Zebra-donkey bites man's legs

SPRING LAKE — An employee at Boyett's Grove on Spring Lake Highway was treated for minor injuries after he was bitten by a zebra-donkey hybrid while working at the Hernando County attraction, authorities said.

James Oleson, 34, was painting a perimeter fence near the animal's enclosure around 11 a.m. Monday when the animal, called ZeDonk, put its head underneath the fence and started biting Oleson's feet, according to a report by the Hernando County Sheriff's Office, until his mother helped him get away.

ZeDonk will be quarantined in an enclosure at Boyett's Grove for the next 14 days.

Times Staff Writer

Man chows on canned tomatoes, naps in freezer of closed pub in Hernando

RIDGE MANOR — A 49-year-old man has been accused of breaking into a closed pub, eating a can of tomatoes and taking a nap in the walk-in freezer.

Timothy Dean St. Clair was arrested early Sunday and charged with commercial burglary. He was taken to the Hernando County Jail, where he was being held on $3,000 bond. It wasn't immediately clear if St. Clair was still in custody Monday.

According to the arrest report, St. Clair entered the fenced-in area of the business that was formerly Shakers Grill & Club at 31077 Cortez Blvd. He allegedly used a screwdriver to pry open a locked door to the storage shed, where he found the can of tomatoes.

After eating the tomatoes, St. Clair went into the shed and continued on into the walk-in freezer, which is currently not being used. St. Clair then fell asleep, the report said.

A Hernando deputy discovered St. Clair, who had no address listed in the report, during a security check of the building.

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From Tampabay.com

Brooksville's new dress code requires deodorant, underwear

If you want to work for the city of Brooksville, be sure that you use deodorant, that your clothes fit properly and that you cover up your wounds and tattoos.

And, for goodness sake, wear underwear.

If not, you could violate the city's new dress code.

The Brooksville City Council approved a dress and appearance policy by a count of 4-1 this month, with only Mayor Joe Bernardini casting the dissenting vote. He questioned how the code would be interpreted and enforced.

"They said you had to wear undergarments," Bernardini said, "but who's going to be the judge of that? Sometimes when it comes to certain people going bra-less, it's obvious. But who's staring to see if that person doesn't have underwear on?"

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Read the full story at Tampabay.com.

Wild whooping crane will live his days in a zoo after growing too fond of humans

SPRING HILL — The whooping crane known as 710 symbolizes what goes wrong when people feed wildlife.

The rare crane spent the winter in Spring Hill. But instead of foraging for food in the wild, he was nourished on bird feeders kept by nearby residents.

When 710 returned to Wisconsin in early spring, the bird again turned to humans.

He began to visit the ethanol plant five miles away from the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge, where truckloads of corn are delivered daily.

Wildlife officials tried to discourage him, but nothing worked.

When 710 boldly began pecking at the front door for food, they knew it was time. For the first time in Operation Migration's nine-year history, they pulled a whooping crane from the flock.

Too tame to live in the live in the wild, the crane was returned to Florida this week, to live his life among humans, as an educational exhibit at Lowry Park Zoo.

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Read the rest of the story at Tampabay.com.

Man gets citation for punching utility truck

SPRING HILL — Clarence Massat was okay with the utility workers coming onto his property just a bit in order to remove two telephone poles. But when they moved farther onto his land, he felt they had gone too far and he retaliated by attacking the utility truck, according to a police report.

Workers for the Withlacoochee River Electric Cooperative on Monday afternoon needed to use Massat's property on Coronado Drive in Spring Hill to reach the poles. After Massat gave them permission to go onto his land, they found they could not get their truck under two large trees, the Hernando County sheriff's report states.

When the workers moved the truck farther on his land, the report says he became enraged and confronted them.

He then kicked the truck's passenger side door and began punching the 2007 GMC truck repeatedly. Massat, 55, told the deputy, "I damaged their truck as much as they damaged my yard.''

The report states: "Unfortunately, Clarence did damage to his right hand as well.''

Massat was issued a misdemeanor citation for criminal mischief.

-- Times Staff Writer

Teen runaway found in man's bedroom

A 17-year-old runaway was found in a Port Richey man’s bedroom Monday, authorities say. The man, Brandon Davis, 21, of 5147 Mallet Drive, is charged with sexual battery, lewd and lascivious battery, interfering with custody and harming a minor. He is being held at the county jail in lieu of $70,000 bail.

