Florida

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

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Sink Concedes Fla. Governor's Race

Rick Scott will take over from Charlie Crist

(Newser) - Alex Sink is taking her text messages and going home, conceding the Florida governor's race to Republican multimillionaire Rick Scott after his campaign called a win on her part a "mathematical impossibility." Scott, who ran on an anti-establishment platform with Tea Party blessings, had held what the AP...

Alan Grayson Loses Florida Race to 'Taliban Dan'
 Grayson Falls to 'Taliban Dan' 
THE HOUSE
Nov 3, 2010 1:20 AM CDT

Grayson Falls to 'Taliban Dan'

GOP's Dan Webster credits victory to positive campaign

(Newser) - In one of the nation's most keenly watched House races, voters in central Florida rejected combative liberal incumbent Rep. Alan Grayson in favor of veteran Republican state lawmaker Dan Webster. The Democrat—who drew the wrath of GOP leaders for saying the Republican health care plan was to "die...

Under Fire for Text, Fla. Gov Candidate Fires Staffer

Candidate caught breaking rules by viewing phone message

(Newser) - Facing a ruckus after her campaign sneaked her a message during a debate Monday night, Florida's Democratic nominee for governor has fired a staffer for the rules violation. GOP candidate Rick Scott spotted Alex Sink being shown a message on a cell phone during a commercial break and informed moderators,...

Florida Law Firm Bribed Workers to Forge Foreclosures

...and big bribes at that: jewelry, cars, houses

(Newser) - Employees at Florida’s largest “foreclosure mill” routinely altered and forged documents to speed up the foreclosure process—and were rewarded with jewelry, cars, and other lavish gifts as a result, witnesses tell Florida’s Attorney General. Three former employees of the law offices of David J. Stern have...

Teen Girl Accused of Poisoning Adoptive Family

She allegedly used insecticide, dog feces

(Newser) - A 13-year-old Florida girl is accused of poisoning her adoptive mother and possibly her siblings for more than a year, Fox News reports. The girl, who was adopted years ago from Mexico, confessed to putting insect poison and dog feces in food her mother ate, as well as hand soap...

Alan Grayson Dubs Opponent 'Taliban Dan'
 Alan Grayson Dubs 
 Opponent 'Taliban Dan' 
CAMPAIGN HIJINKS
Sep 27, 2010 5:30 PM CDT

Alan Grayson Dubs Opponent 'Taliban Dan'

It's really Daniel Webster, but whatever

(Newser) - Alan Grayson, he of "Die Quickly" fame, is taking an equally, er, unusual approach to dragging his opponent's name through the mud, reports Talking Points Memo. In a new campaign ad, the Florida Democrat compares the stances of patriotically named Daniel Webster to, say, a certain notorious Afghan fundamentalist...

Crist's GOP Donors Still Fighting to Get Their Cash Back

Appeal ruling denying class-action status

(Newser) - Republicans who donated to see Charlie Crist become the next GOP senator from Florida are keeping up the fight to get their money back now that he's decided he wants to be the state's next independent senator. A lawyer for a pair of donors said today he'll appeal a court's...

Brazen Florida Bank Robbers Got $100K

Bomb strapped to teller was fake; manhunt goes on

(Newser) - Here's the weirdest part about that bizarre bank robbery in Florida yesterday straight out of a movie plot: It seems to have worked. Today, the robbers remain at large with more than $100,000, reports the Miami Herald . The "bomb" they strapped to a bank teller turned out to...

Bank Robbers at Large After Strapping Bomb to Kidnapped Teller

Florida crisis ends with release of abducted employee

(Newser) - A bank teller was kidnapped early today from his home by robbers who strapped a suspected bomb to his chest and used him to steal money from a Bank of America branch near the University of Miami, according to the FBI. The suspected explosive device was safely removed after the...

Bank Robber Takes Hostages
 Bank Robber Takes Hostages 
Sep 24, 2010 9:34 AM CDT

Bank Robber Takes Hostages

Police have Florida bank surrounded

(Newser) - Police are surrounding a Miami-area bank where they say a robber has taken hostages. Coral Gables police say an unknown number of employees and customers were taken hostage today at a Bank of America branch near the University of Miami. Hostage negotiators are at the bank along with the FBI...

