In response to the highly publicized removal of an LGBTQ travel section from Visitflorida.com, the states official tourism website, some states are now capitalizing on Floridas missing links by enticing travelers to leave the Sunshine State in the dark for more inclusive-friendly destinations.

Colorado Governor Jared Polis, the first openly gay man elected governor in the U.S., added this post to social media amid the controversy:

While Illinois went straight to the heart.

Kudos to them, said Rachel Covello, creator and operator of outcoast.com, an LGBTQ travel blog.

If the Sunshine State isn't welcoming you, we will welcome you with open, inclusive arms. I think it's a bold, smart marketing move, she said about other states using Floridas political policies to perpetuate, what critics describe as, anti-LGBTQ sentiments.

About six weeks ago, Covello first brought attention to the missing section on Visit Floridas website.

The removal of the section caused a firestorm of controversy and questions about why Visit Florida, partly funded by government dollars, would isolate an entire population of tourists within a state where tourism is the number one industry.

Last week, Visit Florida CEO Dana Young made a brief, scripted statement explaining the reason for the removal of the section.

Visit Florida is a taxpayer funded organization and, as such, our marketing strategy, our materials, our content must align with the state, she said at the beginning of a Board of Directors meeting in Tampa.

One day earlier, Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone approached Young during a Visit Florida finance committee but was promptly ignored.

Watch Katies full interaction with Visit Florida CEO Dana Young

Following the removal of the section, Covello recently rebuilt a similar version on her blog called Enjoy Queer Florida.

I hope this kind of replaces, or at least for the meantime, substitutes what Visit Florida should have been doing with their LGBTQ landing page, Covello said.

Covello remains hopeful that Visit Floridas link, which included dozens of pages highlighting LGBTQ-friendly destinations across the state, will eventually be restored. She started a petition with more than 1,000 signatures and counting.

Any effort to get people to show Visit Florida that the LGBTQ demographic is important to tourism and that this type of content is needed on a statewide platform, especially in states with so many inclusive destinations, we want to keep that momentum going, Covello said.

Katie your reporting is very eye-opening, and it is very disturbing. I had no idea this was happening, said U.S. Congresswoman Kathy Castor in response to our recent article on Florida veteran Paul Canton. 

Canton is a former U.S. Marine who served America honorably during the first Gulf War in the 1990s. But his personal quest to become a legal U.S. citizen has been a losing battle.

To serve in the Marine Corps for eight years and to be left high and dry by the United States of America that he was brave enough to defend, he should be treated with like royalty in this country, said Castor after watching our recent story on Cantons citizenship struggle.

We first introduced you to Canton back in July when the father of two, who was born in New Zealand and raised in Australia, shared with us how he was recruited into the U.S. Marines in the early 90s under what he calls false promises.

I was told if I got an honorable discharge, then I would get citizenship at the end of my tour automatically. When I got out, I assumed I had citizenship, he told us over the summer from his home near Ocala, FL.

However, several years ago, during a trip to renew his Florida driver's license, Canton learned he wasnt legally here in the United States. Hes been fighting for citizenship status ever since. U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) denied his application multiple times, including on appeal.

In the denial letters he showed us, USCIS states that while Canton enlisted during a period of hostility, he didnt become active duty until after that period of hostility ended, which makes him ineligible for citizenship as a foreign veteran. 

Cantons attorney, Elizabeth Ricci, has taken on Cantons case pro bono. Ricci believes the government is interpreting the law too narrowly since Canton had no control over when he was called for active duty.

Ricci also said Canton should never have been recruited into the military because his visa had expired when he was recruited. As a result of his service to America, Canton lost his citizenship in Australia and New Zealand, leaving him essentially stateless.

He served our country. This is not fair, Ricci told us in July.

Last year, Canton and Ricci filed a case in federal court, hoping the courts would rule in his favor. But in an order filed earlier this month, US Magistrate Judge Embry Kidd dismissed two of the three charges Canton brought against USCIS, citing, in part, their failure to establish the Courts had subject matter jurisdiction to review USCIS denial of his naturalization applications.

Representative Castor believes Cantons case is another example of the nations broken immigration system.

If he had served and was honorably discharged, there should be no fight from the US government at this point when he goes and applies for citizenship as long as he has dotted the i's, crossed the t's, and stayed out of trouble," she said. "We shouldn't waste resources fighting that. We should be making sure that he is a productive US citizen as his service entitles him to."

Castor, a Democrat from Tampa, also expressed concerns after we found whats happening to Canton could be impacting hundreds, possibly even thousands, of foreign veterans who have also been recruited to serve in Americas armed forces.

Castor is now looking at supporting legislation reintroduced last year by U.S. Senator and Army veteran Tammy Duckworth of Illinois. The legislation, known as the Veterans Visa and Protection Act, HOPE Act, and I-VETS Act, would prevent immigrant Veterans from being deported if they are not violent offenders and provide them with a pathway to citizenship through their military service.

There has to be a way to make sure that military veterans who served the U.S. and have earned their citizenship get that citizenship without the bureaucratic mess that he's having to go through, she said.

Three years after Governor Ron DeSantis first announced he was sending dozens of troopers from Floridas Highway Patrol (FHP) to Texas to help combat illegal immigration into the United States, financial records we obtained through a public record request provide a glimpse at how much FHPs deployment to the Lone Star state is costing the Sunshine State.

During a ten-month period between July of 2023 through April of 2024, records show Floridas Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV), which oversees FHP, spent at least $13.5 million dollars on expenses, including gas, vehicle maintenance, airfare, and overtime.

Earlier this year, during a press conference announcing another 76 troopers were headed to the Southwest border, Governor DeSantis touted his Texas mission and Floridas long-term commitment there.

Were going to continue to be in this fight until the problem is solved, and we need to have the problem solved. American security depends on it. American lives depend on it, DeSantis said while surrounded by state troopers before they were deployed.

Additional details of FHPs spending were provided in expense records over a nine-month period between July of 2023 and March of 2024. During that period, FHP spent more than $12.5 million on its mission along the Texas-Mexico border.

Those expenses included:

But the single largest FHP expense over those nine months was for personnel, which totaled just under $11 million dollars and did not include the troopers regular salary.

A monthly look at overtime expenses shows Operation Lone Star is offering FHP troopers a lucrative opportunity to earn more money. The average salary for a state trooper in Florida is around $50,000 per year and among the lowest nationwide.

Records show there were multiple troopers deployed to Texas who earned well over $10,000 per month in overtime pay.

Records show one trooper netted nearly $26,000 in OT pay and logged 503 hours just for the month of February. Those figures mean that the trooper worked more than 17 hours each day of the month.

We reached out to the FLHSMV for clarity and accuracy on these figures, but a department spokesperson did not respond to our inquiry by the time this article was published.

Paul Novack is a South Florida attorney and member of the Florida Highway Patrol Advisory Council and said Florida is dealing with a critical shortage of state troopers.

There are some incentives there, but you also have to realize deployments like this rip our troopers away, said Novack.

For months, Novack has been writing commentaries about the states shortage of FHP troopers and the need to pay them more.

We have far too few troopers, and those numbers are not going up. There's a hiring freeze in effect. The next academy class has been canceled, and we're losing troopers by attrition because they're going to better-paid agencies, Novack told us recently.

When asked if he believes its a responsible use of funding to send FHP troopers to Texas, Novack replied, I think that if our politicians make a political decision to deploy troopers off the highway, they need to make a budget decision to pay for it. They need to make a budget decision to adequately staff for it, which means a lot more troopers than what we have now, Novack said.

According to Floridas Division of Emergency Management, which is leading the states mission in Texas, 50 FHP troopers are currently deployed in Texas.

Since last year, when FHP sent its first squad of troopers to the border, Florida troopers have made contact with more than 153,000 illegal immigrants and assisted with more than 3000 arrests, according to the latest figures provided by a department spokesperson.

Back in February, Governor DeSantis praised state efforts along the southern border as working.

Whats been happening in Texas has been effective. Youve seen the numbers go down because you have Texas putting forth huge efforts and then all these other states are coming by, he said.

Including Florida, which is spending millions to be a part of it.

A press release issued last year said Florida would be eligible for some FEMA reimbursements for its assistance in Texas. The state has not provided answers on whether theyve applied for or received any of that federal money.

Once described as a free alternative to the dominant left-wing ideology in culture, media and education, PragerU now portrays its mission online more simply as

promoting American values.

One year after Florida became the first state in the country to allow the companys sometimes controversial, right-leaning kids' content to be used as teaching material in public schools, the content is still allowed in classrooms across the Sunshine State.

A spokesperson from Floridas Department of Education stated in an email that its lessons, which promote conservative viewpoints of civics and history, align with Floridas revised civics and government standards.

PragerU kids is no different than many other resources, which can be used as supplemental materials in Florida at district discretion, the spokesperson added. In other words, teachers can use the material if their districts allow it.

But weve discovered Florida school districts are largely staying away from PragerU kids, which, on its website, states, woke agenda are infiltrating classrooms, culture, and social media.

We contacted dozens of districts around the state, from rural to urban, conservative to liberal and asked district if theyre allowing teachers to use PragerU kids in the classroom. Not a single district that responded to us said yes.

Our district has not purchased any materials from PragerU and has no plans to purchase it, a spokesperson from Hillsborough County schools told us.

According to a district spokesperson, the content hasnt been included in any instructional resources in Palm Beach County. The same was true in Lee County, Manatee County, Leon County, and nearly a dozen other school districts we heard back from.

"There's been no pressure put on us by anyone at the state level to say you must adopt this, explained Superintendent Fred Heid in Polk County, a rural and conservative county between Tampa and Orlando.

Heid explained his districts decision not to offer PragerU kids content has nothing to do with politics.

Many of us looked at that software and their online programs and video snippets and everything that came with that. It's just kind of a mixed bag. We don't adopt parts of curriculum, we adopt them as a whole, he explained.

But those concerned about PragerUs content see its lack of use in Florida as a sign in a state that continues to be criticized for turning public classrooms into political battlefields.

Rachel Laser is the Executive Director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

I think there's a backlash that's happening across this country, she said. Its not the role of public schools to be claiming something about church-state separation and religious freedom and, you know, whitewashing history and denying basic science and climate change. It's gone too far, Laser said.

PragerU content has been approved in at least six other states. We requested an interview with PragerU, but the company has not responded.

One week since we brought you Paul Cantons citizenship fight, viewers have reached out to us with both cynicism and outrage over what the former US Marine is dealing with.

Canton is also hearing from many viewers, including a California attorney and podcaster, a veterans advocate, and even the office of U.S. Congressman and Floridian Gus Bilirakis, a Republican from Pinellas County. All of them watched our story on Cantons years-long citizenship fight and want to help.

When we reached Canton by zoom this week, the Ocala veteran was humbled and hopeful by all the attention his story is generating.

I think its pointed out whats happening to foreign born vets that hasnt been publicly stated before because its all gone under the radar and no ones heard anything about it, he said.

Theres so many of us and theyve been deported without a voice, so thank you for giving me a voice, he told Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone.

Canton, who born in New Zealand and raised in Australia, was recruited into the US Marines in 1991 during the Gulf War.

At the time, Canton said, a recruiter told him after he discharged honorably, he would be granted US citizenship.

After he left the military, Canton assumed he was a legal US citizen and lived in America as an American.

He got married, had kids, and even voted in U.S. elections until just a few years ago when he went to renew his driver license at his local DMV and was told he wasnt a legal U.S. citizen.

Despite multiple attempts to become legal, US Citizenship and Immigration Services denied him, stating while he enlisted during a period of hostility, he wasnt active duty until after that period of hostility ended. As a result, he was ineligible for expedited naturalization as a foreign veteran.

Canton and his attorney filed a lawsuit against the government in federal court last year but are still waiting for his first hearing.

A spokesperson for Congressman Bilirakis stated in an email they are looking into advocating on Cantons behalf.

On the day we met Paul Canton at his home near Ocala, he was headed to work at a nearby ranch.

But instead of driving his late wifes van parked in the driveway, Canton called a neighbor to give him a ride.

Its what he does each day.

I have somebody who gives me a ride to work, and then I get a ride home. Once we get a ride home, here I am, he said.

Canton cant drive because he doesnt have a valid driver's license or an ID card and cant get either one because hes not a legal U.S. citizen.

I kind of feel like Im under house arrest. I can't go anywhere or do anything. There's a lot of restrictions with no identification. I can't even go cash a check, he told us during our visit.

What got our attention about Cantons citizenship issues is that hes also a U.S. military veteran.

Thats right, Canton, who was born in New Zealand and raised in Australia, isnt American, but hes got all the goods to show he served as an American soldier in the U.S. Marine Reserves.

Canton said it was during recruitment when a military recruiter told him if he served, he would be granted U.S. citizenship when he got out.

I was told if I got an honorable discharge then I would get citizenship at the end of my tour automatically. I got out and assumed I had citizenship and so I did everything a citizen would do, he said.

Canton got married here, had kids, paid his taxes, and even voted in American elections. That was until a trip to his local DMV to renew his driver's license a few years ago literally stopped him in his American tracks.

It was kind of a shock, he said. I figured somehow, somebody had forgot to push a button or do something. I didn't think it was going to be anything. I just thought here's my paperwork, here's my military service and it was going to be done, he said.

It wasnt done, and five years later, it still isnt.

It seems like every time we go back and try and deal with this, its just another door closed, he said.

According to federal immigration law, foreigners who serve in the U.S. military are eligible for expedited naturalization if they served during whats known as a period of hostility.

Canton enlisted during the Gulf War in the early 1990s, but he wasnt called for active duty for another seven months. By the time he became active, that period of hostility had ended two weeks prior.

According to his attorney, US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) is denying Canton legal status because he wasnt technically on active duty until after the period of hostility ended, something Canton had no control over.

He served our country. This is not fair, explains immigration attorney Elizabeth Ricci. Ricci is representing Canton pro bono and said what happened to Canton during recruitment isnt all that unusual for immigrant veterans.

