FORT PIERCE — One man died, another was shot and six vehicles were found with bullet holes following a Monday shooting incident in the area of the 500 block of North 19th Street, police reported Tuesday.

Joseph Edward Torre, 20, was found face down in the front yard of an apartment building, and was pronounced dead after being taken to a local hospital. Torre, of the 1700 block of West Royal Tern Lane in Fort Pierce, had been shot in the torso and his breathing was shallow when officers arrived.
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VERO BEACH — A woman killed Monday as part of a murder-suicide at a nursing home had been staying there for about two months, police said.

Mary P. Lett, 84, and her husband, Frederick R. Lett, 91, of the 4700 block of Bethel Creek Drive, Vero Beach, were found dead in the courtyard of the Royal Palm Convalescent Center about 8:50 a.m., Vero Beach police said. The center is in the 2100 block of 10th Avenue.

Police believe Frederick Lett shot his wife during a visit and then turned the gun on himself.
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VERO BEACH — Police on Monday morning were investigating a possible murder-suicide at a nursing home that left a husband and wife dead.

Police were called shortly before 9 a.m. to the Royal Palm Convalescent Center in the 2100 block of 10th Avenue, Vero Beach. The couple was found in the courtyard, Indian River County Fire Marshal Brian Nolan said.

Police as of 9:30 a.m. were continuing to investigate the incident. No further details were released.

This story will be updated when further information is available.
Lamaur Stancil, TCPalm.com

VERO BEACH — A 26-year-old woman guilty of vehicular homicide of two motorcyclists on Interstate 95 will be serving 18 1/2 years in state prison, a circuit judge ruled Wednesday.

Dominique Brice, of Miami, could have faced up to 30 years in jail for the deaths in 2008 of the motorcyclists who were parked and taking a break along the northbound lanes of I-95 at the juncture of St. Lucie and Indian River counties in the middle of a sunny day on Feb. 29, 2008, .

A jury on Oct. 14 found her guilty after witnesses told of seeing Brice’s vehicle speeding at 87 mph and weaving in traffic while she had her two children and brother in the car.

The vehicle eventually went out of control and struck two men who were taking a break along the highway.

“I know I can’t bring them back,” Brice tearfully told Circuit Judge Robert Pegg before sentencing. “That is my doing. I have a heart. It was an accident.”
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INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Deputies charged a woman with beating a boy with an extension cord Wednesday.

Lehoter Pleshett St. Aime, 35, of the 4700 block of 40th Avenue, Vero Beach, was charged with child abuse and aggravated assault. She posted $5,000 bail Thursday at the Indian River County Jail. (more…)

INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Authorities Tuesday filed charges against a man who allegedly punched and killed a 6-pound dog earlier this month.

Justin Dabelow, 23, of the 1300 block of 16th Court Southwest, Vero Beach, posted $7,000 bail Wednesday at the Indian River County Jail. He was charged with cruelty to animals, disposal of bodies of dead animals and abandonment of an animal.

Dabelow told the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office on Nov. 7 he was at his home and removing his girlfriend’s Yorkshire terrier from its crate when it bit him on his hand. He punched the dog and it went unconscious.

Later, he and his girlfriend checked on the dog and found it was dead, according to an incident report. Dabelow took the dog’s body and tossed it into the woods behind his home, the report states.

By Lamaur Stancil, TCPalm.com

VERO BEACH — Police are investigating nude photos of underage girls found on a memory card in the lost-and-found at the Vero Beach Hotel and Club.

An employee at the hotel in the 3500 block of Ocean Drive told police she placed the memory card in the lost-and-found four months ago, according to the police report. The hotel’s policy is to allow employees to keep unclaimed items they have turned in after three months. When the employee saw the images of the young teenage girls on the card, she decided to contact police.
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VERO BEACH — Minor League Baseball officials hope their plans for the former Dodgertown will bring year-round business to local hotels, restaurants, stores and health clubs.

Craig Callan, the vice president of MiLB Vero Beach, updated the Taxpayers’ Association of Indian River County at its monthly membership meeting Wednesday on the future of the former spring training home of the Los Angeles Dodgers. (more…)

VERO BEACH — A high-level financial struggle over the troubled Vero Fashion Outlets now may reach into an owner’s family trust, court records show.

In early October the outdoor mall filed for bankruptcy in federal court, a move that halted a foreclosure lawsuit filed by the mall’s creditor, LNV Corp. of Nevada, in Indian River Circuit Court. LNV Corp.’s attorney Kenneth Curtin contends the mall defaulted on a $32 million loan for purchase of the 329,000-square-foot mall in 2007. (more…)

VERO BEACH — A second high-level Piper Aircraft Inc. executive is resigning from the company, less than six months after the company’s chief executive officer resigned.

The resignation of Piper’s president, John Becker, was announced Monday. His last day is Dec. 1. (more…)