Judge Orders Agency to Reconsider Protections for Florida Keys Lizard
A federal judge ruled Wednesday that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was wrong to deny protections for a rare lizard found only in the islands off the Florida Keys.
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Florida
Water Rescues Underway as Hurricane Sally Drenches Gulf Coast
Hurricane Sally slammed the Alabama coast and Florida Panhandle on Wednesday morning after strengthening overnight to a Category 2 storm with sustained winds of 105 mph and drenching rains forecasters warn will bring catastrophic flooding.
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Full 11th Circuit Rules Against Florida Felons in Voting Rights Case
Florida can condition voting rights on the payment of fines, fees and restitution by felons, the en banc 11th Circuit ruled Friday.
Read moreResidence Restrictions
The 11th Circuit upheld a ruling against two Florida sex offenders who challenged Miami-Dade County residence restrictions that prohibit them from living within 2,500 feet of a school. The offenders had claimed the ordinance made them homeless and amounted to retroactive criminal punishment.
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Trump Announces Ban on Offshore Drilling Off Atlantic Coast
Calling himself a “great environmentalist,” President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that he would be expanding a ban on new offshore drilling off the coasts of certain Atlantic states in a reversal of his previous support for it.
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Poll Finds Trump and Biden Tied in Battleground Florida
President Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger Joe Biden are locked in a dead heat in Florida eight weeks ahead of Election Day, according to a poll released Tuesday.
Read moreSunglasses
A federal court in Florida preliminarily approved a settlement in a class action against sunglasses company Costa del Mar relating to its warranty agreement.
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Mutant Cats Still a Draw at Hemingway’s Virus-Hit Florida Home
Starved of international visitors, the house once inhabited by writer Ernest Hemingway in the Florida Keys has struggled to stay open. Almost all of its staff have been laid off during the coronavirus pandemic, yet the six-toed cats who live there still attract locals to the site.
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Florida Governor Lifts Ban on Visits to Nursing Homes
At times holding back tears, Governor Ron DeSantis announced a lift of Florida’s ban on visitors to nursing homes and assisted living facilities on Tuesday, as the state inches toward normalcy six months into the coronavirus pandemic.
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Panel Refuses to Revive Lawsuit Linking Child Cancer to Aerospace Plant
The family of a 20-year-old woman who died after developing a brain tumor as a child cannot sue the Florida aerospace company they claim exposed her to radioactive chemicals, an 11th Circuit panel ruled Monday.
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Hilton Faces Lawsuit Over Harm to Turtles Caused by Florida Resort Lights
Two conservation groups said Thursday they plan to sue a Hilton resort in Fort Lauderdale Beach for violations of the Endangered Species Act if the resort doesn’t change outdoor and indoor lighting practices that the environmentalists say harm nesting and hatchling sea turtles.
Read moreAbused at School
The mother of a special needs student in Florida claims a teacher mistreated and abused him, including by forcing the child to open his mouth and spraying an “unknown chemical cleaning solution” into it.
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Judge Strikes Down Florida School Reopening Order
A Florida judge sided with the state’s largest teachers union Monday and threw out a Florida Department of Education order mandating in-person learning at schools this month.
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Florida Teachers Urge Judge to Halt Full School Reopening
James Lis, a high school science teacher in Orlando, has taught in Florida’s public schools for the last 21 years. But if he is forced to teach his students in-person on Friday, when Orange County schools open, he will resign.
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Immigration Lockup Accused of Feeding Pork to Muslim Detainees
Claiming a Florida immigration detention center forces Muslim detainees to choose between pork and expired halal meals, civil rights attorneys on Wednesday urged U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to end the practice.
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Florida Voters Head to Polls in Pandemic Primary
Florida’s poll workers — armed with sanitizer, gloves, face masks and, in some cases, face shields — welcomed voters on Tuesday during the state’s first primary election held in a pandemic.
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En Banc 11th Circuit Takes Up Voting Rights of Florida Felons
On a day when millions of Floridians will cast ballots in the state’s primary election, a 10-member panel of the 11th Circuit heard arguments Tuesday over whether felons who cannot pay fines or fees have the right to vote.
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South Carolina Man Accused of Trying to Kidnap WWE Star
A South Carolina man who stalked a 26-year-old WWE star for years and spent eight months planning to kidnap her was arrested Sunday after breaking into her home near Tampa, sheriff’s officials said.
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Florida Congressional Primaries Could Provide November Insight
Florida voters head to the polls on Tuesday for a series of congressional primaries that could give insight into the November election and how the coronavirus pandemic could affect turnout.
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Florida Officials Battle Over Face Masks as Pandemic Persists
The debate over face masks raged in a rural Florida county on Wednesday as the Sunshine State continues to see a wave of coronavirus cases and deaths.
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