucky: "But they that wait upon...

Tired from a long day at work, brothers Anthony and Peter Julien arrived home Tuesday night to find a bedroom light on and two bicycles in front of their Pine Hills home. Anthony Julien went inside through the garage, a 9mm gun in his hand. One intruder was in Julien's bedroom to the right. Another man was pointing a gun at him from the dining room on the left. Julien dropped to one knee, knowing it was the stranger or him. "When I saw he had a gun in his hand, I bent down and, 'pow,' I shot him right...

Pope Benedict XVI / Fr. Fernando Isern Miami, Fla., Oct 15, 2009 / 10:32 am (CNA).- This morning the Vatican announced that Fr. Fernando Isern from the Archdiocese of Miami has been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI to head the Diocese of Pueblo in southern Colorado. Bishop-elect Isern, 51, was born in Havana, Cuba and raised in southern Florida. He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Miami in 1993 and has since worked at both pastoral and educational posts.His appointment as the fourth Bishop of Pueblo, succeeding Bishop Arthur Tafoya, will be officially announced to the faithful in Miami...

Police: Juveniles laughed after setting 15-year-old on fireupdated 1 hour, 43 minutes ago (CNN) -- Five juveniles were in custody Tuesday after a 15-year-old was intentionally set on fire at a Deerfield Beach, Florida, apartment complex, police said. Michael Brewer suffered second-degree burns over 80 percent of his body. "He's in for a long, long recovery," Broward County Sheriff Al Lamberti told reporters. Three juveniles were arrested Monday night, hours after the incident, and two others were arrested Tuesday, sheriff's Sgt. Steve Feeley said. "A couple of them last night were laughing about it," he said. "One of them arrested...

October 05, 2009 Categories: Florida Rove donated to Rubio NBC News’ Chuck Todd has the scoop that Karl Rove is supporting Marco Rubio, the conservative challenger to Gov. Charlie Crist, in the Republican primary for the Senate in Florida – at least with his money. Rove donated $1,000 to Rubio's campaign -- a sign of support for the underdog as he goes up against the governor, who holds a significant fundraising advantage. NBC's First Read also concludes that the donation as a sign of where former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush's true loyalties lie: Many believe this is Jeb's way of...

Great Tea Party in Ft. Lauderdale!! The place was jam-packed. Here are some pictures Hosted by South Florida Tea Party to welcome the American Liberty Tour at their Ft. Lauderdale stop.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Police said one of two men who tried to steal a pickup truck from a group of people gathered outside a Murray Hill home was shot several times by a homeowner and his friend. Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Lt. Larry Schmitt said when police arrived at the 3000 block of College Street, they found a man shot multiple times. According to the police report, Keith Loftin was outside the home with some friends shortly after 2 a.m. when two men asked for a ride in Loftin's truck. Loftin said one of the men pulled a gun on them...

. . . . . . the fourth-most-populous state will loom over American politics next summer when Republicans select a Senate nominee. Their primary will test whether the party has become so risk-averse that it flinches from interesting choices.The nominee almost certainly will be either Gov. Charlie Crist or Marco Rubio, former speaker of the Florida House (term limits, which he supports, retired him). Leading national Republicans rushed to endorse Crist. In tennis, such decisions are called unforced errors.. . . . . . .In January 2011, one Floridian will leave for the U.S. Senate. He is unlikely to be...

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- After a heady week on a high-stakes world stage, President Obama returned to America's messiest political mosh pit -- the health care debate. Speaking before the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation's annual dinner on Saturday night, Obama prescribed the same contentious policy pill he's embraced since taking office: health care reform and his intention to "get it done this year." ... "We have been waiting for health reform since the days of Teddy Roosevelt, we've been waiting since the days of Harry Truman. We've been waiting since Johnson and Nixon and Clinton. We cannot wait any longer."

Satellite radio show host Mike Church discusses the Campaign for Liberty, the Republican Party of Florida, Will Pitts, Ron Paul,Tom Woods, Audit the Fed, HR1207, Charlie Crist, Jim Greer, and the Republican Liberty Caucus [Click Here to Listen]

TITUSVILLE -- Two burglars attempting to steal a car from a Brevard County home were held at gunpoint by the homeowners. Matthew Clark, 20, and Justin Sheppard, 19, are facing several charges including burglary and grand theft. Authorities say the pair was burglarizing a home near Titusville on Karen Drive when the homeowners confronted them with a 12-gauge shotgun. The woman and her son held the two until police arrived. Clark and Sheppard are now being held on $5,000 bonds.

