A child was in critical condition in Orange County on Sunday after being hit by a pickup truck and dragged down a street.

Police said it all happened in front of horrified onlookers who were buying treats from an ice cream truck in the Lockhart area of Orange County, not far from Forest City Road, just after 5 p.m. Saturday.

Jonathan Newkirk, 6, was rushed to Arnold Palmer Hospital.

The Florida Highway Patrol trooper who is handling the case said the boy and his father don’t live in Lockhart, but instead live in Poinciana in Osceola County.

Witnesses said Jonathan was standing next to an ice cream truck along with some others and was attempting to run back to the sidewalk, where his father was close by. That’s when he was hit by a white pickup truck, police said.

“I was buying ice cream with my brother and one of the little kids ran in front of the ice cream truck to cross the street, and another truck came and hit him and dragged him about 20 feet,” said witness Ronald Cruz. “The little kid was laying there on the ground, and I rushed to him as he was bleeding from his ears and his mouth.”

The driver of the pickup truck was 28-year-old David Diaz, of Orlando. He was taken away by officers but was not arrested and has not been charged so far, police said.

Police said the crash remains under investigation.

Source (article): WESH

Source (picture): ORLANDOHEALTH

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - WESH.com

Winter Haven Police are investigating a murder-suicide that happened in a surgical ward at Winter Haven Hospital around 1:30 p.m. Monday.

According to reports, Ramon Duckworth, 77, hid a gun when he went to visit his wife, Patricia, 76.

Once in her room, investigators said he shot her and then turned the gun on himself.

Patricia Duckworth recently had surgery for a kidney infection and family members said she had a stroke a few months ago.

The couple married 57 years ago.

Some of the couple’s neighbors and family members said Ramon Duckworth was suffering from a number of illnesses including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s and prostate cancer.

Investigators believe the couples’ declining health may have contributed to this murder-suicide.

“It’s shocking,” Maria Sykes said.

Sykes’ mother recently came out of surgery on the same floor where the shooting happened.

She found out about the murder-suicide when she called to check on her mother.

“My mother was there, and that made it worse,” she said.

Following the shooting, the hospital cleared out most patients on the floor. Twenty workers were also rushed out.

Source (article): MSNBC

Source (picture): CENTRAL-ORTHOPEDICS

Deputies said Jose Maisonet-Maldonado stabbed his girlfriend Saturday night and then ran over her. He then led deputies on a chase before he crashed into two cars on Colonial Drive.

Maisonet-Maldonado is in serious condition at Orlando Regional Medical Center where he is being treated for his injuries. He faces charges for murder, vehicular homicide and running from deputies.

On Sunday, there was a memorial at Jay Blanchard Park for 35-year-old Berlitz Alvelo. Orange County sheriff’s investigators said the day before her boyfriend, 25-year-old Jose Maisonet-Maldonado stabbed her in the park, and ran over her body with his car.

Alvelo called 911 before she died.

“He called my grandmother and he told her what he did,” said Ariannette Alvelo, victim’s niece.

When deputies caught up with Maisonet-Maldonado, he led them on a chase that ended on Colonial Drive near Interstate-4.

The suspect crashed his white BMW into a red, two-door and another car that was damaged beyond recognition.

Amanda Taylor and Franschesca Jeffrey were each inside one of the vehicles and were killed.

“My heart also goes out to others who lost their loves one. They also lost their loved ones too,” said Alvelo.

Family members said the couple had a violent, five-year-long relationship. Those who live near the couple’s Curry Ford home told Eyewitness News they heard the couple fight all the time and the police were called to their home several times.

“I’m not angry with him because the law will deal with him properly,” said Alvelo, victim’s niece.

The family of the woman killed in the crash, Amanda Taylor, released a statement about her death.

Her brother said she was, “a loving woman, who adored her family and friends. She worked at Florida Hospital, and cared about others, and she will be deeply missed.”

Taylor just celebrated her 28th birthday last Tuesday.

Maisonet-Maldonado has been arrested for battery and domestic violence in the past. In 2005, he was accused of beating his girlfriend with a hammer outside a convenience store off Dean Road in East Orange County. It is not known if the alleged victim in that case was Berlitz Alvelo.

Now, he faces first-degree murder charges and two count of vehicular homicide.

Source (article): WFTV

Source (picture): KATU

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The shuttle Discovery and its astronauts returned safely to Earth on Tuesday after making a rare flyover of America’s heartland to wrap up their 15-day, 6 million-mile journey to the International Space Station.

The touchdown was delayed by rain and fog that dissipated as the sun rose, allowing Mission Control to take advantage of the morning’s second landing opportunity.

Discovery swooped through a hazy sky before landing on the Kennedy Space Center runway. NASA briefly considered bringing the shuttle in to the opposite end of the strip because of puffy clouds, but the glare from the sun was too great and flight controllers stuck to the original plan.

In the end, commander Alan Poindexter made what appeared to be a smooth touchdown, a day late because of rain.

“Welcome home,” Mission Control’s Rick Sturckow said, radioing congratulations on the entire flight.

“It was a great mission. We enjoyed it,” Poindexter said. “And we’re glad that the International Space Station is stocked up again.”

NASA had promised a spectacular show, weather permitting, for early risers in Helena, Mont., and all the way along Discovery’s flight path through the Midwest and Southeast. With the space shuttle program winding down, there weren’t expected to be any more continental flyovers.

This was, in fact, Discovery’s next-to-last flight. Only one more mission remains for NASA’s oldest surviving shuttle. As soon as it’s removed from the runway, it will be prepped for the final shuttle flight, scheduled for September.

Discovery zoomed over the North Pacific on its way home before crossing into North America over Vancouver, British Columbia. Then it headed toward the southeast, flying over northeastern Washington, Helena, Mont.; Wyoming; southwestern Nebraska; northeastern Colorado; southwestern Kansas; Oklahoma; Arkansas; Mississippi; Alabama; Georgia and finally Florida east of Gainesville.

NASA had anticipated the sonic booms might be heard as far north as Kansas. There were no immediate reports.

Before the shuttle began its descent, Mission Control described to the astronauts the route they would be taking to Cape Canaveral. “Sounds like a great ground track,” Poindexter observed.

It was the first time since 2007 that a space shuttle descended over so much of the United States. NASA typically prefers bringing a shuttle home from the southwest, up over the South Pacific, Central America and the Gulf of Mexico. That way, there’s minimal flying over heavily populated areas. In 2003, space shuttle Columbia shattered over Texas during re-entry, but no one on the ground was injured by the falling wreckage.

NASA wanted to maximize the crew’s work time in orbit, while minimizing fatigue. That resulted in this North American crossing.

Before leaving the space station Saturday, Poindexter and his crew dropped off tons of supplies and equipment. The main delivery was a tank full of ammonia coolant, which took three spacewalks to hook up.

A nitrogen pressure valve refused to open after the tank was installed, and for a day, NASA considered sending the shuttle astronauts out on a fourth spacewalk to fix the problem. But engineers concluded it was not an emergency and that the space station crew or future shuttle fliers could deal with it.

History, meanwhile, was made with the presence of four women in space: three on the shuttle and one at the station.

Discovery returned with a couple tons of trash and discarded space station equipment. Most of that was jammed into a cargo carrier that rocketed away aboard the shuttle back on April 5. The carrier will be re-outfitted and fly back up on Discovery in September, and be installed permanently at the orbiting outpost.

Source (article): MSNBC

Source (pictures): THEEPOCHTIMES

AUGUSTA, Ga. - Tiger Woods saw it as a gathering of friends and, indeed, it all started with a hug of the first guy he saw wearing a green jacket.

By the time he finished, some of his new friends probably felt like giving Woods hugs themselves. After all, who in their right mind wouldn’t get choked up after hearing the sad tale of a man who will live forever with the guilt of missing his son’s first birthday?

