The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission approved several bear-related rules Wednesday.

Commissioners approved allowing public and trained security personnel to scare bears with less-than-lethal methods in appropriate situations without a permit.

They also asked the staff to continue educating the public about the dangers of feeding bears, in order to avoid conflicts.

"Education is key. We know that bear feeding is an issue, so we need to continue to be proactive and responsive with our efforts," said FWC Chairman Richard Corbett. "Properly securing garbage and other attractants is the single most important action for reducing conflict situations with bears."

Commissioners approved a policy to address waste management and human-bear conflicts to improve public safety.

"The FWC will continue to perform its role to educate the public, provide technical assistance, remove conflict bears, manage bear populations and enforce feeding prohibitions," said Dr. Thomas Eason, director of the Division of Habitat and Species Conservation. "The problem of unsecured waste needs to be addressed by bringing together local officials, along with waste service companies, to work together with FWC to resolve this problem in a cost-effective manner."

But what might be most interesting for Floridians is that the TWC passed final rules to establish a bear-hunting season within four of the state's seven Bear Management Units, which includes all three national forests.

The hunting season will open Oct. 24 and last at least through Oct. 25, according to FWC officials, but may last as long as seven days.

Residents will pay $100 for a bear hunting permit and nonresidents will pay $300. Hunters will be allowed one permit per person, which will allow the harvest of one bear, according to FWC.

Hunters will be required to take the bears to an FWC check station within 12 hours.

It will also be illegal to sell any parts of a bear or its hide.

Click here for more information or call the FWC Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-3922.

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The mother of an 11-year-old girl who was allegedly sexually assaulted by a Miami Beach rabbi said she's being ostracized by members of the congregation after coming forward to police.

"I'm just so hurt, and my daughter and I are just trying to repair and move forward, and we're scared," the mother told Local 10 News.

The woman said she's already being mistreated following Karro's arrest last month.

"I should pull you out by your hair out of the synagogue, why are you here?" the woman says people have told her.

Police said Karro used both hands to touch and grab the girl's buttocks at his Miami Beach art studio, kissing her neck and then instructing her not to say anything.

"Think about a child who comes home to you very scared (saying,) 'Mom, I have something to tell you,'" the woman said. "And she tells you of such a horrible experience (about) a person that you looked up to as a father figure."

When arrested, Karro told police he touched the girl in her behind for "cleansing" purposes because she was showing negative energy.

Those who know Karro, who is a substitute rabbi at Shaare Ezra Sephardic Congregation, said they were in disbelief after the arrest.

"I didn't believe it," said Daniel Lannettone.  "He's a good person. He's done a tremendous amount of things in the area. I didn't see any of that."

The woman said she and her daughter have been shunned and shut out by the Jewish community in Miami Beach.

"In the beginning, they told me I had to say something," she said. "But now, I'm told by the rabbis not to say a word --keep silent. Meanwhile this community already decided I'm making up the story. Our words are nothing."

The mother claims Karro offered her $500 to buy her silence and drop the charges.

Follow Shyann Malone on Twitter @ShyannMalone

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A man from Hollywood is behind bars after molesting two young sisters with whom he lives, police said.

Israel Muscadin, 35, faces one count of lewd and lascivious molestation on a child 12 to 16 years old and one count of lewd and lasvious molestation on a child under 12 years old.

During a bond court hearing Wednesday, Broward County Judge John Hurley set Muscadin's bond at $1 million on the first count.

"$1 million?" Muscadin asked in disbelief.

"Yes, sir," Hurley said.

But Muscadin is not expected to be released from jail anytime soon since Hurley denied bond for the second molestation count against Muscadin.

According to police, Muscadin molested two sisters, ages 9 and 12.

Prosecutors also believe he sexually abused a 23-year-old woman for much of her life.

Muscadin's relationship to the girls and woman is unclear, but Hurley did acknowledge that they are family members of the suspect.

"At least 13 years ago you were allegedly molesting a young girl in your family who is now an adult," Hurley said. "Now you are allegedly molesting two young girls who are in your family. This is not an isolated incident. This is ongoing criminal activity. You represent a danger to both young girls and perhaps the adult also."

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A former Broward Sheriff's Office captain who was suspended last month for "conduct unbecoming an employee," has been officially charged in the case.

William Jackson faces one misdemeanor charge of resisting/obstructing a police officer without violence.

