Daily News Update with Rich Jones of WOKV : 8/6/2012

[Tamara-B]

A dry morning with some sun and temps near 90. We have a 60% chance of thunderstorms this afternoon and evening.  Rain and thunderstorms are in the picture each afternoon this week.

Two tropical storms, neither expected to threaten us.  WOKV's Chief Meteorologist, Accuweather's Heather Zehr says steering currents in the Atlantic will keep Florence and Ernesto away from us.  See the track of both storms in our hurricane guide here.

As we track Tropical Storms Ernesto and Florence, some are still cleaning up from Debby.  FEMA is reminding you to use government grants only to meet specific disaster-related needs.   You can register at disaster assistance-dot-gov--or by calling 800-621-FEMA.

Today's interview lineup:

At 6:53 hear Jamie Dupree explain why Congress is once again spitting fire at the GSA over wasteful spending. http://www.wokv.com/Player/101475901/

At 8:23 hear Jamie Dupree on the fundraising surge for Mitt Romney, and where President Obama goes hunting for campaign cash. http://www.wokv.com/Player/101476011/

Our Top Local Story: Orange Park Police are looking for a man who was trying to trade a baby for food.  Police say the man was at the Roadway Inn on Park Avenue this past Saturday night going door to door asking people to trade food for a baby.  They don't know if it was his baby. The man, the baby, and a white female may have taken a cab from the Park Avenue McDonalds Saturday night between 10 and 11pm.

An arrest made over the weekend in connection with a murder in Orange Park.  Clay County deputies say 30-year-old Jacquilla Bullard shot 35 year-old Jerry Bullard to death, took his body to Jacksonville and dumped his body there.  No motive for the crime has been established.  And despite the suspect and victim sharing the same last name, we do not know the relationship between the two.

Early voting has kicked off for the upcoming primary elections.  In Duval County, nearly 2,500 people took advantage of the weekend hours.  Duval Supervisor of Elections Jerry Holland tells us they are expecting early voting turnout to be lower now than for the general election, so he is not offering the full 96 hours for this cycle.   

Starting today, passengers of American Airlines can have their luggage delivered to their home, hotel or office. They say it'll help families traveling with children and business travelers who  need to go straight to a meeting or the office.  The fee starts at 30 dollars for a single bag, with an extra dollar charge per mile for loations 41 to 100 miles from the airport.

Another jump at the pump.  AAA reports gas prices went up ten cents last week, pushing the national average to $3.61 a gallon.  Florida remains below that, at $3.53 a gallon.  Jacksonville averages in at $3.54 this morning.

A passenger inside a minivan is killed in a head-on crash on A1A in Mayport.  FHP says the minivan was going northbound when it lost control and hit a car going southbound.  The minivan driver's injuries are critical, the injuries to the driver of the car he hit are serious.  Charges are pending.

Our Top National Story: Police near Milwaukee are calling a shooting at a Sikh temple domestic terrorism.  A white man in his 40's shot and killed six people Sunday, before he was killed outside the temple in a shootout with police.  Later, federal agents and the local bomb squad swarmed the neighborhood were the gunman lived and evacuated several homes nearby.

Leaders of Sikh organizations nationwide say Sunday's killings have brought to the surface fears that have lingered since 9/11.  The chairman of the Washington-based Sikh Council on Religion and Education says the shooting was just a matter of time because some people confuse Sikhs with being members of Taliban or belonging to Osama bin Laden.

The suspect in the Tucson shooting rampage may be ready to plead guilty.  A hearing for Jared Loughner is scheduled for Tuesday and his court-appointed psychiatrist is expected to testify that Loughner is competent to enter a plea.  Under the plea deal, Loughner would be sentenced to life in prison.  He's accused of shooting six people to death.  13 others, including then-Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, were wounded.
The Mars Curiosity team leader says the new rover has landed in a nice flat spot.  NASA's seventh landing on Mars is being called an engineering tour de force, using never-before-tried acrobatics with a Hollywood-style finish. Cables delicately lowered the rover to the ground at two mph from a hovering rocket pack.

Emergency shelters are still open in some communities but many residents who fled wildfires in Oklahoma have been allowed to return. As many as 18 fires have been reported since late last week. No serious injuries have been reported. Investigators are still looking into whether one fire was deliberately set.
The wife of Jaguars cornerback Aaron Ross, Sanya Richards-Ross, takes gold in the women's 400 meter run.  It's her first individual gold.  The Jaguars watched the run at the end of practice Sunday at Everbank.  Aaron Ross was in London to watch his wife's victory.

Michael Phelps is retiring on a high note, earning gold in his final swim this weekend.  Phelps was part of the men's 4x100 Medley Relay.

http://www.wokv.com/videos/online/advertising/morning-news-video-blog/ldQ/