Local News Now

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Typically, a man of the cloth speaks loudly in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost.
There's no quid pro quo to sell one's soul for the almighty dollar is there, especially when such a man of the cloth is silent when he ispected to speak up?
Then again, there's the age-old adage that "Money talks.
After all, didn't Judas Isariot do that for mere pieces of silver?
How about one with a forked tongue?

Photos for Headline Surfer® /

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- It's a beautiful picture-perfect Saturday along the World's Most Famous Beach In Daytona and in New Smyrna Beach with sunny skies.

But looks can be deceiving, especially in the surf.

Big question: Is Project Panther still in play or are citizens being played by their own government representatives and Daytona insiders?

OAK HILL, Fla. -- Volusia County Chair Jason Davis said despite a second and final vote tonight by the Oak Hill City Commission on a land-use change from mixed use to manufacturing for a rocket-rebuilding plant shrouded in secrecy for weeks, tonight's expected final approval is all for naught.

That's because the project dubbed codename "Panther" that has been touted for location at the city' former dump, is headed to Brevard County's Cape Canaveral, home of NASA..

"That project is long gone," Davis reiterated to Headline Surfer this afternoon. "That ship sailed long ago to Brevard at NASA. t's a done deal." 

Photo for Headline Surfer® /

DELAND, Fla. -- The way Pat Johnson saw it, the Daytona Beach News-Journal's incessant use of a black and white photo of him in casual dress was indicative of the negative image the print newspaper was creating to protect the interests of the entrenched incumbent, Bob Apgar, in the weeks leading up to the Aug. 26 primary.

Headline Surfer® graphic /

ORMOND BEACH -- The Volusia County Sheriff's Office's Major Case Unit has said definitively that the early Easter Sunday morning shooing death of a 55-year-old man in Ormond-by-the-Sea was by his own hand and not accidentally by his wife as she told a neighbor.

The clarification into the death at 7 Seabreeze Drive after receiving a call at 2:52 a.m. about a shooting that had happened. When they arrived on scene, deputies discovered he had been shot to death.

Photos for Headline Surfer® / Janet Spurgeon is transported to Bert Fish Medical Center with minor injuries after backing her car into the medical building at 600 Palmetto Ave. A patient inside was killed and two others injured.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. -- Police remain baffled as to why a 78-year-old woman backed her Chevy Malibu 40 feet into a medical buildingthe afternoon of Feb. 5, killing one man and injuring two others.

"It's bizarre," then-police spokesman Sgt. Eugene Griffith told Headline Surfer®. "We're still trying to determine exactly what happened. Apparently, she hit the gas pedal instead of the brake, but it remains under investigation as to why."

Photo for Headline Surfer® /

DAYTONA BEACH SHORES, Fla. -- Traffic homicide investigators to this day aren't sure why a St. Augustine motorist was driving at speeds of up to 110 mph on April 25, when he crashed his Toyota hatchback leading to a fiery explosion and his death.

The driver crossed into the northbound lanes, struck a curb and became airborne -- then collided with a light pole 13 feet above ground. This led to a fiery explosion with the driver inside.

Photos for Headline Surfer® /

DELTONA, Fla. -- Deputies gave an assist to investigators in Hillsborough County two days before Thanksgiving after a group of theft suspects drove a stolen U-Haul truck full of stolen appliances from Tampa to a residence in Deltona, according to a spokesman for Volusia County Sheriff Ben Johnson.

Hillsborough deputies investigating a break-in at 13523 Staghorn Road near Citrus Park determined that appliances taken from the home had been moved to Avon Park in a stolen U-Haul truck.

Photos for Headline Surfer® /

ORANGE CITY, Fla. -- A 70-year-old pro-life supporter from Deltona was reportedly kicked out of the Planet Fitness in Orange City twice for wearing T-shirts with anti-abortion messages that drew complaints from several other patrons, according to a story published in November by WFTV in Orlando.

Among the slogans on the T-shirts worn by Mike Amoroso and deemed offensive by some at the workout facility: "Abortion Stops a Beating Heart" and "Pray to End Abortion."

Photo for Headline Surfer® /

ORLANDO, Fla. -- The Orlando Magic signed free agent guard Ben Gordon, General Manager Rob Hennigan announced July 11, and per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“Ben (Gordon) brings valuable experience to our team,” Hennigan said of the signing. “His competitiveness and ability to score and stretch the floor adds versatility to our backcourt and overall roster. We are excited to welcome Ben to the Orlando Magic family.”