A body found Saturday in a shallow grave in Sarasota County has been positively identified as Denise Amber Lee of North Port, authorities announced today. ...more

January 20, 2008

The massive search for Denise Amber Lee of North Port, the 21-year-old daughter of a veteran sheriff's lieutenant, apparently ended Saturday with authorities' discovery of a shallow grave in Sarasota County containing the body of a white female. ...more

January 20, 2008

TAMPA - The massive search for Denise Amber Lee of North Port, the 21-year-old daughter of a veteran sheriff's lieutenant, apparently ended Saturday with authorities' discovery of a shallow grave in Sarasota County containing the body of a white female. ...more

January 19, 2008

AVON PARK — Jeremy Machia's labor of love is a few tons of manicured dirt. And he likes nothing more than watching folks make a mess of it. The track director at Highlands BMX got hooked on bicycle racing at a young age, and more than 25 years later, Machia enjoys playing in the dirt more than ever. "Normally, we're out two or three times a week, hand-shaping jumps," he said. "We're not using heavy equipment, so it's a lot of fine-tuning." Much of that meticulous work is done to ready the track for weekly races that draw riders from Highlands County and beyond. And while most tracks are closed around the Christmas holiday, Machia's welcoming racers from across the state this weekend to grab some last minute points in order to qualify for the upcoming Sunshine State BMX's Florida state championships. He never knows how many riders will show up until race day, but Machia said up to 100 racers of all skill levels cold descend on the Avon Park track, which is known around the state as the fastest in Florida. ...more

December 21, 2007