Florida Court Strikes Down Gay Adoption Ban

'Most draconian' ban falls; adoptions can begin immediately

(Newser) - A Florida court has struck down the state's 33-year-old ban on gay adoptions, ruling that the law is unconstitutional and there is "no rational basis" for it. Gov. Charlie Crist says the state will stop enforcing the ban immediately, although he hasn't commented on whether the state plans to...

Cops: 'How to Molest Kids' Manual Is Legal

But police still want to get their hands on author

(Newser) - A thick manual instructing attackers on how to molest children is legal, say Florida cops—but they'd still like to get their hands on the author of the 170-page book. "I've never seen anything like it. It was pretty amazing because of how detailed it is," an Orange...

Sign of the Times: Foreclosures-Only Courts

Florida streamlines legal process to cut backlog

(Newser) - Pretty much all you need to know about how bad Florida's housing mess is: The state has set up a system of foreclosures-only courts to deal with its backlog of cases. Otherwise, they'd clog up the normal court system. The goal is to cut the backlog by 62% in a...

Men Mutilate Beached Whale —for a Tasty Snack

It was dead, and they were hungry; it's still illegal

(Newser) - Two Florida men are in trouble after they spotted a dead whale on the beach and approached it with one thought in mind: Hey, free lunch. "The thing was deader than a doornail," said one of the men picked up for questioning by state conservation officers. He told...

1 Dead in Florida as Earl Batters Caribbean

Distant storms cause deadly riptides

(Newser) - A surfer is dead, a swimmer is missing, and authorities are warning people to be careful in the water along much of the Atlantic seaboard as distant hurricanes generate rip tides. The body of 47-year-old surfer Tazwell Brown was recovered by his peers in central Florida on Saturday, and police...

Outsider Rick Scott Wins Fla. GOP Primary
 Outsider Rick Scott 
 Wins Fla. GOP Primary 
ELECTION NIGHT
Aug 25, 2010 2:05 AM CDT

Outsider Rick Scott Wins Fla. GOP Primary

Novice politician will face Alex Sink for governor

(Newser) - Political novice Rick Scott has narrowly defeated Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum—and the state's GOP establishment—to win the Republican nomination for governor. Scott, a former health care executive, poured $50 million of his own money into a bitterly fought campaign in which he painted his rival as a...

Kendrick Meek Wins Dems' Primary in Florida
Kendrick Meek Wins Dems' Primary in Florida
election night
Aug 24, 2010 7:28 PM CDT

Kendrick Meek Wins Dems' Primary in Florida

He'll face Rubio, Crist for Senate

(Newser) - Rep. Kendrick Meek is the Democratic nominee for Senate in Florida, overcoming billionaire Jeff Greene's massive television and mail onslaught to win a bitter primary. If he wins again in November, Meek will be the state's first black senator. He will face Republican Marco Rubio, a Tea Party favorite who...

Huck: I Didn't Shake Down GOP Candidate

 Huck: I Didn't 
 Shake Down 
 GOP Candidate 
$250K FOR ENDORSEMENT?
Aug 23, 2010 6:36 PM CDT

Huck: I Didn't Shake Down GOP Candidate

Denies he sought $250K for endorsement

(Newser) - Mike Huckabee's crew is moving swiftly to stamp out rumors that the onetime presidential candidate offered up his endorsement in Florida's gubernatorial primary—for the bargain-basement discount price of $250,000, according to Politico. A blogger reported yesterday than an unnamed source in Rick Scott's camp told him that Huck...

Florida Church Determined to Burn Korans on 9/11
Florida Church Determined
to Burn Korans on 9/11
DESPITE CITY WARNING
Aug 19, 2010 10:36 AM CDT

Florida Church Determined to Burn Korans on 9/11

City says no, but 'Dove World' just won't listen

(Newser) - A Florida church has vowed to go ahead with its plan to hold a Koran burning on 9/11 , in defiance of a city ruling that states such an act would violate fire codes. The city of Gainesville turned down the Dove World Outreach Center’s application for a burn permit,...

Facebook Friend Request Lands Man in Jail

Former husband violates wife's protective order

(Newser) - A Facebook friend request turned into a Facebook friend arrest for one Florida man. Harry Bruder allegedly violated his ex-wife’s protective order against him when he sent her friend requests, landing him in jail Monday night. His ex probably didn’t want to friend him anyway after seeing a...

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