1+ hour, 28+ min ago  (204+ words) Michael Mathis is a sergeant. The Longboat Key Police Department officer, who joined the department in 2023, was promoted by Police Chief Russ Mager. He replaces Lee Smith, who retired in late May. Mager described the responsibilities of a sergeant as…...

1+ week, 2+ day ago  (132+ words) Unwanted firearms, pellet guns and BB guns will be accepted at Sarasota Police Department on Saturday, July 11 during the Done with the Gun turn-in event. From 1-5 p.m. at police headquarters, 2099 Adams Lane, officers will accept a variety of items including non-working…...

1+ week, 2+ day ago  (752+ words) Local governments in Florida and across the country collect approximately $8 billion in law enforcement fines and forfeitures annually. In most cases, these revenues account for a vanishingly small portion of government budgets — just 0.38% on average. However, some governments have come…...

2+ week, 1+ day ago  (1340+ words) Growing up in Sarasota, William “Tripp” Schwenk enjoyed playing many sports. When he was introduced to the pool in the form of competitive swimming at age 9, though, he knew then he wanted to be an Olympian. Returning to Sarasota after…...

4+ week, 1+ day ago  (103+ words) Manatee County Sheriff's Office deputies arrested East County's Tony Barrett on Thursday on a charge of domestic battery touch or strike. The bail was set at $750. Randy Warren, the public information officer for the Manatee County Sheriff's Office, said deputies…...

4+ week, 22+ hour ago  (228+ words) A Sarasota woman is in the Manatee County jail on no bond in connection with a pair of high-profile burglaries of businesses in St. Armands Circle and a third on Webber Road in unincorporated Sarasota County. Sarasota Police announced the…...

1+ mon, 1+ week ago  (267+ words) A longtime sergeant with the Longboat Key Police Department is calling it a career. Lee Smith began with LKPD in 2012 as an officer, earning promotion to sergeant in charge of overseeing road patrol officers within the department. At the June…...

1+ mon, 3+ week ago  (171+ words) A 34-year-old Sarasota man was charged with two counts of second-degree homicide following his Saturday arrest in the deaths of his girlfriend and 6-year-old son in a housing development near Rothenbach Park. Nicholas Novickis was ordered held in the Sarasota…...

1+ mon, 3+ week ago  (612+ words) The qualities that make an effective student safety patroller aren’t complicated, according to fifth-grader Noah Moise. “It's really basic, simple,” he said. “You just have to be kind, respectful, care for others, and just be responsible, noticing a problem and…...

1+ mon, 3+ week ago  (152+ words) Your Observer Sarasota gunfire remains under investigation Police looking into a Wednesday shooting into an unoccupied vehicle. A late afternoon shooting on Wednesday, May 20, remains under investigation by the Sarasota Police Department. The shooting occurred in the 1800 block of 33rd Street,…...