According to a Coconut Creek police report, Will Jackson and his girlfriend, Lauderhill police Sgt. Atina Johnson, were following each other in separate vehicles May 9 about 2:40 a.m. when at least one of them ran a red light on Wiles Road and Northwest 39th Avenue.

Police Officer Michael Donnelly pulled both vehicles over a short distance away on Stagecoach Drive. 

According to the report, Jackson got out of his vehicle and approached the officer. Donnelly claimed the couple became defiant and verbally aggressive before Jackson, who served as the chief of North Lauderdale, fled the scene.

Johnson, who police said didn't flee, remains on active duty at the Lauderhill Police Department and was given a citation for running the red light.

Jackson, who was promoted to chief by Sheriff Scott Israel in 2013, was initially suspended with pay pending the outcome of the investigation. He resigned from BSO on Tuesday.

Jackson is scheduled to appear before a judge in Broward County on July 27.

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A Domino's pizza delivery driver shot and killed a robber in Hollywood, police said.

The shooting happened at 12:53 a.m. Wednesday at a shopping center off Hollywood Boulevard and North 58th Avenue.

Hollywood police said two men wearing ski masks entered the Domino's, where they were shot by a delivery driver, identified by police as Slayde Henry, 24.

One of the men shot, Adalberto Hernandez, 24, died at the scene, police said.

Police are searching for a second robber who ran away and is possibly wounded. Police said he wore dark clothing, had his face covered and is possibly armed.

Henry was not injured in the shooting.

A man, who told Local 10 News that his girlfriend's daughter was working inside the pizzeria at the time, said he commends the delivery driver from his quick action.

"(I'm) glad he was armed," Miguel Nieves said. "I'm glad he was able to protect them. If not, it could have been worse."

Anyone with information about the second robber is asked to call police.

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Police are looking for at least three people who they say withdrew thousands of dollars from a victim's checking and savings accounts in Hialeah.

The group was captured on surveillance video using the virtual bank teller at Bank of America at 175 Hialeah Drive.

According to police, the thieves withdrew more than $7,500 from the victim's accounts between May 31 and June 5.

Anyone with information about the identities of the culprits is asked to contact police at 305-687-2525. Those who wish to remain anonymous are asked to call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS.

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Two civil rights groups claim Muslim inmates at Miami-Dade County jails haven't been fed meals in accordance with Islamic law.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida and Council on American-Islamic Relations Florida said Wednesday the organizations have received more than 35 complaints from inmates since the Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department began serving non-Halal meals to Muslim inmates.

Both organizations claim the county's jail facilities stopped serving non-Halal meals in October 2014, in violation of its faith-based meals policy.

Under Islamic law, a Halal diet prohibits the meat of certain animals and mandates that the food not come into contact with other non-Halal meals, among other things.

POLL: Do you believe inmates or prisoners should be entitled to religious privileges?

CAIR Florida and the ACLU said they have informed corrections officials about the specific complaints of 17 Muslim inmates, but there has been no change.

"Individuals do not lose their constitutional rights just because they are behind bars," Shalini Goel Agarwal, staff attorney at the ACLU of Florida, said in a statement. "When a particular diet is part of an inmate's religious practice, jails need to respect that, especially when they already do so for inmates other faiths."

The organizations said they will now file formal grievances after repeated letters and meetings have failed to bring about change.

"There has been no change in religious meals for Muslims incarcerated during the month of Ramadan," Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department spokeswoman Janelle Hall told Local 10 News.

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Florida's Turnpike was shut down at Southwest Eighth Street during rush hour Wednesday afternoon following a crash.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue officials said a pedestrian was struck by a vehicle in a northbound lane about 5:20 p.m. and taken to a nearby hospital.

The victim's condition is unknown at this time.

Two northbound lanes were getting by just after 5:30 p.m.

No other details were immediately released.

Watch Local 10 News or refresh this page for updates.

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Miami-Dade firefighters were battling a house fire in southwest Miami-Dade County Wednesday afternoon.

The incident was reported at a home at 8945 SW 100th Street.

Sky 10 was over the scene just before 6 p.m. as firefighters pulled one of their fellow workers from the home and ripped off their jacket and shirt.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue officials said 14 crews were sent to the scene.

Two firefighters sustained non-traumatic injuries. None of the residents who live at the home were injured.

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It’s a convention like no other.

The Florida Supercon has taken over the Miami Beach Convention Center with people from around the world bringing the best fictional characters to life.

"Supercon is a place [where people] who love comic books, video games, sci-fi, fantasy come together and have a giant party," said Michael Broder, president of Super Conventions.