They are told by recruiters, who get a bonus for the number of recruits they sign up, that they will take care of it. We'll get your citizenship, don't worry about it, she said.

After being denied multiple times by USCIS, including on appeal, Ricci and Canton filed a case in federal court last year. Canton still hasnt had his first hearing.

But the notion of America recruiting foreigners into its military under false promises isnt new, said Rose Carmen Goldberg, Director of the Veterans Law Practicum at UC Berkeley School of Law.

Unfortunately, it is not new it has been going on for many years, Goldberg said.

Earlier this year, her group released a report titled Broken Promises. It details Americas history of recruiting immigrants to serve our country only to abandon them after service.

This problem is so big that the federal government itself doesn't even know the scope of the problem, she explained.

When asked how many foreign veterans could be dealing with citizenship issues similar to Cantons, Goldberg answered, rough estimate is hundreds or thousands. No one knows, she said.

In an email, a spokesperson from the Department of Defense said it does not sanction bringing immigrants into the US military under false promises of obtaining citizenship.

The statement goes on to state while non-citizens who enlist under the law are qualified for expedited naturalization, those pursuits are between the individual and US Citizenship and Immigration Services.

It just doesn't make any sense at all, said Canton who doesnt know what his future in America holds.

After he joined the U.S. military, he lost his citizenship in Australia, essentially leaving the father of two and recent widow stateless.

When asked why he keeps fighting so hard, Canton said, I've got nowhere else to go and someone has to take care of my boys.

Read the full statement from the U.S. Department of Defense:

Full response from U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services:

Long considered a primary access point for abortions in the south, Florida is less than two weeks away from joining a short list of U.S. states restricting abortion care to 6 weeks.

We don't really know what's going to happen until it actually happens, said Dr. Robyn Schickler, Chief Medical Officer for Planned Parenthood on Floridas west coast.

But if trends in other states are any indication, Florida is about to undergo a significant shift in the total number of formal abortions performed here.

Using data collected by the Guttmacher Institute, a research and policy think tank that supports abortion rights, we looked at the numbers of total abortions performed in Georgia and South Carolina, where six-week bans are in place.

In Georgia, after its ban took effect in the summer of 2022, the number of abortions performed dropped by nearly 50% within a year, according to the Society of Family Planning, which partners with the Guttmacher Institute.

In South Carolina, which implemented its six-week ban last summer, abortions decreased by 71% in just the first month of the ban, according to the Guttmacher Institute.

There is a dramatic and drastic impact to the provision of abortion care, explained Candace Gibson, director of state policy for the Institute, which also found last year that one of every 3 abortions in the south and 12 nationwide occurred in the Sunshine State.

Gibson believes Floridas ban will be especially impactful.

We knew that people were traveling out of state and getting care in Florida. So it will have a drastic impact on both Floridians and individual tourists who are traveling outside of the state, she said about the upcoming ban.

Abortion rights advocates are expecting Floridians to flood other states for care or resort to help outside the formal healthcare system.

It's really hard for people to access care in a six-week period. That's the goal of the politicians who passed this, said Amy Weintraub, Reproductive Rights Program Director with Progress Florida.

So those folks are going to have to travel to other states, or they're going to find other ways to end an unintended pregnancy, and that could be by pills by mail or other ways, Weintraub said.

But even if Floridas new restrictions lower the number of abortions performed in the state, Dr. Schickler, who also works as an abortion doctor in Florida, shares what she believes a six-week ban wont do.

It doesn't stop abortions. It certainly restricts safer abortion, but it doesn't stop them, she said.

In a study released last month, the Guttmacher Institute found that despite more states restricting abortions or banning them altogether, the number of formal abortions nationwide actually increased last year by 10% since 2020.

Schickler said Planned Parenthood officers in Florida are working with providers in other states to streamline what they expect will be a deluge of Florida women seeking abortion care.

For now, she and her team are working overtime and expanding office hours to try and serve as many patients as they can over the next few weeks before Floridas new ban makes it almost impossible to do.

For months, Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone has shared what teachers describe as specific reasons driving them out of the profession.

But now, she is sharing the story of how one woman is helping some of these teachers find a new start away from the classroom.

You might call Lisa Harding a teachers teacher.

She spent years as CEO of an online teacher training and development company and was even born into the profession.

I came from a family of teachers. My parents both met teaching in middle school, she explained.

So, it got our attention when Harding told us that after 15 years of working to place educators in the classroom, she stumbled on her latest venture, which is squarely focused on helping teachers get out.

Teachers started reaching out to me asking for help making a career transition into the field that I just left, and I couldn't keep up with the demand, she explained, adding how the opportunity that was right in front of her posed a personal dilemma.

I kind of had a moral, ethical question to ask myself, but I realized Im not trying to convince teachers to leave the classroom; Im just helping those that want to make a change and giving them the skills that they need to do so, she said.

Harding and her business partner moved forward, starting the Teacher Career Transition Academy.

Its an online subscription-based program that offers a step-by-step approach to helping educators switch careers.

Services include a wide range of help, from rewriting resumes to make them less teacher-focused to specialized coaching on negotiating salaries that are above average teacher pay. Annual membership is $500, and members can pay a monthly $57 charge.

We've had teachers that, since they've left, they've already been promoted or gotten new jobs, and they've doubled their teaching salary within 12 months. It's pretty wild, Harding said.

Her company is a sign of the times as Florida struggles to hire new teachers or keep the ones it has.

Last school year, more than 18,000 Florida teachers resigned, representing about 10% of the states publicly employed teachers at the time.

Our recent investigation found that some of the top reasons teachers decided to leave the profession included pay, politics, student behavior, and overall burnout.

I absolutely thought I was a lifer. I loved my job, and I think probably if COVID didn't hit, I would still be a principal, said Michelle Auger, whos among the thousands of Florida educators who have left the industry in the last few years.

Auger spent her entire professional career, more than 35 years, in education.

Most recently, she was a principal at an elementary school near Tampa.

But after watching her own teaching staff burn out, it was just so disheartening to me. I think that's really the bottom line for me, she explained about what ultimately led her to leave.

Auger signed up with the Career Teacher Transition Academy to help revamp her resume by highlighting skills she used every day on campus but didnt know how to sell outside the profession.

Project management is probably the biggest one of all. As an administrator, that was one I never would have thought to even put on there but Im like, gosh, I do that every day, all day, she explained about Hardings services.

Today, Auger is the educational program coordinator for a camp in central Florida. She describes it as a dream job and credits Hardings company for helping her as the pressures of teaching in Florida continue to leave so many exploring life outside the classroom and how to get there.

Im not going anywhere. There's definitely a niche here, said Harding. I think teachers are going to start to see more and more of their peers thriving in careers beyond the classroom, where they have more flexibility, better working conditions, and better pay. This is only the beginning, she said.

A recent I-team investigation is now prompting one Florida school board member to speak up and act.

During a Sarasota County school board meeting Tuesday evening, member Tom Edwards asked for the district to begin conducting exit interviews with teachers who leave the district.

Edwards told us he was inspired after seeing our investigation last week where we obtained hundreds of teacher exit surveys from other districts to reveal the brutal truth behind why so many Florida teachers keep leaving.

Related:

According to Floridas Department of Education, more than 18,000 publicly-employed teachers left during the last school year alone. This represents about 10% of public teachers at the time.

The exit interviews we obtained for our story helped provide to the public more detailed insight into what continues to drive so many teachers away.

What I loved about it is that its data Ive heard often about our own teachers when they leave but we have no document of that, Edward explained to district leaders and his board colleagues when he talked about LaGrones recent report.

As I looked through a lot of your findings, I saw things that really justified one of my big initiatives, which is attainable housing and workforce housing, he later told LaGrone.

You can hear from teachers how they struggled to want to be able to be the best teacher they could be, but struggled to afford to be able to live anywhere here in Florida- whether it's Hillsborough, Palm Beach, or any of the different places that you had referenced in your report, he said about the publicly available exit surveys.

LaGrone obtained the data by asking various school districts for copies of exit interviews conducted since last year.

In response, the Hillsborough County school district, Pinellas County school district, and Palm Beach County school district sent us spreadsheets from a total of more than 650 exit interviews conducted in those districts.

Pay, politics, and out-of-control student behavior were among the top reasons cited, according to the surveys we analyzed. But it was the comments left by departing teachers that offered some of the most detailed and brutal insight.

The absolutely ridiculous and violent behavior of the students coupled with little to no consequences for said behavior was abhorrent. In the less than 3 weeks in this position I hated every minute of the day, stated a former Pinellas County teacher who left just a few weeks after starting this past fall.

We are at a breaking point. Our pay has not increased in years. The district is placing more and more on teachers, a Hillsborough County teacher stated.

"It currently feels as though teachers are being hung out to dry in response to Governor DeSantis' transparent efforts to persecute educators, said a teacher who left the Palm Beach County school district.

While Florida school districts are required by the state to ask departing teachers why they leave, some districts dont or are inconsistent.

For those who do, most of the information collected and submitted to the state is broad and general. This forces districts who want to learn more about whats driving teachers out to conduct their own deep dives.

The reason we do the exit interviews is so we can find out what their experience was like and what we can do better to make things better for those still here, to retain them, and potentially have them come back if we can address the issues, explained Hillsborough County HR manager Dr. Charmion Patten, who agreed to talk about her districts exit surveys.

If someone is leaving, theyre much more open and willing to tell you exactly how theyre feeling about something, so thats very valuable, Patten said.

Last school year, the Sarasota district lost just under 300 teachers, a record high.

I strongly recommend we formalize and conduct exit interviews, Edwards told his board Tuesday before the meeting concluded.

After his remarks, Edwards said his district superintendent came up to him to let him know he agreed, and that the district had just started to conduct formal teacher exit interviews. About 68 are now on file in the district to view.

I am here to make sure that public education remains as competitive as possible and that precise information helps me zero in, and helps me talk to the superintendent about ideas and suggestions that will be able to enhance the job description, the salaries, and the housing opportunities for our teachers and staff, Edwards said.

Take a drive just about anywhere in the Sunshine State, and it doesnt take long to see how popular golf carts have become here- on and, especially, off the greens.

But as more of these low-speed wheels are hitting the pavement, high impact crashes and incidents are reaching disturbing new levels.

Several years ago, a golf cart careened through a busy Tampa Bay Walmart.

In 2022, a former Tampa Bay police chief was forced to resign after police video showed her flashing her badge to get out of a ticket while riding in a golf cart with her husband.

Two years ago, a woman was caught in a golf cart driving drunk on I-95, and last summer, a three-year-old driving a golf cart in Fort Myers struck and killed his 7-year-old brother.

Michael and Christine Kurasz know the heartbreak of losing a child to a golf cart accident.

Its devastating. Theres nothing that can prepare you for that type of news, they told reporter Katie LaGrone recently.

Seven years ago, their 28-year-old daughter, Leah, was among three friends killed in Pasco County while riding in a golf cart on Christmas Eve night.

It wasnt the golf cart that got to us, Mr. Kurasz said. It was learning that the driver of the car was racing down back roads with no headlights and literally drove over the golf cart at such a high rate of speed that they took a golf cart and collapsed it down to 12 inches, he said about the intensity of the crash.

Since 2020, the number of Florida crashes involving low-speed vehicles, including golf carts, has nearly doubled, according to data provided to us by the Florida Highway Patrol. (FHP)

While nationwide, golf cart accidents are blamed for roughly 13,000 emergency room visits a year according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

To increase golf cart safety measures, Florida lawmakers raised the legal age to drive a golf cart last year to 15 as long as the teen also has a learners permit or drivers license.

But thats about as far as current state laws go.

Weve learned, for the most part, that neither a license plate nor insurance is required in Florida as long as your golf cart doesnt exceed 20 miles per hour.

The same rules apply even in Florida communities where golf carts rule the road.

The golf cart is our main mode of transportation, said David Fountaine, Executive Vice President of the Villages Homeowners Advocates in the Villages, FL. The Central Florida retirement community is often described as the golf cart capital of the world, with approximately 75,000 golf carts. It also logs among the most golf cart crashes statewide, according to FHP.

When asked Fountaine if he sees the benefit in beefing up state law to require all golf carts to be registered and insured.

I don't think so, he said. Most of us already have the liability, and we really encourage that insurance. Its really affordable. Fountaine told us he pays less than $200 per year for his own golf cart insurance.

But in Tarpon Springs, insurance and license plates are mandatory on all golf carts, regardless of how fast they go.

Longtime resident Norman Hill contacted us to let us know about his citys rules. He believes these same rules should apply across Florida.

We feel safer in Tarpon Springs because we are regulated, he said.

Its a topic that, for now at least, isnt driving any kind of public debate in Florida and doesnt appear to be changing direction anytime soon.

Florida teens are resilient, but they continue to struggle mentally and emotionally. Those are the broad but vague conclusions from Floridas newly created health survey for teens.

Still, some tout it as a good start.

I think, overall, the states can look at these results and give themselves a little pat on the back, said Christy DeVigili, a Lee County parents rights advocate.

Others are critical, calling the state summary of results too general.

Were really struggling to find meaningful conclusions from what we've been presented, said Takeata King Pang, a youth advocate.

The voluntary survey, which went out to an unknown but limited number of high schools last spring, replaced the Center for Disease Controls (CDC) Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS). The bi-annual voluntary federal survey has long been used by states to chart and compare risky behavior among US teens.

But after Floridas Education Commissioner, Manny Diaz, called the federal survey inflammatory and sexualized, Floridas Department of Education created its own version.

We obtained a copy last year revealing its focus is more on resiliency standards, including grit, gratitude, perseverance, and citizenship, versus actual youth behavior like sex, hard drug use, and gun violence.

According to the recently published results, which were inexplicably delayed for 6 months, Florida teens scored high in overall resiliency, with breakdowns for student gender and ethnicity.

But similar demos arent included in the behavioral results posted on the states website. Still, what is included still shows teens are struggling with issues including depression and bullying.

