Florida father charged with murder after 5-year-old found in 'pool of blood'; 2nd child fighting for life

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A father in Florida is being charged with murder after deputies found his 5-year-old daughter in a "pool of blood" in their townhome and his 8-year-old is "fighting for his life."

Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said the incident happened at Armature Gate Townhome in Tampa, Florida on Monday night shortly after the children's mother returned home from dinner, according to FOX 13. After the mother tucked her children to sleep, she heard gunshots, the sheriff said. "While she goes to the bathroom, she heard several gunshots," Chronister said during a press conference. "She initially thought it happened right outside the residence." FLORIDA DEPUTIES FIND BODY IN POND NEXT TO HOOTERS RESTAURANT

A father in Florida is being charged with murder after deputies found his 5-year-old daughter in a "pool of blood" in their townhome and his 8-year-old is "fighting for his life." (FOX 13)

The sheriff said that the mother then realized that the gunshots came from inside the residence and went outside, where she saw a neighbor on the phone with 911. "She takes over the phone call and starts talking to her 911 dispatcher," Chronister said. Jermaine Lavanda Bass, who was identified as the husband, then came outside while carrying the couple's 8-year-old son, who officials say he was "cradling"  when law enforcement arrived. GEORGIA WOMAN SEXUALLY ASSAULTED WHILE TAKING A SHOWER AT LA FITNESS

Jermaine Lavanda Bass (FOX 13)

Bass, according to Chronister, told deputies that "It was an accident. I don't know how the gun went off. I accidentally shot my son." After deputies asked Bass if anyone else was in the home, the husband said that their 5-year-old daughter was in her room. The daughter was found in a "pool of blood" by officials after entering her bedroom, Chronister said, adding that the children had 3-4 gunshots to their heads. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP "Our 5-year-old victim has been pronounced deceased. Our 8-year-old is fighting for his life," Chronister said. "The 8-year-old went into surgery." Bass faces charges of premeditated murder, aggravated child abuse, and premeditated attempted murder.

The mother is speaking with detectives and providing them with details, Chronister said.

Adam Sabes is a writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to Adam.Sabes@fox.com and on Twitter @asabes10.

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Psychologist: School shooter didn't get consistent treatment

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- A psychologist who treated Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz when he was 8 years old testified Wednesday that Cruz was a “peculiar child” who had many behavioral and developmental issues but his widowed mother seemed overwhelmed and wasn’t consistent in her discipline or in getting him treatment.

Frederick Kravitz said he began treating Cruz in 2007 on a referral from Cruz's psychiatrist with Lynda Cruz telling him her adopted son suffered from anxiety and nervousness and had trouble controlling his temper. But she also said he was friendly and got along fine with his peers — claims that a neighbor, preschool teachers and an elementary school special education counselor have testified were not true.

Kravitz said that while he suggested weekly sessions for Cruz, his mother only brought him 15 times over a 13-month span, a decade before he murdered 17 people at Parkland's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018.

He said that was a major issue — Lynda Cruz would agree that her son needed more consistent treatment and she needed to be more consistent in her discipline of him and his younger half-brother, Zachary, but did not follow through. She was 57, depressed from her husband's sudden 2003 death and dealing with two “tumultuous” young children, he said.

They would yell, throw tantrums and break furnishings, he said.

“They raised it to an art form," Kravitz said. “Nikolas was easily set off and Zachary seemed to derive some pleasure from pushing Nikolas’ buttons.”

That would set off their mother, something both boys seemed to enjoy.

“She lost her cool frequently and backed down to the boys frequently, which only made the problems worse," he said. He said he tried to work with her, but she felt embarrassed by her sons' behavior and felt people were judging her.

Cruz's attorneys are in Day 3 of their defense, hoping to persuade his jury to sentence him to life without parole instead of death. Cruz, 23, pleaded guilty in October to 17 counts of first-degree murder and the trial, which began July 18, is only to determine his sentence.

The defense is trying to overcome the prosecution’s case, which featured surveillance video of Cruz, then 19, mowing down students and staff with an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle as he stalked a three-story building for seven minutes, photos of the aftermath and a jury visit to the building.

For Cruz to receive a death sentence, the jury must be unanimous. If one juror votes for life, that will be his sentence.

