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'Satanic Temple' members want to volunteer in Florida schools, but governor's office says it won't happen
Satanists are ready to volunteer in Florida’s schools in response to Governor Ron DeSantis’s push to integrate more religion into the state’s public school system under a volunteer school chaplain program that went into effect last week.
Members of The Satanic Temple (TST) say they are ready to serve as “volunteer chaplains” under a new Florida law that took effect July 1, allowing volunteer school chaplains “to provide support, services, and programs to students,” The Guardian reported.
Lucien Greaves, TST co-founder and spokesperson, told Fox News Digital that should a Florida school district seize on the opportunity to introduce a chaplaincy program into their schools, TST “will be happy to participate.”
Lucien Greaves, a co-founder and spokesman for the Satanic Temple, told Fox News Digital that the group started the after-school program as an alternative to other religious groups that were “proselytizing” to children. (Josh Reynolds for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
“When passing the school chaplain bill into law, Florida’s bloviating incompetent Culture War-obsessed governor, Ron DeSantis openly lied to the public and stated that Satanic chaplains would not be allowed,” he told Fox News Digital. “In the depths of his ignorance, he fails to recognize a basic and fundamental constitutional truism: it is no place of the government to dictate that some religions have certain rights over others.”
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After DeSantis signed the law in April, Greaves challenged him to a debate on religious freedom after the governor said satanists specifically would not be allowed to participate under the law as it is his belief it is “not a religion.” But the group argued it would be, as it is recognized as a church by the IRS.
“Some have said that if you do a school chaplain program, that, somehow, you’re going to have satanists running around in all our schools. We’re not playing those games in Florida,” DeSantis assured the crowd. “That is not a religion. That is not qualified to be able to participate in this. So, we’re going to be using common sense when it comes to this. You don’t have to worry about it.”
In response, Greaves told Fox News Digital that the statement shows DeSantis is “speaking from complete ignorance and/or incompetence.”
“We are recognized as a 501(c)3 tax-exempt church, and our religious status was again affirmed by a federal judge in 2020,” he said. “What DeSantis did in proclaiming that we are not a religion was to simply misinform school districts that, if they take him seriously and attempt to abridge our religious freedom, risk opening themselves to legal liability at significant cost.”
“I suspect DeSantis did not care whether what he says from the podium, as long as it sounds good in the moment, and he’s gambling that people will forget it a week later. It will be our job to remind them when Satanic chaplains are in the schools,” he added.
HB 931 requires district school boards and charter school governing boards to assign specified duties to volunteer school chaplains to provide support services and programs for students, Fox News Digital previously reported.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said satanists would not be able to participate in a new State chaplain program being offered to schools, and now Lucien Greaves, co-founder of The Satanic Temple, is challenging him to a debate on religious freedoms. (Getty Images)
Principals of schools with volunteer school chaplains must inform parents of the services and would be required to publish a list of the chaplains on its website. In addition, school districts would require volunteer school chaplains to meet certain background screenings and have written parental consent before students participate or receive the services.
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But, the law largely leaves it up to schools and school districts to determine how chaplain programs are implemented and only requires schools to list a volunteer’s religion, “if any.” DeSantis’ office has stated the goal of the bill is to make resources available, such as counseling from faith leaders for students who may be facing challenges.
“You’re basically saying that God has no place [on campus]. That’s wrong,” DeSantis said of the bill’s signing in April.
When news of TST’s intentions first broke in February, DeSantis Communications Director Bryan Griffin’s response was: “HELL: NO.”
But critics of the bill see it as an overreach of the separation of church and state and TST has threatened to sue the state of Florida if any of its members were banned from serving as chaplains in the program.
Lucien Greaves, spokesman for The Satanic Temple, with a statue of Baphomet at the group’s meeting house in Salem, MA. (Getty Images)
Greaves previously told Fox News Digital the governor has made multiple comments about the organization without any knowledge of who its members are and what they believe. He said the legislation indicates DeSantis is unaware of how the law works and that the bill he signed into law “does in fact allow Satanic chaplains in schools.”
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Despite its name, TST does not believe in the existence of Satan or the supernatural, according to its website. It is non-theistic; in its Frequently Asked Questions of its website, it explicitly says it does not worship Satan.
“The Satanic Temple believes that religion can, and should, be divorced from superstition. As such, we do not promote a belief in a personal Satan,” the website states. “Satan is a symbol of the Eternal Rebel in opposition to arbitrary authority, forever defending personal sovereignty even in the face of insurmountable odds.”
