JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – As the moniker says, News4JAX is “The Local Station.”
That means we provide passionate coverage of events that happen throughout the Northeast Florida communities, preparing our audience for weather alerts, staying on top of crime developments and providing the latest details on court proceedings. We cover it all, and you all engaged with our coverage.
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Here are the Top 10 local headlines that our readers took the most interest in this year, in no particular order:
Racially motivated shooting at Dollar General
The Jacksonville community was flipped upside down when three innocent lives were taken away after a shooter walked into a Dollar General in a predominantly Black neighborhood and opened fire.
Angela Carr, 52, an Uber driver, A.J. Laguerre Jr., 19, a Dollar General employee, and Jerald Gallion, 29, a shopper lost their lives in what the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office called a “racially motivated” shooting. The FBI deemed it an immediate hate crime after the shooter’s manifestos filled with vicious “ideology of hate” were discovered in his parent’s Oakleaf home.
With their memory memorialized outside the Grand Park Dollar General store, it was clear that Carr, Laguerre and Gallion were loved by many and will forever be cherished as their families move forward and try to pick up the pieces.
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The Dollar General store pledged a $250,000 grant to help the devastated community heal from the traumatic event and make a difference in the New Town and Grand Park neighborhoods.
Aiden Fucci gets life for stabbing death of schoolmate
It was a case that not only affected the St. Johns County and Northeast Florida communities, but one that everyone across the country had their eyes on as we covered every development. Aiden Fucci, 16, was sentenced to life in prison for the brutal stabbing death of 13-year-old schoolmate Tristyn Bailey on Mother’s Day in 2021 — a crime that the judge said had no motive. Fucci was sentenced two years later in March of this year.
He pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, admitting to killing Tristyn in the woods at the end of a cul-de-sac in the quiet Durbin Crossing neighborhood.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Tristyn Bailey: The murder that sent shockwaves through St. Johns County | Coverage of Tristyn Bailey
After three years and sitting through every update while wearing aqua to represent their loved one, the Bailey family made it very clear they never wanted Fucci released. Two days before the sentencing the Bailey family made a powerfully emotional statement in court, dropping 114 heart-shaped, aqua-colored stones into an empty jar on the witness stand to represent each time Tristyn was stabbed.
All eyes on the eye of Hurricane Idalia
As Hurricane Idalia strengthened and was predicted to make landfall as a Category 4 storm on Florida’s Gulf Coast, News4JAX was providing updates to keep the community safe from whatever effects the storm would bring to Northeast Florida in August.
The storm was expected to become a major hurricane and bring catastrophic impacts from the storm surge inundation along the west coast of Florida.
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It was forecast to bring hazardous impacts for Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia with predictions of heavy rainfall, localized flooding, elevated rip currents and seas, gusty winds and the possibility of tornadoes.
Although Jacksonville was spared from Idalia’s direct hit, the storm still left its marks on parts of the city.
Veteran FHP trooper accused in drug conspiracy
Joshua Earrey was a Florida Highway Patrol trooper with 22 years of experience in Duval County, so it was fitting that it spurred many conversations after he was arrested in March after court filings revealed that he was accused of buying drugs from an undercover operative.
I-TEAM | Arrest of former DEA task force officer has possible ties to the arrest of FHP trooper
The court filings said Earrey had back surgery at the beginning of 2023 and became addicted to oxycodone, according to a cooperating defendant, who identified themselves as the middleman between the source, who provided the drugs and Earrey.
The court filing shows Earrey had 43 valid prescriptions from May 2018 to January 2023. The court document revealed over 4,500 text messages and more than 3,000 phone calls between Earrey and the source.
His family said in a statement that Earrey recognized he needed help and checked himself in rehab.
Ex-wife accused in murder-for-hire plot
The 2022 murder of Jared Bridegan produced three arrests in 2023, including his ex-wife Shanna Gardner. She was the last to be arrested in Washington State, and the stunning revelation in her indictment was that she’d been planning Bridegan’s demise since 2015, when they were enmeshed in a contentious divorce.
Mario Fernandez was arrested in the Orlando area and also indicted for first-degree murder. He’s accused of hiring the hit man who shot Bridegan in the ambush in Jacksonville Beach. The evidence against Fernandez includes checks he signed to pay Henry Tenon, who pleaded guilty and is cooperating with the prosecution.
