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What Tampa is talking about
public safety
Billy Adams III, a Tampa hip-hop artist known as Ace NH, was tried over the January 30, 2023, shooting death of 22-year-old Alana Sims in New Tampa while she was about five months pregnant. Prosecutors alleged that Adams lured Sims to an unfinished-road area and killed her; the jury convicted him before the penalty phase. Under Florida’s capital-sentencing process, the jury’s decision is a recommendation, with Hillsborough Circuit Judge Mark Wolfe to impose the final sentence after further proceedings.
via tampabay.com·13h agoDetails →
infrastructure
Public Power St. Pete, a coalition including the grassroots Dump Duke campaign and environmental and affordability groups, is seeking a 2028 charter-amendment ballot question on creating a city-owned electric utility. The initiative comes after St. Petersburg’s Duke Energy franchise agreement expired in August and while the city conducts its own feasibility study of municipal power. Supporters cite affordability, reliability and local control, while Duke’s commissioned analysis estimates a takeover could cost billions of dollars.
via tampabay.com·13h agoDetails →
housing
Hillsborough County had been developing short-term vacation-rental regulations for unincorporated areas after complaints about party houses and related code issues. The Board of County Commissioners approved a draft registration ordinance on Aug. 5 and scheduled its final hearing for Sept. 2. Commissioners then approved the rules, which take effect Jan. 1, 2027, and include registration, an annual fee, and local-response requirements.
via tampabay.com·13h agoDetails →
weather
Jill and Scott Walker, a Tampa couple, traveled with their two sons on a roughly three-week spiritual pilgrimage to Mount Kailash in Tibet. Catastrophic flooding and landslides disrupted their planned exit through the Nepal-Tibet border region, forcing their group onto alternate routes before the family returned to Tampa.
via wfla.com·13h agoDetails →
public safety
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Tampa is investigating the alleged illegal importation of antiquities from the Eastern Mediterranean, Europe and Africa. The collection is being evaluated with assistance from the University of South Florida and the University of Pennsylvania because authenticating cultural property requires specialist review. Authorities have not publicly identified suspects, networks, a seizure location or a value for the collection.
via fox13news.com·13h agoDetails →
public safety
Bartow’s former police chief, Stephen Walker, resigned effective immediately on Aug. 14 after city officials confronted him about an employee complaint received Aug. 12. City officials said a preliminary inquiry found the allegations credible, but have not publicly described their nature, and Walker did not admit wrongdoing. The city has brought in an outside investigator for its internal-affairs case while the Polk County Sheriff’s Office separately examines whether criminal conduct occurred.
via fox13news.com·13h agoDetails →
sports
Sean Murphy-Bunting began his NFL career with Tampa Bay after the Buccaneers selected the Central Michigan defensive back in the second round of the 2019 draft. He was a key contributor to the club’s Super Bowl LV run, becoming the first Buccaneer to intercept a pass in three consecutive playoff games. After four seasons in Tampa Bay, he played for Tennessee and Arizona before returning following his release by the Cardinals during 2026 roster cutdowns.