“Satanists should actively work to hone critical thinking and exercise reasonable agnosticism in all things,” it also says on the site. “Our beliefs must be malleable to the best current scientific understandings of the material world — never the reverse.”
“After School Satan Clubs” hosted by TST, have cropped up at schools around the country in recent years, including in states like Tennessee, Virginia, Pennsylvania and California. Greaves has described the kind of activities that the after-school program facilitates, as a self-directed learning process that includes games, solving puzzles and activities, but the program has been met with widespread pushback from parents.
Fox News’ Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
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The wife of a Georgia high school teacher who died after what authorities described as a late-night senior prank gone wrong has asked for all charges to be dropped against the students involved.
Five North Hall High students were arrested after going to math teacher Jason Hughes’ Gainesville home armed with toilet paper to carry out a long-standing prank tradition. Hughes, 40, was the intended target Thursday night.
As the group tried to leave in two separate vehicles, Hughes was walking toward the street when he tripped and fell into the slippery roadway, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office said. He was then run over by a car driven by 18-year-old Jayden Ryan Wallace.
Rather than an angry confrontation, the father of two was “excited and waiting to catch them in the act,” his wife, Laura, told The New York Times.
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Jason and Laura Hughes were both teachers at North Hall High School. (Facebook/ Laura Palmer Hughes)
“This is a terrible tragedy, and our family is determined to prevent a separate tragedy from occurring, ruining the lives of these students,” Hughes said. “This would be counter to Jason’s lifelong dedication of investing in the lives of these children.”
The Hugheses were both teachers at the public school and devoted their lives to teaching. According to the New York Post, the prank had evolved into an ongoing battle where students lost “points” if the teacher caught them in the act.
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Jayden Ryan Wallace, 18, was arrested on Saturday, March 7, 2026, and charged with first-degree vehicular homicide and reckless driving, along with misdemeanor charges of criminal trespass and littering on private property. (Hall County Sheriff’s Office)
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Wallace and the other teens stopped and attempted to help Hughes while waiting for first responders. The teacher later died from his injuries.
Wallace faces felony charges of first-degree vehicular homicide and reckless driving, along with misdemeanor charges of criminal trespass and littering on private property. The other 18-year-olds, identified by police as Elijah Tate Owens, Aiden Hucks, Ana Katherine Luque and Ariana Cruz, were also arrested at the scene and charged with misdemeanor criminal trespass and littering on private property.
Jail records show that Wallace was arrested on Saturday and has a total bond of $1,950. All five students have since been released on bond, court records show. Fox News Digital has reached out to the Hall County Sheriff’s Office for comment on Laura Hughes’ statements.
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According to the Hall County School District, Hughes was a teacher at North Hall High School. He was listed as a math teacher on the school’s website. The school’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes posted on its Facebook that Hughes was also a golf coach at the school. (Facebook/ Laura Palmer Hughes)
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Along with being a math teacher at the high school, the school’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes posted on its Facebook that Hughes was also a golf coach at the school.
In a statement to FOX 5, the school said: “Our hearts are broken. Jason Hughes was a loving husband, a devoted father; a passionate teacher, mentor, and coach who was loved and respected by students and colleagues. He gave so much to so many in numerous ways. Our hearts and prayers go out to his wife and family. We ask that the media and the public respect their privacy as they grieve.”
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In a GoFundMe, a family friend asked for funds to help with future planning for his two children.
“Jason’s life was a blessing to so many, and his untimely passing will be indescribably difficult for his wife and two young boys for years to come,” the fundraiser said.
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Southeast
Virginia Dems send Spanberger bill that could let some repeat offenders out without secured bond, expert warns
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A top national figure in the bail industry warned of the dangers behind a Virginia bill heading to Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s desk that would remove bond requirements for previously convicted felons.
Virginia state Del. Katrina Callsen, D-Charlottesville, drafted HB 357, which critics say makes it easier for criminals to get out of jail on an unsecured bond. The bill passed both chambers in Richmond along party lines.
In comments to Fox News Digital on Monday, National Association of Bail Agents President Michelle Esquenazi said she was familiar with the Virginia legislation and that it will only serve to erode public safety.
“We believe any time recidivist offenders are released due to unsecured bail policies, it puts communities in direct danger,” Esquenazi said. “Many are unaware of how secured bonds insulate public safety throughout the United States of America.”
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Virginia Democratic gubernatorial candidate and former Rep. Abigail Spanberger arrives at a canvass launch event in Lake Ridge, Virginia, on Nov. 2, 2025. The image also shows an empty jail cell in a composite photo. (Win McNamee/Getty Images; Michael Matthey/picture alliance via Getty Images)
“This bill is in direct contrast to the needs of all communities in Virginia, whether they are Republican, Democrat, or Independent.”
