Sarasota News Leader

01/11/2013

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NO BUTS OVER BUTTS Sarasota court ruling means the county no longer will be able to enforce its no-smoking ordinance for its beaches and parks — Rachel Brown Hackney New signage may be coming soon to Sarasota County parks — including Siesta Public Beach — encouraging people not to smoke but leaving them free from Sheriff's Office citations if they do so. As a result of a December court decision involving the City of Sarasota, Sarasota County no longer will be able to enforce an ordinance that bans smoking outdoors on public property. The Sarasota County Sheriff's Office has not been enforcing the prohibition since the court ruling was handed down, Sgt. Scott Osborne, chief of the office's Community Policing Station on Siesta Key, told The Sarasota News Leader on Jan. 9. Osborne said the Sheriff's Office's counsel had advised deputies to write no more citations as a result of the judge's ruling. (Full story here) MILLIMETERS FROM DEATH A Sarasota Police Department officer draws gun on a realtor and client on New Year's Eve, mistaking them for burglars — Stan Zimmerman On Dec. 31, a local realtor and her client were confronted by a Sarasota police officer and forced at gunpoint to lie on a dirty concrete floor, they have reported. For at least five minutes, the pair was facedown on a gritty carport with a loaded pistol aimed at the tops of their heads. Realtor Susan Christy says it happened about 1 p.m. at a home adjacent to the Publix grocery store on South Lime Avenue, west of South Shade Street. She and a client, who asked not to be identified, were inspecting a house for sale. Christy says she understands how the female officer could have misinterpreted things initially. "We parked in the [Publix] parking lot and walked over, so there was no car in the driveway," she said. "There was no 'For Sale' sign in the yard, and you couldn't see the [realty company] lockbox because the door was in the carport. They later said a neighbor called in a burglary," she added. (Full story here) Click Any Headline To Go Directly To That Article AT A GLANCE TOP STORIES

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