For example, 9% of the nearly 3,000 high school students who voluntarily filled out the survey said theyve been a victim of dating violence. That number is about the same as the statistics from the last time Florida participated in the CDCs survey in 2021.

In the new Florida survey, 26% of students said theyve had sex which is down from 36% from the CDCs 2021 survey. And 46% of Florida students who expressed some level of anxiety during the school year reported in the new survey that they have had feelings of sadness, hopelessness, or loneliness.

But, none of the states behavioral results from its new survey include demographic details, including age, gender, or ethnicity.

We don't know who was surveyed. Was this a cross-section of the state or one community, asked Pang, who works with the Womens Foundation of Florida and Florida Healthy Youth Alliance.

Both groups have historically used results from the CDCs YRBS to determine the needs and resources of Florida teens. Pang is concerned results from Floridas new survey lack too many details to be useful.

It does feel that they want to present their best face forward. You want to show that your young people are doing well. I just think we're doing the youth across our state a disservice by not looking at this in a factual and scientific manner, Pang said, referring to the lack of demographic detail provided in the states results.

FDOE said while nearly 3000 Florida teens participated in the voluntary survey on resiliency, just over 2700 teens filled out the behavioral section. Its unclear why those numbers are different and which areas of the state participated in the study.

The FDOE has refused to release information on which schools the survey was administered to, stating that the information is a matter of trade secrets. Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone recently submitted a new public records request for the states raw data from the survey.

But even those who support the states new resiliency direction question who and what the state is leaving out in its posted results.

These results are great, but they're not as accurate as they can be because they don't represent everyone, said Christy DeVigili. The parents rights advocate served on the state workgroup that helped create the states new resiliency standards for the survey.

I think Florida is on the right track in putting their focus in the right areas and focusing on resiliency, other than focusing on the problem as much. But I definitely don't think we should be ignoring the problem, DeVigili said.

A law created to keep guns away from Floridians who threaten to hurt themselves or others is being used against kids, some so young they cant legally drive to their court hearing while others, court records show, are barely old enough to sign their name.

Our analysis found since Floridas red flag law took effect in March 2018, law enforcement has filed risk protection order petitions, or RPOs, against children as young as 8 and 9 years old.

Long-time Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd barely budged when we brought him the data that shows not only has his county and his agency filed more risk protection orders, or red flag petitions, than any other county in the state, but nearly 20%, or about 450 petitions, were filed against minors who were too young to legally purchase a gun at the time the petition was filed. In Florida, the legal age to purchase a firearm is 21.

When asked why so many petitions were filed against kids, Sheriff Judd responded, If you're old enough to threaten to kill somebody, you're old enough to go to court, and you're old enough to be held accountable, he said.

Passed in 2018 following the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas Senior High in Parkland, Florida, Floridas red flag law lets law enforcement seek a court order that stops someone from possessing or owning a gun for 12 months if a judge deems them to be a threat to themselves or others.

In Polk County, while all the petitions filed against juveniles involved some kind of threat with a firearm, some petitions we reviewed read less like a danger and more like a child tantrum.

One petition was filed against an 8-year-old who talked about how he wanted to kill himself by jumping off a cliff and wanted to get a gun and kill everyone, according to court records. The child told police he feels this way when he is mad.

The judge denied the red flag order, and the boy was detained under Floridas Baker Act.

In another case, an 11-year-old claimed he had a gun in his book bag and showed a classmate a 9mm bullet. The classmate told police the boy threatened to kill classmates because people said he had do-do stains on his pants.

The child later told police he found the bullet on the ground. His parents also reported not owning any guns. The risk protection order was granted.

Most are.

Records show about a quarter of the countys juvenile RPO cases involved kids 13 years old or younger.

While more than half were 15 or younger.

We're not going to apologize for keeping children safe, said Sheriff Judd when asked why his agency has filed so many RPOs against children.

He has a very aggressive approach to how we're doing RPOs, said David Carmichael regarding the Sheriffs use of the state law, which we recently discovered has done little to lower gun violence in the state.

Carmichael is an attorney in Polk County who handles red flag cases for local police departments. He has defended police petitions cases against minors.

Sometimes appearing before a judge in court hearings and coming to this courthouse and appearing in front of witnesses and bailiffs has a strong deterrent value, said Carmichael.

Pulling these kids into court and making them go through such a traumatic process, just to scare them into behaving more properly, I believe that there are better ways of doing it, said Kendra Parris, an Orlando-based attorney who first raised concerns to us about Polks use of the red flag law on kids back in 2019.

At the time, Parris also raised concerns about these civil cases being subject to public record when they involve minors. No exception was made for risk protection orders filed against juveniles when the law was passed, meaning anyone could access the records. Parris fears RPOs filed against kids who dont mean any actual harm could haunt them later in life.

Is that severe enough to put a child on track for life, potentially? I mean, these records stay online forever. I have very serious problems with that, she said.

Sheriff Judd said he would support efforts to exempt juvenile RPO cases from public record, but no lawmaker has taken up the issue so far.

Florida Representative Anna Eskamani is a Democrat elected the same year Floridas red flag law took effect. She didnt know the law was being used so frequently on minors.

An RPO is not supposed to be used in this way because we're supposed to have other statutes that prevent that from happening in the first place, and we don't, she said.

The fact that we don't have safe storage laws in Florida is a big reason why these kids are even able to access these firearms in the first place, Eskamani said.

Sheriff Judd has no plans to back his department down from filing red flag petitions, regardless of the persons age.

Shooting words matter, said Judd. If you say it, until we can determine otherwise, we're accepting you at face value whether you're eight or eighty. It makes no difference.

New documents released by Sarasota police reveal the woman who accused former Florida Republican party chairman Christian Ziegler of rape told police he had been sexually battering her for years and never felt like she could say no to him, according to the records.

The 22-page document also included new details that the former Florida GOP heavy weight kept a list containing the names of several other women on his phone, including his accuser- titled THE LIST with a subheading labeled a graphic expletive. 

The once rising star of Floridas republican party, along with his wife, a founder of the conservative group Moms for Liberty who pushes traditional values as a sitting Sarasota school board member, have been embroiled in a head-turning, headline-making sex scandal ever since the accusers original allegation exposed the couples non-traditional personal lives. 

During the investigation into claims Christian sexually assaulted the woman at her home in October, Christians wife, Bridget, revealed to police she and her husband had a threesome with the woman about a year earlier. Christian told police it was twice. 

While police dropped the rape case pointing to video Christian took of the encounter suggesting it was consensual, these latest records also show the Zieglers discussed the womans personal issues with Christian describing her to his wife in a 2021 text as an alcoholic, nice person with some issues. 

Bridget responded, I just dont want to feel like we ever take advantage of anyone (I know its always been consensual), but she seemsbroken. 

Janae Thomas, a former prosecutor in Hillsborough County, explained how these details could still be relevant to other charges. 

Sarasota police are recommending Christian be charged with video voyeurism for illegally taping the encounter. 

It shows a pattern, it shows his history, it shows the motive, intent of how this has been progressing over the last few years, and the method in which he uses, Thomas said.

A method that, according to these records, also shows the couple had plans for more threesomes. 

After the 2021 text from Bridget expressing concerns that they were taking advantage of the woman, Christian wrote how they needed to hunt for someone new.

The records also show after detectives interviewed Christian in November about the sexual assault allegations, his Google searches included:

To date, no criminal charges have been filed against Christian Ziegler. Despite calls for Bridget Ziegler to step down from Sarasotas school board, so far, she hasnt.

On a recent Thursday in Hillsborough County, Judge Denise Pomponio temporarily stripped gun privileges from more than a dozen people.

Among them, a husband and father who didnt show up to court but whose wife and son did and described the frightening moments before police arrived.

I turned around, and the gun was pointing straight at us, the wife told the court.

I saw him flip the safety off and aim it right at me. If my mom wasnt standing there, I think he would have shot me, the son explained.

There was the story of a thirty-year-old who called 911 upset police hadnt responded to his earlier call that his fianc stole his meds.

Ill tell you what, Ill grab the gun I got and go to the mall, he told a 911 operator.

Another was of a young woman whose boyfriend called law enforcement after she went to bed drunk and woke up making suicidal comments.

Im not going to do anything. I just think my medication is causing crazy mood swings, she told the cops at the time.

They are all among Floridas most recent red flag recipients.

The red flag law was passed in 2018 following the deadly mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

The law was created to prevent future mass shootings and curb gun violence by letting police seek a court order barring someone from purchasing or possessing a gun for 12 months if a judge determines theyre a threat to themselves or others.

Since going into effect in the Sunshine State in March of 2018, Florida judges have granted more than 12,000 risk protection orders, or RPOs, according to Floridas Office of State Courts Administrator.

When asked if she thinks RPOS have saved lives, Judge Pomponio didnt hesitate.

Absolutely, she said. I mean, you got to try everything, she told investigative reporter Katie LaGrone recently after she sat in on a number of RPO hearings.

In Hillsborough County, state records show between 2018, when the law took effect, and March 2022, judges granted nearly 1,000 risk protection orders.

But between 2018 and 2022, gun-related murders increased in the county from 52 in 2018 to 83 in 2022, representing nearly a 60% increase, according to firearm death data maintained by Floridas Department of Health. During the same time, firearm suicide deaths went up only slightly, according to the states data.

Its a similar trend for gun-related deaths statewide.

An RPO injunction is a piece of paper. People need to remember that. Yes, we're glad they do it. But we always need to remember it's a piece of paper and people will find a way to do what they want to do, Judge Pomponio said.

Advocates who pushed for Floridas red flag law tout it as a major success.

Tony Montalto lost his daughter, Gina, in the Parkland school shooting. He's been a huge advocate of Florida's red flag laws.

Its the proactive nature of this that we've seen that has been so effective, he told LaGrone recently. Its one of the best things we did, he said.

But even in the most proactive red flag counties, weve discovered theres little to no evidence that proves Floridas red flag law has done much to curb gun-related deaths.

To date, Polk County, a rural, conservative county about 45 miles west of Tampa, has issued over 2,300 risk protection orders, more than any other county in Florida.

The local sheriffs office, led by long-time sheriff and Second Amendment supporter Grady Judd, files the lions share.

Im not going to apologize for keeping people safe or stopping people from killing themselves, Sheriff Judd said.

The rate of gun-related suicides in Polk County dropped slightly between 2018 and 2022. The rate of gun-related murders shot up by more than 50%, from 2.8 to 4.3, state records show.

Its not a well-refined tool, but it's a tool, said attorney David Carmichael.

He represents local police departments in Polk County that file risk protection orders. An initial skeptic of red flag laws, he now believes, despite what the numbers show, RPOs are making his community safer.

In this circuit, we haven't had a mass shooting since we've implemented this, he said.

On the day we saw him in court, Carmichael was seeking an RPO against a 20-year-old who lives with depression and recently told his mom he wanted to buy a gun. The Judge granted the order. Most of the time, they do.

Dr. Shannon Frattaroli is a professor studying red flag laws at Johns Hopkins Universitys Center for Gun Violence Solutions. Frattaroli said its too soon to determine if red flag laws prevent gun-related deaths, but early studies show for every 10-20 risk protection orders granted, approximately one death by suicide was averted.

Those are pretty strong numbers. We've seen those consistently in two states now. So, early but promising, Frattaroli said.

For the first time on Monday, Florida Senators debated a bill that could end what critics and impacted family members have long dubbed Floridas free kill law.

SB 248 aims to lift limitations that, for the past 33 years, have prevented some adult children or parents from suing a doctor or hospital if their unmarried parent or adult child dies over medical mistakes or negligence.

But it comes with what many families call a devastating and costly catch.

On Friday, Senator Clay Yarborough, who first introduced the bill, filed an amendment to end the law but add in caps, which means anyone who files a medical negligent claim against a Florida doctor would be limited to $500,000 per claimant and $750,000 if the case is against a nonpractitioner such as a hospital or medical office.

Yarborough called it a compromise that would help families seek justice but not at the expense of scaring away doctors from rising medical malpractice claims and costs, which was the law's original intent more than three decades ago.

Related Story: Families say its time for Floridas free kill law to die; data shows they may be right

Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone analyzed the law and found the states wrongful death law has not resulted in lower malpractice claims or costs. There is also little evidence medical malpractice claims and costs have scared doctors away from Florida, which lawmakers have used as a reason to keep the law in place.

On Monday, Yarborough introduced his bill in the Senate Committee on Judiciary, which he chairs, and started by acknowledging that the longstanding state law is a clear injustice.

His bill prompted dozens of reactions, both for and against. Senator Lauren Book of Miami filed an amendment to Yarboroughs amendment calling to strike the caps.

Im not sure trading one injustice for another is the right way to go, Book said.

Book has introduced bills to repeal the law in the past, but those bills were never heard.

Her amendment was quickly shot down.

Other insiders called Yarboroughs amended bill a fair compromise, citing, without evidence, how caps help bring balance to medical malpractice claims.

Tampa-based attorney Andy Bolin represents the medical industry and spoke on behalf of the Florida Justice Reform, a lobbying group that supports tort reform.

If were to expand claimants, then there must be a counterbalance, he said.

Cindy Jenkins, whose 25-year-old daughter Taylor was unmarried and had no children when she died in a hospital after Jenkins said she had a brain bleed that went untreated for hours after she was rear-ended at a traffic light, believes cap would just be another slap in the face since attorneys are unlikely to take a case that would yield such a low payout.

For some reason, the goal of our legislators and the lobbyists who protect the hospitals, doctors, and insurance companies is they don't want us to have justice administered fairly and impartially, she said.

You cannot imagine the pain we suffer every day, said Belynda Warren, who lost her mother to medical negligence.

One couple brought their 13-month-old daughter to the podium to show lawmakers how the baby, who was born with two healthy hands, is now slowly losing all her fingers on one hand because her circulation was cut off while she was under medical care for an unrelated issue.

