Dan Scanlan Reporter email
Dan Scanlan is a veteran journalist with 40 years as a radio, television and print reporter in the Jacksonville area, as well as years of broadcast work in the Northeast. After a stint managing a hotel comedy club, Dan began a 34-year career as police and current events reporter at The Florida Times-Union before joining the staff of WJCT News 89.9.
Featured image for “Former St. Augustine teacher sentenced for enticing child”
A judge with a gavel. | Adobe stock/Lightfield studios
7 hours ago

Former St. Augustine teacher sentenced for enticing child

Prosecutors said former teacher Matthew Christopher Yates tried to arrange a sexual meeting with a 14-year-old.…

Featured image for “Baby right whale and mother spotted off St. Marys”
A right whale named Boomerang and her new calf were spotted about 9 miles east of the St. Mary’s River entrance in Florida on Jan. 1, 2026. | Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute
9 hours ago

Baby right whale and mother spotted off St. Marys

Researchers have spotted a right whale off the coast of Northeast Florida with a brand new baby calf.…

Featured image for “City manager suddenly resigns in Atlantic Beach”
Atlantic Beach City Manager Bill Killingsworth | City of Atlantic Beach
1 day ago

City manager suddenly resigns in Atlantic Beach

City Manager Bill Killingsworth stepped down voluntarily after a meeting with the mayor.…

Featured image for “Neptune Beach backs off $5 hourly parking rate”
Signs like these help people parking at Neptune Beach's Town Center. | Neptune Beach
1 day ago

Neptune Beach backs off $5 hourly parking rate

City Council lowered the parking rate after hearing that an earlier increase hurt parking use and merchants’ business.…

Featured image for “Paid parking is a go in Fernandina Beach — for now”
Centre Street in historic Fernandina Beach will get paid parking this spring. | City of Fernandina Beach
1 day ago

Paid parking is a go in Fernandina Beach — for now

City commissioners approved paid parking starting this spring, but voters could end it in August.…

Featured image for “#AskJAXTDY | A caller claimed I missed jury duty. Was it a scam?”
A badge signifies that someone is on jury duty in Duval County. | Michelle Corum, Jacksonville Today
1 day ago

#AskJAXTDY | A caller claimed I missed jury duty. Was it a scam?

A Jacksonville Today reader wants to warn people about a jury duty scam she encountered.…

Featured image for “Shands Bridge will close all weekend for maintenance”
The Shands Bridge connects Green Cove Springs with St. Johns County. The bridge will be closed during the coming weekend. | Florida Department of Transportation
2 days ago

Shands Bridge will close all weekend for maintenance

The state will close the Shands Bridge from Friday to Monday — and possibly next weekend too.…

Featured image for “Anheuser-Busch invests $30M in Jacksonville brewery”
Jacksonville's Anheuser-Busch brewery and canning facility operates on the city's Northside. | Anheuser-Busch
2 days ago

Anheuser-Busch invests $30M in Jacksonville brewery

The investment will upgrade equipment to produce more Michelob Ultra, Anheuser-Busch said.  …

Featured image for “Jacksonville police involved in two shootings”
Police investigated an officer-involved shooting late Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. at the Luxor Club Apartments on Egrets Nest Drive. | News4Jax
2 days ago

Jacksonville police involved in two shootings

Police killed one man and wounded another in separate shootings within minutes of each other.…

Featured image for “Judge dismisses lawsuit over paid parking in Fernandina”
Centre Street in Fernandina Beach, where paid parking would be required. | City of Fernandina Beach
January 2, 2026

Judge dismisses lawsuit over paid parking in Fernandina

The City Commission will vote Tuesday on whether to institute paid parking in the downtown area.…

Featured image for “Dad gets 30 years for running over baby and killing him”
Justin Golden stands with attorney Kenneth Williams as he is sentenced to 30 years in prison in his baby's death. | News4Jax
December 19, 2025

Dad gets 30 years for running over baby and killing him

Justin Golden admitted he put his 8-month-old baby on the road but said he did not intend to kill him.…

Featured image for “Drag strip starts construction, the first track since 2017”
This sign now shows the planned location of the new eighth-mile Hicken Power Dragstrip at Callahan Speedway. | Image in Time Photography
December 19, 2025

Drag strip starts construction, the first track since 2017

Racing could begin in May or June at the new drag strip at Callahan Speedway, next to a go-kart complex.…

