WOKC Local News – August 26, 2026, 7:40 AM
Transcript
WOKC News. Trying to stop horse thieves with WOKC News, I’m Charles Murphy. Several publicized theft of horses in St. Lucie and Okeechobee in the past few years. There’s a third degree felony charge in Florida to slaughter horses for human consumption. Nonetheless, there is a market in Broward and Dade County. There is more awareness of the problem today. More than 7,400 Facebook users regularly share information in a group keeping Florida horses safe. Net Posse is also wanting to help stop horse thefts. Awareness is key. Debbie Metcalf, their organizer, says if you put in alarms, cameras and have dogs around, your horses will be safer. But there’s also things like peacocks, guinea hens. They make a lot of noise when people come on the property. You want something that makes noise. He says it’s often hard to prove ownership, so make sure you ID them with a brand or a microchip. You still have to prove it’s yours. And you’d be shocked at how many people can’t do that. They think a registration paper with a breed is proof of ownership. In a court of law, most times it is not. The meat from one horse can bring some $20,000. It is a cruel death with guns rarely used, but many choosing to use knives to kill the horse. A justice on the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals coming under question after being nominated to a lifetime judgeship by the president. Jeffrey Coons recently ruled in favor of the president. An appeal involving the Pulitzer Prize board in a libel case filed in Okeechobee Circuit Court. Coons is now the chief judge in the fourth district. The Senate Judiciary Committee interviewed Coons earlier this year. Delaware Democrat Chris Coons questioned the judge if he stayed on the case after being nominated by the president. Did you consider recusing yourself from that particular decision? No. And the cannons that govern us in Florida, Senator, as I believe this committee has previously heard, it did not call for me to recuse myself. I did not have an interest in the litigation. And none of the basis called for recusal in the Florida Supreme Court instructs the appellate judges that we are not to recuse unless one of the basis in Canon three exists. Operation Slowdown is going well in neighboring St. Lucie County. Sheriff Richard Del Toro says he sees people changing their behaviors behind the wheel and reducing speeds. At the same time, we’re seeing a decrease in the highest speeds recorded in the 25 mile an hour zone, dropping from 65 to 40 miles per hour, an indication that enforcement is changing behavior. They’ve written some forty eight hundred and eleven traffic citations in the past nine weeks. A stabbing reported on August 20th at 1748 Northeast Third Street. Okeechobee County deputies say it was jealousy over a woman. One woman came to the home and found another woman there. The suspect, Demetrius Haggins, apparently became upset, grabbed a candlestick with a pointed edge and allegedly stabbed the victim. The victim then drove to Indian town to get medical help for one wound. She had to be flown to Longwood in Fort Pierce to charge against Haggins is aggravated battery. His bond was set at seventy five thousand dollars. I’m Charles Murphy. WOKC News.
Recorded from the WOKC daily newscast (Glades Media).