Florida

Read recent news stories and current events about Florida on Newser.com

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Packages Force Evacuation of Jacksonville Airport

Few details available, but local media say two suspicious devices found

(Newser) - The Jacksonville International Airport has been evacuated because of "police activity" regarding suspicious packages. The airport posted the information on its official Twitter feed this evening, but offered no other details. Airport officials also tweeted that passengers on inbound flights currently on the ground were being bused to offsite...

Teacher Finds Human Fetus in Classroom Cabinet
Teacher Finds Human Fetus in Classroom Cabinet
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Sep 29, 2013 7:01 PM CDT

Teacher Finds Human Fetus in Classroom Cabinet

May have been used as a teaching tool for years

(Newser) - A teacher at Florida's Cape Coral High School returned to his classroom at the beginning of the school year and was greeted with a not-so-pleasant surprise: Inside one of the cabinets was a mason jar wrapped in a paper bag ... and inside the jar was a human fetus, WFTX...

As Economy Improves, More Americans Pack Up and Move

Increasingly older people, many headed to Florida, new Census data finds

(Newser) - In search of greener pastures? You're not alone: More than 7 million Americans moved state last year, the highest number in four year. But it isn't just young folks seeking out new horizons, reports the Wall Street Journal , middle-aged and older Americans are increasingly the ones relocating long-distances....

&#39;Hiccup Girl&#39; Guilty of Murder
 'Hiccup Girl' Guilty of Murder 
Sep 21, 2013 5:24 AM CDT

'Hiccup Girl' Guilty of Murder

Jennifer Mee gets life sentence, without parole

(Newser) - A Florida woman who became famous for her uncontrollable hiccupping was found guilty of first-degree murder last night and will serve life in prison without parole. A Pinellas County jury deliberated for four hours before delivering the verdict against 22-year-old Jennifer Mee , who wept in the Clearwater courtroom as it...

Cops: Man Tried Exorcism on Girlfriend, 80

She's OK, and her 54-year-old beau faces assault charges

(Newser) - A 54-year-old man in, of course, Florida is accused of trying to perform an exorcism on his 80-year-old girlfriend, reports the Tampa Bay Times . Police say David Edward Benes held down his live-in sweetie of three years while trying to "exorcise her and get the devil out of her....

Optical Illusion to Slow Down Florida Drivers

Closer road lines may get drivers to brake in pilot program

(Newser) - If you can't get drivers to slow down on their own, why not trick them into it? That's the idea behind a pilot program in Florida that will give drivers the illusion they're driving faster than they are. How exactly? With road "hash marks" painted gradually...

Listen to Shellie Zimmerman&#39;s 911 Call
 Zimmerman's Wife 
 Not Pressing Charges 
UPDATED
Sep 9, 2013 5:17 PM CDT

Zimmerman's Wife Not Pressing Charges

Despite telling cops he threatened her with gun

(Newser) - Despite calling 911 and saying her soon-to-be-ex-husband George Zimmerman was threatening her with a gun today, Shellie Zimmerman has decided not to press charges. Police in Lake Mary, Florida, say she and her father—the owner of the house where the incident took place—have signed paperwork declining to press...

Zimmerman Threatened Me With Hand on Gun: Wife

Estranged wife Shellie called police this afternoon

(Newser) - George Zimmerman's estranged wife called police to a Lake Mary residence this afternoon for a "possible domestic battery," police tell the Orlando Sentinel . The AP reports soon-to-be ex-wife Shellie Zimmerman called police from her father's house, saying that Zimmerman threatened her and her father "with...

Suspect in Home Invasions, Rapes Killed in Gunfight

Charlie Christopher Bates accused of break-ins, assaults last night

(Newser) - Police shot and killed a 24-year-old man yesterday after a dramatic chase and shootout following an even more dramatic crime spree. Charlie Christopher Bates allegedly broke into several homes last night, Fox 13 reports. In the first, police say he tied up a group of men who were watching the...