ORMOND BEACH -- Two attempted armed robbery suspects were hospitalized with multiple gunshot wounds after the man police said they tried to rob shot them. According to police, Christopher Young, 38, and William Bell, 31, went into the home of Dane Rollins, 34, early Sunday morning armed with handguns. Police said after the suspects stole cash, Rollins grabbed his shotgun and went after them. The two suspects fled, but police said they later found them with several gunshot wounds. The men were taken to Halifax Medical Center. Rollins was not hurt. Police said shocked neighbors witnessed the entire gunfight. “‘Boom,...

Charlie Crist is swimming in campaign money, and polls consistently show him to be among the most popular politicians in America. But something ominous and unpredictable is brewing in Florida....

Some of the most prominent Republican woman will be in Orlando for the Republican Women's 35th Convention, but arguably the most famous of them all is not making an appearance. As some of the most prominent Republican women across the country gather next week in Orlando, arguably the most well-known of them will not be in attendance. Despite an invitation to speak at the conference, Sarah Palin, former vice presidential candidate, and until recently Alaska governor, decided not come to the National Federation of Republican Women's 35th Convention, according to the organization. An estimated 1,200 Republican women leaders will attend...

Clay Shaw has a gun problem. As a contender for appointment to the U.S. Senate, the former Fort Lauderdale congressman is catching flak for a vote he took in 1994 to ban assault weapons. The vote earned him a "D" grade from the National Rifle Association, which is politically potent in Republican politics. Shaw is now among the candidates Gov. Charlie Crist is considering for Mel Martinez's soon-to-be-vacant U.S. Senate seat. The governor has a strong pro-gun record, which serves as an important link between Crist and conservatives. The longtime NRA lobbyist in Tallahassee, Marion Hammer, has registered objections to...

MARIANNA, Fla. — Rep Allen Boyd (D-Fla.) is a skilled politician who has pretty much seen it all — a Deep South Democrat who’s managed to dispatch all opponents in his conservative-leaning Panhandle district since winning election in 1996. But as he fended off gnats buzzing through the August humidity after a morning fending off angry constituents at a town hall meeting here, Boyd confided that the depth of the unease spurred by the health care debate had caught him by surprise. “People are scared,” Boyd said twice, trying to explain what would drive his constituents away from home and...

A proposed resolution set to go before the Belleview City Commission urges the head of every household in the city to have a gun in order to protect their families and to keep the peace in an emergency. On Tuesday, the board will consider the plan, which has been introduced by Belleview resident Donny Barber, to encourage "all law abiding citizens to own a handgun, rifle or shotgun and receive adequate training to become proficient in the use of and safe handling of the weapon so they are prepared to protect themselves and their families." The resolution also calls on...

Allen West to Hold Healthcare Townhall Aug. 18th 7pm You are invited to have a voice in the health care debate Please Join ALLEN WEST F O R C O N G R E S S For a Healthcare Town Hall Meeting Tuesday, August 18th, 2009 7:00 pm South Florida Bible College Auditorium 747 S. Federal Highway Deerfield Beach, Florida 33441

ORLANDO, FLA. A number of guns are off the streets in Central Florida following the annual Kicks for Guns event. In Orlando, this is the 10th year for the event that allows residents to turn in guns, no questions asked, and get shoes or gift certificates in return for the gun. Police said 108 guns were removed from the streets in yesterday's event. Two of them were connected to crimes. Daytona Beach also held the event this year and took in 300 guns. The city of Palm Bay in Brevard County decided to try the event this year and collected...

It was pouring rain just after 1 p.m. Monday, July 20, when a man burst into a Honduran grocery store on NW 36th Street in Miami. A shirt was wrapped around his face as he gripped a black semiautomatic handgun. Twenty-year-old Charles Bell shoved the pistol into the face of a manager behind the counter. Then he demanded the contents of the cash register and cartons of cigarettes in a plastic bag. Next he began herding customers to the back of the small market. But when he returned to the counter to collect his loot, a short, well-built 24-year-old manager...

Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination to the Supreme Court was a truly historic moment in our nation’s history. As an accomplished jurist who rose from humble roots, she is an inspiration to all who share her Hispanic heritage and all Americans who believe hard work is key to success. Since that moment, however, I have considered it vital to ensure that the historic nature of her nomination did not interfere with the Senate’s constitutional duty of evaluating it and having a proper debate about the judiciary’s proper function in America. After all, the lifetime nature of her appointment brandishes the post with...