Advocates who oppose caps cited two medical negligent cases that involved caps and were deemed unconstitutional by Floridas Supreme Court. Yarborough said his amended bill calls for a different setup and felt confident it would clear any court battle.

Despite strong opposition from families, lawmakers voted to move Yarboroughs bill forward but not without acknowledging more changes may still be needed given what and whos at stake.

We need to find a balance with this. I believe there is an openness to all sides, and I am open to ideas, Yarborough said.

This is just the first hurdle. Two other bills on the topic have also been introduced in the House and Senate, but so far, they have not been scheduled for a hearing.

The attention surrounding the personal sex life of Sarasota County school board member Bridget Ziegler is now the basis of mounting pressure for her to quit her public life with the board.

I am not concerned with the salacious details of the Zieglers sexcapades, said Tom Edwards, one of two Sarasota County School board members calling for Ziegler to step down from the role with the board.

My focus as an elected official overseeing student outcomes and academic achievement is to remove the distraction as quickly as possible and get back to the business at hand, he said.

The calls for Zieglers resignation followed the release of Sarasota court records that reveal Ziegler engaged in a consensual three-way sexual encounter with her husband, Christian, and another woman just over a year ago.

That woman is now accusing Zieglers husband, Christian, of rape. Christian Ziegler is head of Floridas Republican party. Despite calls for his own resignation, including calls from the Governor, Christian Ziegler has not resigned from his position with the GOP.

Meantime, his wifes future with the school board appears to also be on shaky ground.

Bridget Ziegler was first appointed to Sarasotas school board in 2014 by then-Governor Rick Scott. Shes been re-elected twice, campaigning on protecting parental rights and conservative values, including keeping critical race theory out of the classroom and sex education focused on biology, not pleasure, according to her campaign website.

Ziegler, who was a co-founder of the conservative group Moms for Liberty, is also credited for helping to lay the groundwork for what critics would later dub Floridas Dont Say Gay law. 

We don't take issue with her choice to engage in the sexual activities that she's engaged in. That's her personal choice. The problem is the hypocrisy, the blatant hypocrisy to call out others and talk about morality and family values while engaging in the activities that she's engaged in, said Lisa Schurr, head of the Sarasota chapter for Support our Schools, a liberal advocacy group.

But the latest calls for Zieglers resignation from the school board arent coming from just the left.

Sarasota County school board chair, Karen Rose, a conservative ally, sent us the following statement

On Tuesday, the school will vote on a resolution to formally ask Ziegler to resign from her position. As of Monday afternoon, Ziegler has not responded to multiple requests for comment.

No formal charges have been filed against Christian Ziegler.

In the quiet beachside city of Venice on Floridas west coast, a new freedom-based healthcare clinic is already making waves.

I don't understand why people are so judgmental towards us, said clinic co-owner Tanya Parus.

At the office, medical freedom is not just words on mobile billboard parked outside, its a guiding principle inside explained Parus, who opened the We the People Health and Wellness Center back in September. 

When Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone asked what medical freedom means, Parus responded, The freedom to make your own healthcare decisions without being pushed or forced to do anything that you don't want to do.

Parus, a mom of two and former EMT, said she was inspired to open the primary care clinic after what she witnessed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

People were not going to see their doctor because they were scared, she said. They didn't want to get vaccinated and felt pressured to do things that they didn't want to do.

Parus, local chapter president of the conservative group Moms for America, is also part of a right-wing movement in Sarasota County that took off during the pandemic amid lockdowns and mask mandates. At one point, she helped hundreds of parents get signed waivers exempting their kids from having to wear masks to school.

We had over 3000 people in line. It was insane, she recalled about the anti-mask event.

Today, some of the same doctors and nurses who signed those mask exemption forms work at her clinic, and she said many of the families they helped are among their estimated 400 patients.

Throughout the clinic, images of the American flag hang alongside pictures depicting freedom, liberty, and the constitution that inspired its name. In the clinics main hallway, a banner replicating the Constitution highlights the name of the clinic. 

Theres no political motivation, Parus insists about the banner. This is not political, okay. To us, this means freedom, she said.

Its a crusade, she knows, draws public criticism and, she admits, distrust in mainstream media.

During our recent visit, a photographer suddenly started filming us and wouldnt stop even after one of the doctors asked everyone to stop rolling.

At a time when freedom has become a popular catchphrase for conservative politics in Florida, Parus believes her clinic offers patients an alternative to government-controlled healthcare and what she calls government overreach.

The clinic doesnt accept insurance. Instead, patients pay a monthly subscription rate that ranges from $50 for kids to $165 for adults over 65.

Ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine, malaria drugs touted by the right but not approved by the FDA to treat COVID-19, are welcomed and prescribed at the clinic, while medically proven vaccinations of any kind arent even an option.

So, no flu shots, asked Investigative Reporter LaGrone? 

No, ma'am, said Parus.

What about child vaccines, asked LaGrone.

We don't do any vaccines, explained Parus who said patients are given informed consent about the clinics policies and practices. [Parus also said they will refer patients to the local health department for vaccines if the patient asks.]

I spent my entire career as a promoter of traditional childhood vaccines, said Dr. Renata Moon, the clinics pediatrician. Moons controversial views on the COVID-19 vaccine left her questioned, investigated, and even discredited by a previous employer.

We're being silenced and threatened, she told us.

Before working at the clinic, Moon was a licensed doctor in Washington State and a professor at Washington State University.

But after publicly questioning the COVID vaccine during a roundtable in DC last year that was hosted by COVID-19 critic U.S. Senator Ron Johnson, Washington State University didnt renew her contract. In a letter from the colleges interim dean, Moon was called out for contributing to the possible spread of misinformation.

Today, Moon remains under investigation by the Washington Medical Commission.

I would say the world changed. I don't think I changed, she said about her views which are now critical of all vaccines.

These drug companies, they don't create cures. They create customers, said Dr. Michelle Scott, who treats adults at the clinic. Scott said she was recruited after getting fired from an urgent care center for refusing to wear a mask during the pandemic.

I was ready to leave anyways. I didnt like the job, she said about her termination.

Scott is a proud anti-vaxxer whose personal website is riddled with government criticism and unproven or unapproved treatments for COVID-19. 

Patients we spoke with buy into the clinics more natural approach, less government approach.

I wont ever take a vaccine again, said the clinics oldest patient, Richard, who is 86 years old. You cant tell me God wants me to change what he created."

Im not saying that all the doctors out there are bad, but I think the insurance companies greatly influence what they have to do, said Steve Martin Smith, who joined the clinic with his wife after not going to a doctor for 20 years.

But Dr. Steven Rosenberg, a Florida dermatologist who leads a state panel that determines if a doctor should be disciplined, has concerns.

When asked if the clinic is doing anything wrong, Rosenberg responded, I guess it depends on how you define wrong, he said. By law, what they're doing is legal. Whether it is consistent with the standard of care is another question.

There's always somebody who's going to try to take advantage of those individuals who may not be sophisticated enough to really appreciate what is the appropriate treatments, Rosenberg added.

You believe that this is a group that's taking advantage of people as opposed to offering them something different, asked reporter LaGrone.

Well, they found a little niche for themselves of people who believe in this, and they're taking advantage financially, said Rosenberg.

When asked what Parus would tell people who see her and her clinic as a group of conservative political activists offering quackery to patients, Parus responded, I don't know about quackery. Just because you have a difference of opinion doesn't mean that you're not right in your own way. We have our own thing. Come take a visit, take a tour."

What happened to Floridas newly created teen health survey? Thats a question weve been asking for months.

This summer, Floridas Department of Education (FDOE) was scheduled to release results from its new voluntary teen survey after it was distributed to students earlier this year.

But those results never came.

Four months later, stillnothing.

Why are the results of this newly created Florida survey so important, Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone recently asked Dr. Lawrence Friedman with the University of Miami Health System. To see exactly what our Florida youth are experiencing."

Dr. Friedman specializes in adolescent medicine. For years, he relied on the CDCs voluntary youth risk behavior survey to spot trends, compare Florida teen behavior to youth across the country, and determine how to treat young patients at a higher risk of engaging in risky behavior.

But last year, Florida announced it would no longer participate in the federal study known as the Youth Risk Behavior Study or YRBS. At the time, Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz called the federal study inflammatory and sexualized.

The YRBS is a voluntary questionnaire that has long been used by states to measure potentially dangerous behavior among teens in the U.S. Questions focus on a range of topics, from drug use and sexual behavior to violence, exercise, and nutrition.

After rejecting the federal study, Diaz announced Florida would create its own youth survey.

This summer, we obtained a copy through a public records request. We found Floridas teen survey focused more on the states new resiliency standards than risky teen behavior like sex, drugs, and violence.

I have been wanting to see the results of this survey and what we can glean from it because I was concerned, explained Caitlyn Clibbon, Director of Community and Healthcare Services for Disability Rights Florida.

Clibbon was a member of the states workgroup that helped create the states new survey. In previous interviews, she told us how she raised several concerns about the new survey and how it focused too much on resiliency and character traits rather than actual teen behavior.

Despite her concerns, the state which contracted with the University of South Florida to create the survey, moved forward. This spring, the survey was distributed to select high schools. Its unclear which high schools received the voluntary survey since the FDOE refused to release that information to us, citing the information was exempt from public disclosure due to trade secrets.

To date, Clibbon hasnt heard a thing about how students responded to the survey.

It's radio silence. Maybe the results on the resiliency standards are not as desirable as they (FDOE) would have liked, she theorized when asked if there would be any reason the state would want to delay publishing the results.

A spokesperson from FDOE sent us an email back in September stating they were working with the University of South Florida to compile and review survey results.

Despite multiple requests, they havent responded to us since.

Without results, youth advocates in Florida are left to wonder what Floridas new teen survey shows about teen behavior and resiliency and why the state has yet to make it all public.

I would love to be proved wrong and see that this is a great survey, providing very good information. But right now, it's providing us no information, said Clibbon.

Yes, Im a victim of revenge porn

Madison Conradis wants you to know what shes been through.

Yes, I'm a victim of revenge porn but I hate that term, she told us recently. You hear revenge porn, and you automatically think disgruntled ex-boyfriend. That's not always the case. That wasn't the case with me, she said.

Instead, it was a casual friend from college who she never had an intimate relationship with but left her personally exposed and publicly humiliated.

I found out by waking up one morning to just floods of messages. Hey, just so you know, there's photos of you everywhere, she recalled.

For Madison, the images stemmed from a professional photo shoot she was a part of in 2011 for a modeling portfolio.

Sexy, she described, but not pornographic. Then the photographers account got hacked and several of Madisons images got stolen.

By 2015, photos Madison never intended for the public to see were being posted and shared online hundreds, even thousands of times, she explained.

They would send photos to my boss, my parents, my friends, my sister. Literally, anyone you could think of just try to harass you and make your life miserable.

 The law

Florida, like most states in the U.S., has made revenge porn a crime.

Known formally as sexual cyber harassment, the Florida law was passed in 2015 and makes it illegal to electronically distribute sexually explicit images of a person without his or her consent.

Last year, after Florida Senator Lauren Book became a victim herself, the legislature unanimously voted to strengthen Floridas law by doubling fines and adding penalties for stealing or manipulating images.

But across the state, weve discovered, Floridas revenge porn law rarely results in criminal prosecutions.

Few cases end up in Florida courts

Using state court data, we obtained through a public information request; the data shows since 2017 less than 800 people have been criminally charged with violating Floridas sexual cyberharassment law in Florida.

Thats about 8 people per month statewide, with some of the states most populous counties logging some the fewest cases.

In Hillsborough County, about 80 cases involving Floridas revenge porn law have been filed. In Palm Beach, just 31. And Broward, just nine cases have been filed since the law took effect 8 years ago.

Understanding why revenge porn cases dont show up in court

Sadly, in a lot of these cases, people don't know that there's even a law in place to protect them, explained Stephanie Myron, a West Palm Beach attorney who specializes in cyber sexual harassment and stalking.

Revenge porn, she explained, is prevalent.

I get calls almost daily from all over the state and all over the country, she said.

But Myron is not surprised the number of criminal cases citing the law is low.

Most of her clients just want the images taken down, something a civil injunction can accomplish without the costly, time-consuming and often emotionally draining criminal pursuit.

They don't want to have to testify again, they don't want to have to drag this out. They don't want to have to be deposed or talk about this or face it, she said.

Jurisdictional challenges also stall criminal cases says attorney and victim advocate Elisa DAmico. DAmico helped get Floridas law passed and currently sits on the advisory board for the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative.

The group offers free legal services to victims of revenge porn.

Many times, Ive had someone come and say I talked to this law enforcement department, but I live here, and they said I have to go where that the perpetrator lives. Then I went there, and they said, but you don't live here. So, it's like pinball and the victim is the pinball, DAmico explained.

While efforts to create a uniform federal law are in the works, Myron and DAmico believe educating local law enforcement about the states existing law is still needed.

Building the case herself

For Madison Conradis, it took several visits to her local police just to get a report filed.

I think that a lot of the people that work in law enforcement don't necessarily know all the laws, she said when asked about the challenges she faced.

Madison ended up building the case herself. With help from her twin sister whos a Florida attorney, the sisters managed to unmask Madisons online stalker and discovered he had done the same thing to five other victims, including a then 14-year-old girl.

I think we both knew that we could make a change, she said.

Madisons case eventually got the attention of the FBI.

Victory after being victimized

In 2021, six years after Madisons pictures first surfaced online without her knowledge or consent, Christopher Buonocore, an acquaintance from college, was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for cyberstalking and sextortion. https://www.justice.gov/usao-mdfl/pr/new-york-man-sentenced-15-years-federal-prison-cyberstalking-and-sextortion

It doesn't seem real sometimes, Madison explained. But it feels good to be where we're at now. Were on the side of healing. We've put the person in jail, and we're advocating now, she said.

Starting with educating victims and police about a law thats been on the books in Florida for years but is rarely showing up in court.

