Florida

Gov. Ron DeSantis announces crackdown on ‘porch pirates’ in new Florida bill

Published

5 months ago

February 13, 2024

Gov. Ron DeSantis announces crackdown on ‘porch pirates’ in new Florida bill

A new bill moving quickly through the Florida legislature would intensify penalties for retail theft and “porch piracy,” making it a third-degree felony to steal packages worth over $40.

Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the crackdown at a Tuesday news conference in Cape Coral, describing it as a measure to avoid a “culture of lawlessness” in progressive states like California and New York.

“You have Amazon will deliver it, they drop this stuff off, and sometimes it’s gone,” DeSantis said Tuesday. “And you have the ability with cameras now on people’s doorsteps, this is easily solvable, but you’ve got to have adequate penalties to be able to do that.”

The bill, HB 549, was added to the Florida House Judiciary Committee agenda on Monday. Its companion bill in the senate is SB 824. In addition to penalties for porch piracy, the legislation also targets retail thefts, adding new penalties for looting and “smash and grab” crimes and lengthening the amount of time in which someone can be prosecuted as a repeat offender from a month to a year.

“If you go into a pharmacy, and the toothpaste is behind lock and key — it’s almost like Fort Knox, some of these places, just for normal items — you know you’ve got some problems,” DeSantis said.

Also in attendance at Tuesday’s news conference were Attorney General Ashley Moody, FDLE Commissioner Mark Glass, State Rep. Bob Rommel, the bill’s sponsor in the House, and John Gavin of Gavins Ace Hardware.

In 2023, Florida was ranked as the state with the lowest number of Google searches related to package thefts, according to a report by Lombardo Living. It also has some of the lowest larceny rates. State law already makes it a third-degree felony to steal a package worth over $100 from someone’s porch.

But Moody said Tuesday that the goal of the legislation is to “keep Florida Florida.”

“You know, all these other states are going to have slogans like ‘make California Florida,’ or ‘make New York Florida,’” she said. “We have to keep Florida Florida, continue to be the leader. And this is a great example of how we do that.”

Some Democratic lawmakers have criticized the bill, calling the new penalties too harsh.

“For a first-time offender who doesn’t necessarily know the value of the item that they’re stealing, to give that person the scar of a felony offense … is incredibly problematic,” Rep. Michael Gottlieb, D-Davie, a criminal defense attorney, told the Tallahassee Democrat.

The new bill also makes it a third-degree felony to commit coordinated “smash-and-grab” crimes, in which a group of people storm a store, loot it, and storm out, a phenomenon that has become popular on social media.

Meanwhile, the legislation includes a provision so that prosecutors add up thefts over the course of a year, rather than a month, to determine whether the suspect will be charged with a felony.

If someone’s total thefts exceed $750 in value, they will now be charged with a third-degree felony. The same is true if someone commits three or more thefts of more than 10 items at two or more locations over the course of a year.

Source link

Florida

A deadly disease is attacking Florida mangroves. UCF researchers think they have a solution

Published

6 hours ago

July 26, 2024

Press Room

A deadly disease is attacking Florida mangroves. UCF researchers think they have a solution

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Florida’s mangroves act as a shield for our coasts against potential storm damage, while also serving as a home for wildlife like various types of fish and other sea creatures.

Researchers at UCF are finding ways to protect this natural barrier from a deadly disease that’s attacking them.

Melissa Deinys, an undergraduate student and researcher at the University of Central Florida, along with Jorge Pereira, a graduate research assistant are the main people behind this project.

The disease that is harming these trees is not named but scientists have been calling it “Mangrove CNP.” It’s caused by fungi pathogens that become deadly when activated.

The researchers are working on a “nutritional cocktail” made up of nanoparticles that would be used to strengthen the tree as well as fight off the pathogens that are causing harm.

It is estimated that there are over 600,000 acres of mangrove forests that help protect Florida’s southern coastal zone and other areas around the state, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

There are three main types of mangroves found in Florida with the most well-known being the red mangrove (Rhizophora mangle).

Deinys was in Miami in 2019 when she first identified that Mangrove CNP was causing mangrove trees to start dying.

The Marine Research Council later tested her theory and verified her findings, according to UCF.

Deinys and other groups started testing more mangroves and found that around 80% of the mangroves they sampled had tested positive for one or more of the fungi pathogens that were affecting these trees.

