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Pinellas County Sheriff

#14 on list of Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Politicians — Bob Gualtieri

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

As the Treasurer of the Florida Sheriffs Association, Bob Gualtieri has become a ubiquitous presence in recent years in Tallahassee during the legislative session, advocating for or against bills involving law enforcement. First selected as Pinellas County Sheriff in 2011, Gualtieri survived an intense battle for the job against former sheriff Everett Rice in 2012, before easily winning reelection last fall. He’s been frequently in the news this year when it comes to immigration issues. For years, Gualtieri has push…

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Mother charged after son beats newborn sister to death

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

A 62-year-old Florida woman is charged with aggravated manslaughter after authorities had said her 6-year-old son beat his newborn sister to death while the children and their 3-year-old brother were left alone in the family’s minivan. During a news conference Thursday, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said the baby — 13-day-old Kathleen Bridget Steele — was pronounced dead Monday afternoon at St. Petersburg General Hospital. But investigators believe she died earlier, inside the van where her mother, Kathleen Steele, had left the children for 38…

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Pinellas Sheriff, two police chiefs reiterate opposition to open carry

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Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri and the chiefs of the county’s two largest cities said Wednesday they support the Second Amendment but oppose open carry gun laws. The problem, they said, comes in a crisis. If there’s one or more active shooters whom police are seeking, they’ll have a harder time telling the good guys from the bad if a lot of people have weapons. That’s especially true after the July 7 ambush killing of five Dallas police officers, St.…

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Rick Kriseman: ‘I’ll be damned if we’re going to let violence stop us’ from celebrating St. Pete Pride weekend

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St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman and police Chief Anthony Holloway met with members of the community and media Thursday to reassure them that Pride weekend would go ahead as planned, but with a bit more security. The reassurances became necessary in the wake of Sunday’s shooting at the gay Pulse nightclub in Orlando that left 49 dead and more than 50 wounded. Officials said they’d gotten many questions from people wondering if the June 25 Pride parade and the June…

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Lack of competition hasn’t slowed down fundraising for some Pinellas County candidates

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There aren’t too many candidates running for each of the Pinellas County constitutional officer posts up for election in 2016, but that doesn’t mean the donation money isn’t flowing. According to the Supervisor of Elections’ most recent finance reports, in the Pinellas Property Appraiser race, Mike Twitty, a political newcomer and 25-year professional real estate appraiser, is handily out-fundraising his lone opponent, fellow Republican and former state Rep. Jim Frishe, $120,820 to $44,065. Current Pinellas Property Appraiser Pam Dubov is stepping down at the…

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Two Dunedin Commissioners in hot water over potential Sunshine Law violation

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Two Dunedin City Commissioners may be in very hot water over the recent events leading up to City Manager Rob DiSpirito’s abrupt resignation. The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office is launching an official investigation against Commissioner Heather Gracy and Vice Mayor Bruce Livingston for potential Sunshing Law violations. Gracy initiated an unexpected motion to fire DiSpirito at a meeting in early January. She said his leadership skills had become lacking and he was instead merely keeping with the city’s status quo.…

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Bob Gualtieri tops $62,000 in January from donors for sheriff re-election bid

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

Despite lacking any formidable opponent, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri doesn’t appear to be taking any chances in his re-election bid. Gualtieri raised more than $62,000 in January bringing his total campaign account to about $72,000. Gualtieri’s only filed opponent, James McLynas, has not raised a dime. Gualtieri’s fundraising haul came mostly from large contributions. More than $30,000 of his January total came from maximum $1,000 contributions. That includes several in the law enforcement and legal field. Former Pinellas County…

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