The girl had been reported as a runaway to the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office on Saturday. A report says Davis drove to Spring Hill to pick up the girl and concealed her in his home — until his live-in girlfriend saw her and called the police.

The girl told authorities she had sex with Davis, and he told her to hide under his bed so his girlfriend wouldn’t see her.

Boy burned as he "camped" in garage with sister

The little girl and her 3-year-old brother decided to go camping in their Spring Hill garage on Thursday afternoon. After throwing a sheet over themselves for a tent as they sat on a couch, the girl began flicking a lighter to start a campfire. Within moments, the sheet caught fire, with flames reaching the ceiling, authorities said. In the panic that followed, the boy’s head, back and arms were seriously burned.

The fire spread throughout the entire garage and caused smoke and water damage at 13337 Teaberry Lane in Spring Hill, according to a Hernando County Sheriff’s Office report. The boy was burned on this scalp and had third-degree burns on his right ear and second-degree burns on his left ear, shoulder blades and entire right arm, the report states.

Both children, neither of whom was identified, had been left unsupervised for about 10-15 minutes when the fire started, according to the report, which noted that the boy’s mother, April Fisher and her friend, Stephanie Morales, were at home at the time. This was not the girl’s first run-in with fire, her mother told investigators. She has been caught playing with lighters on several other occasions and she had been reprimanded each time, the report states.

Mary Rodi, a caseworker for the Florida Department of Children and Families, concluded that there was no neglect or foul-play and determined the fire was an accident. There was miscommunication among the adults as to who was supposed to be watching the kids, Rodi wrote. After visiting the home, Rodi found that the damage made the house unlivable, and the family is staying at another Spring Hill address.
The fire did not surprise at least one neighbor, who said the children appear to be unsupervised often. “Those kids are always running around here but I hardly see the parents,” Nick Delnegro said on Friday.

-- Ryan Strong, Times Staff Writer

Sex abuse suspect said he was teaching teen about sex, detectives say

Hernando County sheriff’s deputies have arrested a Spring Hill man on five counts of sexual battery involving a teenage girl who was placed in his custody several years ago.

William Jeffrey McCutchen, 46, is accused of kissing and fondling the then-17-year-old girl shortly after she was sent to live with him, the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office said.

The alleged victim was not identified in the report. According to the report, the teenager lived with her biological mother prior to being sent to McCutchen’s home. She told detectives that she had not seen McCutchen since she was 4.

Soon after the move, McCutchen allegedly began performing oral sex on the girl and fondling her. The girl was later sent to live with McCutchen’s mother, but she told detectives that he continued to visit her almost daily. During one visit to his mother’s home, authorities said, McCutchen asked her to perform a sexual act on him. When the girl was unable to continue, he asked that she perform another sexual favor. He later performed oral sex on her, according to the report.

During an interview with detectives Friday, McCutchen admitted to participating in several sexual acts with the girl. He said he was trying to teach her about sex. McCutchen was arrested Tuesday and taken to the Hernando County Jail. He remained behind bars Wednesday in lieu of $100,000 bail.

-- Times Staff Writer

Hernando High vandalism could be senior "prank"

 

At least 18 students suspected of vandalizing Hernando High School late Monday face disciplinary action from school officials.

Students made their way onto the Bell Avenue campus and sprayed graffiti on 15 buildings throughout the school's campus and on a district-owned minivan, according to a police report. Police counted 54 distinct pieces of graffiti, according to the report.

Photos taken by investigators show that much of the graffiti was laced with profanity and included references to the class of 2009.

But the students, mostly 18-year-old seniors, likely won't face criminal charges because superintendent Wayne Alexander asked the Brooksville Police Department to stand down.

Surveillance cameras caught much of the activity and helped officials to identify the students.

John Frank, Times Staff Writer

She reports burglary, gets busted for pot

Hernando County Sheriff's deputies responded to an armed home invasion call at 520 Spring Haven Loop in Spring Hill on Tuesday. When deputies arrived at the apartment, they were told by Shakinma Waddy, 24, that she and her boyfriend were robbed by two men armed with guns who broke down the door

Waddy told deputies that she managed to escape and call the police. As the robbers left, they fired several shots at the apartment, injuring no one.

No one was arrested, except for Waddy.

It seeems that while investigating the incident, detectives found more than 20 grams of marijuana "packaged as if for sale" inside the home, the sheriff's office said. Waddy was charged with possession of marijuana over 20 grams and transported to the Hernando County Jail.

-- Andy Boyle, Times Staff Writer