For most of the 50,000 people expected to come, it time to bring their Cosplay A-game.

In attendance was Ken Russell. If his name seems familiar it's because he’s running for Miami city commissioner.

"I’m a storm trooper," said Russell who was with his son August Russell.

The costumes are one the main reasons people attend.

"So great when people come up to you and say they love your work," said Sarah Toth, a Supercon attendee.

But it’s not just about the costumes. Celebrity meet and greets are planned all weekend and shops are here from all over showcasing some of their rarest comics.

"Well this is the first appearance of Scott Lang as Ant Man and it's signed by Bob Layton," said Nick Lupo of Browse House Comics.

Even toys are being sold.

"Fifteen-thousand dollars. What makes this so valuable? This is the original 10 that came out, most of them are unpunches, which means they didn't even make it onto a rack," said Eric Farley of Zaldiva Comics.

There is something for everyone at Supercon.

"It just speaks to how much people are into this geek culture stuff," said Broder.

Follow Liane Morejon on Twitter @LianeMorejonTV

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Passions are running high over the 633-foot lighted billboard known as Innovation Tower.

A Plantation couple could soon face charges after an 18-month-old boy was taken to a hospital with burn marks.

The toddler's biological father, Ladarris Smart, told Local 10 News that his son is in the ICU at Plantation General Hospital with fever blisters in his mouth, bite marks on his stomach and burn marks on his head and buttocks.

"He is malnourished. You can see his ribs," Smart said. "He's not eating nothing. He just cries a lot. He doesn't want to do nothing."

"Do you suspect he is being abused?" asked Local 10 News reporter Ben Kennedy.

"I think so, because the marks, he can't do that to himself," Smart said. "Two bite marks on his chest, a child is not going to bite someone, their mouth is not that big. Burn marks on his butt, a child can't do that, and burn marks on his head."

Sunrise police moved in Thursday morning on a house off Northwest 35th Place. A man, identified as the boyfriend of the child's mother walked out with his hands in the air.

Police said he was arrested in an unrelated case.

Smart said his son his expected to stay in the hospital overnight. He and the toddler's mother will face a judge Friday afternoon for a custody hearing as police continue to investigate the allegations.

Follow Ben Kennedy on Twitter @BenKennedyTV

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A couple from Miami was arrested Thursday in a hydroponics lab bust.

Manny Dieguez, 39, and Ivette Montero, 29, face charges of trafficking marijuana, drug possession, child abuse and grand theft.

Narcotics investigators said the couple stole power from Florida Power & Light in order to operate a fully functional marijuana hydroponics lab.

The lab was discovered inside a residence at 5415 SW 92nd Ave. in Miami.

After being tipped off by FPL, narcotics investigators obtained a search warrant and uncovered the lab, which they said contained 108 live marijuana plants weighing 183 pounds. 

Police said the defendants have two minor children living inside the residence, a 2-year-old girl and a 3-month-old boy. 

Investigators said the couple had a power diversion in the home to steal more electricity from FPL.

The pair also allegedly had a separate stash of roughly 50 grams of marijuana inside the garage, to which both defendants had access.

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A South Florida family is urging parents to get EKGs for their children after their eldest daughter, Breanna Vergara, 11, collapsed during dance practice last year.

"I got a call from the studio that they needed me to hurry up and get here," Breanna's mother, Claudia Vergara said.

"I was calling her name and she wasn't reacting," said Breanna's dance teacher, Yvonne Alvarez. "I grabbed her, and as soon as I grabbed her she fell to the floor."

Claudia Vergara, said her daughter died Dec. 9 from pre-excitation Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome.

She said the congenital heart defect is curable when it is detected with an EKG, and deaths caused by the syndrome are rare.

In Breanna's case, the defect did not go away as Breanna grew up, as it sometimes does.

Since her death, Breanna's parents said they know four children who have the same condition, including one of Breanna's best friends. Claudia Vergara said one of the children is a teenager and the other three are under 11 years old.

"I'm hoping that this saves many more lives," Breanna's father, Jesus Vergara said.

"An EKG or ECG is an electrocardiogram. It is a painless test that checks the electrical activity of your heart and can detect problems," Claudia Vergara posted to the Breanna Vergara Foundation Facebook page. "All children who are participating in sports should be getting an EKG along with their physical every year."

Nicklaus Children's Hospital offers free EKGs to all middle and high school athletes.  Interested parents are welcome to take their children to the main hospital or any of the eight outpatient centers in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach County.

