Tampa Bay briefs

By Times staff reports

© St. Petersburg Times, published May 26, 2001

Gulfport man dies after being hit by car

PINELLAS PARK -- A Gulfport man was killed Wednesday night after running in front of traffic in Pinellas Park, police said.

Noel J. LeBlanc, 44, died at Bayfront Medical Center after being hit by a car at about 6:50 p.m. in the 3900 block of Park Boulevard, police said.

Police said LeBlanc was running from the south side of Park Boulevard to the north side when he crossed in front of an eastbound car driven by Samantha Dalton, 18, of Treasure Island. Dalton is not being charged in the accident.

Appeals court orders resentencing in killing

TAMPA -- Circuit Judge Chet Tharpe should have recused himself from resentencing a woman whose case became the center of a closed federal probe into corruption at the Hillsborough County Courthouse, the 2nd District Court of Appeal ruled Friday.

The state appeals court ordered a different judge to resentence Stephani Tanner, who is now serving a 17-year prison term on manslaughter charges. Attorneys for Tanner argued that Tharpe should have recused himself because he had private conversations separately with the prosecutor and a defense attorney in the case. Tharpe also gave a statement to federal investigators into allegations of witness tampering in the case.

The U.S. Attorney's Office closed the investigation into the case without bringing any charges.

Three charged with using massage business as front

CLEARWATER -- Three people were arrested Friday on charges of using a massage business as a front for prostitution.

Investigators say Ursula Jones, 63, and Mark Conde, 53, operate a business called Body Works out of their home, 2510 Oak Trail S, Apt. 105, in Clearwater. They also rent Apt. 202 in the same complex.

Jones and Conde were charged with deriving support from prostitution and operating an unlicensed massage business. Katrina Nilsen, 33, of New Port Richey was arrested on a charge of prostitution.

Hillsborough teen charged with making bomb threat

TAMPA -- Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies have charged an East Bay High School freshman with making a bomb threat that resulted in countywide school evacuations.

The threat was sent by an e-mail message Thursday shortly after noon to the School Board's Web site, said sheriff's Lt. Rod Reder. It said there was a bomb in a Hillsborough school.

A deputy received a tip, Reder said, and arrested the 15-year-old. He was charged with false reporting of a bomb, a felony, and disrupting a school function, a misdemeanor. He was taken to the Juvenile Assessment Center.

He is not being named by the Times because of his age.

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