Gardner and Fernandez both face possible death sentences if convicted. The case got even more national attention when Gardner hired Jose Baez as her defense lawyer. Then Fernandez’ lawyer filed a motion to disqualify Melissa Nelson’s office from the case, claiming privileged communications had been accessed by prosecutors.
Lots of defense motions are expected in 2024, but no trials are anticipated before 2025.
Road Ranger crash causes truck to flip over Buckman Bridge
In February, a 61-year-old man was killed after his pickup truck was hit by a Road Ranger, causing the truck to flip over the Buckman Bridge — a bridge that has seen similar fatal accidents in the past few years.
South and northbound lanes were backed up for miles as retrieving the truck from the water took hours. Crashes have sparked conversations about the bridge’s safety for drivers.
I-TEAM | News4JAX looks back at crashes that have sent cars off the Buckman Bridge
The Florida Highway Patrol said the pickup truck was moving when it was rear-ended by the 23-year-old Road Ranger’s tow truck. The pickup truck collided with the guardrail and then flipped up, striking a light pole before it rumbled over the rail into the river.
The crash happened just shy of one year after a 20-year-old woman was driving south, hit a guardrail and flipped into shallow water. She was rescued by a good Samaritan who waded to her car.
Attempted murder-suicide in Ponte Vedra Beach leaves teen victim paralyzed
It started as a pleasant day for 17-year-old Madison Schemitz and her mother while the two were dining at Mr. Chubby’s Wings in Ponte Vedra Beach in June. That’s until Schemitz noticed her ex-boyfriend 18-year-old Spencer Pearson dining in the same restaurant.
Schemitz immediately grabbed her mother and fled for the door, trying to go unnoticed but Pearson followed the two outside, ultimately severely stabbing Schemitz and injuring her mother in a brutal attack.
He, then, according to police, attempted to slit his own throat immediately after the attack. Pearson survived after being hospitalized.
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Two men -- Jimmy Stepp and Kennedy Armstrong -- intervened to try to help the women as they were being attacked, with Armstrong suffering from injuries to his arm that required him to undergo surgery.
Pearson pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of attempted murder and aggravated battery in the attack that left Schemitz paralyzed from the chest down.
Riverside parking garage suddenly collapses
It was an occurrence that left more questions than answers. When the top floor of the parking garage at Ascension St. Vincent’s Riverside partially collapsed in September, it left the Jacksonville community wondering, “How?”
The sudden collapse sparked building evacuations and a massive garage search as crews worked to ensure everyone was safe. There were over 100 vehicles parked in the garage at the time. Vehicles were mashed flat and some were left precariously tilted on the edge of the collapse. Luckily, no one was hurt.
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Many drivers were left carless because their vehicles were trapped in the garage. Crews started working to remove the vehicles three weeks after the collapse.
Jacksonville Fire Rescue said the garage sustained a structural failure that could have led to the collapse.
‘Aggressive’ JSO arrest
A Jacksonville family reached out to News4JAX to talk about an incident they said was an emotional rollercoaster. The family of Kim Cobb said she was severely injured after an aggressive Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office arrest in October.
According to the arrest report, the 54-year-old was pulled over because an officer smelled marijuana coming from the car she was riding in, prompting a search.
The officer said they found an illegal narcotic in her purse and tried to make an arrest. That’s when, Cobb, the report said, resisted and pulled away, causing the officer to take her to the ground.
Cobb sustained a cut to her eyebrow, according to JSO, but her family said her injuries were far worse. The incident was caught on body camera footage, but JSO said it could not release it since the case is still under investigation.
The family wants the officers involved to be held accountable.
Sketchy scratch-off mistake
What Sheila Magno thought was her lucky day, turned out to be a $10,000 headache after she was told she couldn’t collect her scratch-off winnings because of a “possible state owed debt” to the Department of Economic Opportunity.
Before that day in December, Magno said she never won more than $200 off a scratch-off. She went to retrieve her winnings and learned that he social was flagged after getting unemployment assistance.
Magno said she was never notified about owing any money to the state, and that was quickly rectified when the Department of Commerce said Magno’s “debt” was indeed, a mistake.
She was finally able to pick up her check — just in time for Christmas.
Former Jags player suddenly dies
When reports broke about the sudden death of former Jaguars player Uche Nwaneri, fans across the country as well as Jacksonville residents who witnessed the offensive lineman on the field were shocked.
According to media reports, the offensive lineman was found unresponsive and died from a heart attack.
Fans along with former teammates shared condolences for the 38-year-old.