Local

Outdoor opportunities abound, even in the wake of covid-19

If you’re bored this summer, you just aren’t looking hard enough. The options for outdoor recreation may not be what they were before the pandemic — playgrounds aren’t fair game in some places, for example — but there’s still plenty of opportunities to hike, swim and more.

City Charter Review to focus on election reform

Election rules are poised to be a major point of focus as Lake City dives into the process of updating the city government’s foundational charter, parts of which haven’t seen any revisions in decades.

Charter Review Commission: Measure would require monitoring of county manager

Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of articles explaining proposals the county Charter Review Commission wishes to place on the ballot this fall for voter approval. Public hearings for additional resident input are set to begin June 17.

Normally kind man chokes dog, say cops

LIVE OAK — A normally friendly neighborhood man, known to frequently give treats to dogs on the block and let children ride on his tricycle, threw a violent temper tantrum that landed him in jail Tuesday on animal cruelty, aggravated assault and battery charges, according to a Live Oak Police...

2 face charges in months-old home burglary case

Deputies closed the case on a months-old home burglary case with the arrest of two men who traveled from Lake City to Georgia to sell the stolen goods, according to the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office.

Williams uses facility he closed as campaign prop

A two-minute campaign video provoked the latest controversy in local politics — not about the content of the message, but rather what was in the background.  On Friday, incumbent County Commissioner Ron Williams uploaded a video of himself standing in the Richardson Community Center gym.

Cops say he forged deed, tried to evict man from own home

A scheme to steal real estate with a fake deed backfired on a Tallahassee man this week, Columbia County deputies say.

Home invasion suspects are old pals, say police

Two close friends, who’d been pals since their high school days, were smoking crack together near some trees when they got the idea to rob a home close by, according to the Lake City Police Department.

14-year-old is suspect in robbery

A street mugging on Sunday led to the arrest of a 14-year-old, according to the Lake City Police Department.  The juvenile, Samuel Levell Phillips, was taken into custody after officers spoke with his parents while following up on reports of an armed robbery on Southeast Colburn Avenue around 9 p.

Testing boosts totals at Hamilton Correctional Institution

Hamilton Correctional Institution continues to be a hotspot for covid-19, accounting for the majority of confirmed cases in Hamilton County.  Hamilton County had 206 confirmed cases as of Monday, according to the Florida Department of Health.