Vote on the biggest local news story of 2009 (i-poll)

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

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2009 BAY NEWS 9 -- With 2009 nearing its end, it's time to again reflect on the year in news.

Bay News 9 and BayNews9.com covered hundreds of local stories in 2009, from the Super Bowl to Cypress Gardens to swine flu.

We've narrowed those hundreds of stories down to a dozen local stories that we think were the most compelling and far-reaching stories of the year.

We've limited our choices to Bay News 9's seven-county coverage area and are therefore excluding big national stories such as the stimulus package, Cash for Clunkers and the recession.

The 12 Stories (Vote Here)

Now we'd like to get your input into what the biggest local stories of the year were.

First, read the brief synopses of the 12 stories below (click on the story headline for more information), then go to our I-poll page and vote on what you think the year's biggest local story was.

And be sure to leave your comments, too.

At the end of the year, we'll publish a story with the results of this i-poll, along with some of your comments.

In random order, the 12 big stories for you to vote on are:

Sheriff's captain killed in head-on crash in Hernando

Hernando County Sheriff's Office captain Scott Bierwiler was killed in February in a head-on collision.

Bierwiler, 42, was killed when his Crown Victoria was struck head-on by a Mitsubishi Montero driven by a 16-year-old.

Bierwiler, who was married and had three children, had worked for the sheriff's office for 22 years.

Super Bowl is held in Tampa

Super Bowl XLIII was held at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa in February.

The Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Arizona Cardinals in the game, but for Tampa, the story was the reduced economic impact of the game compared to previous Super Bowls in Tampa and elsewhere.

Some of the numerous parties that normally accompany the game were cancelled, fewer journalists covered the game and tickets sold for less money than in previous Super Bowls. It was estimated that the game generated about $150 million in direct spending, far less than the previous two games.

8-year-old girl killed by gunfire while sleeping in home

Paris Whitehead-Hamilton An 8-year-old St. Petersburg girl was killed in April when she was hit by gunfire while she slept.

Paris Whitehead-Hamilton was sleeping in the front room of her home. Police arrested Stephan Harper, 18, and charged him with first-degree murder.

Cypress Gardens and Splash Island Waterpark close

Land South Adventures announced that Cypress Gardens and Splash Island Waterpark closed for business as of Sept. 23.

The company purchased the parks in 2007.

Four teens killed in Seminole car crash

Seminole car crash Four teenagers died and one was seriously injured in a car crash in April.

The two-car crash took place on 86th Avenue N. near 141st Way in Seminole. Four of the five teens in the car were ejected before the car caught fire.

Joseph Ruzecki, 16, Keith MacCollom, 17, and Nathan Richardson,15, died at the scene of the accident. LeShawn Smith, 16, died on the way to Sun Coast Hospital. Corey LePore, 17, was taken to Bayfront Medical Center with serious injuries.

Bay area swine flu cases

Hundreds of Bay area residents were infected with swine flu, and several died of the disease. Most, though not all, of those who died had underlying medical conditions.

Some local schools cancelled athletic contents or other events because of flu concerns.

Tampa police Cpl. Mike Roberts killed

Mike Roberts A Tampa police officer was shot and killed in the Sulphur Springs area of Tampa in August.

Cpl. Mike Roberts, 38, was investigating a suspicious person when he was shot.

A suspect, 34-year-old Humberto Delgado Jr., has been charged in the murder.

Roberts was wearing a bulletproof vest, but the bullet went through his arm and into his chest through a small area that was unprotected.

John Couey, convicted of killing Jessica Lunsford, dies

John Couey, the man convicted in 2007 of killing 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford, died.

Couey had been convicted of first-degree murder, sexual battery on a person under 12 and kidnapping. He was sentenced to death in August 2007.

Couey died of natural causes in September in a Jacksonville hospital. He was 51.

Hulk/Linda Hogan divorce

Attorneys for Linda and Terry Bollea, better known as Hulk Hogan, announced the two sides reached a settlement in their divorce case.

The couple had been going through contentious divorce proceedings for almost the past two years.

The Hogan family had been in the spotlight since Linda and Terry's son, Nick Bollea, crashed his car and seriously injured his friend John Graziano in August 2007.

Three boaters, including two ex-Bucs, die after boat overturns in Gulf

Three boaters, former Tampa Bay Buccaneers Corey Smith and Marquis Cooper and former USF football player William Bleakley, died in March after their boat overturned in the Gulf of Mexico.

A fourth boater, Nick Schuyler, was rescued after almost two days at sea.