Orlando-Sanford airport rallies behind police officer whose wife was killed in by lightning

Orlando Sanford International Airport employees are rallying together after learning the wife of an airport police officer was killed by lightning in Winter Springs Thursday. The victim, Nicole Tedesco, was the wife of an Orlando Sanford Airport police officer, Andrew Tedesco. Advertisement She and their ten-year-old daughter got caught in a rainstorm Thursday afternoon and were hit by lightning while sitting under a tree, according to a release about the incident from Orlando Sanford... Read More

Providers bring battle against 15-week abortion ban to Florida Supreme Court

Pro-reproductive rights organizations including Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union on Friday took their challenge of Florida’s 15-week abortion ban to the Florida Supreme Court, asking the court to hear their argument and block the law. HB5, which took effect July 1, bans most abortions after 15 weeks of gestation. A judge in early July issued an order temporarily halting the law. The state quickly appealed, causing it to be reinstated. Advertisement “Life is... Read More

Grand jury report recommends 4 current Broward School Board members be removed

A long-awaited grand jury report into the management of Broward schools recommended that Gov. Ron DeSantis remove five School Board members, four of whom still are on the board. One of those, Rosalind Osgood, has already left the School Board and is now serving as a state senator. The others recommended for removal are Patricia Good, Donna Korn, Ann Murray and Laurie Rich Levinson. Advertisement The report, commissioned as a result of the Parkland tragedy, said the five “have engaged... Read More

Man dies when his plane crashes into ocean off Pompano Beach

POMPANO BEACH — A single-engine Cessna 172 crashed into the ocean off the coast of Pompano Beach on Thursday. The pilot, who was the only one on board, was killed, the Federal Aviation Administration said. Advertisement The aircraft took off from Pompano Beach Airpark Thursday morning. About 6 p.m., the U.S. Coast Guard District Seven office received a report from the Air Force of a possible downed aircraft, said Chief Petty Officer Steve Lehmann. They launched a Coast Guard Cutter... Read More

How Florida’s universities seek to keep up with rising demand for mental health services

Editor’s note: This is the second of two news articles exploring the challenges that Florida’s colleges face this year as demand rises for mental health counseling services. The first article can be read here. As enrollment increases, Florida universities are trying to find ways to bridge the widening gap between the number of students in need of mental health services and the ability to respond. Advertisement With students fully back on campus this year, universities recognize this... Read More

Hurricane forecasters increase chances of tropical wave developing as it moves toward Mexico, Texas

Rain showers and thunderstorms associated with a tropical wave located over northern Guatemala and southeastern Mexico have become better organized as the system treks toward the Gulf of Mexico, forecasters said. Some “slow development” is possible over the weekend, according to the National Hurricane Center. Advertisement An Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter airplane might investigate the system Friday. Advertisement By Saturday night the tropical disturbance is expected to... Read More

Federal judge likely to release portions of affidavit used for FBI’s search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago

A federal court judge indicated Thursday he would release portions of an affidavit that was used as the basis for the recent search at President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, provided those segments did not impact an ongoing investigation by the Department of Justice. U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart ordered Juan Antonio Gonzalez, the U.S. attorney in Miami, and Jay Bratt, a top Justice Department national security official, to submit proposed redactions from the affidavit by noon... Read More

3 men, including one arrested in Florida, charged in mobster Whitey Bulger’s killing

Three men, including a Mafia hitman, have been charged in the killing of notorious Boston crime boss James “Whitey” Bulger in a West Virginia prison, the Justice Department said Thursday. The charges against Fotios “Freddy” Geas, Paul J. DeCologero and Sean McKinnon come nearly four years after Bulger’s killing, which raised questions about why the known “snitch” was placed in the general population instead of more protective housing. The men were charged with conspiracy to... Read More

20 accused of illegally voting across Florida, DeSantis says

Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday announced 20 people have been arrested and charged with illegally voting across the state, many of them in South Florida. The theme of Thursday’s news conference centered around election integrity. The governor said those charged with illegally voting included people with felony convictions of murder or sex offenses. He said most are in the three South Florida counties. Although felons can get their rights restored in most cases under a constitutional amendment... Read More

Miami-Dade detective dies two days after being shot in the head by Broward armed robbery suspect

A 29-year-old police officer who was shot in the head while trying to stop a robbery suspect in Miami has died, officials said. Det. Cesar Echaverry was shot Monday night as he and other officers closed in a suspect wanted for an earlier robbery in nearby Broward County, police said. His family had remained by his side at Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital. Advertisement “Officer Echaverry died in the line of duty while serving & protecting our community,” Miami-Dade Police... Read More