Your daily look at news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about today.
CANADIAN ARRESTED IN FLORIDA ON ALLEGED SEX TRIP
A Canadian man is facing a lengthy prison sentence if convicted of traveling to Florida to have sex with someone he thought was an underage boy. Federal prosecutors say 47-year-old Rene Roberge of Montreal is facing two charges that carry a mandatory minimum 10-year prison sentence and potentially life behind bars. Roberge made his first court appearance Monday in Fort Lauderdale.
STATE TO PROMOTE MEDICAL TOURISM
Visit Florida says it’s offering $2.5 million in grant money to increase promotion of medical tourism in Florida. The state’s tourism arm said Monday that two grants will be offered through Dec. 8. One will help promote the state as a medical tourism destination and the other markets the state for medical meetings and training promotion. The money was approved by the state Legislature.
PALM BEACH COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE TAKES DOWN ONLINE ARREST RECORDS
The Palm Beach Post reported Sunday that the sheriff’s office, which runs the county jail, selectively removes the names of police officers from the blotter. The sheriff’s office blamed the software that maintains the online blotter. Police officer personal information, such as dates of birth and home addresses, is exempt from public record. The agency reported in a statement that the software couldn’t delete the exempted information without deleting the person’s name. The names of inmates are public record, but jails aren’t legally required to maintain an online blotter.
TREE SERVICE WORKER IN PALATKA SEVERELY INJURED BY FALLING TREE LIMB
The man was working Monday afternoon in a Palatka neighborhood clearing tree limbs near power lines for Florida Power & Light. Palatka police say another worker lifted in the air by a bucket truck cut a limb that fell on the head of the 20-year-old worker below him. Police say the worker was knocked unconscious, but he was moving and alert when emergency responders arrived. He was flown to a hospital.
CHICAGO CUBS PRESIDENT: CUBS ‘WELCOME’ MLB INVESTIGATION INTO MADDON TAMPERING
Chicago Cubs President Theo Epstein says the team is totally fine with Major League Baseball checking into whether there was anything improper about the way it hired new manager Joe Maddon. The Cubs announced Oct. 31 that Rick Renteria had been fired after one season as manager and that Maddon was hired. Maddon opted out of his contract with Tampa Bay soon after Rays executive Andrew Friedman left the club to take over the Los Angeles Dodgers in mid-October. Epstein recently said the Cubs checked with MLB to be sure Maddon was OK to talk with other clubs before negotiating with him.
