Friday, January 9th: Below are the top stories WTXL ABC 27 is following around The Big Bend, South Georgia, nationally, and your forecast.
1) Protest & vigil at Florida State Capitol after deadly ICE confrontation in Minnesota. Authorities say Renee Good was shot and killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis this week. The Department of Homeland Security says the agent's actions were justified since Good was trying to hit agents with her vehicle. Witnesses dispute that claim, arguing Good was trying to drive away from the agents.
2) NEW DETAILS: FDLE: Former Chiles High head girls basketball coach arrested following undercover operation. 56-year-old Troy Hartmann faces several charges, including sex offense-harmful explicit communication to a minor and unlawful use of two-way communication device. The release states the investigation began in November 2025 when agents with FDLE's Tallahassee Regional Operations Center conducted an undercover operation aimed at targeting online predators. They say that during the operation, the 56-year-old reached out to an undercover agent whom he believed was a 15-year-old female.
3) GOP divisions emerge over timing of Florida property tax cuts. Gov. Ron DeSantis is signaling that property tax relief, long touted as a top Republican priority, may not be resolved during the upcoming 2026 legislative session. Instead, he’s floating the possibility of a separate special session later this spring, a move that’s exposing fresh fractures within the GOP-controlled Capitol.
4) Old Balfour School could become affordable housing in Thomasville. The site spans 10 acres with three existing buildings; phase one would demolish one building, keep two, and add two new buildings for roughly 60 rental apartments priced according to residents’ income. Phase two could include 15–20 single-family homes, though plans are still preliminary and depend on zoning approval.
5) Weekend Forecast: We'll climb into the upper 70s to low 80s, with a mix of sun and clouds throughout the day. We do expect a line of showers on Saturday, with rainfall totals expected to be around a tenth of an inch. Overall, the rain should not impact daytime activities, with most coming long after the sun sets. First to Know Meteorologist Ryan Gold has the details below.
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