Florida

Florida woman taking case over ‘outrageous’ fines to state Supreme Court after wracking up nearly $200,000 in penalties

Published

6 months ago

June 7, 2025

Florida woman taking case over ‘outrageous’ fines to state Supreme Court after wracking up nearly 0,000 in penalties

A fed-up Florida homeowner battling a whopping $165,000 in fines for nitpicky property violations — including a cracked driveway and a toppled fence — is dragging her case to the state’s Supreme Court.

Officials in the city of Latana, about 20 minutes south of Palm Beach, even fined Sandy Martinez for how she parked in her driveway. That alone set the single mom back a hefty $100,000 as daily penalties piled up.

Martinez’s parking fines started accumulating in May 2019. When all four family members’ cars were home at her household, sometimes one would end up with two tires on the lawn.

The penalty for that? A whopping $250 a day.

After the first citation, Martinez tried to arrange a visit with a code-enforcement officer to show she had corrected the violation. But those efforts proved “fruitless” and the daily fines accumulated, she said in a lawsuit she filed in 2021 against the city of Latana and local code enforcement.

“Six-figure fines for parking on your own property are outrageous,” Institute for Justice Attorney Mike Greenberg, the lawyer representing Martinez, said in a news release about the case.

The city also fined Martinez for “minor and purely cosmetic” cracks in her driveway, according to court papers.

Martinez didn’t have enough cash to fix the driveway right away. She was then hit with $75 fines every day for 215 days, for a total of $16,125 — “far greater than the cost of an entirely new driveway,” she said in the litigation.

Then there was the fence.

A major storm downed it, but resolving the insurance claim to fix it took a while. During that time, Martinez was hit with $125 daily fines for 379 days, totaling $47,375.

Martinez lost when she took her case to court in 2021, with the lower courts ruling against her.

Now she thinks it’s time for Florida’s highest court to weigh in on a constitutional basis — the right to be free from excessive fines and government abuse, protected by the Florida Constitution’s Excessive Fines Clause.

The case epitomizes “taxation by citation,” something small towns, more prone to economic hardship, can sometimes rely on for part of their budgets, according to the Institute.

The Institute says municipal code enforcement has become a “cash cow” in Florida, with some towns generating millions of dollars annually.

Local officials did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Source link

Related Topics:Featured fines Florida Government homeowners Supreme Court US News

Click to comment

Florida

Florida Class 4A state championship: How to watch American Heritage vs. Jones

Published

53 seconds ago

December 13, 2025

Press Room

Florida Class 4A state championship: How to watch American Heritage vs. Jones

The Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) football state championships continued last night down in Miami at Pitbull Stadium as the Raines Vikings upset the Northwestern Bulls for the the Class 3A state championship, provind the most exciting game of the week thus far. Another rematch from last year’s finals pits the American Heritage Patriots versus the Jones Tigers for the Class 4A state championship this afternoon. We preview the sixth of seven FHSAA state championship games as teams begin being crowned as champions of their classifications.

How to Watch American Heritage vs. Jones in Florida 4A state championship game

Date: Saturday, Dec. 13
Time: 12:30 p.m. ET
Location: Pitbull Stadium in Miami, Fla.
TV Channel: NFHS Network

American Heritage Players to Watch

QB Leon Strawder: Strawder is making his second consecutive appearance in a state championship game, this time with a different team, however. The senior has thrown for 2,052 yards and 19 touchdowns.

WR Jamar Denson: Of the star-studded wide receiving corps for American Heritage, its Denson who has been Mr. Reliable thus far this season. Throughout the course of the season, Denson has hauled in 69 passes for 991 yards and 15 touchdowns.

WR Jeffar Jean-Noel: The Georgia Tech commit has been the second option behind Denson on offense, with Jean-Noel catching 57 passes for 795 yards and six touchdowns.

LB Dylan Bennett: Anchoring the front seven of the Patriots’ defense is the senior linebacker, who currently leads the team with 61 total tackles, 17 them going for a loss and five sacks.

Jones Players to Watch

QB Dereon Coleman: The Miami signee is as calm as they come in the pocket as the senior quarterback has thrown for 2,749 yards, 28 touchdowns and only three picks this Florida high school football season.

WR Larry Miles: Coleman’s favorite target to throw to is the Nebraska signee as the senior looks to end his high school career with a state crown. Miles has caught 88 passes for 1,111 and 10 touchdowns.

OL Xavier Payne: The 6-foot-7, 275-pound Colorado offensive tackle signee will have the job of making sure Coleman stands upright throughout the afternoon against American Heritage’s pass rush.

EDGE Frederick Ards: The 2027 four-star EDGE rusher for the Tigers has been superb, racking up 73 tackles, 13 for loss and 11 sacks.

Where to Watch the Florida Class 4A state championship on livestream:

You can watch the American Heritage Patriots take on the Jones Tigers starting at 12:30 p.m. ET on NFHS Network.

For Florida high school football fans looking to keep up with scores around the nation, staying updated on the action is now easier than ever with the Rivals High School Scoreboard. This comprehensive resource provides real-time updates and final scores from across the Sunshine State, ensuring you never miss a moment of the Friday night frenzy. From nail-biting finishes to dominant performances, the Rivals High School Scoreboard is your one-stop destination for tracking all the high school football excitement across the state of Florida.

Source link

Florida

South Florida powers clash in dramatic championship matchups: High School Hightlights

Published

12 hours ago

December 13, 2025

Press Room

South Florida powers clash in dramatic championship matchups: High School Hightlights – CBS Miami

Watch CBS News

The final Friday night of high school football delivered two dramatic South Florida championship matchups.

Source link

Florida

Read Florida’s lawsuit against Roblox

Published

1 day ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

The Florida Attorney General’s Office on Thursday, Dec. 11, filed a lawsuit against popular online gaming platform Roblox, accusing the company of failing to protect its millions of underage users from predatory adults who would “find, groom, and abuse children.”

“Roblox aggressively markets to young children, but fails to protect them from sexual predators,” Attorney General James Uthmeier said in a post to X. “As a father of three little ones and as Florida’s attorney general, my number one priority is simple: to protect our kids.”

The lawsuit claims Florida children have been talked into taking and sending sexual images of themselves and lists several recent incidences, including a 20-year-old California man arrested last month for having sexually explicit conversations with a Palm Coast child and asking for nude photos.

A Roblox spokesperson said the lawsuit “fundamentally misrepresents how Roblox works.”

“We have advanced safeguards that monitor our platform for harmful content and communications,” Roblox Chief Safety Officer Matt Kaufman said in a statement, adding that the company — currently the most downloaded game in the world — will be rolling out additional safeguards “beyond what is required by law and what other platforms do.”

Read Florida’s lawsuit against Roblox

Can’t see the embedded document? Click here.

What is Roblox?

San Mateo, California-based Roblox, released in 2006, hosts millions of user-created games (or “experiences”) constructed with the platform’s built-in game engine. Any user can create a game and share it with others, and there are millions of games available of all types.

The game platform and most games are free to use, but some cost to play. There is also a thriving economy based on Robux, an in-game virtual currency used to purchase virtual items. Roblox offers a subscription service called Roblox Premium that provides access to more features and a monthly allowance of Roblox.

Voice chat is available, but only for users aged 13 or older with verified ages. Age ratings were introduced for games in 2022, and in 2023, 17+ games were permitted to include more graphic violence, romance, and drinking.

According to Roblox, as of 2020, the monthly playerbase included half of all American children under the age of 16.

Source link