If this was all an act, Woods should be given an Oscar instead of another green jacket. As a performance it was just as masterful as any Woods has given us on his way to four wins at Augusta National.

He talked softly. He was contrite. He even called his “friends” by their first names.

It helps, of course, that the facts never got in the way. The 207 reporters who crowded into the interview room at the Masters did their best, but Woods was as slippery as the 18th green when he wanted to be.

Besides, it’s hard to kick a guy when he’s down. Maybe not so hard when you’re an alleged mistress — one of many.

“I think he’s still a big, fat liar,” adult film star Joslyn James said

A lot of others probably think the same thing, and it’s easy to see why. When you live a lie for as many years as Woods did, even 45 days in therapy may not be enough to change anything.

But the tone was perfect, the delivery impeccable. In just 35 minutes, Woods pulled off the kind of serious damage control he seemed incapable of doing in the previous five months.

He even tossed in a couple of little factoids just to make sure no one went away empty- handed.

No, he wasn’t going to say how he smashed his Escalade into a fire hydrant last Thanksgiving night. But he did, for the first time, confirm he got a sore neck and five stitches in his lip from the accident.

As for the other details of the accident, he said he did everything to the letter of the law. No one else’s business, and no need to address reports that he may have been under the influence of painkillers and sleeping tablets when he got behind the wheel of the 5,500-pound vehicle.

“Well, the police investigated the accident and they cited me 166 bucks and it’s a closed case,” Woods said.

Unfortunately for Woods, another 166 bucks won’t make the questions all go away. The sex scandal seems to have a half-life of its own and every time he makes an attempt to move past it, one of his mistresses pops up to remind everyone what a cad he really is.

In this case it was James, who invited the media to a watch-Tiger-with-me party at the Friars Club in Manhattan, where she countered Woods’ portrayal of himself as a devoted father by claiming he was with her just 10 days after his daughter was born. She also poked holes in his claim that he wasn’t having much fun while having to live a lie.

“He was having a good time from what he told me,” said James, who, not so coincidentally, will be performing at the Pink Pony strip club in Atlanta during the Masters.

Another woman in Woods’ life may not be totally convinced of his intentions to lead a better and more spiritual life, either. Woods declined to say what his relationship is right now with his wife, Elin, but he did say she wasn’t going to be with him in Augusta this week.

Ultimately, of course, people are going to believe what they want to believe, and the lack of candor by Woods in discussing the scandal probably doesn’t matter in the long run. A certain segment of the population will always hold him in contempt, but when it comes to superstars most people tend to be forgiving and have short memories.

They’re not going to care months from now that Woods hides behind a police report, or that he hasn’t fully disclosed his relationship with a Canadian doctor who faces charges involving human growth hormone. They’re going to believe him when he says he now knows that family means everything, and that what he really wants to do is help others like him.

Woods likely already won some people back with his first real answers to real questions. He’ll win some more if he follows through on his pledge to be more respectful of the game, something that was on display in Monday’s practice round when he smiled often and signed autographs.

“To be out there in front of the people where I have done some things that are just horrible, and you know, for the fans to really want to see me play golf again, I mean, that felt great,” Woods said. “That really did.”

The newly introspective Woods, though, will have to find a way to fit his new persona into his old game. Giving up fist bumps and cursing could come at a price, he acknowledged, because they have sometimes helped him win even when all seemed lost.

Still, a flash of the old bravado remains as he returns to a game that has missed him terribly.

“Nothing’s changed. I’m going to go out there and try to win this thing,” Woods said.

If that happens, it would be one of the greatest sports stories ever. It would also speed up the public rehabilitation that began in earnest Monday on the same course where his career took off when he became the youngest to ever win a green jacket in 1997.

It seems improbable, even impossible.

So, too, though, did the sex scandal that started it all.

Source (article): MSNBC

Source (pictures): LIVEJOURNAL, GOLFDIGEST, BABBLE, SPORTSALEX