FORT PIERCE — On a morning just over seven years ago, Joan Loughman was on the phone with her twin sister when she ended their call abruptly.

“She said, ‘I have to go, someone’s at the door,’” Assistant State Attorney Lynne Park told a group of jurors today.

Park said it was the last time anyone heard from Loughman before she was found bludgeoned to death and stripped of her jewelry inside her father’s house on Hutchinson Island south of Fort Pierce.

A jury in 2005 determined that Loughman’s death came at the hands of Michael Andrew Gosciminski, who wound up on Death Row for the crime. But a state court’s ruling last year overturning his conviction has led to a second trial, which began Friday, two days after the seventh anniversary of Loughman’s murder.

(more…)

NETTLES ISLAND — Agriculture is often a family business passed down from father to son. But the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office says one father and son team’s four-year farming operation has landed them in jail.

Michael O’Leary, 48, and Travis O’Leary, 27, were arrested this morning on charges of cultivating and trafficking in marijuana. According to a St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office report deputies searched their home on Nettles Boulevard in Nettles Island, a gated community on Hutchinson Island, finding an attic grow room containing 62 marijuana plants.

Michael O’Leary told deputies that he has been growing marijuana for about four years, according to the report. Both father and son were booked into the St. Lucie County Jail.

ST. LUCIE COUNTY — Dog owners could find a new place to take their pets if County Commissioners allow dogs to roam Wildcat Cove.

The measure would let dog owners allow their pets to roam without leashes in the area so long as the owner is in control of the dog.

Wildcat Cove is located at 3399 North A1A in North Hutchinson Island just west of Pepper Park. The area has a riverside view.

Commissioners are expected to set a date for a public hearing at Tuesday’s meeting. The meeting is at 6 p.m. at 2300 Virginia Ave. in Fort Pierce, and the public hearing is expected to be in early October. If passed then, the space could be used as of Nov. 1.
(more…)

HUTCHINSON ISLAND - At noon, everyone in the Treasure Coast: cover your ears.

The St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant plans to test its sirens today … all 90 sirens within a 10-mile emergency zone. (more…)

Photo provided by the U.S. Navy shows a team from the USS Boxer towing the lifeboat from the Maersk Alabama.

Now, a museum dedicated to the SEALs will have a part of that historical day in April.

The National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum near Fort Pierce is expected to receive at 10 a.m. Friday the lifeboat on which Capt. Richard Phillips was held hostage after Somali pirates seized his cargo ship, the MV Maersk Alabama, about 280 miles south of the Somali port city Eyl.

The public is invited to attend Friday when the lifeboat arrives at the museum.

For museum officials, the lifeboat is a rare find and an important moment in the modern history of the SEALs.

“It’s a piece of history that comes in on the heels of the actual event,” said retired Navy Capt. Michael Howard, the museum’s executive director and a former SEAL. “We can’t believe it really. We’re kind of pinching ourselves.”

Over the years the museum — the only one in the world dedicated to preserving the history of the SEALs and their predecessors —has built up quite a collection. (more…)

Jack, a green sea turtle, before he was released.

After riding for several hours in a car, the loggerhead sea turtle had lifted its head with apparent interest when the hatch swung open, flapping a flipper at staff members from The Florida Aquarium in Tampa.

And the flapping grew more intense when they hoisted the 50-pound turtle toward the Intracoastal Waterway off Hutchinson Island in St. Lucie County.

But, upon entering the waterway, Teddy seemed to lose interest, swimming a few feet away, then turning back and lifting both head and flipper out of the water.

“He’s saying bye,” said Virginia Wright-Placeres, a staff member at the aquarium.

But Teddy didn’t leave. The turtle swam nearby while staff members released a 10-pound green sea turtle, nicknamed Jack, into the water. (more…)

HUTCHINSON ISLAND – The St. Lucie County Department of Public Safety and the Martin County Department of Emergency Services will conduct a quarterly test of the outdoor warning sirens for FP&L’s St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant at noon on today.

The test will involve a one-minute sounding of all 90 sirens within the 10-mile St. Lucie Emergency Planning Zone. Before and after the sirens sound, a message will be broadcast on the sirens public address system stating: “This is only a test.” There will be a 15-second wail of the sirens at the end of the final test announcement.

The testing of the siren system is to improve public awareness of its function and ensure its operability.

In the unlikely event of an actual emergency at the St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant, the sirens would sound for a five-minute period, followed by official instructions and another five-minute sounding of the siren system. Detailed instructions for the general population would be then broadcast over local radio and television.

For more information visit: www.stlucieco.gov/eoc.

PORT ST. LUCIE — It didn’t take long for retiring state Sen. Ken Pruitt to find a new gig.

The Port St. Lucie Republican announced Tuesday that he has accepted a job handling government relations and public affairs for the Boca Raton-based law firm Weiss, Handler, Angelos & Cornwell.

Cynthia Angelos, a partner at the firm and former St. Lucie County chief circuit judge, is a longtime friend of Pruitt’s.

The firm has offices in Port St. Lucie, Boca Raton and Palm Beach.

After 19 years as a state legislator, Pruitt announced in May he would retire in August — more than a year before the end of his term.

Pruitt said he achieved his goals as a legislator and wanted to spend more time with his family.

NORTH HUTCHINSON ISLAND – County officials announced today the precautionary boil water notice has been lifted for all St. Lucie County Utilities customers who reside on North Hutchinson Island.

The notice was issued Tuesday after a water main break.

If you have any questions, contact St. Lucie County Utilities at (772) 462-1150.

NORTH HUTCHINSON ISLAND – Due to a water main break, a precautionary boil water notice has been issued for all St. Lucie County Utilities customers who reside on the following streets on North Hutchinson Island:

* Atlantic Beach Boulevard
* Oak Drive
* Tamarind Drive
* North Ocean Drive

The St. Lucie County Utilities Department advises that any water used for drinking or cooking be boiled. A rolling boil of one minute is sufficient. Bottled water may be used as an alternative.

This precautionary boil water notice will remain in effect until further notice. If you have any questions, contact St. Lucie County Utilities at (772) 462-1150.