Featured image for “Cummer Museum receives one of its biggest gifts ever”
The entrance to the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens, which just received a $3.5 million bequest from the estate of the late Betsy Lovett. | Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens
December 18, 2025

Cummer Museum receives one of its biggest gifts ever

The estate of philanthropist Betsy Lovett has bequested $3.5 million to the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens.…

Featured image for “Brooks Rehabilitation embarks on $68M expansion”
An artist's rendering of the planned expansion of Brooks Rehabilitation's Orange Park outpatient facility. | Brooks Rehabilitation
December 16, 2025

Brooks Rehabilitation embarks on $68M expansion

Brooks Rehabilitation will expand its Southside, Mandarin and Orange Park sites beginning next year.…

Featured image for “MAD DADS dissolves, but senior member says it will return”
People sign a poster remembering murder victims during a MAD DADS march in November 2024. | MAD DADS
December 16, 2025

MAD DADS dissolves, but senior member says it will return

MAD DADS filed paperwork to dissolve itself, but the group may return in a new form with a new board.…

Featured image for “Two more fallen firefighters memorialized in Jacksonville”
Firefighters line up during Jacksonville’s Fallen Firefighter Memorial on Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. Each helmet carries the name of one of the 28 who have died in the line of duty. | Dan Scanlan, Jacksonville Today
December 11, 2025

Two more fallen firefighters memorialized in Jacksonville

Engineers Ian Church and Jason Woodruff died of cancers contracted in the line of duty.…

Featured image for “Florida Theatre President Numa Saisselin resigns”
Numa Saisselin stands inside the Florida Theatre in mid-2023, as a renovation began. Saisselin has resigned as the theater's president. | Dan Scanlan, Jacksonville Today
December 10, 2025

Florida Theatre President Numa Saisselin resigns

Saisselin said his departure after 13 years was a mutual decision between himself and the Florida Theatre.…

Featured image for “Jacksonville police officer charged with stalking”
Sheriff T.K. Waters speaks Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, about the arrest of a police officer on charges of false imprisonment and stalking. | News4Jax
December 10, 2025

Jacksonville police officer charged with stalking

Officer Claude Fleurimond resigned after he was accused of false imprisonment and stalking his former girlfriend.…

Featured image for “Fatal drug overdoses decline 33% in Jacksonville”
The Narcotics Overdose Death Investigations Unit rushes a house during a recent drug investigation. | Jacksonville Sheriff's Office
December 9, 2025

Fatal drug overdoses decline 33% in Jacksonville

Sheriff T.K. Waters credits a 4-year-old investigations unit focused on narcotics overdose deaths.…

Featured image for “Teams rescue entangled right whale off St. Marys”
An endangered North Atlantic right whale named "Division" was spotted Wednesdaty, Dec. 3, 2025, off Jekyll Island, Georgia. Fishing lines were entangled around ihis body. | Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
December 8, 2025

Teams rescue entangled right whale off St. Marys

The endangered whale, named “Division, was severely entangled in fishing lines off St. Marys, Georgia.…

Featured image for “Gingerbread extravaganza takes its artistry to new home”
Gingerbread creations like a snow-covered White House are part of the 23rd annual Gingerbread Extravaganza at the Jacksonville History Center. | Dan Scanlan, Jacksonville Today
December 5, 2025

Gingerbread extravaganza takes its artistry to new home

The Jacksonville Historical Society’s 23rd annual extravaganza features 41 gingerbread creations.…

Featured image for “Palatka residents warned of lead in drinking water”
Palatka officials have issued a public drinking water notice after recent sampling showed elevated lead levels in more than 10% of homes tested. | Dan Scanlan, Jacksonville Today
December 5, 2025

Palatka residents warned of lead in drinking water

Water samples showed elevated lead in more than 10% of the homes tested, the city said.…

Featured image for “Final littoral combat ship destined for Mayport”
The USS Cleveland will join the littoral combat squadron at Naval Station Mayport, the last of its kind, the Navy says. | U.S. Navy
December 4, 2025

Final littoral combat ship destined for Mayport

The U.S. Navy has accepted delivery of the USS Cleveland. The ship will homeport at Mayport Naval Station.…

Featured image for “Police officer cleared in shooting of unarmed boy”
State Attorney Melissa Nelson explains why she decided a police officer's shooting of an unarmed boy was lawful. | News4Jax
December 4, 2025

Police officer cleared in shooting of unarmed boy

The police officer was justified in shooting the boy, but communication errors contributed, the state attorney says.…