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MIAMI – In a year marked by soaring costs and economic strain, South Florida residents grappled with skyrocketing rents, surging insurance rates, and record-high grocery bills, all while navigating a mix of triumphs, tragedies, and unforgettable headlines — from the chaos of Copa America at Hard Rock Stadium to the rescue of a little dog named Lulu in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton.
In South Florida there is always plenty of news but the story that impacted everyone was, and is, the high cost of living and inflation.
“We have a very bad match in South Florida with high expenses and low salaries,” said Maria Castillo Dominguez who serves on the board of the Financial Planning Association of Miami.
It was a tough year for South Florida consumers, renters and homebuyers. Supermarket prices surged, landlords raised rents to cover their costs, and automobile and home insurance rates soared.
“To see the housing market prices double in a few years, it is crazy,” said Tommy Bartolomeo who lives in Broward.
The Miami Dolphins season opener made news before the game’s kick-off. A Miami-Dade police officer pulled wide receiver Tyreek Hill from his car, forced him to the ground and handcuffed him when a traffic stop escalated. The citations Hill received were later dismissed.
Soccer fans at Hard Rock Stadium caused chaos in July when they rushed the gates before the start of the Copa America soccer final between Argentina and Colombia. Taylor Swift fans were better behaved in October when she took the stage at “The Rock.”
Our everyday traffic troubles were a breeze compared to the nightmare one Sunday in April when hundreds of drivers were stranded on their way to Key Biscayne for up to six hours after the Rickenbacker Causeway flyover bridge was closed for repairs.
South Florida lived up to its reputation for the bizarre and tragic when a 71-year-old man was found dead in a North Miami nursing home closet. He had been missing for weeks. A little girl died in a freak accident on a Lauderdale-By-The Sea Beach. She was buried while playing in the sand.
There were stories with international impact that caused concern in South Florida.
Haiti was racked with instability and violence. Cuba’s economic plight was worse than ever. Add to that Miami resident and former State Department diplomat Victor Manuel Rocha who was arrested and charged as a Cuban spy.
Insiders were shocked over developer Sergio Pino‘s suicide amid an FBI murder-for-hire investigation.
The year also saw two local politicians convicted. Former Miami-Dade County Commissioner Joe Martinez was found guilty of political corruption while former state Senator Frank Artiles received jail time and probation after a guilty verdict in a “ghost candidate” trial.
South Florida lost civic leader Enid Pinkney. The educator, historian and first Black president of Dade Heritage Trust helped save the historic Hampton House where Dr. Martin Luther King wrote a portion of his “I Have a Dream” speech.
Months after the Miami Seaquarium‘s famous orca Lolita died, the tourist attraction received an eviction notice from the Miami-Dade County. Rent issues and maintenance problems plagued the long-time entertainment facility.
Florida endured a rough hurricane season but South Florida escaped the devastating impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
We were very lucky and so was a little dog in Fort Pierce, whose story went viral after being pulled from the rubble of a tornado spawned by Hurricane Milton. The rescue was due in part thanks to CBS News Miami’s Morgan Rynor who was live on air when she realized the dog had been rescued reporting, ” He got Benji. He got Benji, Oh my Goodness.”
Benji, whose name we later learned is Lulu, was reunited with her family, a little bit of good news to wrap up the year 2024.
Entertainment
MIAMI (AP) — Two South Florida police officers claim Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s recent action thriller “The Rip” used too many real-life details in its fictionalized narrative, causing harm to the officers’ personal and professional reputations, according to a defamation lawsuit.
Jason Smith and Jonathan Santana, sergeants in the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, filed the lawsuit in Miami federal court earlier this month against Artists Equity, a film production company owned by Affleck and Damon. Court filings don’t say how much the officers are suing for, but the civil complaint says they’re seeking compensatory damages, punitive damages and attorney fees, as well as a public retraction and correction.
“The Rip” features Affleck and Damon as South Florida police officers who find millions of dollars inside a house. Parts of the movie were inspired by a real 2016 case, where police found over $21 million linked to a suspected marijuana trafficker in a Miami Lakes home.