Florida's Plan: Sell Land So It Can ... Buy Land

Some 5K acres may be up for grabs to raise $50M for other properties

(Newser) - Florida may be about to put a whole lot of land up for sale. The goal: sell off the less significant stuff—some 5,000 acres of beaches, forests, and wetlands originally bought to keep out of development—to raise $50 million to buy land deemed more important to save,...

Shooter's Defense: Stand Your Ground, Bush Doctrine

Florida man shot 3 people he said were threatening him

(Newser) - A Florida man who shot three people in a surprise attack during a Labor Day barbecue has an unusual two-pronged defense: His lawyers cite both the state's "Stand Your Ground" law and the "Bush Doctrine," reports Florida Today . William Woodward, 44, told police that the men...

Florida Family's $300K Find: Underwater Gold

300-year-old chains, coins among haul

(Newser) - A 65-year-old Florida man has spent his life searching for treasure off the coast—and Rick Schmitt and his family have just made their biggest-ever discovery. Some 150 yards off the coast of Fort Pierce, and about 15 feet underwater, the Schmitt family found 64 feet of gold chain, five...

3 Miami Area Mayors Arrested for Corruption in 1 Month

One files for re-election 2 days later

(Newser) - Miami's suburban mayors are doing little to help shake Florida's image as the corruption capital of America, reports the New York Times . Last week, Steve Bateman, the mayor of Homestead, was arrested for allegedly receiving payments from a health care chain looking to build a clinic in the...

She Did It! Nyad Finishes Epic Cuba-Fla. Swim

Swimmer completes 110-mile journey on 5th, final try in 35 years

(Newser) - The fifth try was indeed the charm: Diana Nyad has completed her 35-year-old odyssey to become the first swimmer to cross the Florida Straits Cuba without a shark cage. She was in the water roughly 53 hours, reports CNN . Nyad's team posted this message earlier on her website : "...

Secret Weapon Buoys Nyad's Final Cuba-Fla. Swim

Swimmer thus far avoiding jellyfish, thanks to special mask

(Newser) - American endurance swimmer Diana Nyad is "doing remarkably well" in her fifth attempt in 35 years to become the first person to successfully swim 103 miles from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage. She made it through the first night without any of the jellyfish stings that have...

Excavation of Graves Begins at Former Reform School

Ex-inmates at Florida facility say abuse needs to be investigated

(Newser) - University of South Florida researchers will begin exhuming dozens of graves today at a former reform school in hopes of identifying the buried boys and learning how they died. Former inmates from the 1950s and 1960s have detailed horrific beatings that took place in a small, white concrete block building...

Zimmerman's Wife Pleads Guilty to Perjury

Will avoid jail in a deal with prosecutors

(Newser) - Shellie Zimmerman plead guilty to a misdemeanor perjury charge today, in a plea deal that will allow her to avoid prison. Zimmerman had been charged with felony perjury for lying during a bond hearing for husband George. She told judge Kenneth Lester that she and her husband were broke, when...

New Drone Target: Mosquitoes
 New Drone Target: Mosquitoes 
Aug 27, 2013 2:41 PM CDT

New Drone Target: Mosquitoes

They'll try to find breeding areas in Florida Keys

(Newser) - The ever-expanding list of drone targets now includes mosquitoes in the Florida Keys. The drones won't be zapping or spraying the bugs, but rather looking for their breeding areas, reports the Miami Herald . The idea is to have the camera-equipped drones buzz into remote thickets and pinpoint the breeding...

Man Kills Boss, Co-Worker, Himself in Shooting Spree

Was the step-grandfather of Buffalo Bills' CJ Spiller

(Newser) - A Florida man went on a shooting spree at his former workplace today, killing two, injuring two others, and finally killing himself, CNN reports . According to local authorities, Hubert Allen Jr., 72—the step-grandfather of Buffalo Bills running back CJ Spiller—fatally shot his former boss, Marvin Pritchett, 80, and...

Florida Beaches Desperately Seeking Sand

With supplies running out, officials go looking for a new source

(Newser) - Some South Florida beaches are running low on one very critical supply: sand. The Army Corps of Engineers had been bringing in sand for beaches in Miami-Dade and Broward counties from offshore sources, but now those reserves have run out. That's a problem not just for castle-building enthusiasts, but...

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