Regional

A team of law enforcement officers corrals Ward on Monday morning. (COURTESY)

A team of law enforcement officers corrals Ward on Monday morning. (COURTESY)

Inmate captured shortly after escape

JAMIE WACHTER
Monday, January 17, 2022
LIVE OAK — Using a bread delivery to make a run from the Suwannee County Jail turned out to be a half-baked plan. Anthony Ward, a 48-year-old inmate at the jail, escaped Monday morning around 6:30 a.m. while serving as a trustee in the kitchen.

Gaming sites get ‘safe harbor’

JAMIE WACHTER
Monday, January 17, 2022
LIVE OAK — The Live Oak City Council still plans to pull the plug on simulated gaming devices. The ban, though, was delayed slightly during the council’s Jan. 11 meeting when it agreed to enact a safe harbor provision into its ordinance of 30 days.
Earl Mills, a Live Oak resident and a World War II veteran who fought in Normandy, France, on D-Day, received the French Legion of Honor medal Thursday from Francois Kloc, an honorary consul of France. (COURTESY)

Earl Mills, a Live Oak resident and a World War II veteran who fought in Normandy, France, on D-Day, received the French Legion of Honor medal Thursday from Francois Kloc, an honorary consul of France. (COURTESY)

Knight of honor: D-Day vet Mills earns French recognition

JAMIE WACHTER
Friday, January 14, 2022
LIVE OAK — Nearly 80 years ago, Earl Mills jumped out of a plane over Normandy, France. That willingness to help liberate the European nation during World War II was honored Thursday at Mills’ farm south of Live Oak.

Judge: O’Steen’s attorney OK

NEWS STAFF
Friday, January 14, 2022
JACKSONVILLE — No change in counsel is needed in the corruption case involving the former Third Judicial Circuit state attorney. Joel B. Toomey, a U.S. Magistrate judge, denied the U.S.

No boloney: Man faces child abuse charges

NEWS STAFF
Friday, January 14, 2022
SUWANNEE RANCHETTES — A Suwannee County man faces child abuse charges after trying to force a victim to eat a sandwich Thursday afternoon. No baloney. According to a Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office report, 51-year-old James Parrish grabbed the boy by the face around 1:37 p.m.

Live Oak expanding MLK Day celebration

JAMIE WACHTER
Friday, January 14, 2022
LIVE OAK — The Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration is getting an early start in Live Oak. In addition to the annual parade, church service and community feeding on Monday, the MLK Planning Committee is hosting a pair of events Saturday as well.
A truck hauling gas tanks overturned in the media of U.S. Hwy. 129 near the Interstate 10 interchange Friday north of Live Oak. The only tank that leaked was an oxygen tanks, according to first responders. (COURTESY)

A truck hauling gas tanks overturned in the media of U.S. Hwy. 129 near the Interstate 10 interchange Friday north of Live Oak. The only tank that leaked was an oxygen tanks, according to first responders. (COURTESY)

Spilled gas tanks delays traffic

NEWS STAFF
Friday, January 14, 2022
LIVE OAK — A two-vehicle crash led to a bigger problem north of Live Oak on Friday afternoon. A truck hauling gas tanks overturned in the median of U.S. Hwy. 129 near the Interstate 10 interchange while trying to avoid the earlier collision.
Suwannee County Fire Rescue and the Branford Volunteer Fire Department respond to a late-night fire at The Gathering Cafe Wednesday evening. (COURTESY)

Suwannee County Fire Rescue and the Branford Volunteer Fire Department respond to a late-night fire at The Gathering Cafe Wednesday evening. (COURTESY)

Branford Gathering closed after late-night rooftop blaze

JAMIE WACHTER
Thursday, January 13, 2022
BRANFORD — A long-time Branford fixture will be closed for the foreseeable future. The Gathering Cafe, located on Suwannee Avenue, caught fire Wednesday night with Suwannee County Fire Rescue and Branford Volunteer Fire Department responding around 10:45 p.m.