CLEARWATER — Stung by fierce criticism, the Clearwater City Council on Monday canceled a plan to remove about a dozen flagpoles and American flags from city property to save money. "We're going to leave all the flags as is," Mayor Frank Hibbard said after a lengthy and contentious discussion of the topic at a council meeting Monday morning. Council members criticized City Manager Bill Horne for not telling them about the flag removal plan that city staffers had come up with. Instead, the council first learned about it from the St. Petersburg Times. Council member George Cretekos said Horne had...

BRISTOL — Octavious Barnes died Sunday still clutching the $1,100 he took from an 82-year-old bar owner before he was shot. Now, three Blountstown women accused of helping Barnes, 24, face murder charges in connection to his death. “As we were processing the crime scene, it became clearer and clearer he (Barnes) didn’t do everything himself,” Liberty County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Brigham Shuler said Wednesday. Jessica Nicole Long, 19; Heather Marie Ammons, 22; and Mandy Allen, 43, planned and aided Barnes in the robbery of 82-year-old Bradley Harvil, owner and operator of the Slip N’ Slide bar, Shuler said. On...

"I thought he'd come in here and kill me," says Bradley Harvell. The 82-year-old Liberty County man got the shock of his life around 9:00 p.m. Sunday night when a man dressed all in black knocked on his door. Harvell lives off of State Road 12, near the town of Bristol, Florida. When Harvell opened the door, he says the man shocked him with a stun device. The intruder then pushed his way into the home. "He was saying give me your money," says Harvell. "All of it. I want all of it." Harvell says he gave the would-be thief...

CLEARWATER (Bay News 9) -- Money is so tight in Clearwater that the city can no longer afford to fly the American flag. The city's parks and recreation director ordered the removal of more than a dozen flagpoles from across the city this week, saying that budget cuts make it impossible to properly care for the flags. According to Bay News 9's partner paper, the St. Petersburg Times, the city says lighting flags at night and removing them if they are damaged are tasks the city cannot afford to worry about anymore.

Orange County Sheriff's deputies say a robbery victim turned the tables on two robbery suspects. “I was in my bedroom sleeping and all of a sudden I heard a pow, pow, pow,” said eyewitness Barry Quintin. Deputies say Miguel Jimenez was walking into his apartment at Villa Tuscany near Ocoee when 18-year-old Andri Benjamin ran up, put a gun in his face and tried to rob him. But Jimenez was carrying a loaded revolver and a concealed weapons permit to go along with it. He pulled his gun out and shot Benjamin several times, killing him. Neighbor Barry Quintin says...

Former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio plans to continue his campaign for the Senate seat being vacated by Mel Martinez, despite having a sizable deficit in fundraising compared to the other Republican candidate Charlie Crist, according to a report in the Washington Post. Chris Cillizza of the Post said Rubio will be in Washington, DC on Wednesday for meetings and is expected to "re-assert his commitment to the race." Rubio has garnered some national support, most notably former Arkansas governor and current Fox News host Mike Huckabee. Experts believe Rubio will try and turn the race into a referendum on...

PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) - Byrd and Melanie Billings had a growing brood of adopted children with autism, Down syndrome and other disabilities, and took care to make their nine-bedroom house a safe place for them, wiring it with surveillance cameras in every room. It was those cameras that captured images of the masked men who shot the wealthy couple to death in a break-in executed with chilling precision.

Authorities have made an arrest in the killings of a Gulf Coast couple known for adopting special-needs children, a sheriff's spokesman said Sunday. Byrd and Melanie Billings are seen surrounded by their children. Investigators announced Saturday night that two people were being questioned in the killings of Byrd and Melanie Billings, who were found dead in their Beulah, Florida, home Thursday night. Sgt. Ted Roy, a spokesman for the Escambia County Sheriff's Office, told CNN that one person had been arrested Sunday afternoon. Eight children found in the Billings home were unharmed and were being cared for by relatives at...

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- William West was asleep in his bed when he got an unusual call from his neighbor at 4:30 in the morning. "I called him back, and he was like, 'Somebody in your house right now. How asleep is you? They in your house right now," West's neighbor said. That's when West said he got up and armed himself with a 12-gauge shotgun, taking matters into his own hands. "I didn't really have time to think, you know what I'm saying," West said. "Didn't have time to think to be scared or not. I just know I had...

The Club for Growth, a conservative anti-tax group, is considering running ads in the Republican Party's Senate primary race against Florida Gov. Charlie Crist for supporting higher state taxes and President Obama's $787 billion economic stimulus spending package.

The relationship between Ave Maria University and the Catholic Church took a major step forward this month. The university named Diocese of Venice Bishop Frank Dewane to its board of trustees, the first official role for the senior local cleric at the eastern Collier County university. Unlike 18 months ago, when an empty 100-foot church building symbolized a disconnect between them, now everyone is speaking the same language: Collaboration. “It shows that we’re working collaboratively with the diocese,” university President Nick Healy said. “I look forward to continuing to collaborate with the university, particularly with regard to the spiritual and...

