Florida

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

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Florida Republicans Pass 6-Week Abortion Ban

DeSantis has said he supports the change

(Newser) - The Republican-dominated Florida Legislature on Thursday approved a ban on abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, a proposal supported by GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis. Florida currently prohibits abortions after 15 weeks. A six-week ban would give DeSantis a political victory among Republican primary voters before officially launching a presidential candidacy...

Fort Lauderdale Airport Now Sits in Giant Puddle

1-in-1,000-year storm drops record rainfall on South Florida city

(Newser) - Fort Lauderdale may have never seen as much rainfall as on Wednesday when a slow-moving 1-in-a-thousand-year rainstorm "effectively became a stationary front," per the Washington Post . More than 25 inches of rain fell at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport over 24 hours, according to preliminary data from the National...

Florida Executes &#39;Ninja Killer&#39;
'Ninja Killer'
Executed in Florida
Apr 13, 2023 12:00 AM CDT

'Ninja Killer' Executed in Florida

Louis Bernard Gaskin, 56, wore ninja clothing during 1989 double murder

(Newser) - Florida executed a man known as the “ninja killer” on Wednesday for the 1989 slayings of a couple visiting the state from New Jersey, the AP reports. Louis Bernard Gaskin, 56, was pronounced dead at 6:15pm after receiving a lethal injection, the governor’s office said. He was...

Missing Teacher's Car Turns Up, With Body Inside

Robert Heikka's car found submerged in canal 6 miles from his Florida home

(Newser) - A body has been found in a submerged car belonging to a Florida middle school teacher who vanished two and a half years ago. Robert Heikka, then 70, was last seen at his home in Port Orange on Oct. 25, 2020, according to police. He failed to turn up at...

GOP Lawmaker Rants Against 'Demon' Transgender People

Florida Rep. Webster Barnaby got pushback from both Dems, Republicans after 'mutant' remarks

(Newser) - On Monday, a legislative hearing was held in Florida over the Safety in Private Spaces Act , which would bar anyone from using a restroom if it didn't match the sex they'd been assigned at birth. Comments from one particular lawmaker, however, stunned colleagues on both sides of the...

Final Juvenile Suspect in Murder of 3 Teens Arrested

3 young suspects all now in custody

(Newser) - The final juvenile suspected in the murder of three other teens in Florida was arrested Saturday, the AP reports. US Marshals located the 16-year-old and took him into custody. He faces charges of carjacking with a firearm, aggravated assault, grand theft of a motor vehicle, fleeing or attempting to elude...

Report: Florida's Top Doc Nixed Key Data From Vaccine Study

Analysis shows State Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo cut data on COVID being riskier than shot

(Newser) - An analysis that was the basis of a highly criticized recommendation from Florida's surgeon general cautioning young men against getting the COVID-19 vaccine omitted information that showed catching the virus could increase the risk of a cardiac-related death much more than getting the mRNA shot, according to drafts of...

Feel Like Watching a Gator Body-Slam a Python? Voila!
In Gator vs. Python,
Guess Who Wins?
VIDEO
Apr 8, 2023 10:00 AM CDT

In Gator vs. Python, Guess Who Wins?

Woman records body-slamming encounter in Florida Everglades, in which reptile claims victory

(Newser) - It's survival of the fittest in the Everglades, and if you're wondering who might win in a showdown between an alligator and a Burmese python, this clip recorded by Katina Boychew should put that question to rest. Per NBC2 , the Florida woman was visiting the wetlands preserve last...

13-Year-Old Son of Florida's COVID Whistleblower Arrested

She says it's retaliation; police say he threatened to shoot up a school

(Newser) - The 13-year-old son of Rebekah Jones, the Florida data scientist fired and allegedly harassed after she alleged the state was manipulating its COVID data and posted what she said were the state's "real" COVID numbers , has been arrested. Jones tweeted Wednesday, "My family is not safe. My...

Traffic in Palm Beach on Friday Was a Bit Weird

Police: Woman drove Rolls-Royce through a yard, onto beach

(Newser) - A Florida resident's evening drive last week in her Rolls-Royce didn't end well. Palm Beach police say a 66-year-old woman hurtled through someone's backyard in her luxury car on Friday, then crashed through a seawall before ultimately coming to a halt with its nose in the sand...

