A $5 million donation to MOCA, radar that can see through walls, and a 10-year-old boy taken by a car thief are all in the headlines today.
Welcome to WJCT First Read, your daily weekday morning round-up of stories from the First Coast, around Florida, and across the country. We'll also preview some of WJCT's upcoming news programming.
Today's Weather
In Jacksonville it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 70 degrees. Tonight will be partly cloudy, with a low around 52 degrees.
At the Beaches it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 64 degrees. Tonight will be partly cloudy, with a low around 54 degrees. (National Weather Service)
The Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville received a $5 million donation. The donation from Preston Haskell is the largest-ever single donor gift that MOCA Jacksonville has received. (WJCT)
Mayor Brown convened the first meeting of a task force to improve Northwest Jacksonville. The Community Wealth Building Task Force purpose is come up with ways to increase development in Northwest Jacksonville. (WJCT)
10-year-old boy found by Jacksonville police officer after his grandmother's car was stolen. The grandmother had left the boy sitting in the front passenger seat at a gas station on the Southside, and a man jumped into the driver's seat and stole the car. Police found the car a few blocks away shortly after the theft. (News4Jax)
Police radar device that can see through walls concerns some over privacy issues. The Range-R handheld radar system is a Doppler motion detector that can locate people in a room through walls. A court case regarding the use of the device in a warrantless search has already been filed in Colorado. (News4Jax)
JEA board pushes back against the city on pension-reform agreement. A sticking point between the city and JEA is the reduction in the amount that JEA contributes every year into the city's general fund. JEA wants that reduction to stay for 20 years, and the city wants to be able to reconsider it as soon as five years from now. JEA Chairman Peter Bower says that the city can "take it or leave it," and the city has "10 days to come to their senses." (The Florida Times-Union)
Man charged with eating a cheeseburger while driving. The official citation was for distracted driving, but the Cobb County police officer indicated on the ticket that the offense was "eating while driving." The sandwich involved in the alleged crime was a McDonald's Double Quarter-Pounder with Cheese. (News4Jax)
Today on First Coast Connect, UNF political science professor Dr. Michael Binder and Folio Weekly columnist A.G. Gancarski join Melissa to give their analysis of President Obama's State of the Union address. Then, State Climatologist of Florida Dr. David Zierden discusses unconventional solutions to climate change and sea level rise.
You can get all the latest headlines online at WJCTNews.org, on our Facebook page and on Twitter @WJCTJax. You can follow Ray Hollister on Twitter @RayHollister.
