Florida

Defense seeks judge’s removal in Florida school shooter case

Published

2 years ago

September 18, 2022

Defense seeks judge’s removal in Florida school shooter case

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) – Attorneys for Florida college shooter Nikolas Cruz requested for the decide in his homicide case to take away herself on Friday, two days after she scolded them once they abruptly rested their case after calling solely a fraction of their anticipated witnesses.

The Broward Public Defender’s Workplace mentioned in a movement that Circuit Decide Elizabeth Scherer held a longstanding animosity towards lead protection lawyer Melisa McNeill.

The movement cited Florida’s Judicial Code of Conduct that states a decide shall disqualify himself or herself if the decide’s impartiality may fairly be questioned, together with however not restricted to situations the place the decide has a private bias or prejudice regarding a celebration or a celebration’s lawyer. Protection attorneys mentioned Scherer’s repeated improper and unjustified assaults on the protection counsel undermine the general public’s confidence within the judicial system and have additionally brought about Cruz to concern that he is not going to obtain a good trial.

Prosecutors mentioned in a response that Scherer has been respectful to each side.

Cruz’s attorneys had informed the decide and prosecutors they might be calling 80 witnesses however surprisingly rested at the beginning of Wednesday’s court docket session after calling solely about 25 of them.

There have been 11 days of protection testimony general, the final two spotlighting consultants about how his beginning mom’s heavy use of alcohol throughout being pregnant might need affected his mind’s improvement and led to his murdering 17 individuals at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas Excessive College 4 years in the past.

The sudden announcement by lead lawyer McNeill led to a heated trade between her and Scherer, who referred to as the choice with out warning to her or the prosecution “probably the most uncalled for, unprofessional technique to attempt a case.”

The 12-member jury and 10 alternates weren’t current however had been lining up outdoors the courtroom to enter. The sudden announcement additionally meant prosecutors weren’t prepared to begin their rebuttal case.

Scherer then accused Cruz’s attorneys of being thoughtless to all concerned, however particularly the jurors for losing their journey to court docket.

Cruz, 23, pleaded responsible final October to murdering 14 Stoneman Douglas college students and three workers members on Feb. 14, 2018. His trial, now ending its second month, is barely to find out whether or not he’s to be sentenced to dying or life with out parole. For a dying sentence, the jury should be unanimous.

After his attorneys rested, Cruz informed Scherer he agreed with the choice.

Prosecutors mentioned they may want greater than per week to organize their rebuttal case. The trial is now tentatively scheduled to renew Sept. 27 and conclude the week of Oct. 10.

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Florida

Brandon Butler: Florida a great escape for outdoor enthusiasts

Published

4 hours ago

January 5, 2025

Press Room

Brandon Butler: Florida a great escape for outdoor enthusiasts

Driving north from southwest Florida, my progress was marked by steadily declining temperatures. Leaving behind sunshine and 75-degree days for snow, sleet, and single digits was a questionable choice at best. Days spent at the beaches of Siesta Key, golfing, hiking in a wildlife-rich state park, and eating seafood dinners outside sure beats shoveling snow and waiting on the dreary days to depart.

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Florida

Here’s how to protect your plants as Central Florida braces for frigid air

Published

12 hours ago

January 5, 2025

Press Room

Here’s how to protect your plants as Central Florida braces for frigid air

OVIEDO, Fla. – Lukas Nursery is ready to help you protect your plants against the big chill heading toward Central Florida this week.

Bri Murray is the assistant sales manager at Lukas Nursery. News 6 asked her to give us tips on the best ways to cover your plants and common mistakes you should avoid.

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“The common mistake that is often made with either frost blankets or covering your plants is ‘Well, I just need to keep the plants warm. I don’t need to keep anything else warm like the trunk,’” said Murray. “Well, the majority of where you’re going to get heat from is actually the ground. So if you entrap the ground with the plant, then the heat from the ground keeps it like a nice circular of insulation inside that frost blanket.”

Murray said one item people should remember when they’re out shopping for frost blankets is pins. The pins are used to secure the frost blanket into the ground and trap heat inside.

“You’re keeping the heat from the ground, like I mentioned before, inside the blanket, which then keeps it warm like a greenhouse,” Murray said.

Murray also says you shouldn’t use plastic tarps or trash bags to protect your plants.

“That typically holds in condensation, which holds in moisture, and again, that’ll freeze your plants,” Murray said. “So using a frost blanket is important because it does allow the plants to ventilate properly and breathe, but keeping it warm and keeping it insulated.”

To see Lukas Nursery’s hours of operation, click here.

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Florida

Meloni pays surprise flying visit to Trump in Florida – Politics – Ansa.it

Published

20 hours ago

January 5, 2025

Press Room

Meloni pays surprise flying visit to Trump in Florida – Politics – Ansa.it

Premier Giorgia Meloni paid a surprise
flying visit to United States President-elect Donald Trump at
his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida on Saturday.


Meloni, the leader of the right-wing Brothers of Italy (FdI)
party, arrived in Florida at around 19:30 local time and flew
back to Rome less than five hours later.


“She’s really taken Europe by storm,” Trump said of Meloni
before a group of people at the residence, according to Wall
Street Journal reporter Alex Leary.


Incoming Secretary of State Marco Rubio was also present and
called Meloni a “great ally, strong leader”, Leary reported.


The war in Ukraine, gas supplies and possible new US tariffs on
EU goods were among the issues the leaders discussed, sources
said.


The New York Times reported that Meloni also pressed hard about
the case of Cecilia Sala, an Italian journalist arrested in
Iran, three days after an Iranian engineer Mohammad Abedini was
picked up at Milan’s Malpensa airport on US charges of supplying
drone parts used to kill three servicemen in Jordan.


During the visit, Trump showed Meloni a documentary about
alleged fraud in the 2020 US presidential election.