DeSantis Signs New Concealed Weapons Law

Permit, training, background check no longer required

(Newser) - Floridians will be able to carry concealed guns without a permit under a bill Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Monday, giving the governor another legislative victory as he prepares a campaign for president. The governor signed the bill in a private ceremony in his office. His only immediate public comment...

She's Charged After Deaths of 2 Grandkids in a Year

Florida's Tracey Nix faces charges after the most recent one, for leaving infant in hot car

(Newser) - A Florida grandmother faces criminal charges after the death of a second grandchild in her care in less than a year. The woman is 65-year-old Tracey Nix of Hardee County, and Nix's own daughter wants to see her in prison, reports NBC News . The details are wrenching:
  • In December
...

A Lawyer Went to the Bathroom at Work. He Never Came Back
A Lawyer Went to the Bathroom
at Work. He Never Came Back
in case you missed it
Apr 1, 2023 4:05 PM CDT

A Lawyer Went to the Bathroom at Work. He Never Came Back

No body has been found, but Florida plastic surgeon Tomasz Kosowski is charged with murder

(Newser) - The last time Florida attorney Steven Cozzi was seen was last Tuesday, at his office in Largo. Now, a local plastic surgeon is facing first-degree murder charges in Cozzi's death, though the lawyer's body still hasn't been located, reports FOX 13 . Police say that after executing a...

Principal Quits After Being Scammed by Fake Elon Musk

She wrote $100K check after months of communicating with fraudster

(Newser) - The principal of a charter STEM school in Florida resigned this week after saying she had been taken in by a scammer pretending to be Elon Musk. "I am a very smart lady. Well-educated. I fell for a scam," Dr. Jan McGee told a board meeting, per WESH...

Disney Has a Big Surprise for DeSantis

Surprise language in 11th-hour deal effectively wrests power away from Florida governor's board

(Newser) - Last month, Ron DeSantis declared himself the "new sheriff in town" at Disney World, after he hand-picked members for a board that oversees what was formerly known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District, the special tax district for Disney's Orlando-area theme parks. His move came amid a contentious...

Man Accused of Threatening Sheriff Gets Surprise 'Welcome'

'Welcome to Florida,' threatened Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood tells extradited suspect

(Newser) - A New Jersey man extradited to Florida to face a charge of threatening a local sheriff was greeted Monday by that very man. As Richard Golden descended an escalator at Orlando Sanford International Airport in the company of officers, Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood stood at the bottom. "Hope...

Florida School Yanks Ruby Bridges Movie

Parent complains story about desegregation is inappropriate for 2nd graders

(Newser) - An elementary school in Florida is taking criticism for pulling the Disney film Ruby Bridges out of circulation for its students. As the Tampa Bay Times reports, the movie tells the true story of how Ruby, a Black 6-year-old girl, set off a firestorm when she attended a previously all-white...

Michelangelo&#39;s David Was Too &#39;Pornographic&#39; for Florida Parent
Museum Invites
Florida Class
to Take a Look
updated
Mar 26, 2023 4:45 PM CDT

Museum Invites Florida Class to Take a Look

Principal was ousted in dispute over teaching about Michelangelo's David

(Newser) - The museum in Italy that displays Michelangelo's David has invited the parents and students of a Florida school whose principal was forced out in a dispute over teaching about the statue to come see it for themselves. The mayor of Florence and the director of the Galleria dell'Accademia...

Invasive New Mosquito Species Is Spreading in Florida
Florida Has a
New, 'Concerning'
Mosquito Species
in case you missed it
Mar 26, 2023 11:25 AM CDT

Florida Has a New, 'Concerning' Mosquito Species

There are a lot of unknowns with Culex lactator

(Newser) - With around 90 species of mosquito already buzzing around Florida, is one more going to make much of a difference? Scientists say they just don't know, which makes it important to track the spread of Culex lactator, an invasive species normally found in Central America and northern South America,...

Teenager Gets Life in Prison in 13-Year-Old's Stabbing Death

Killer's grandmother pleads for mercy, saying 'There's some good' in him

(Newser) - A Florida judge sentenced a 16-year-old Florida boy to life in prison on Friday for fatally stabbing a 13-year-old classmate on Mother's Day in 2021. Aiden Fucci, 16, was 14 when he stabbed Tristyn Bailey at least 114 times in the woods near where the teens lived in north...

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