In response to our findings, Florida Senator Lauren Books office sent us the following statement:

At Millennium Academy on Floridas west coast, students have found a haven, their parents say, public schools just couldnt provide.

My 6-year-old has autism, and this school has accepted him with open arms. They understand his tics and he just feels safe here, said Ashley Gregg who has two kids going to the school.

Both of mine have blossomed into something I knew they could be but they didnt know they could be, explained Jessica Williams.

But now the small private school, which families have affectionately dubbed the island of misfits, is sinking.

I don't have a backup plan. Ive drained my 401k, said owner Lori Ekblad, who fears the school may not survive the hiccups of the states new voucher system.

We've maxed all of our credit cards out and our savings account is gone, she said.

Ekblad said 99% of the schools 100 students depend on state voucher money to help cover tuition.

But three months into the new school year, Ekblad said just 10 of her students have received state money, which means the schools finances are underwater by at least $100,000.

We're getting desperate, she said.

Its a position impacting other small private schools and families in Florida as the states newly expanded school voucher system struggles to keep up with unprecedented demand. We first reported on the issues back in September.

Some 300,000 students are now enrolled in the program.

Amie Henry works for a small school for students with unique abilities in Lake City. She said, that despite providing all the necessary paperwork and information, they havent received a dime from the state since school started.

As a result, the two-year-old school is now facing closure.

Weve been in freak-out mode, Henry said. This is just an indictment on the organization of Step Up for not being able to give us funding in order to stay afloat. It's the students who ultimately suffer, she said.

Step Up for Students is the contractor hired by the state to manage and distribute the states voucher money.

According to a spokesperson from Step Up, just over 95% of school invoices from the first installment of money have been paid. The second installments just started.

But the spokesperson acknowledged some families and schools have had issues with payments, adding, We take these concerns very seriously and are working overtime to try and resolve every issue.

But for those still waiting, time is running out.

This week, Millennium Academy sent home a letter explaining to parents the dire financial situation the school was facing. The letter encouraged parents to contact their lawmakers for help.

What owner Lori Ekblad didnt expect, was the response she received from students.

I had one student that came in and brought me his savings and another student gave me $12 that they had earned doing something. I know, Im trying to hold the tears back, she said.

Ekblad, her staff, and parents are now working on the next steps to figure out how to keep their little island from going under while they wait for the state to deliver on the promises theyve made.

We're looking at trying to protest because these kids need this place. We're not going to go down without a fight, said parent Ashely Gregg.

During the special session in Tallahassee next week, lawmakers will be discussing the states school voucher program and how to expand the program to include more students with unique abilities.

After years of quietly crushing Florida families struck by tragedy, A 33-year-old state law that prevents some families from suing a doctor or a hospital responsible for the death of an unmarried adult loved one is getting new scrutiny this session by lawmakers.

Last month, we exposed why critics have long fought to end what they describe as Floridas free kill law. The law prohibits any family member from suing if an unmarried parent or adult child dies as a result of medical negligence in Florida.

But a new bill filed in the Senate on Friday to end the law for some families, is not only the third bill filed on the topic this fall, but it could be the most significant.

Thats because HB 248 was filed by Republican Senator Clay Yarborough of Jacksonville. Yarborough also chairs the Judiciary Committee, a powerful position in the state legislature because, as chair, he can decide what bills are heard in his committee. Previous efforts to repeal this law have failed because the bill was never heard in the Senate.

Yarboroughs bill calls to lift current restrictions on some families to sue, but only if state governing boards have already found a doctor or hospital at fault in a medical negligence case.

This is just a start. This is just the beginning, said Sabrina Davis, whose 62-year-old father died three years ago in a Hillsborough County hospital after a doctor failed to diagnose and treat a blood clot in his leg.

If HB 248 is approved this session, the bill could open the door to her seeking justice over her fathers death.

While the states medical board found her fathers doctor at fault and even slapped him with a $7500 fine, because of the states law, Sabrina hasnt been allowed to take the case to court.

I have always said is a $7,500 fine was not enough for the doctor that did this to my father. With this bill, a $7,500 fine would not have been all he got, she said.

But other families impacted by the states so-called free kill law say this new bill does nothing but leave them shocked and angry.

The larger intent of this bill is to make sure that it looks like they're doing something to take action to help. But the larger intent is the same thing, to protect the medical and insurance industry, said. Cindy Jenkins.

Jenkins daughter, Taylor, was just 25 and engaged to be married when she died earlier this year at an Osceola County hospital after being rear-ended at a red light-

Doctors said Taylor died of a brain injury, but an independent autopsy found it was untreated internal bleeding that killed the young flight attendant.

The findings were enough to convince the countys medical examiner to change Taylors official cause of death on her death certificate, but to date, the states hospital association (AHCA) and Floridas Medical Board have yet to find probable cause of any wrongdoing over Taylors death.

State health department data shows probable cause is rarely found in complaints to the stat

According to annual reports from Floridas Medical Quality Assurance Division, over the last three fiscal years, probable cause against a Florida medical doctor was only found in just about a quarter of cases.

Passing legislation that does nothing other than protect the health insurance companies and in the rare instance that AHCA or the FL Department of Health makes a guilty ruling giving a family the capacity to file a complaint, this is a step in the wrong direction, Jenkins said.

New College of Florida may be the smallest college in the states public university system, but its newly minted president is on tap to become one of its highest-paid.

Earlier this year, Richard Corcorans campus paycheck had already earned him big money headlines when the schools board of trustees voted to pay the former Republican lawmaker and Florida Education Commissioner an annual salary of nearly $700,000, more than double his predecessors.

And that was just as temporary president with no higher ed leadership experience.

Now, contract documents just released Thursday morning show the close friend and political ally of Governor Ron Desantis is expected to earn an even higher presidential compensation package.

According to meeting material posted online Thursday morning, Corcorans contract is expected to exceed well over $1 million per year. The pricey comps package makes him one of the highest-paid Florida public college presidents, despite leading the states smallest campus.

Among highlights from Corcorans new contract include details that remain the same as his interim presidential package:

But, according to his proposed new contract, Corcoran will also get $18,000 in moving expenses and be eligible for several lucrative bonuses, including bonuses for increasing student enrollment to 1200 within five years and an annual performance bonus that could earn him up to $200,000 additional dollars each year.

A recent financial analysis commissioned by the schools Board of Trustees to determine a suitable presidential compensation package showed most Florida university presidents earned less than $200,000 in bonus cash last year. FSUs President was reported to have received a $50,000 bonus bump at a campus with nearly 50,000 more students than New College.

Corcorans new contract, if approved, also gives him retention bonuses at the three and five-year mark, which could amount to another $200,000 each.

This is totally out of whack, said George Mason University research professor James Finklestein, who has studied public university president salaries for years.

Finkelstein estimates Corcorans new contract has a cash value of up to $6.5 million over five years and $7.5 million dollars with fringe benefits, giving him the potential to be just the second-highest-paid college president in Florida. Ben Sasse is currently the highest-paid Florida university president, with an annual base salary of just under $1.5 million.

But records show Corcorans million-dollar-plus contract isnt a golden parachute that just fell out of campus skies.

Using the financial study commissioned by the board, trustees had voted for a total presidential compensation range to be between $890,000 to just over $1.5 million, which this new contract falls in line with.

But Finkelstein takes issues with how that Mercer study was done.

It is a poorly done study, he said because instead of comparing the compensations of presidents at similarly sized public colleges, Mercer focused largely on private schools, including Hillsdale College, the private conservative Christian college Governor DeSantis has said he sees as a model for New College.

If you want to do this job right, you would have gotten the contracts of the actual contracts for the public universities and analyze those, Finkelstein said.

Mercer wouldnt comment on its study.

But in an August interview, while he was interim president, Corcoran was unapologetic about his high dollar, higher ed gig.

You didnt have to accept it, Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone said to Corcoran about his then-interim salary.

I absolutely would accept it, and so would you, Corcoran replied.

Most of Corcorans compensation comes from New Colleges foundation. After his interim salary was approved, some members of the college raised concerns if the foundation could even afford the salary.

Since Corcoran took over in February as part of DeSantis so-called war on woke in higher ed, nearly 40% of New College faculty have left, and student drop-out rates spiked.

But the liberal arts college has expanded its athletic program, secured millions in state funding, and enrolled a record number of new students, most of them athletes.

Its success his supporters point to while critics question its price to a small campus.

He's not a national political figure with a substantial record of real, national leadership. He has been a local politician in Florida, who's being rewarded, it seems to me at least, for having been loyal to the Governor, said Finkelstein.

The full contract can be viewed below.

Richard Corcoran New Colleg... by ABC Action News

Tucked inside a church on Floridas west coast, a handful of kindergarteners begin their day reading and singing in Spanish, with two teachers leading the way.

For founder Linda Rozo, this kind of microlearning is all by design.

The inspiration was definitely my goddaughter, Rozo said. I knew that as she got older, what was out there with just traditional way of education, I just wasnt content with what that looked like, and neither was her mom, Rozo explained during a recent visit.

So Rozo, who has a masters degree in education, opened a preschool. With her goddaughter starting kindergarten this year, she decided to expand by opening her first micro-school.

Part of the growing movement of non-traditional schools, micro-schools are often characterized by student-led learning, small class sizes, and almost no testing or homework.

For us, it's connection. Our kids are needing more connection than what they're receiving in these traditional settings with one teacher to 20 or 30 kids, Rozo said.

They are free of stress and pressure. There's no pressure to perform here, Heather Howell told us about her microschool also on Floridas west coast. Howells school was born out of the pandemic in her garage.

I went into this as a passion project, something that brings me joy, she said.

Today, she also rents space at a local church, has three teachers on staff, and has 15 students enrolled, ranging from four to 11 years old.

I think that a lot of us are realizing what's more important is to have that village again and to educate our children in a way that we see fit, said Howell.

Its unknown exactly how many micro-schools are operating in Florida.

There are a lot. Theyre kind of hidden, just like homeschooling is hidden. That's why I started putting the list together, said Candace Lehenbauer. She opened her own micro-school in Boca Raton after homeschooling her six kids.

Lehenbauer recently founded Microschool Florida, a group dedicated to connecting families seeking non-traditional education options.

Today, her list of Florida micro-schools has topped 200 and counting.

Lehenbauer explains why she thinks the concept is becoming more popular among parents in Florida.

You have a lot more say. When we have a new parent that comes in, and they've been in public school this whole time, suddenly, they're getting emails, pictures, and texts stating here's how your child's doing. They're getting a lot more feedback, and they're a part of the journey, Lehenbauer said.

In a state where the fight over parents rights has inspired culture wars, political campaigns, and several new state laws, its no surprise that micro-schools appear to be having a macro impact on the Sunshine State.

And that impact is only expected to grow as the state offers its blessing over micro-schools and the money to back them.

This year, micro-schools became eligible to receive public dollars under Floridas universal school voucher program. The expansion means parents who send their kids to these tiny schools can now get thousands of taxpayer funds to help pay for it.

Tuition at micro-schools can range.

Heather Howell charges just under $ 1,000 a month for her school. She told us most of her students are now on state vouchers.

Its wonderful, now there's no barriers to entry for most families in our county, she said.

Linda Rozos school costs about $1500 per month.

Its a wonderful thing, Rozo said about being able to accept vouchers. Her own goddaughter is among her small class on students who attend on a state voucher. This wouldn't have been an option for my goddaughter had we not received the vouchers for her, she said.

But critics caution while the idea of smaller classes appeals to most parents, the reality of publicly funded schools that often self-govern and answer to no one could be risky.

I just think that we have to have more checks and balances, said Damaris Allen, Executive Director of the advocacy group Families for Strong Public Schools.

We have tons of regulations when it comes to our public schools to ensure our kids are receiving a quality education. Our teachers are certified, they have an education, none of those things are required in our private schools or micro-schools, she said.

I could not go back into a traditional setting, Shayla Hightower told us recently. Hightower left her job as a teacher at a traditional school to work at Rozos micro-school.

Hightower is not certified but has a childhood development associate (CDA) credential and told us working at Rozos school saved her from leaving the profession altogether.

Every problem I saw walking into a classroom as an educator, feeling burnt out, feeling exhausted, and feeling like there were too many kids and not enough time to give them what they need, Linda is trying to fix. She's healing education by healing the educators, she said.

Linawa Shaffer is a parent whose children just started going to a micro-school after being homeschooled.

They love it there, she said. Shafter believes these tiny schools are providing what, she thinks, public schools simply cant and will never be able to

I think there's a frustration that the parents are not getting what they instinctively know what the child needs and the school system is not responding, she said.

Before a less than packed board room, New College of Florida's Board of Trustees selected a familiar face to lead the college permanently.

In a 10-2 vote. the board chose interim President Richard Corcoran to be the school's permanent president. The move means Corcoran can start negotiating for a presidential contract and annual compensation package that could surpass $1 million.

Corcoran is expected to continue what he began in February when the schools board chose him to temporarily lead New College through a controversial state overhaul.

That transition was prompted by what Gov. Ron DeSantis described as a war on woke in higher education.

But on a campus mired in recent clashes, Corcorans selection didnt come without strife.

"This was expected, we knew it was a farce," said Shanon Ingls, an alumnus of the school who didnt want Corcoran to be the schools full-time replacement.

Hours before the boards vote, a few dozen students gathered on campus to protest the colleges ongoing culture shift and Corcoran being selected for the permanent position. Corcoran was one of three finalists vying for to be president of the small liberal arts college along the Sarasota Bay.

One student we spoke with painted Corcoran's face on a walking mat to show her disapproval of him.

"Hes walking all over us so were going to walk back. This is a way we can show that disrespect he's put towards our community," fourth-year student Emma Curtis said.

One month before Corcoran was first selected as interim, DeSantis appointed six new conservative members to the schools Board of Trustees as part of a culture shift at a school that had widely embraced progressive thought and the LGBTQ community.

Since then, change at New College has been swift and, critics say, politically motivated.

The former president of the school was fired, the colleges diversity office was eliminated, gender neutral bathroom signs were taken down and, this summer, the new board voted to start dissolving the schools gender studies program.