West Palm Beach police are rewarding residents for turning in people with guns: Under a new program announced this morning, anyone who spots people packing heat in West Palm Beach can call Palm Beach County Crime Stoppers anonymously and could receive a $500 reward. I've been over this ground before. Lt. David Bernhardt's hopes that "this will help to alleviate the violent crime" notwithstanding (it won't), it has the potential to result in unintended consequences. Like what? How about this, speculating on a similar program in New York: If I'm a drug dealer and I want to eliminate the competition,...

A statue toppled by vandals at St. Joseph's. Photo: News 4 CNA STAFF, Jun 25, 2009 / 07:06 am (CNA).- A devastating act of vandalism at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Mandarin, Florida last weekend left a total of nine religious statues damaged.  Fr. Daniel Cody, pastor of St. Joseph’s, said that he was disappointed by the incident, but is asking his parishioners to pray for whoever committed the acts.Some statues were only slightly damaged after being pushed from their pedestals, while others were completely destroyed.  Included in the damage was a statue of St. Patrick that cost well...

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS -- A masked suspect was shot and killed outside an Altamonte Springs home. Deputies arrived on the scene just before 4 a.m. Friday on the 300 block of Magnolia Street just off of Ronald Regan Boulevard. A woman woke up when she heard someone trying to kick in the door of her home. Seminole County Sheriff's deputies say that's when her husband went to the door and shot twice at Donald Salaam. Salaam, 21, was hit once in the chest. The wife was on the phone with a 911 dispatcher when the shots were fired. Investigators say it...

WEST PALM BEACH — Live in a rough 'hood surrounded by gun-packing thugs? Quick cash is a phone call away. Under a new program announced this morning, anyone who spots people packing heat in West Palm Beach can call Palm Beach County Crime Stoppers anonymously and could receive a $500 reward. The West Palm Beach Police Department will cough up $500 each time such a phone call leads to recovery of the weapon and an arrest for unlawful firearm possession. Police say the program, modeled after similar efforts in Miami and Orlando, is different from traditional gun buyback programs because...

DAVIE, Fla. — When the sharp pain shooting through Lisa Strong's back got worse, she thought it was another kidney stone and expected the discomfort to pass. This time was different. Through a series of mistakes, miscommunications and misdiagnoses, she wound up having her arms and legs amputated. She sued the doctors, who essentially blamed one another for what everyone involved agrees were profound errors. Everyone except the jury that ruled against Strong.

SEMINOLE — Police nabbed a suspected bank robber after two different witnesses reported seeing him drunk and covered in red dye Thursday. Pinellas County sheriff's detectives say Michael Prance, 53 and homeless, robbed RBC Bank at 11201 Park Boulevard in Seminole that day and got away. Around 6 p.m. that day, a resident at the Caribbean Mobile Home Park in Seminole called police complaining of an intoxicated person at the pool. Witnesses told police he was stumbling around the pool with a bottle of wine and red dye on his clothes. After residents confronted him, he left. Then, deputies got...

There are still lots of FReepers who have not chosen to fly their flag. You don't have to provide any additional information, although lots of FReepers have provide pictures, e-mail addresses, and the like, you don't have to! It would be nice if you would at least "fly your flag".This allows other FReepers in your state to FReepmail you to let you know about local FR events - rallies, chapter meetings, and other activist events. Even if you don't plan to participate, it'll keep you informed of what is happening in your state. Now, FLY YOUR FLAGS! Even if you...

Dear. Mr. X Thank you for contacting me regarding health care reform. I appreciate hearing from you and would like to take this opportunity to respond. There are an estimated 45 million Americans without health insurance - a number that has been consistently rising since 1989. This means that one in seven Americans, and one in five under the age of 65 in Florida, is uninsured. The fact that 15 percent of Americans live without health insurance is a staggering state of affairs, especially since we live in a country that leads the world in advanced medical procedures and technology....

OVIEDO, Fla. -- According to officials, a suspect went into a Victoria's Secret store in the Oviedo Marketplace and stole more than $2,000 worth of bras and panties. Police say they want to know if the panty raid was part of a bigger crime ring. The Oviedo Marketplace has felt the brunt of tough times. It is still recovering from when its sister company went bankrupt in April. Management says the doors will stay open, but lately the wrong people have been walking through them. "Well, I'm not surprised. It's bound to come out here sooner or later," said Mary...