Most of these Fungi are dormant but get activated when the trees are exposed to certain environmental factors such as temperature changes, various insects, and other types of diseases that attack other trees and plants.

The research for this project is taking place over at the Materials Innovation for Sustainable Agriculture (MISA) center at UCF through UCF Professor Swadeshmukul Santra.

As of right now, there is no cure for Mangrove CNP, but researchers say the special nutritional cocktail is one of the best ways to help combat the disease killing off the trees.

You can listen to every episode of Florida’s Fourth Estate in the media player below:

Source link

Florida

Florida residents can make unlimited visits to Universal Orlando with new ticket deal

Published

13 hours ago

July 26, 2024

Press Room

Florida residents can make unlimited visits to Universal Orlando with new ticket deal

ORLANDO, Fla. – A new Universal Orlando ticket deal for Florida residents is giving unlimited visits to both theme parks through the end of the year.

Universal Orlando Resort announced the “Florida Unlimited Days Ticket” that will let guests visit Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios through Dec. 18.

You’ll be able to use the ticket to “enjoy the fan-favorite seasonal events and offerings that are included in park admission, like Universal’s destination-wide Holidays celebration, which kicks off on November 22 and features Christmas in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Universal’s Holiday Parade featuring Macy’s, the Grinchmas Who-liday Spectacular and more.”

This offer excludes separately ticketed events, like Halloween Horror Nights.

You can buy it for $199, plus tax.

Click here to check it out.

Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily:

Source link

Florida

Florida Lottery Cash4Life, Fantasy 5 results for July 25, 2024

Published

20 hours ago

July 26, 2024

Press Room

Florida Lottery Cash4Life, Fantasy 5 results for July 25, 2024

The Florida Lottery offers several draw games for those hoping to win one of the available jackpots. Here’s a look at the winning numbers for games played on Thursday, July 25, 2024

Winning Cash4Life numbers from July 25 drawing

11-12-29-52-60, Cash Ball: 03

Check Cash4Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Fantasy 5 numbers from July 25 drawing

Midday: 10-16-21-23-30

Evening: 01-09-11-17-24

Check Fantasy 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash Pop numbers from July 25 drawing

Morning: 03

Matinee: 11

Afternoon: 06

Evening: 07

Late Night: 08

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 2 numbers from July 25 drawing

Midday: 0-4, FB: 6

Evening: 4-5, FB: 3

Check Pick 2 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from July 25 drawing

Midday: 4-0-0, FB: 6

Evening: 3-8-0, FB: 3

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from July 25 drawing

Midday: 4-4-7-3, FB: 6

Evening: 9-9-8-9, FB: 3

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 5 numbers from July 25 drawing

Midday: 4-0-4-8-2, FB: 6

Evening: 5-5-0-3-9, FB: 3

Check Pick 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Where can you buy Florida Lottery tickets?

Tickets can be purchased in person at any authorized retailer throughout Florida, including gas stations, convenience stores and grocery stores. To find a retailer near you, go to Find Florida Lottery Retailers.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

Prizes of $599 or less: Claim at any authorized Florida Lottery retailer or Florida Lottery district office.
Prizes for $600 to $1 million: Must be claimed in person at any Florida Lottery district office for games that do not offer an annual payment option.
Prizes greater than $1 million and all prizes with an annual payment option: Must be claimed at Florida Lottery headquarters, except Mega Millions and Powerball prizes, which can be claimed at any Florida Lottery district office.

You also can claim your winnings by mail if the prize is $250,000 or less. Mail your ticket to the Florida Lottery with the required documentation.

Florida law requires public disclosure of winners

If you’re a winner, Florida law mandates the following information is public record:

Full name
City of residence
Game won
Date won
Amount won
Name and location of the retailer where the winning ticket was purchased.

When are the Florida Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 11 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
Florida Lotto: 11:15 p.m. Wednesday and Saturday.
Jackpot Triple Play: 11:15 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
Cash4Life: 9 p.m. daily.
Fantasy 5: Daily at 1:05 p.m. and 11:15 p.m.
Cash Pop: Daily at 8:45 a.m., 11:45 a.m., 2:45 p.m., 6:45 p.m. and 11:45 p.m.
Pick 2, 3, 4, 5: Daily at 1:30 p.m. and 9:45 p.m.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Florida digital producer. You can send feedback using this form.

Source link