On Tuesday, during the public comment section of the board meeting, less than a dozen members of the public, mostly students or alumni, made their case over why Corcoran should not be selected. Many of them cited trust issues with Corcoran and what they described as a clear political agenda as reasons.

But most of the boards 12 trustees praised his leadership at the school during a "chaotic and turbulent time."They also cited his political connections as helping the school move forward.

Corcoran is a GOP heavyweight, a former lawmaker and speaker of the Florida House. Hes also a close friend and ally of DeSantis, and served as state education commissioner during the governors first term.

Corcoran was not in the boardroom during the final vote and, according to a New College spokesperson, was not available for comment after the vote.

"He has demonstrated the unique kind of character that we need. The problem at New College, which is really the problem at so many of our universities is that there is an ethos of, 'go along to get along,' not rocking the boat, not disturbing the status quo, and conforming to any of the ideological pressures from within and also from without," said board member Christopher Rufo, who has made headlines for sparring online with critics of the states New College transition.

In the end, it was Corcorans political history and connections that seemed to matter most to a board focused on carrying out the Governors vision by continuing to move New College in a whole new direction.

Just two months after he was hired as part of the states controversial overhaul at New College of Florida, the schools communications chief says he was fired.

Ryan Terry recently spoke only to Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone about why he thinks the public has reason to worry about the schools future.

I am probably the shortest-run vice president at a state university, Ryan Terry told Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone on Monday.

Just two months after he was hired to take over communications for New College of Florida, Terry said he was terminated Monday morning after he got a call from the schools legal and human resources staff.

It really came as a huge surprise, he said.

Terry, who said he was recruited to the schools executive team after a successful run with the communication unit at the Department of Health in Hillsborough County, said hes not sure why he was terminated but described a recent conversation he had with New Colleges Interim President Richard Corcoran.

I was told I was not hired to be concerned with school morale, and I was told I was not hired to set the strategy for the school. I was hired to go toe to toe with the media, and I was hired to, quote, call them out for their lies, he told LaGrone.

Terrys sudden departure is just the latest breakup at a campus that has become widely known for its controversial splits and rebuilds.

In January, Governor Ron DeSantis appointed six new conservative members to the schools Board of Trustees.

Since then, the board fired its previous president, eliminated the schools diversity office, and started abolishing its gender studies program, and dozens of professors have left following what critics have described as a hostile state over to transform the publicly funded college into a politically motivated conservative think tank.

In addition, changes at the small liberal arts school have resulted in protests and, this summer, inspired a lawsuit by some former faculty and students accusing the state and school leadership of censoring free speech on campus.

Interim President Corcoran, a former Republican speaker of the house and strong political ally of Governor DeSantis, recently sat down with us and denied claims the schools direction is conservatively driven or politically motivated.

There is no college that will be more free speech, he told us last month, adding that the liberal arts college will be dead center politically.

Terry said that sentiment is not what he witnessed while working on the inside.

The experience at the school says something entirely different. It really is an attack on academic freedom and attack on higher education, he said. It feels like if you don't believe what the administration believes wholeheartedly and the administration's vision, if you differ in any way, then you're not welcome, he said.

When asked how he would respond to critics who might view him as a disgruntled former employee, Terry responded, I was hired because I was seen as an expert in my field, he said.

Terrys ousting came as a surprise to some faculty leaders on campus.

This is stunning news to me, said Dr. Amy Reid, New Colleges only faculty member currently serving on the schools Board of Trustees. Reid has also been an outspoken critic of the states takeover.

It is not good news for the administration that they have needed to fire their own communications director after such a short amount of time, she said. It will be interesting to see how they spin this, Reid added.

After contacting the school Monday morning, a member of New Colleges communications staff emailed LaGrone just before 5 p.m. Monday, confirming that Terry was no longer an employee but that they cannot discuss personnel matters.

As for the future of New College, Terry has a warning.

I think the future is very shaky, he said. I get very scared when anybody wants to exert that much control over a public institution, he said.

On Tuesday, New Colleges Board of Trustees will be selecting the schools permanent president. Richard Corcoran is on the shortlist and widely seen as a frontrunner.

Rebuilding from the rubble, one year later. That is what you will find on Sanibel Island today, one year after Hurricane Ian decimated portions of the world-renowned destination on Floridas west coast.

The storm reduced many of the homes, businesses and resorts on the island down to fragments of brick, branches, wood and memories.

Homeowner Jim Canner shared how hes still waiting for insurance to help him fix multiple leaks in his home.

Its tough. Its tough with insurance companies, we dont get dispositions. Were getting the run-around, same with contractors, he told us recently.

Homeowner Heather Pak, who owns a plumbing business with her husband, is also dealing with insurance and contractor delays.

Whats been your biggest frustration, asked Reporter Katie LaGrone.

The insurance companies and just trying to find someone who will do the work, Pak said. Were in the business too, were swamped, she said.

Recently, reporter Katie LaGrone and Photojournalist Matthew Apthorp went back to the island for the first time since they visited with a homeowner returning to her home for the first time after the hurricane one year ago.

LaGrone and Apthorp spoke with homeowners, business owners, tourists and the islands Chamber of Commerce who describes some of the biggest challenges moving forward as the island continues to rebuild from the devastation.

Watch LaGrone and Apthorps raw, real, firsthand view of the pain that remains and the progress thats slowly offering people there...hope.

Mary Jo Walsh leads the Mountaineers School of Autism in West Palm Beach. But last week, Walsh found herself leading the charge to get the state to pay the school voucher money her small campus depends on to keep the lights on and the doors open.

Walsh and dozens of other owners of private schools for students with special needs recently told us how the contractor hired by Floridas Department of Education to distribute the states record-breaking school voucher funding had yet to disperse any of the voucher cash.

Step Up for Schools is the contractor hired to distribute the majority of the estimated $4 billion in state voucher money.

After sharing their story with us, Walsh said Monday morning that she and other private school owners woke up with some of that state money deposited into their accounts.

All of the schools should be receiving their full amount of the first quarter disbursement by September 29

and I attribute that to the positive dialogue that we had and the hard work that Step Up for Kids is doing to rectify the situation. We're very happy about that, Walsh said Monday, singing a much happier tune than last week.

Walsh and several other providers met with the leadership at Step Up for Kids late Friday afternoon to explain how the lack of funding deposited into their accounts on time was causing several financial hardships.

Providers depend on that money to cover operating costs, including rent and payroll. The money was supposed to be deposited at the beginning of the month. However, since that hadnt happened, several owners had to dip into their personal savings accounts or get high-interest loans to cover those costs until the state money kicks in.

Walsh said leaders from Step Up explained several reasons for the delays, including technology issues, paperwork problems, and record enrollment.

Florida recently expanded its school voucher program to allow any student in Florida, regardless of income, to apply for these vouchers. The vouchers help pay for private school tuition.

So far this year, more than 400,000 scholarships have been awarded through the program, making Floridas voucher program the largest nationwide.

Maranda Cobble is desperate and afraid.

As a parent, Im so scared that my son is going to lose this; I don't have anywhere else to turn, she told us recently.

Her 16-year-old son, Mason, has special needs and was kicked out of a public school.

But for the past year, Miranda said, Mason has been thriving at Voyager Academy, a small private school in Brevard County.

He's done a whole 180. Hes able to go to school; he's able to function socially. He cries when he can't go to school, she told us.

But the state funding Mason was approved for through Floridas school choice empowerment scholarship program, also known as the states school voucher program, has yet to be deposited into her sons account.

As a result, her sons school hasnt been paid.

We are down to our last $1.43 in our bank account, said Voyager Academy owner Carrie Owens.

While the first installments should have been deposited at the beginning of the month, Owens said that none of her students state voucher funds has kicked in.

The financial ripple effect on her and her small school has already been crippling.

We rely on that money to pay rent. So, our rent is late now. Im trying to keep it together and not get teared up, but I can't pay my employees. Friday will be our second payroll that I can't pay them, she said.

Owens and her school arent alone.

Weve learned that Floridas school voucher no show problem impacts private schools and parents statewide.

A total complete mess is how Maria Preston described the situation. She owns the Diverse Abilities school for kids with special needs in Fort Lauderdale and recently had to stop offering therapies to her 40 students.

Ive pulled personally almost $70,000 out of my own pocket just to pay up until now hoping that okay, the money's coming, the money's coming. But as of yesterday, when I called Step Up, they told us, nope, ten more days, and you may not even get it until November, she said.

During a Zoom meeting Wednesday evening, nearly 100 owners of private schools for students with disabilities shared the same stories and lack of answers theyve received from Floridas Department of Education (FDOE) or Step Up for Students. Step Up is the contractor hired to distribute most of the states school voucher money.

More than 400,000 Florida students have been awarded scholarships through the $4 billion program, which assists any K-12 student to attend a private school.

Floridas newly expanded school voucher program is now the largest nationwide.

We need to know where the money is and when are we going to get it, Mary Jo Walsh, owner of Mountaineers School of Autism in West Palm Beach, said during a Zoom meeting she organized earlier this week. Walsh also created a new private school coalition after getting inundated with calls and emails when she spoke out about the issues recently.

A spokesperson for Step Up refused to answer our questions, directing us to the state instead.

Floridas education department also didnt offer much explanation.

With this tremendous growth, it remains important that the Department of Education, as well as Step Up for Students, conducts its due diligence and exercise the proper controls to ensure that taxpayer funds are expended both expeditiously and appropriately, FDOE spokesperson Cailey Myers stated in an email.

If the school has to close because they don't get their funding, my son has nowhere else to go, said Maranda Cobble, who, on Friday afternoon, finally received an email from the FDOE indicating that the department was working to streamline the process, so schools get funding sooner.

Its not just affecting my babies, it's affecting all the kids here in Florida, and that's not fair, thats not fair at all, said Voyager Academy owner Carrie Owens.

Our veterans have a wealth of knowledge they can bring to bear in the classroom, and with this innovative approach, they will be able to do so, said Governor Ron DeSantis from his office a little over a year ago.

DeSantis was touting the states innovative new program to hire more teachers in Florida by looking to military veterans to fill vacancies.

For too long, the requirements to become a teacher have been too rigid with union bosses insisting that all educators have certain credentials that often have little impact on performance, he said at the time.

But 13 months after Floridas Department of Education (FDOE) amended its teaching requirements to give military vets an easier pathway to become certified teachers, state numbers show veteran participation is, well, less than five stars.

In fact, nearly two months after we requested the latest data on the states new Military Veterans Certification Pathway program, FDOE finally provided some numbers.

According to the FDOE, 31 veterans are currently teaching in Florida through this new state initiative, with active teachers in 22 of Floridas 67 school districts.

Everyone needs an opportunity, and everyone needs a door open, said Kristopher Butler, among the states 31 veterans teaching through the program. Butler is a former marine and is now teaching in Broward County. Hes one of two military veterans in the states second-largest school district to be teaching through this state program.

Most of the other school districts with veterans teaching through the program are small to mid-size school districts. Brevard County and Lake County schools each have three active teachers through the program, the most in any single school district.

It seems like there was a lot of fanfare around this program being a huge solution to a problem. Clearly, that's not the case, said Andrew Spar, head of the Florida Education Association (FEA), the states largest teachers union. For years, the FEA has called on state politicians to pump more money into public schools and teacher pay.

Despite a boost to teacher pay last year, Florida still ranks among states that spend the least on public education, including teacher salaries, according to Education Data Initiative.

What we don't want is temporary band-aids and temporary solutions. We need a long-term solution, Spar said.

At the beginning of this school year, the FEA issued a press release stating the number of teacher vacancies in Florida had reached nearly 7,000, the worst in state history.

The FDOE later came out with its own press release disputing those numbers by stating the number of teacher vacancies at the beginning of this year was 4,776. Regardless of who you believe, teacher vacancies remain a statewide problem.

While the number of military veterans taking advantage of Floridas new program seems far from stellar, state numbers show just over 705 people have applied to teach through the new pathway program with 49 statements of status eligibility issued, according to the FDOE. It remains clear how many military veterans who became teachers through the program left and why. In response to questions about the low participation rate, a spokesperson from the FDOE explained the military veteran teacher certification pathway program is one of 13 routes available for educator certification in Florida.

For Butler, the program is helping him fast-track his career goals.

Regardless of this, I would have become a teacher. This just allowed me to do that a year sooner than I was going to, he said.

But the numbers show its not for most military veterans in Florida, and some education advocates arent the least bit surprised.

I really appreciate the sacrifices that our military members make for our country and for our communities every day. But that doesn't necessarily mean they can just walk right in and be a teacher, said Spar.

New College of Florida Interim President Richard Corcoran appeared in defense mode Friday afternoon while speaking to the Tampa Tiger Bay Club, a nonpartisan political club.

Ive never said we want to be the St. Johns of the south or Hillsdale of the south, he told the crowd of about 130 during a luncheon.

Corcoran was responding to a question regarding comments Governor Ron DeSantis has previously made about modeling New College after Hillsdale College, a small conservative Christian college in Michigan.

During the hour-long luncheon that included mostly Q&A from members, Corcoran was peppered with questions that focused almost entirely on the states controversial takeover at the small liberal arts college in Sarasota.

Members also asked him about what they described as contradictions Corcoran has made about wanting the college to be a politically dead center institution where free speech thrives versus some of the state's actions to stop free expression and inclusiveness.

Since the state took over the college in January, critics say free speech has been silenced by the states more conservative new direction.

In January, Governor DeSantis appointed six new conservative members to the schools board of trustees. Since then, the publicly funded college has eliminated its diversity office and gender-neutral bathrooms, and the school recently started abolishing its gender studies program per the new boards edict.

Faculty, LGBTQ students, and people of color dont feel welcomed at New College, Kelly Benjamin said to Corcoran. Do you see the contradiction to what youre saying versus what is actually happening on the ground there, he asked Corcoran.

In response, Corcoran said, 100% of what you said is not based on fact.

