Volusia News Now

LAKE HELEN, Fla. -- KC Cichon was such a mystery as the city manager of Lake Helen, there's no photo readily accessible to even show what he looks like.

He quit as city administrator in October after 22 months on the job, having given a verbal notice to the mayor, in August, but submitted no formal letter of resignation when he left. Some say it was Kent Cichon who had run several city officials out of city hall and wore out his own welcome as a result, while others say it was the city elders themselves who pushed him out the door.

Photo for Headline Surfer® / Eugene Blackwell, Sr., 45, remains in jail on attempted murder charges in the shooting of his 18-year-old son, Eugene Blackwell, Jr.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. -- A dad shot his 18-year-old son multiple times during a domestic dispute on Father’s Day, New Smyrna Beach cops said.

Eugene Blackwell Sr., 45, was arrested on a charge of attempted murder for allegedly shooting his son, Eugene Blackwell Jr., 18, after a domestic argument turned violent, police said.

The victim was airlifted to Halifax Medical Center shortly after the 6:34 p.m. shooting. He underwent surgery at Halifax Health Medical Center in Daytona Beach for multiple gunshot wounds.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Joe Gibbs Racing announced on Wednesday that president J.D. Gibbs, son of the team owner, is starting treatment for symptoms affecting areas of brain function.

The son of JGR founder Joe Gibbs underwent a series of tests after experiencing a gradual onset of symptoms that includes speech and processing issues. As a result, his race track presence will be limited.

Photo for Headline Surfer® by City of New Smyrna Beach /

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. -- New Smyrna Beach Fire Rescue crews responded to a call for a worker who had been electrocuted by coming into contact with a power line while working on a roof in downtown New Smyrna Beach.

Crews arrived on scene at 431 Canal Street 11:41 a.m. today to find the worker was still on the roof and in critical condition.

Photos for Headline Surfer® /

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The last place anyone perhaps might have thought a man wanted for questioning by New Smyrna Beach police in the bludgeoning death of his grandmother would re-surface within the next 48 hours would be the FBI in Daytona Beach. But that's exactly what Patrick Campbell did Thursday morning just before high noon.

SOUTH DAYTONA, Fla. -- "Appearances can be deceptive." So goes the one-liner in the comedy spoof on espionage in the 2008 movie, "Burn After Reading." Such a one-liner could apply to local resident Phillip Moore, who rides a biycle like the dim-witted Brad Pitt character, Chad Feldheimer.

WINTER GARDEN, Fla. -- Gisela Laurent, 38, of Winter Garden, president of Laurent Law Firm PA, has been appointed by Gov. Rick Scott to fill an open seat on the Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Prevention State Advisory Group. Her term ends at the discretion of the governor.

Located in Orlando, the Laurent law firm specializes in criminal defense, family law and immigration law.

WINDEMERE, Fla. - Roger Stevens, 64, of Windemere, the chief executive officer of Westminster Communities of Florida, has been re-appointed by Gov. Scott to the Continuing Care Advisory Council. Stevens' new term ends Sept 30, 2017. He was among three re-appointed to the state advisory panel.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Dr. Thomas Murphy, a Chicago-area cardiac surgeon who raced in the 24 Hours of Daytona, now known as the Rolex 24, at Daytona International Speedway, died Nov. 21. He was 80 years old.

Murphy was on the Specter Werks Sports Team that droves a Chevrolet Corvette and finished 28th overall in the 1999 Rolex 24 sports car endurance race. Other drivers on the team were Jeff Nowicki, Rick Mancuso and Mike Farmer. It was Murphy's lone time in the world class sports car race.

Remembrance of Murphy's run in the 1999 Daytona sports car endurance race and his death comes in at No. 78 in the HeadlineSurfer.com countdown of the top 100 stories of 2014.

ORLANDO -- The Orlando Magic weren't going anywhere last season while the Los Angeles Clippers had a chance to come out of the Western conference for the NBA finals, which made for a new lease on life for "Big Baby" Glen Davis.