The defense has focused on the mental and emotional problems Cruz exhibited from his earliest days. Testimony has shown that his birth mother was a street prostitute who abused cocaine and alcohol and as a toddler he was developmentally delayed, often violent towards other children and teased and bullied for his small stature, unusual appearance and odd behavior. When he was 8, he acted like a 6-year-old, at best, Kravitz said.

“He stood out like a sore thumb," he said.

Steven Schusler, who lived across the street from the Cruzes from 2009 to 2015, said that when Nikolas Cruz was 10, his landlord called Cruz “the weird one” to his face, causing the boy “to curl up” like a salted snail. He once saw Cruz running around the house with an air gun, his limbs flailing wildly — a move he demonstrated for the jury.

Kravitz said Cruz had a fear of abandonment because of his father's death and his adoption and had an active “bad imagination.”

“He was extremely fearful his mother would forget to pick him up (at school) and he would be stuck there,” Kravitz said, even though that never happened.

He said Cruz had some signs of obsessive-compulsive disorder — for example, he always had to have exactly eight chicken nuggets.

He said he asked Cruz what his three wishes would be.

“Pokemon, a dog and more Pokemon,” Kravitz said.

Lynda Cruz died in November 2017, about four months before the shooting.

Under cross-examination, Kravitz conceded that Cruz's mother did get him further psychiatric and psychological treatment and might have been reluctant to keep her son's appointments with him because of the $87 per visit copay her insurance required.

Prosecutor Jeff Marcus asked Kravitz is there was anything about Cruz when he was 8 that would have indicated he would eventually commit mass murder. He said no.

“I've worked with some other very damaged kids and certainly to the best of my knowledge none of them have ever acted out like this,” Kravitz said.

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Florida teen, 14, and mom charged with national identify theft

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A Florida teenager who allegedly organized a pyramid scheme and his mother have been charged in connection with nationwide identity theft, authorities said.

Elijah Duett, 14, faces 15 counts of identity theft, obtaining property by fraud, illegal use of credit cards and unlawful use of a 2-way communication device. His mother, Selena Wallace, 38, was arrested on principal charges to each count, along with contributing to the delinquency of a minor, the Volusia County Sheriff's Office said.  Duett initially came under investigation in May and was charged with making written threats against a student who didn't pay into a pyramid scheme he was running, authorities said.  Investigators discovered the teen was purchasing a "significant" amount of stolen personal and financial information online. That included social security and credit numbers and the login information to a number of banks and websites, police said.  FLORIDA SCHOOL SHOOTER NIKOLAS CRUZ STRUCK UP FRIENDSHIP WITH SANDY HOOK VICTIM'S MOM

Elijah Duett, 14, and his mother Selena Wallace, 38. face charges in connection with a nationwide identity theft scheme, Florida authorities said.  ( Volusia County Sheriff's Office)

Duett also had detailed instructions and equipment to forge money orders, they said.  Investigators identified at least 17 victims from across the country. Of those, 15 wanted to pursue criminal charges against the teen suspect.  As the investigation progressed, Investigators learned that Wallace told her son that she wished he would use his skills in a legal way before asking him to raise his prices to make more profit, authorities said.  CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

A search of his home yielded 12 laptops, 4 printers, 4 cell phones, several gaming systems and other technology.

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Florida men arrested in Bank of America robbery, police say

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Florida police have nabbed two men in connection with a Bank of America robbery in Tampa Saturday morning. 

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said a man entered a Bank of America in Tampa just before 10:20 a.m. on Saturday, August 20, 2022. 

L-R: John Ward and Terry Zukowski.  (Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.)

The sheriff’s office said the man jumped behind the teller’s counter and demanded money. He left with an undisclosed amount and fled in a waiting white Honda Accord, the sheriff’s office said.  Investigators tracked down the vehicle to the Park on Waters Apartments at 2701 W Waters Ave. Deputies connected the vehicle to 48-year-old John Ward. Inside the vehicle, deputies found "large amounts of cash" that matched the money stolen from the bank.  TEXAS WOMEN ACCUSED OF STEALING 460 GALLONS OF FUEL FROM 7-ELEVEN GAS STATION, POLICE SAY Deputies located another male who they said was running around wearing only his boxers and a white tank top. The rest of his clothes were later found at a nearby lake. The man – later identified as 28-year-old Terry Zukowski – admitted to driving the getaway vehicle in the bank robbery.  The sheriff’s office said he also admitted to driving the getaway car in the robbery of a Suncoast Credit Union earlier this month.   "Thanks to the hard work, great investigative skills, and quick response by deputies responding to the scene, the two suspects were located and charged," Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a statement.  CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Ward and Zukowski are both charged with robbery while wearing a mask. 

