More Getting Free Lunch The percentage of Pasco County students who qualify for free or reduced-price meals is on the rise and expected to top 50 percent by the end of February. ...more

January 18, 2009

Former Zephyrhills Police Chief Russell Barnes, who resigned amid a payroll scandal in August, has applied for a job as a patrol deputy with the Pasco County Sheriff's Office. ...more

January 15, 2009

Former Zephyrhills Police Chief Russell Barnes, who resigned amid a payroll scandal in August, has applied for a job as a patrol deputy with the Pasco County Sheriff's Office. Barnes, 56, applied online for the job in December. "We don't comment on applicants," sheriff's spokesman Kevin Doll said. Barnes did not return a message seeking comment. He resigned from the Zephyrhills force in August, about an hour before the city council was to decide whether to fire him. He was hired in November 2003. ...more

January 14, 2009

Hernando County families can start thinking about last-minute changes to holiday plans. ...more

November 19, 2008

Another police officer was paid for hours he spent teaching at Pasco Hernando Community College, according to a city investigation released Tuesday. ...more

September 17, 2008

Kenneth Fong, a former city policeman whose complaints about payroll discrepancies within the Zephyrhills Police Department led to last month's resignation of police Chief Russell Barnes, wants his job back. ...more

September 6, 2008

The city is paying almost $24,500 in back pay and other costs to former police Chief Russell Barnes and former police Sgt. Robert Perrault, both of whom resigned last month. ...more

September 5, 2008

LAND O' LAKES - Robert Perrault Jr., a former sergeant accused of padding his time sheets at the Zephyrhills Police Department, can continue teaching criminal justice classes at Zephyrhills High School. ...more

August 27, 2008

Police Chief Russell Barnes resigned Tuesday, a day after an internal investigation concluded he had falsified payroll records. Barnes, 55, submitted his letter of resignation less than an hour before city council members were to consider firing him, as recommended by City Manager Steve Spina. ...more

August 20, 2008

Police Chief Russell Barnes, one of two men at the center of an investigation of payroll discrepancies in the city's police department, is expected to be fired by the city council today. ...more

August 19, 2008