Esquenazi said criminals don’t choose victims based on political ideology and that policymakers have failed to understand that bringing criminals to justice should be nonpartisan.
While Callsen did not respond to requests for comment, similar legislation in recent years has often come about as a wish for offenders to receive “second chances” — a dynamic Fox News Digital asked Esquenazi about.
“The secured bail industry is an industry of second chances,” she said.
“However, if you’re going to continue to commit crime, policymakers have to understand and take into account that committing crime is not a mandate. It’s a career choice.”
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The Virginia Capitol in Richmond, Va., is shown on March 4, 2010. Virginia lawmakers handled hundreds of bills on Feb. 13, 2024, as a key legislative deadline neared. (Steve Helber/AP)
Policies like HB 357 serve to give recidivists more than just second but third and subsequent chances because a second chance is “only a title,” which the policies themselves far exceed, she said.
Justice Forward Virginia, a progressive criminal justice reform group focused on advancing related legislation, listed the bill in its section of 2026 priorities. The group did not respond to a request for comment.
Callsen’s bill removes language from Code of Virginia § 19.2-123 governing “Release of accused on unsecured bail or promise to appear” that currently states any person arrested for a felony or who is on bond for an unrelated arrest or on parole may only be released upon securing a secured bond.
Instead, it retains only language providing preestablished conditions of release for that offender.
Other critics took to X, including Club For Growth’s Andrew Follett, who posted a passage from Soviet dissident Alexander Solzhenitsyn about a civilian being punished more for being caught with a concealed knife than a felon for whom it would be “mere misbehavior; tradition” — and commented that “Democrats have a crush on criminals — it isn’t more complicated than that.”
“Under leftist ideology, society is responsible for crime, not individuals,” Follett said.
“Or, [Virginia House] Speaker Don Scott is preparing for his next arrest,” quipped another X user.
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Scott, D-Portsmouth, served more than 7 years of a 10-year 1994 sentence for federal crack cocaine-related charges — and was one of thousands of convicts who had their rights to vote and serve in office restored by GOP Gov. Robert F. McDonnell in 2013.
After former President Biden pardoned him in 2025, Scott said that his “journey from being arrested as a law student to standing here today as the first Black Speaker of the House of Delegates in Virginia’s 405-year history is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and transformative power of second chances,” according to Hampton Roads’ ABC affiliate.
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‘90 Day Fiancé’ alum’s boyfriend on trial for attempted murder over wild ‘Boca Bash’ accusations
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The boyfriend of a reality TV star who appeared on “90 Day Fiancé” faces trial this week on charges he tried to murder her while they were boating in South Florida.
Cole Goldberg was initially charged with domestic battery by strangulation. The charge was upgraded more than a year after the incident to attempted second-degree murder, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators said Goldberg and Caroline Schwitzky, 32, got into a heated argument while the two were attending the annual boat party event, “Boca Bash” on April 24, 2022. At the time, the couple had been dating for about a year.
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Cole Goldberg, the boyfriend of “90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After?” star, Caroline Schwitzky, is accused of trying to strangle and drown her in Florida. (Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office)
When Schwitzky attempted to escape the vessel, Cole “was grabbing her very aggressively” to keep her on the boat, according to a police report obtained by Law&Crime.
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Caroline Schwitzky, 32, was attacked by her boyfriend while on a boat in Florida, authorities said. She was also arrested for a warrant from another county, according to jail records. (Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office)
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Schwitzky, the CEO of Miami talent agency Urge and a mom of three, allegedly punched Goldberg’s arms to free herself during the struggle, which lasted roughly 20 minutes. She jumped into the water to swim to a nearby boat, a witness told authorities.
Goldberg went after her and allegedly tried to drown her. A bystander named Matt Paris jumped in and intervened.
Boca Bash on Lake Boca Raton on April 27, 2025, in Boca Raton, Florida. Hundreds of party-goers floated on the lakes in boats, kayaks and paddle boards. (Greg Lovett/Imagn)
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Schwitzky appeared on “90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After?” in 2016 as talent agent to Paola Mayfield.
According to CourtTV, prosecutors offered Goldberg a plea agreement that would have required him to serve six months in jail and three years of probation, as well as write a 500-word letter of apology. He turned down the offer, saying he would not accept a plea to a felony.
Fox News’ Louis Casiano contributed to this report.
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