Officers from the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office this week weathered a close encounter with a 14-foot alligator that had parked itself in the middle of a residential street. Local media reported the reptile blocked traffic and caused a stir, even tripping an alarm at one house, before a contingent of sheriff's deputies arrived. Working with a professional trapper, they secured the alligator and lifted it safely into a truck as local residents watched. The Sarasota Herald-Tribune said the gator