Cobra Escape, Cruise Ship Encounter, Doughnut Dispute: Weird Florida

Patch operates 24 daily news sites in the Tampa Bay area and surrounding counties. The following are some of the more unusual, wacky, wonderful or just plain weird stories from the past few weeks:

Watch: 2 Jet Skiers Saved From Clash With Cruise Ship

Two spring breakers out jet skiing in the Port Canaveral area on Saturday found themselves in danger when their path crossed with an oncoming cruise ship. A quick-acting Brevard County Sheriff’s deputy and a port captain are getting the credit for averting the potential disaster.

Drunk Driver Slammed Into Deputy’s Cruiser: Sheriff

A 61-year-old Englewood woman faces DUI charges after the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office says she slammed into the back of a deputy’s cruiser while he was stopped at a red light Thursday night.

Doughnut Dispute Sparked Fatal Shooting: Sheriff

A Wednesday morning dispute between a 24-year-old man and his mother over doughnuts led to a shooting that left one man dead and a Pinellas County Sheriff’s deputy injured, according to Sheriff Bob Gualtieri.

Pepper Spraying Pet Store Robber Captured: Sheriff

A 30-year-old Lutz man already behind bars in Land O’ Lakes following a robbery that resulted in him getting shot faces more charges out of Hillsborough County.

Deadly Cobra Escapes Florida Home

A 2-foot-long snake with a sense of adventure managed to sneak out of its Ocala home late Monday night. While that might not seem like cause for alarm, this particular snake happens to be a monocled cobra with venom that can be deadly.

Tampa ‘Sandy Hook Truther’ Expected To Change Plea

The Florida woman accused of threatening the father of a Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre victim is expected to plead guilty at a change-of-plea hearing, according to court documents cited by multiple media reports including the Sun-Sentinel.

Watch: Casey Anthony Breaks Silence

Just a week after a former judge offered his own theory in the 2008 death of 2-year-old Caylee Marie Anthony, the child’s mother has broken her silence. Casey Anthony, now 30, was acquitted of first-degree murder charges in 2011 and has spent much of her time in seclusion in South Florida ever since.

Photo courtesy of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission