The Tallahassee Reports Daily Briefs: Tuesday, April 16, 2024

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LOCAL NEWS

According to filings with Leon County and the City of Tallahassee, the number of single-family new construction permits were down 26.7% in March, 2024 when compared to March, 2023. Get the details.

Kacy Dennis, CEO and President of the Boys and Girls Club of the Big Bend, recently appeared on the Steve Stewart Show on Real Talk 93.3 to discuss the Boys and Girls Club and community needs.

The Leon County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the death of an inmate that occurred shortly after midnight Monday at the Leon County Detention Facility. Around 1:30 a.m. Monday, the sheriff’s office said a correctional officer found 26-year-old John Russo unresponsive in his cell. Life-saving measures were initiated by the detention facility personnel and medical staff until responders from the Leon County emergency services arrived. Russo had been in custody at the detention facility since February, according to the sheriff’s office, and was housed in a single-cell, protective custody pod.

A house on Huckabee Road went up in flames early Monday morning. Just before 2 a.m. Monday, TFD said it was dispatched to a structure fire in the 2400 block of Huckabee Road. Crews arrived on scene and found heavy fire coming from a house. Due to dense woods and downed power lines in the area, TFD said it had to exercise caution as they worked to extinguish the fire. The cause of the fire appeared to been electrical. No one was in the home. 

LOCAL SPORTS NEWS

Florida State baseball plays host to the Mercer Bears tonight at 6:00 p.m. after the Noles come off an undefeated rivalry week. The Noles run-ruled the Gators last week and swept the Miami Hurricanes over the weekend. FSU is currently second in the ACC with a conference record of 10-5 and overall record of 30-5. The game can be seen on the ACC Network and heard on 100.7 WFLA. 

FLORIDA NEWS

According to a new USA Today/Ipsos poll, 57% of Floridians favor a state ballot initiative aiming to constitutionally protect access to abortion up to the point of fetal viability. That total is 3% shy of the required 60% needed to pass. The poll has a margin of error of 4.1%, and was conducted April 5-7 among 1,014 Florida adults. The measure had gained 34% among Republicans, 63% among Independents and 78% among Democrats.

Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed into law a yearly holiday in Florida commemorating the sacrifices of the Tuskegee Airmen. Moving forward, Tuskegee Airmen Commemoration Day will be celebrated every year on the fourth Thursday of March in Florida. The Tuskegee Airmen were our nation’s first Black military pilots. The first Tuskegee Airmen Commemoration Day will be celebrated next year on March 27.

NATIONAL NEWS

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has reportedly launched a criminal probe into last month’s collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. The investigation will focus on whether the crew departed the port knowing the Singapore-based cargo ship had system issues, violating federal maritime law. The March 26 crash killed six members of a repair crew and halted shipping traffic in the Port of Baltimore (see previous write-up).

Tesla is planning to lay off over 14,000 employees—more than 10% of its global workforce—in its first large-scale layoffs in over a year, according to an internal memo this week. The company’s electric vehicle sales have begun to stagnate amid a decline in demand and increased competition from Chinese carmakers. Tesla’s shares fell over 5% on the news. 

Former President Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial in Manhattan begins; first day concludes with no jurors selected, more than 50 in the jury pool dismissed (More) 

US stock markets close lower (S&P 500 -1.2%, Dow -0.7%, Nasdaq -1.8%) as Middle East tensions weigh on investor sentiment (More). 

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