A six-member jury took only two hours to find Indian River County Administrator Joe Baird not guilty of DUI late Wednesday afternoon.

Baird, noticeably jubilant, sat with his attorney Bobby Guttridge as the court clerk read the verdict at 3:57 p.m. Baird then hugged his girlfriend and deferred comments to his attorney, before leaving the courthouse. (more…)

VERO BEACH — The DUI trial of County Administrator Joe Baird continues today with more defense witnesses testifying about his physical condition before his arrest at 10:25 p.m. May 16 in Vero Beach.

Baird “appeared perfectly normal to me” around 10 p.m., Baird’s long-time friend John Binkley testified Tuesday at the end of trial testimony for the day.

Testimony is expected to end today, possibly in time for the case to go to jurors for a decision.
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VERO BEACH — Jury selection begins Monday in the DUI trial of Indian River County Administrator Joe Baird and prosecutors will get to use key evidence the defense wanted excluded.

County Judge David Morgan refused defense attorney Bobby Guttridge’s request Wednesday to toss out the May 16 arrest, which the attorney said was based on an invalid stop. (more…)

STUART — Described as a loving father and caring person, Jerome Hutchinson was found early Monday morning face down on the sidewalk leading to his East Stuart residence.

The 24-year-old man had been shot in the chest, the second to die in an exceptionally violent weekend in Stuart. The first was Michael Morrison, 43, found early Saturday morning on his back next to his Jeep at The Crossings at Indian Run Apartments less than four miles away.

Morrison also had been shot in the chest, but police haven’t found a nexus between the two killings, police spokesman Sgt. Marty Jacobson said Monday.
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Theresa Caputo of Stuart, in black, hugs another woman Wednesday at the scene of a memorial that was built along Cove Road near Stuart. Caputo, a mother of three, said her children all knew and grew up with those killed. (DEBORAH SILVER/Treasure Coast Newspapers)

A few teenagers in board shorts and T-shirts lifted their sunglasses just long enough to wipe away their tears and hug one another in the grass along Cove Road Wednesday afternoon as they stood above a swelling memorial site.

Amid her tears, a mother bent down, reached through the letters, flowers and mementos and clutched a golf ball in her hand.

Angela Coady said she knew one of her son Nick’s friends had put it there intending for it to stay, but when she saw it she decided she had to take it with her.

“The last time I saw him he was going to play golf. He was happy as a lark,” she said. “The next time I saw him, he was dead.”

Nick Coady, 18, and his friends — Christopher Harold Briglio, 18, and Connor William Graver, 16, — were all killed early Tuesday when the Jeep Grand Cherokee that Coady was driving slammed into the back of a John Deere truck and overturned.

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STUART — It just doesn’t make sense to Bill Wallace.

Why would Chrysler close a profitable dealership in a growing area?

Why would the beleaguered automaker allow a franchise in out-of-the-way Okeechobee to remain open, while closing several on the more populated Treasure Coast?

He’s selling cars. He bought more of them than he needed from Chrysler this year, at the urging of the company’s top brass, he says.

But his Wallace Chrysler Jeep in Fort Pierce is still slated to shut down after June 9, along with 788 other dealerships that Chrysler decided to close as part of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition.

“We weathered this tsunami, and in America, you should be rewarded for that, not punished,” said Wallace, a third-generation dealer whose grandfather opened a Chevrolet dealership in West Palm Beach in the 1930s.

Wallace is among more than 300 dealers across the country who have joined forces to fight Chrysler’s decision. The group, called the Committee of Chrysler Affected Dealers, wants more time. More time to prove it would be a mistake to ax them.

But if Chrysler gets its way in bankruptcy court - as many industry watchers believe it will - five Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge dealers between Indiantown Road in Jupiter and Vero Beach will be among those that close next month. (more…)

VERO BEACH — Indian River County Administrator Joe Baird refused to take a Breathalyzer test but failed most of the sobriety exercises he performed Saturday when he was charged with driving under the influence, according to an arrest affidavit released Monday.

While Baird faces some legal consequences for the charge, county officials said the matter wouldn’t have professional ramifications.
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STUART — The Stuart Jeep and Stuart Volkswagen dealerships on U.S. 1 are going out of business on Friday as a result of the economic downturn and the Chrysler bankruptcy.

The owner of the dealership, Tom Willett, made the announcement Wednesday afternoon to about 70 workers, said Mark Babcock, a Jeep service manager who lives in Port St. Lucie.

Willett attributed the closing largely to the Chrysler bankruptcy, which will result in the closing of dealerships throughout the country, Babcock said. Stuart Jeep was vulnerable because it was a standalone dealership that did not include the auto maker’s Chrysler or Dodge brands.

“We all gave Mr. Willett a round of applause,” Babcock said. “We knew he tried his best for us. Tom Willett was a great owner. You can’t fault the guy. He tried to do everything he could.”

The dealership employed about 70 people, mainly salespeople, mechanics, detailers, officer workers and managers, Babcock said.

“It’s like a family type organization,” Babcock said.

The Jeep and Volkswagen dealerships will close for good at 5 p.m. Friday and the remaining automobiles will be returned to the manufacturers or sold through an auction, Babcock said.

“It’s been a good 14-year run,” Babcock said. “We survived hurricanes. If we had Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge, we might’ve stood a chance. That’s just the way it is. It’s sad, but it’s also business.”

By George Andreassi, TCPalm.com

FORT PIERCE — Eleven people trickled into the Fort Pierce Community Center Wednesday to spend the night as temperatures dipped into the 30s.

For the fifth night this year, the center had been turned into a temporary cold weather shelter for the homeless.

This morning, the folks who took refuge awoke before dawn to fold blankets, down some hot coffee and layer on their sweaters and flannel shirts. (more…)