From the Newsroom: The Panama City News Herald

What by all appearances was a simple chest purchased after Hurricane Michael for use in a third-grade classroom turned into a reminder of the value of local journalism.

The fentanyl allegedly discovered by officers converts to 86,900 milligrams, with a mere two milligrams considered a lethal dose, according to the American Addiction Centers, the fentanyl was enough to kill more than 43,000 people. To put that in perspective, the population in Panama City proper was a little more than 36,000 residents in 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

he man who shot and killed one boy and injured another at the Beach Tuesday alleged the stepbrothers tried to steal his bag, court records state.

Christopher Lawrence Cox, 37, is being charged with murder and attempted murder after police say he admitted shooting two 14-year-old stepbrothers from Louisville, Kentucky while on vacation in Panama City Beach.

A local man has been charged and identified in the shooting death of one Kentucky minor and the injury of another outside a Panama City Beach resort early Tuesday morning. 

According to a press release from the Panama City Beach Police Department, Christopher Lawrence Cox, 37 of Panama City Beach, is in police custody after officers were called to the Shores of Panama at about 1:30 a.m. in reference to a shooting. He has been charged with one count of murder and one count of attempted murder.

Word is spreading about Downtown Panama City. This couple took a last-minute get-away weekend to the beach but ended up dining downtown. Here's how.

According to the Panama City Beach Police Department, the juveniles, a 12-year-old boy and 13-year-old girl, stole the vehicle at the Fuel 360 Store at Hutchison Boulevard and Alf Coleman Road. 

A downtown Panama City restaurant was temporarily closed last week after an inspector found rodent and roach activity.

An inspector with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation visited The Funky Mermaid Lounge, located at 448 Harrison Ave. on March 9. A total of seven violations, were noted in the inspection report.

The high-priority violations included the presence of three live, small flying insects in the dish area and roach activity "present as evidenced by one live roach found on electrical wire cover next to red fire suppression tank," the report said.

The inspector also found over 90 rodent droppings in the kitchen. 

A Panama City Beach man has died following a single vehicle motorcycle crash that happened close to midnight on Monday on Thomas Drive.

According to a press release from the Panama City Beach Police, 44-year-old Thomas Michael Osborne, Jr.  was involved in the crash which occurred in front of the Hershey's Ice Cream Shop at 8815 Thomas Drive.

The Port St. Joe Marina is in the middle of a major build that includes a dry boat storage facility for 252 boats. Preston Sutter is now the St. Joe Co.'s general manager of the marina in PSJ, where he spent 10 years as a tarpon guide.