WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday announced investments for Everglades restoration and water quality improvements to mark the celebration of Earth Day.
DeSantis was joined for a news conference at the Cox Science Center and Aquarium in West Palm Beach by Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Shawn Hamilton.
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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — A South Florida judge on Monday cleared three more police officers of wrongdoing in the shooting death of a UPS driver who had been taken hostage during a 2019 robbery.
Broward Circuit Judge Ernest Kollra ruled that Miami-Dade police officers Richard Santiesteban, Leslie Lee and Rodolfo Mirabal — who had been charged with manslaughter in the death of UPS driver Frank Ordonez — could not be prosecuted because Florida’s “stand your ground” law justified the shooting. The same judge cleared officer Jose Mateo in September for the same reason.
The Broward State Attorney’s Office said it will appeal all four rulings.
“Immunity from prosecution is not the same as a defense presented to a jury from this community,” the state attorney’s statement said. “It is our belief that Stand Your Ground immunity does not apply in matters involving innocent bystanders, like Frank Ordonez and Richard Cutshaw, who presented no danger to officers. In this incident, two innocent men were killed, and the lives of numerous other innocent bystanders were endangered.”
Cutshaw was also killed in the barrage of gunfire that afternoon.
Ordonez, 27, had been delivering packages in Miami-Dade County on Dec. 5, 2019, when police said two would-be jewelry store robbers abducted him and forced him to drive from the scene. A rush-hour police chase ended at a busy intersection in neighboring Broward County.
Prosecutors said Mateo fired the shots that killed Ordonez. The two robbers and a passerby were also killed in a hail of gunfire at an intersection in Miramar, Florida.
Footage from a body camera that was played in court showed Mateo’s pursuit of the UPS truck that afternoon. His partner could be seen in the passenger seat with a long gun drawn. The video also showed Mateo approaching the UPS truck. He emptied his firearm’s magazine, reloaded and then pulled Ordonez from the vehicle.
The judge ruled the officers had reason to believe deadly force was necessary to end the confrontation.
The four officers are currently suspended from the their jobs.
After a beautiful weekend across South Florida, the warm weather continues for the workweek.
A cool start mostly in the lower to mid-60s will lead to a warm and sunny afternoon with highs in the lower to mid-80s.
Afternoon highs linger in the lower to mid-80s each day for the workweek with changes not arriving until the weekend.
Beachgoers can expect excellent conditions with a low rip current risk as water temperatures remain in the mid-70s.
The NEXT Weather Team will continue to monitor an enhanced fire weather risk due to dry air and the ongoing drought conditions.
While there are no major wildfires being reported in South Florida, light north and northwesterly winds overnight have been bringing smoke from ongoing fires along the Gulf Coast and the Southeast U.S. into South Florida, lowering our air quality for the morning hours.
Conditions improve by midday as the wind shifts.
No significant rain chances will be found throughout the workweek with just a slim 10% shower chance Wednesday through Friday.
However, rain chances will be on the rise over the weekend as our team monitors a possible disturbance bringing the potential for scattered showers on Sunday.
These showers could help lower afternoon highs to upper 70s by the end of the weekend.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — Florida has become the country’s busiest hub for immigration arrests this year, with ICE agents in the Miami Field Office — which oversees Florida, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands — logging more detentions than any other region in the nation according to our news partners at the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
According to figures reported by the New York Times, agents under the Miami office are averaging about 120 arrests a day, totaling nearly 9,900 arrests as of March 10. That pace puts Florida well ahead of other regions experiencing federal “surge” operations, including Minnesota, where a high-profile enforcement push drew national scrutiny after two U.S. citizens were killed.
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