An attorney for Artists Equity declined to comment when reached Monday by The Associated Press. But in a March 19 response to the plaintiffs’ demand letter, Leita Walker, an attorney for Artists Equity, wrote that the film does not purport to tell the true story of that incident or portray real people, which had been stated by a disclaimer in the film’s credits.
Although Smith and Santana aren’t named in the film, the lawsuit claims that Santana was serving as the lead detective assigned to the real case, and Smith was the sergeant who supervised the investigative team. The film’s inclusion of real details about the case gives the impression that the characters are based on the plaintiffs, the suit said.
And this, the lawsuit claims, has given friends, family members and colleagues the impression that the plaintiffs committed the criminal acts that appear in the film, which include (SPOILER ALERT) conspiring to steal seized drug money, murdering a supervising officer, communicating with cartel members, committing arson in a residential neighborhood, endangering the lives of civilians, repeatedly violating core law-enforcement protocols and executing a federal agent rather than making an arrest.
Walker wrote in March that the plaintiffs haven’t even identified which particular character is supposed to be based on Smith or Santana, so even if “The Rip” was actually about a real-life narcotics team, there’s no way to connect any of the characters to the plaintiffs.
“The Rip,” directed by Joe Carnahan, debuted in January on Netflix. It’s currently rated 78% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
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Brevard County couple gets married in NICU after birth of premature twins
A Florida couple, told they may not be able to have children, welcomed premature twins and had an impromptu NICU wedding.
Provided by AdventHealth for Children
Ben and Danielle Cassidy were told they likely wouldn’t be able to have children.
But this year they will celebrate Mother’s Day just months after having an impromptu wedding in the AdventHealth for Children hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit shortly after Danielle gave birth to twins prematurely — a week before the Palm Bay couple was scheduled to get married.
Both babies, Joshua and Rhett, are doing well despite arriving nine weeks ahead of schedule on Jan. 19, 2026, just one day after their scheduled baby shower. With a proper wedding out of the question with two premature babies in the NICU, a nurse took action.
Issabel Kenkel, the nurse behind the ceremony, said she was already in wedding planning mode for her own upcoming nuptials when she found out the Cassidy family’s ceremony would be interrupted.
“I couldn’t just let them do something small. They needed decorations and something fun, so I spoke to the music therapist and the chaplain,” Kenkel said. In short order, a wedding was being planned for their hospital room and the couple was saying their vows in the company of their safely delivered newborns.
“When we found out we could request staff members to be on our team, that’s when we requested Issabel and having that kind of consistency from someone who has such a big heart and is so kind,” Danielle said.
The hospital ceremony was all the more special because of the Cassidy family’s own health struggles.
“I have five autoimmune diseases and didn’t really think I would have kids. It’s been a rough journey. When Ben and I met, we were floored at how much a miracle it was to have kids,” Danielle said.
Ben, who battled and beat cancer, said he was worried that his prior treatment would result in negative health outcomes for his future children. Having twins for him was an unexpected blessing.
“When we found out we were pregnant, we found it so shocking. We said, wouldn’t it be great if it was twins? It filled out our hopes and dreams list,” Ben said. “They’ve been miracles for sure.”
The Cassidy couple said there was so much fear and uncertainty when their twins were born nine weeks early. Being able to get married right away just made them feel all the better about the future.
“It was nice getting married because we didn’t have to wait any longer to make it official. It made it that much harder for her to get rid of me,” Ben said.
“The unknown made it scary,” Danielle added. “We had no idea how long we would be in the hospital. Our wedding was going to be at the beach with immediate family and parents. Having NICU babies, we realized we’d never be able to get to the beach. It was really special having the people who care for our babies be part of the ceremony.”
The couple hadn’t even planned to have a band at their wedding ceremony and now the hospital’s music therapist was performing live for them and the chaplain was conducting the ceremony, something nurse Kenkel said was just part of her job.
“The babies are going to have the best outcomes if the families are taken care of and going home happy,” she said. “Being in the NICU is already so stressful. This is just one more thing I could do to take care of my patients.”
Tyler Vazquez is the Growth and Development Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Vazquez at 321-480-0854 or tvazquez@floridatoday.com. X: @tyler_vazquez.
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