To schedule an appointment for a pediatric EKG test, please call The Heart Program at Nicklaus Children's Hospital at (855) 624-3547.

Claudia Vergara said the hospital is now also offering free EKGs to younger children in the dance community.

Miami Dancity Studios, where Breanna's younger sister still dances, has made EKGs and physicals mandatory for all of its competition dancers.

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A would-be robber is still on the run after his accomplice was shot and killed by a Domino's pizza delivery man early Wednesday morning.

A records check showed that the alleged robber, identified as Adalberto Hernandez, 24, had a long rap sheet, and the victim, identified as Slayde Henry, 24, has a fairly clean background with just a few traffic violations.

Henry is a father from Pembroke Pines and has worked at the Domino's on Hollywood Boulevard and North 58th Street for about three months.

Police said Henry was in his car about 1 a.m. Wednesday in the pizzeria's parking lot when two armed masked men tried to rob him.

Henry surprised the duo by pulling out his own gun, firing six shots, according to witnesses.

Hernandez died from his injuries.

A man, who told Local 10 News that his girlfriend's daughter was working inside the pizzeria at the time, said he commends the delivery driver for his quick action.

"(I'm) glad he was armed," Miguel Nieves said. "I'm glad he was able to protect them. If not, it could have been worse."

Despite his heroics, Henry's job could be in jeopardy since it is against company policy to carry a firearm on the job.

At this time, he is on paid leave pending the outcome of the investigation.

The pizzeria was closed for the remainder of the day but reopened Thursday morning.

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Univision is canceling its telecast of the Miss USA pageant, an event partially owned by Donald Trump, to protest Trump's offensive remarks about Mexicans.

Two men were arrested Thursday after surveillance video captured them fraudulently withdrawing thousands of dollars from a victim's checking and savings account at a Hialeah Bank of America, police said.

Francisco Oramas, 54, and Rene Merino, 70, face charges of grand theft and fraudulently using someone’s personal identification.

Police said the men were captured on surveillance video using the virtual bank teller at Bank of America at 175 Hialeah Drive.

According to an arrest report, Oramas, who had Merino inside his car during the transactions, withdrew more than $7,500 from the victim's accounts between May 31 and June 5.

(***Local 10 News previously published a surveillance image showing a woman using the ATM provided by Bank of America. Hialeah police confirm that the woman is not a suspect in the case, saying “The Hialeah Police Department apologizes for reporting erroneous information provided to our department during the course of the investigation."***)

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A former teacher at a Broward County elementary school pleaded no contest to grand theft charges Thursday and was sentenced to two years of probation.

Cibeis Carrillo must also pay nearly $11,000 in restitution.

Carrillo was arrested in January 2014 at Westchester Elementary School in Coral Springs, where she was a first-grade teacher.

Dolly Garg said she was shocked to learn that a fellow teacher -- someone she thought was a friend -- had pilfered from her account.

According to a police report, Carrillo accessed Garg's payroll page on the school district's employee website and managed to reroute Garg's check into her account.

Police said records show that eight paychecks totaling more than $10,000 went into Carrillo's account.

According to the report, Carrillo told police that she used the money to pay her living expenses, including her son's college tuition.

ALSO: Dania Elementary teacher accused of smuggling marijuana

Garg said she thinks Carrillo got onto the payroll site on a laptop that Garg left in the classroom.

Garg claims that the school district refused to pay her back and said she had to get the money from Carrillo.

More than a year after Carrillo's arrest, Garg will now receive her stolen wages.  

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Two children were rescued from a house fire in Miami, fire officials said.

It happened Thursday evening on Northwest 49th Street.

A primary search uncovered two twin girls who are 4 years old.

The twins are Brooke and Kourtney Etheridge

The two children were taken to a nearby hospital.

Neighbors said they heard the girls screaming for help and banging on the windows before fire crews showed up.

Watch Local 10 News and refresh Local10.com for updates on this developing story.

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One person is dead and two others were injured after a crash on Florida's Turnpike in west Miami-Dade County.

The single-vehicle crash was reported about 4 p.m. in the southbound lanes near U.S. Highway 27.

Check real-time traffic map for delays

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, one person was dead at the scene and two others were flown to Kendall Regional Medical Center.

A view from Sky 10 showed the wrecked silver SUV on the grassy median and a body covered by a yellow tarp on the shoulder.

Southbound traffic was completely shut down while the FHP conducted its crash investigation.

Drivers who were stuck in the standstill traffic could be seen standing outside of their vehicles.

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