The exchange heated up momentarily, with several audience members asking Corcoran to answer Benjamins question.

What question? It was about opinions, not based on fact, Corcoran snapped back.

Benjamin said he attended the luncheon as a citizen concerned about Floridas increasingly conservative education policies.

Hes [Corcoran] a complete hypocrite when it comes to this woke indoctrination rhetoric and when it comes to what can be taught in the classroom. Theyre demolishing academic freedom in the state of Florida, he said after the luncheon.

Corcorans visit with the Tiger Club indicated that the former politician and Florida Education Commissioner is becoming more comfortable talking publicly about the states new direction for New College. Hes also on the shortlist of three finalists for the permanent New College President position.

During a recent sit-down interview with Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone, Corcoran answered questions about the states transition and laid out his vision for the college, which includes the recent recruitment of a few hundred student-athletes.

Related Story: New Colleges interim president talks about schools future, defends states controversial takeover

The new student-athletes and the old students are all working together; the culture could not be better, Corcoran told reporters after Friday's luncheon.

While some seemed to support parts of the states new direction at the school, others admit they came skeptical and left that way.

I wanted to see how many lies he would tell, to be honest with you, said Dani Delaney, whose son transferred out of New College this year.

Its a continuation of Richard Corcoran doing political whitewashing that everythings great, everything is fine, and thats just not true, she said.

A daughters grief

Three years after her fathers death, 33-year-old Sabrina Davis is still fighting for his life.

If it keeps somebody else from being in my position, then it's worth it, Davis told Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone recently. I believe that he would want me to keep going and not give up on this because he knew what it was. I knew what it was,

Sabrina is talking about what happened to her father in October 2020. 62-year-old Keith Davis, who was on a blood thinner and had a history of blood clots, went to a Tampa hospital after his knee swelled up to a point he couldnt walk.

A picture Sabrina provided to us before her dad went to the ER shows her dads left leg extremely swollen and red.

But Sabrina said despite their requests to do an ultrasound for blood clots, the doctor refused and instead ordered physical therapy.

They thought my dad needed bed rest. They thought he might have pulled a muscle. It was red and it was swollen. It was so obvious that it was more than a pulled muscle, she explained.

A few days later, on the same day her dad was scheduled to be discharged, Sabrina got the call.

They said your dad is code blue. He has no pulse and he's not breathing. What would you like us to do? I was like, you have the wrong patient. My dad is fine. I just spoke to him. He's being discharged today, she said.

That morning, Sabrinas father died.

An independent autopsy later revealed her father had suffered a blood clot in his left leg that traveled to his heart and ultimately killed him.

I look back and Im like, dad, you knew it. You were sitting there with a clot. We both knew it. We both asked and nobody listened, Sabrina said.

But after making several calls to attorneys, Sabrina was shocked to learn none of them would take on her fathers case.

After eight lawyers told me your dad is single and you're over the age of 25, we can't help you. I started to think, am I explaining myself wrong? Are they not understanding me?

Free kill

Critics call it Floridas free kill law. According to Florida Statute 768.21(8), if someone 25 or older dies due to medical malpractice in Florida, only a spouse or child under the age of 25 can sue for pain and suffering. Florida remains the only state in the U.S. with such a law in place.

Since Sabrinas father was unmarried and she was 30 years old at the time, the state law essentially banned her from seeking justice over her fathers wrongful death.

To be told you cannot pursue, its like a punch to the gut. It's an awful feeling. It's like you have no rights when it comes to your loved one, she said.

Passed in 1990, the law was originally created to attract doctors to Florida by protecting them from getting sued over medical malpractice and rising medical malpractice premiums.

But more than three decades after taking effect in the state, no data suggests the law has worked to accomplish any of those goals.

In fact, since 1990, federal data shows Florida consistently ranks among the top three states for the total number of medical malpractice cases filed and the total dollar amount paid out. In addition, medical malpractice insurance costs for doctors in Florida also continue to be among the highest nationwide.

Its not meant to be overly harsh

Andy Bolin is a trial attorney who represents the healthcare industry. Hes also lobbied on behalf of the Florida Justice Reform Institute to keep Floridas so-called free kill law intact.

Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone asked Bolin recently why the law should stay on the books if it's not accomplishing its intended goals.

Well, I don't think any one individual law, or one individual reform is going to change things, he said.

Bolin continued, Its certainly not meant to send a message or be overly harsh, but it is an example of the way that laws are made and the way they have to look at the impact to a community and society as a whole as opposed to in an individual case.

A mothers nightmare

Those individual cases also include Taylor Jenkins. Taylor was 25 years old, unmarried, with no children when she died earlier this year at an Osceola County hospital after she was rear-ended at a red light.

Doctors initially claimed Taylor died of a brain injury, but an independent autopsy revealed Taylor died of internal bleeding that went undiagnosed and untreated for hours.

Those findings were also confirmed by the countys medical examiner and prompted the office to change Taylors official cause of death.

I feel like Im being told her life didn't matter, her mom, Cindy, said.

She fears the law also strips a critical level of accountability from the healthcare system.

It protects negligent doctors and hospitals instead of holding them accountable in any and every way possible. Because that's happening, it makes our hospitals dangerous for everybody, she said.

The failed fight to end FLs free kill

No, I don't think the law should continue, said Florida Representative Mike Beltran, a Republican lawmaker who represents Hillsborough County where Sabrinas father died.

Beltran has voted in favor of several failed attempts to repeal this law over recent years. This session, he plans to draft legislation to try to end it again. Democratic Senator Lauren Book, who introduced legislation last year to end the law, also plans to introduce a similar bill this year.

It doesn't make sense that this class of people would be precluded from bringing malpractice claims like the rest of us, Beltran said.

But with a Republican-led legislature whose priority has been tort reform, Beltran knows ending Floridas free kill law is unlikely to happen anytime soon,

I'm not particularly optimistic that there's anything this year that's changed other than continued advocacy, Beltran said.

I will never give up

Advocacy is what Sabrina Davis and Cindy Jenkins are currently focused on.

They, along with other families impacted, are working to spread the word and convince lawmakers their loved ones mattered and that how they died shouldnt be protected by a law that isnt solving the problem it was created to.

I will never give up. I want to see this change. I will never stop fighting. It's just too important to me, Sabrina said.

Floridas Board of Medicine eventually disciplined the doctor who treated Sabrinas dad over his death. In the end, the doctor was fined $7,500 for committing medical malpractice that resulted in the death of a patient.

It took six months before Richard Corcoran agreed to sit down with us and talk about the states controversial revamp of New College.

New College lost its way and went off center and got very traditionally left, Corcoran said during a recent interview from campus.

Nestled among pretty banyans along Sarasota Bay, New College is Floridas smallest public college. With a student population thats historically struggled to exceed 700, the liberal arts school had long been known as a safe haven for the misfit-minded, progressive thinking and LGBTQ-plus community.

But that changed earlier this year when the campus became the epicenter for Governor Ron DeSantis so-called "war on wokeness" in higher education.

They are not meant to indoctrinate students in political ideology that is not a good use of taxpayer funds, he said during a speech in Orlando about his new policies governing higher education in the state.

In January, DeSantis appointed six new conservative members to the schools Board of Trustees.

By the end of that month, the schools former president was out, and Corcoran was in as interim with a base salary that was anything but at nearly $700,000.

Why are you getting paid so much, asked Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone.

I think that's a question for the trustees. You can ask any of the trustees. They are the people that make that decision, Corcoran said.

Corcoran is now on the shortlist to become New Colleges permanent replacement.

If you get the permanent position, will you be asking for more money, asked LaGrone.

When that point in time comes, Im sure Ill sit down and work with the trustees on what that looks like next, he said.

Corcoran is no stranger to politically motivated decisions. A former Republican Speaker of the House, hes a strong political ally and friend of DeSantis and previously served as the Governors Education Commissioner.

I think a lot of people who are the opposition, what they really want, and won't vocalize is they want a very liberal, liberal arts school. Well, you're never going to be the best, and you're going to struggle, and you're going to circle the drain just like they have. We're not going there, he said about New Colleges future.

Are LGBTQ-plus students still welcomed at New College, LaGrone asked.

The questions a little offensive, Corcoran said. Every single student will be treated with the utmost in human dignity, he said.

But since Corcorans arrival, change on campus has been fast, furious, and consistently contentious.

Since the states transition, about 40 professors have left campus, representing about 40% of the schools total faculty.

Those numbers aren't accurate, Corcoran said. If you look at the people who have left the campus. Last number I saw was 36. All but 9 happened or were decided prior to anything happening at the college. So it couldn't be a reflection on us because these were people making the decision in September, October, November, long before January 6th when there was a new set of Board of Trustees, Corcoran said.

That new board has also fueled questions about just how conservative the publicly funded college will become.

Members include Christopher Rufo, a controversial conservative activist widely described as fueling the countrys battle against critical race theory.

I know Chris Rufo his heart, and he's 100% in support of making this the New College of old, Corcoran said.

Another trustee is Matthew Spalding, a Dean at Hillsdale College, a private Christian conservative school in Michigan that DeSantis has openly boasted about emulating at New College.

Well be like a little Hillsdale down in Florida. Can you imagine how good that would be? the Governor said during a visit to Hillsdale College earlier this year.

But Corcoran said he disagrees with the Governors depiction.

I would not agree with the description, he said. Instead, Cocoran said the Governor is 100% mission-aligned with Corcorans vision.

When asked what that means, Corcoran said, Mission alignment is do you want to create as it was, in the day, high intellectual-performing kids who come to a school, its dead center, it's exposed to both sides. It has real free speech and doesn't have a cancel culture, and it becomes the best in the country? That's mission aligned.

Corcoran said that to help meet that mission, the college has hired about 30 new faculty and is expanding the schools student body by adding more sports and student-athletes on campus. His goal is for 30% of New Colleges student body to be student-athletes.

While the new year has started with some bumps, including hundreds of upperclassmen being moved off campus to hotels while the college fixes longstanding mold issues, Corcoran denies reports the college has had to cancel some fall classes at the last minute.

No, zero, not one. Thats totally inaccurate, he said.

But two emails provided to us by a New College parent prove otherwise. One of the emails about a canceled class was sent to the student just a few weeks ago.

What Corcoran cant dispute is the long list of questions facing New Colleges future.

Earlier this summer, some New College students and faculty filed a federal lawsuit accusing the schools new Board of Trustees and the state of censoring academic freedom on college campuses, including at New College, where both sides agree it should thrive but clearly disagree over how.

There's no college that will be more open to free speech than any other college. And that lawsuit, like many of the others, will find its way into the heap of ash in no time whatsoever. But I do have to get to the next meeting. Katie, he said before ending our interview.

Watch Katies full interview with New College Interim President Richard Corcoran below.

Our visit to New College of Florida in Sarasota began at the dorms, where new students were still settling in and returning students were settling back into a new reality on campus.

Uh- scary, I think, is how Marshall Bustamante described the start of his fourth and final year at New College.

Just before the start of the semester, he learned earning his senior stripes no longer guaranteed him first choice at senior digs.

The administration removed me from my dorm room so that athletes could be there, he told us recently when we visited the college during student orientation week.

Long known as a haven for progressive thought and LGBTIQ-plus expression, among the most visible changes of the states culture shift at New College is the schools dramatic expansion of its athletics program.

In addition to existing sports, including crew, sailing, and swimming, this year, New College is adding softball, baseball, basketball, and soccer to its roster of collegiate sports.

More college sports on campus means more student-athletes.

According to school officials, New College added 353 new students this year, a record for the college. A little under half of them are newly recruited student-athletes.

I think its good that we get to build it up, said freshman Andrea Gonzalez of Tampa. Shes on a full-ride scholarship to play for the schools first-ever soccer team.

Kailyn Posey of Jacksonville is also a freshman soccer player. She came knowing about the states controversial recent history.

I do have sympathy for whats going on, and I know change is a hard thing, and I know a lot of people probably dont like the changes, but we wouldnt be able to come here and be doing school if it wasnt for the athletics. So, I think the athletics is a really good opportunity for a lot of students, she said.

I think we're bringing something great here, said Jake Platko. Hes among 70 baseball players drafted to play for the schools new baseball team.

The college has yet to get approval to play in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), it doesnt have a baseball field of its own, and batting cages are just going up,

Still, for 22-year-old Landen Morrison, leaving a Division I school in North Carolina for a chance to play for his old high school baseball coach was a pitch he couldnt say no to.

The schools new baseball coach, Mariano Jimenez, is now New Colleges head baseball coach and athletic director.

It could be risky, but I just really wanted to be part of Marios program again. I believe in him, and I believe in the coaches that he's bringing in to get me to the next level, Morrison said.

But around campus, its hard to ignore the quiet political tension that remains in the air eight months after the state began its overhaul.

The changes, initiated by Gov. Ron DeSantis, were part of his ongoing reform of a public education system, which he described as going woke.

They are not meant to indoctrinate students in political ideology. That is not a good use of taxpayer funds, DeSantis said in Orlando back in July.

What began with the Governors appointment of six new conservative Board of Trustee members at the college quickly led to New Colleges former President, Patricia Okker, getting fired. Then, the board eliminated the schools diversity and inclusion office, and when several faculty members were up for tenure, the new board denied them tenure.

Since then, nearly 40% of New Colleges faculty have left, according to Dr. Amy Reid, a tenured professor and the sole faculty member currently serving on the schools Board of Trustees.

No, the political tensions have not calmed down, she told us during our visit.

Reid, whos been teaching at New College for nearly three decades, has been an outspoken critic of the states changes and remains concerned about the schools future.

We've had such turnover in faculty and such turnover on the staff, and, frankly, a lot of turnover on the student body. So, Im concerned about the impact of the brain drain on this campus. When we have lost a lot of faculty, staff, and students, it's hard for the place to run, she said.

A few weeks ago, Reid was one of just two board members who voted against abolishing New Colleges gender studies program. Its only full-time gender studies professor later resigned.