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Texas man accused of threatening conservative convention

SAN ANTONIO -- A Texas man remained jailed Sunday authorities accused him of making threats against a convention of young conservative activists held last month in Florida.

Alejandro Richard Velasquez Gomez, 19, of San Antonio, was arrested earlier this month after FBI agents alleged he posted threats on social media to carry out a mass attack on the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit convention.

The event was held from July 22 through July 24 in Tampa. Turning Point is a Donald Trump-aligned group that organizes young people on college campuses into conservative activism.

FBI agents allege Velasquez posted on Instagram that the first day of the convention would be “the day of retribution the day I will have revenge against all of humanity,” according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court in San Antonio.

Velasquez had bought a plane ticket to fly from Austin to Tampa on July 22 but canceled the ticket the night before his flight, FBI agents said.

According to the complaint, agents said they believed Velasquez had planned an attack similar to a violent rampage in 2014 in which Elliot Rodger, 22, killed six students and wounded more than a dozen others near the University of California, Santa Barbara, before killing himself.

The complaint did not clarify why the event was allegedly targeted, but Tampa police took the threat seriously and obtained an arrest warrant.

Velasquez was arrested in San Antonio and charged with making threatening interstate communications. He was also charged with possession of child pornography for images allegedly found on his phone.

An attorney for Velasquez didn’t immediately reply to an email seeking comment Sunday.

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Florida prosecutor says he is planning a 'vigorous defense' after Gov. DeSantis suspended him

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The Florida prosecutor who was suspended by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis for his refusal to charge doctors or abortion patients for illegally terminating pregnancies is vowing to put up a "vigorous defense" legally.

DeSantis suspended Andrew Warren, a Democrat state attorney, on Aug. 4 during a news conference where he said that the prosecutor didn't enforce duly-passed laws that crack down on child sex change surgeries and certain abortion procedures.

"We had the individual here from Hillsborough County say and [sign] letters that there are certain laws he just won't enforce and won't prosecute," DeSantis told Fox News. "[State's] attorneys that put their ideology over the rule of law are not satisfying their oath of office."

Without providing specifics, Warren said on Sunday that he would fight the suspension.

GOV. RON DESANTIS SAYS PROSECUTORS WITH ‘MILITANT AGENDAS’ WON'T ‘GET AWAY WITH IT’ IN FLORIDA

Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren talks to a voter during the NAACP Hillsborough County Branch Souls to the Polls voter drive on November 1, 2020, in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Octavio Jones/Getty Images)

"I'm not going down without a fight. I'm a former federal prosecutor, the duly elected state attorney, a native Floridian and a proud American. I refuse to let this man trample on your freedoms, to speak your mind, to make your own health care decisions, and to have your vote count. I hope you'll stand with me," Warren said.

Warren was elected in 2016 and 2020.

In the video, Warren said that the governor is attempting to overthrow an election.

FLORIDA GOV. RON DESANTIS SUSPENDS ‘SOROS-BACKED’ STATE ATTORNEY WHO REFUSED TO ENFORCE ABORTION BAN

The Florida prosecutor who was suspended by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis for his refusal to charge doctors or abortion patients for illegally terminating their pregnancy is vowing to put up a "vigorous defense" legally. (REUTERS/Joe Skipper)

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"Ron DeSantis is trying to overthrow democracy in Florida. His plot to suspend me blatantly violates the most fundamental basis of our democracy. Your vote. He's trying to overturn the results of a fair and free election in abusing his power to serve his own political ambition," he said.

A press release from DeSantis' office states that he "has the authority to suspend a state officer under Article IV, Section 7 of the Constitution of the State of Florida."

After suspending Warren, DeSantis appointed Hillsborough County Court Judge Susan Lopez as his replacement.

"It is my duty to hold Florida’s elected officials to the highest standards for the people of Florida. I have the utmost trust that Judge Susan Lopez will lead the office through this transition and faithfully uphold the rule of law," DeSantis said in the press release.

A law in Florida banning abortions after 15 weeks, with exceptions such as if an abortion is needed to save a mother's life, cases of rape or incest, and more went into effect on July 1.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Adam Sabes is a writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to Adam.Sabes@fox.com and on Twitter @asabes10.

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