News

Police arrest man for leaving scene of fatal crash

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office arrested a man after they say he left a fatal crash Wednesday night.

Shannon Hartley, Public Information Officer with the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, said around 6:45 p.m. Wednesday evening police were called to the intersection of Edgewood Avenue South and Trask Street where an SUV had hit a man in his electric wheelchair.

Hartley said the victim, 80-year-old Emmitt Roberts, was crossing the intersection in his electric wheelchair when an SUV hit the man, ejecting him from his wheelchair.

Hartley said the driver of the SUV, 23-year-old Steven Bradsheet pulled his SUV over to the side of the road, got out and checked for any damage before getting back into his vehicle and leaving.

Emergency personnel pronounced Roberts deceased at the scene.

Man dies after being struck by SUV

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A man has died after being struck by an SUV while crossing the street in his electric wheelchair.

According to Sgt. Donald Washington Jr. of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office traffic homicide unit, a white SUV was traveling southbound on Edgewood Avenue near Trask Street when the SUV struck the man.

Washington said it was getting dark at the time of the incident and the vehicle had a green light. The man did not cross the street at a crosswalk.

The man on the wheelchair was transported to Shands Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The driver has not yet been charged, as JSO is still investigating.The driver stopped to talk to police after the incident.

Will Florida face a recount? At what cost?

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- About 11:30 p.m. election night, President Obama is declared the winner of the presidential election, even though Floridians were still voting.

Jacksonville Obama supporter Karen Akers said she had no doubts about the outcome

"Never felt he was going to lose?"

"No not at all," said Akers.

Jacksonville University political scientist Dr. Stephen Baker said the race was always close, in spite of the polls.

"It will be among the closest elections," said Baker, "I mean, 1976 was a very close election, so it is not that unusual."

Jerry Holland, Duval County Supervisor of Elections, like other county election officials, are still counting ballots.

Road reopened after house fire Tuesday morning

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- An intersection closed due to a house fire Wednesday morning is back open.

Tom Francis, spokesperson for the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department said fire crews received a call around 8 a.m. that a carport in the 5300 block of Attleboro Avenue was on fire.

At the time of the fire, two women and two dogs were inside the home.  Francis said neighbors helped all of them escape without injury.

Francis said it took fire crews 30 minutes to extinguish the fire that was contained to the carport area.  The rest of the house received only smoke and water damage.

The State Fire Marshal's Office is investigating after JFRD ruled the cause of the fire suspicious.

Francis said the fire serves as an excellent reminder to verify you have a working smoke detector in your home.  If you need a smoke detector, you may call 630-CITY.

Trailer home a total loss after fire

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A home that was on fire in the 1300 block of Neva Street was put out in about five minutes.

The trailer home was heavily on fire, according to reports into First Coast News. The owner was out with friends when neighbors called her to say her house was on fire.

The trailer is a total loss and the fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.

Man in serious condition following gunfire at gas station

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A man is in life-threatening condition after a large dispute lead to a shooting at a Westside gas station.

Sgt. Michael Paul with the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said many people were involved in an argument near Big Discount Beverage and Gas on Melvin Road and Ricker Road Thursday afternoon.

During the dispute, shots were fired and eye witnesses report seeing a large number of people fleeing the scene.

Two victims were hit.. One black male was transported to Shands to undergo emergency surgery.

Paul said he was in serious condition when the victim left the scene.

The other man was struck by a bullet.

JSO said they do not know the cause of the argument nor the cause of the gunfire.

They are asking anyone with information relating to the incident to contact the Sherrif's Office at (904) 633-0500 or call Crimestoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.

Tuesday is final chance to register for November election

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Tuesday is the final day to register to vote ahead of the November election.  Many Supervisor of Elections offices will have extended hours to help accommodate the last minute rush.

"We see this always in a Presidential cycle," explained Jerry Holland, Supervisor of Elections for Duval County.    "We'll probably have between 30 and 40,000 people that will have registered in the last 30 or 40 days and so, it's exciting to see this many people get involved in it."

Extended Hours:

Duval County-open until 7:30 p.m.

St. Johns County-open until 7:00 p.m.

Clay County-open until 5:00 p.m.

According to Holland, voters do not need to bring identification to register, but they will need a photo I.D. on Election Day.  As of Monday, the number of voters registered reflected a more conservative population than in the 2008 election cycle.