From the Newsroom: The Panama City News Herald

What by all appearances was a simple chest purchased after Hurricane Michael for use in a third-grade classroom turned into a reminder of the value of local journalism.

The fentanyl allegedly discovered by officers converts to 86,900 milligrams, with a mere two milligrams considered a lethal dose, according to the American Addiction Centers, the fentanyl was enough to kill more than 43,000 people. To put that in perspective, the population in Panama City proper was a little more than 36,000 residents in 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

he man who shot and killed one boy and injured another at the Beach Tuesday alleged the stepbrothers tried to steal his bag, court records state. Christopher Lawrence Cox, 37, is being charged with murder and attempted murder after police say he admitted shooting two 14-year-old stepbrothers from Louisville, Kentucky while on vacation in Panama City Beach.

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A local man has been charged and identified in the shooting death of one Kentucky minor and the injury of another outside a Panama City Beach resort early Tuesday morning. According to a press release from the Panama City Beach Police Department, Christopher Lawrence Cox, 37 of Panama City Beach, is in police custody after officers were called to the Shores of Panama at about 1:30 a.m. in reference to a shooting. He has been charged with one count of murder and one count of attempted murder.

Word is spreading about Downtown Panama City. This couple took a last-minute get-away weekend to the beach but ended up dining downtown. Here's how.

According to the Panama City Beach Police Department, the juveniles, a 12-year-old boy and 13-year-old girl, stole the vehicle at the Fuel 360 Store at Hutchison Boulevard and Alf Coleman Road.

A downtown Panama City restaurant was temporarily closed last week after an inspector found rodent and roach activity. An inspector with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation visited The Funky Mermaid Lounge, located at 448 Harrison Ave. on March 9. A total of seven violations, were noted in the inspection report. The high-priority violations included the presence of three live, small flying insects in the dish area and roach activity "present as evidenced by one live roach found on electrical wire cover next to red fire suppression tank," the report said. The inspector also found over 90 rodent droppings in the kitchen.

A Panama City Beach man has died following a single vehicle motorcycle crash that happened close to midnight on Monday on Thomas Drive. According to a press release from the Panama City Beach Police, 44-year-old Thomas Michael Osborne, Jr. was involved in the crash which occurred in front of the Hershey's Ice Cream Shop at 8815 Thomas Drive.

The Port St. Joe Marina is in the middle of a major build that includes a dry boat storage facility for 252 boats. Preston Sutter is now the St. Joe Co.'s general manager of the marina in PSJ, where he spent 10 years as a tarpon guide.

Dan Rowe, CEO and President of Visit PCB, said that in the contract between the two groups there was a provision that said in the case of a cancellation, R&M was not obligated to repay the money unless it was reimbursed by the companies it used to market its event. That had not happened as of Thursday and likely wouldn't, Rowe said.

An athletic trainer at Deane Bozeman School was arrested Monday for allegedly soliciting sex from a minor online. According to Bay County Sheriff's Office reports, Mark Johnston was charged with use of a computer online to solicit sex from a minor, a third degree felony. Johnston had his first appearance in court Tuesday.

House of Glass: Soon the business will be serving beer, wine and finger foods and expanding its hours at Beach Drive and Harrison Avenue, which long ago house La Fiesta.

Another severe storm and a possible tornado could hit Bay County on Thursday following the damaging weather that struck the area on Monday.

The Bay County Sheriff's Office announced Monday the arrest of 38 people on various sex offender and child predator charges, including a captain of Bay County Emergency Medical Services. Called Operation Watchdog, the sting was conducted over five days from Feb, 1 to Feb. 5. The operation targeted registered sex offenders who committed new violations, people who traveled to procure sex from minors and others who were in possession of child porn, a press release from the sheriff's office states.

An unnamed woman was hit and killed by a train early this morning in Panama City. According to Ken McVay, media specialist for the Panama City Police Department, the incident happened about 5 a.m. on train tracks near the intersection of U.S. 231 and Star Avenue. The train was headed south at about 35 mph, a "normal speed (for it) to travel into town," McVay added. "As they approached that intersection, they noticed a white female sitting on the tracks," he said. "They took precautionary measures to try and stop the train, (but) the woman did not make any attempts to move out of the way."

The Bay County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a man for the shooting deaths of two men in Panama City Beach on Tuesday. According to a sheriff’s office press release, Ruez P. Hicks, 19, was charged with an open count of murder in the deaths of Robert Shawn Fowler and Robert Keith Gilmore. Both were found dead from gunshot wounds at a residence on Delmar Drive. Hicks is listed as a transient from the Albany, Ga. area and is believed to have been in Bay County for approximately two months, the press release states. Hicks was arrested at 20508 Verona St. in Panama City Beach.

Bay County Sheriff’s deputies are investigating after two men were found dead with gunshot wounds in Panama City Beach Tuesday evening. According to a Bay County Sheriff’s Office press release Wednesday, the two victims were found around 11:06 p.m. at a home on Delmar Drive. The names of the victims are being withheld pending notification of the family.

The Bay County Republican Party has declared President-elect Joe Biden as an imposed, illegitimate leader and that officials shouldn’t cooperate with his administration. The party’s executive committee voted on Dec. 7 to support a resolution that among other things, declares that the party won’t recognize Biden’s administration as legitimate unless President Donald Trump conceded and acknowledged that the 2020 election was fair. The resolution comes after Trump and his legal team have made multiple failed attempts in court to overturn election results in various states.

Kevin Jean, 34, is being held on a $5 million bond after being charged with burning and mutilating three children Tuesday at a Beach hotel, according to his arrest affidavit. Jean is accused of taking an unidentified item, hot enough to cause severe burns, and placing it on the victims' vaginal areas. The victims needed medical treatment at a local hospital.