Reid, who is also the director of New Colleges gender studies program, said several classes had to be canceled at the last minute because no one was teaching them.

Nobody wants to be the object of a hostile takeover. No one wants to live through a siege, she said about the exodus of faculty.

Senior Marshall Bustamante told us hes just learned a senior philosophy course he needs to take had also been canceled.

I have to find a way to graduate, he said when asked how the cancellation impacted him.

But Interim President Richard Corcoran denies any classes have been canceled.

Absolutely inaccurate. Every single student will be able to take the courses they want, Corcoran said.

Richard Corcoran answers all our questions about New Colleges new face. From how the school is dealing with a mass exodus of professors to why new student-athletes seem to be getting first dibs at housing and hearing what Corcoran is now saying about the schools conservative board and claims right-wing politics are driving the schools future.

Stay tuned for Katies continuing coverage of New College, a new year.

Call it politics in education or simply making the math work for your political agenda. Either way, when it comes to the number of vacant teaching positions in Florida, the numbers dont look good for students.

In a press release issued by Floridas Department of Education (FDOE) Tuesday morning, the states Commissioner of Education, Manny Diaz, touted a near 10% decrease in teacher vacancy slots at the beginning of the new school year versus one year ago.

According to the state, Florida had 4,776 open teaching positions by the time schools opened around the state this year. Thats an 8% decrease in the number of teacher vacancies reported at the same time last school year, according to the FDOE.

Commissioner Diaz described the drop as a reflection of several new statewide initiatives introduced under Governor Ron DeSantis.

It has been a top priority of the Governor, the Florida Legislature and the Department of Education to recruit high-quality teachers to fill our classrooms, he said. It is clear from the nearly 10% decline in teacher vacancies reported today that their hard work has paid off.

But Floridas Education Association (FEA), the states largest teachers union, said those numbers arent accurate. Last week, the FEA announced nearly seven thousand teaching positions remained vacant at the beginning of the school year.

In response to the FDOEs Tuesday announcement, Spar said, Now is not the time to sugarcoat or downplay the teacher and staff shortage. Its bad, and kids are losing out. The Florida Department of Education can do its best to minimize the staffing crisis facing Floridas public schools, but the truth is in the numbers. We stand by FEAs Aug. 7 count of vacancies listed on school districts websites, just as we stand by the counts we have conducted over the past several years. Due to low pay and a divisive political climate of fear and intimidation, the teacher and staff shortage has gone from bad to worse under the DeSantis administration.

While some districts are dealing with higher vacancies this year than last year, other districts are starting to see some success.

In Pasco County, the district went from having 365 open teaching slots at the beginning of last school year to 165 at the beginning of this year.

District spokesperson Melanie Waxler points to local efforts as key to changing the tide.

It's a pretty significant drop, and we're very proud of it, Waxler said. It wasn't an easy task. It required multiple recruitment events, lots of initiatives that we pushed out as a district as well as anything we could do just to encourage the community to get more involved in the school district.

According to an FDOE spokesperson, the state compiled its teacher vacancy numbers by surveying districts on the first day of school.

The teachers union counts the number of open positions advertised in each district as its basis for data.

Both admit the numbers represent a snapshot in time and can change daily.

David Calhoun and Sam Jenkins are among the Florida history teachers caught in the middle of teaching America's complicated past amid Florida's increasingly combative politics.

"History is our story, and it's ugly," Calhoun, who's been teaching in Hillsborough County for more than 20 years, said.

Calhoun has a problem with teaching the state's newest standards.

"It's not the truth," Calhoun said. "It's very inaccurate."

Florida's newly approved high school curriculum includes instruction on how violence was "perpetrated against and by African Americans" during some high-profile race-related massacres including the 1920 Ocoee massacre. The massacre occurred when a Black man trying to vote was attacked by a white mob.

Calhoun said the state's new guidelines, which suggest Black people contributed to the bloodshed at the time, distorts the facts since African Americans were forced to defend themselves against the angry mob.

As a result, Calhoun said, the state's new benchmark wont show up in his class.

"We're going to teach the truth, and that standard is not the truth," Calhoun said. "We're not going to stand in class and say the state school board got this wrong. We will simply just not talk about it. We'll ignore it."

He is referring to the guidelines suggesting Blacks perpetuated the violence.

"I'm going to make sure that I teach factual, accurate history," Sam Jenkins, who teaches eighth-grade history in Brevard County, said.

He may also end up ignoring some of the state's new guidelines, which include teaching middle school students how slaves "developed skills which in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit," according to the state.

"The wording is a big problem for me. We're going to talk about how certain slaves had particular skill sets, but we'll do it in a way that we've always done, which is more accurate and factual, and we're going to leave the rest out," he explained, adding he will not teach students that slaves benefited in any way from being enslaved.

Across the state, Florida's new African American history standards, which will be fully implemented next school year, have prompted outrage among Democrats, including Vice President Kamala Harris, rallies and community protests.

The National Council for History Education released a statement condemning the state's new standards while supporting history teachers who may be too afraid to speak up.

"Teachers are not in agreement with a lot of these standards, but they're fearful that if they speak out against these standards they might lose their position," Shauna Liverotti with the council said.

 In Miami Thursday night, a community town hall was not attended by Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz, who claimed he was too busy visiting schools to attend the 7 p.m. forum.

Diaz defended the new standards.

"If anyone takes the time to look at the standards, you can see everything is covered," he said during a state Board of Education meeting recently.

Still, teachers are voicing their concerns and their plans to teach or not teach the controversial new curriculum.

"I have to be extremely careful with what I say and how I say it," South Florida teacher Danielle Irvin said. "I have to be careful with how my students question things and how I direct their way of thinking and then with parents as well. This puts me in a really crazy situation."

When Gov. Ron DeSantis announced he had suspended Monique Worrell, State Attorney in Orange and Osceola County, his reasons included the low number of prosecutions in her circuit.

DeSantis went on to list examples of defendants who went on to commit more serious crimes after not getting prosecuted. As a result, the governor said, Worrells lack of action against offenders left him with no choice but to remove her from the position.

We had a duty to act to protect the public from this dereliction of duty, the governor said about the suspension, which marks his second suspension of an elected State Attorney.

Floridas Attorney General Ashley Moody added to the governors case against Worrell, who is a Democrat and the states second black State Attorney to serve in the position.

Ms. Worrell failed to do the job for which she was elected, Moody said before stating a series of statistics that show since Worrell took over the ninth circuit in 2021, her office has either dismissed or dropped more criminal cases than any other current State Attorney in Florida.

Among cases dropped or dismissed included defendants arrested over violent felonies.

State data shows between July 1, 2021, through January 2023, over 61% of violent felonies were dropped or dismissed in the ninth district, which is above the states average of 42%.

Same for juvenile cases, where according to a state report released by Floridas Department of Juvenile Justice earlier this year, Worrells district had, by far, the highest number (of felony juvenile cases that were dropped or not filed at all.

Before she was elected as State Attorney of the ninth district in 2020, Worrell campaigned on a promise that included reducing the number of people imprisoned.

Ms. Worrell has made justice in the ninth circuit almost an arbitrary coin flip, Moody said during the governors Tallahassee press conference.

But is using prosecution rates an accurate measure of prosecutor performance?

Comparing the rates at which cases are dismissed or charged from one circuit to another circuit is a crude measure, explained David Alan Sklansky, a criminal law professor at Stanford University. It's a measure of policy. It certainly isn't an indication that she's not doing her job because the job of a prosecutor includes deciding whether to file charges.

Sklansky also explained how measuring the performance of a state attorney isnt determined by a few stats but by a wide range of factors that include conviction and acquittal rates, plea deals, and racial disparities among defendants charged.

I think that the numbers that the Governor's office put together are relevant in assessing the job that the state's attorney is doing. But I think what they seem to show here is that this prosecutor is following through on her campaign promises, Sklansky said.

Following her suspension, Worrell, whose failure to prosecute cases has also been criticized by some law enforcement leaders in Central Florida, was quick to defend her track record and mission.

Florida leads the nation in the numbers of people incarcerated but yet crime still happens. So the lock them up and throw away mentality cannot be the thing that works, she said shortly after her suspension, which she vows to fight.

Worrell believes shes the last victim to a politically-driven governor who maintains removing her was a matter of protecting the public.

After years of annoying consumers, two years ago Florida lawmakers became more involved in the robocall game by cracking down on these nuisance calls and texts with the passage of the Florida Telephone Solicitation Act (FTSA).

The unopposed, bi-partisan bill required all telemarketers to get prior written consent before they could call or text consumers in the state.

The aggressive new Florida law also gave citizens for the first time, the power to fight back through lawsuits if telemarketers didnt stop contacting them.

It was helpful, it allowed me the opportunity to have a voice, explained Pinellas County resident Cheri Aul. She filed one of the first-class action lawsuits under the states new FTSA law.

Aul sued Davids Bridal in 2021 after the wedding gown company continued to hound her with dozens of unwanted text messages despite her repeated replies to stop.

Cheri spoke with us back in 2021 and described how the companys text messages just wouldnt stop.

Then the next day I got another one. Now months later, and it's continuing, she told us shortly after filing the lawsuit.

Around the state, within a year of going into effect, Floridas new phone solicitation law proved to dial back the overall problem of unwanted calls.

According to data recently provided to us by Floridas Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services which tracks complaints about unsolicited communication, between 2021 and 2023 the number of robocall complaints to the department decreased by more than 80%. While complaints to the department about unsolicited communication also dropped by more than half.

Complaints from Floridians to the Federal Trade Commission show a similar pattern.

In fact, consumer advocates described Floridas 2021 FTSA as the tightest anti-robocall law on the books, having such a positive impact on consumers in the state, the FTSA became a model for other states looking to crack down on unsolicited calls.

It was the most protective of consumers in the country, explains Tampa-based consumer attorney Billy Howard. His firm, The Consumer Protection Firm, specializes in robocall litigation. He also represented Aul in her class-action lawsuit against Davids Bridal.

It was the gold standard. It was driving down robocalls and people were really happy because they could finally stop them, he explained.

But just when Floridas new robocall law was proving to do everything it set out to do for consumers, earlier this year that changed. State lawmakers brought back the issue. Only this time their focus seemed to be less on protecting Florida consumers and more on helping big businesses get back in the robocall game.

In Tallahassee this session, while debates over abortion rights, culture wars, and guns dominated the headlines, big business, and special interest quietly lobbied lawmakers to change Floridas telephone solicitation law because businesses claimed they were getting sued too much under the 2021 law.

HB 761 called for several changes to Floridas telephone solicitation law including:

The FTSA has huge unintended consequence of ensnaring legitimate businesses in frivolous litigation. This is literally bankrupting businesses, an attorney for Floridas Justice Reform Institute, an organization that advocates for changes in legal liability, said during the public comment section of a committee meeting back in March.

I can tell you about case after case after case of these ridiculous lawsuits, another attorney told lawmakers.

But despite asking for data showing 2021 had caused a deluge of frivolous lawsuits, Florida Representative Mike Beltran said he was never provided any proof.

Beltran, a Republican representing parts of Hillsborough County, led the charge to get the 2021 FTSA law passed.

I said show me one frivolous lawsuit, they didnt bring one complaint in, he recently told Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone during an interview about the motivations behind changing a law that seemed to work for Florida consumers.

We have gone against consumer protection and in favor of big business, he said about the changes.

Beltran stopped short of explaining why his Republican colleagues would amend a telephone solicitation law to favor businesses. But, campaign finance records may provide a clue.

In the months leading up to the 2023 legislative session, campaign finance records showed some of the same companies that lobbied for changes to Floridas telephone solicitation law also donated thousands of dollars to Republican Senator Clay Yarborough, who introduced the more business-friendly version of the law in the Senate. (Yarborough did not respond to a request for comment.)

And even more money went to Representative Bob Rommel, the GOP chair of the Senate Commerce Committee. Rommel, a business owner, is also big tort reform supporter who wielded the power to move forward changes to the FTSA. (An office spokesperson told us Representative Rommel was not available for an interview.)

According to campaign donations, in January, Rommels PAC received $25,000 from the Committee of Automotive Retailers, a PAC led by longtime Florida lobbyist Ted Smith. He also heads the Florida Automobile Dealers Association, one of the organizations that lobbied hardest for changes to the law.

Smith explained why making the FTSA more friendly to businesses was one of his groups top legislative priorities this past session.

It was significant because all of my dealers really want to do is their routine business practices, he said. This change will now allow my dealers who have an established business relationship with you as a customer, to make a very important call or contact back to you concerning your car, he said.

When asked if his PACs donations were a pay to play move to ensure the legislatures super GOP majority would approve changes to make the FTSA more friendly to businesses, Smith responded, We contribute unabashedly to campaigns to help people get elected into their House or Senate seat. That's what PACs are all about. It's not about influencing votes. It's about assisting good people as they desire to get into office, he said.

Their efforts worked.

By the end of the session, the legislature passed a new, more business-friendly telephone solicitation law. Representative Beltran was the only Republican in the House to vote against the bill.

Everyone who didn't have their head under a rock knew about the anti-consumer effects of the 2023 phone solicitation bill, he said.

Consumer attorney Billy Howard said he believes the new law was driven by dollars.

Money is the only thing that motivated the change of law. The Chamber of Commerce, the automobile industry and companies like Davids Bridal, they want to text people and call people without their permission, that's the only motivating factor, he said.

Cheri Auls 2021 class action lawsuit against Davids Bridal ultimately went nowhere. Two years after she filed suit, the company filed for bankruptcy. But not before it, too, spent thousands of dollars to hire its own lobbyist to change Floridas phone solicitation law.

Its a new law, Cheri fears will bring back the unwanted messages she fought so hard to stop.

If the businesses or politicians, whoever, if they're the ones making the decisions with money pushing for certain things, the consumer is the one that loses out in the end, Aul said.

To reduce unsolicited telephone calls and/or text messages, consumers can subscribe to Floridas Do Not Call list.

Outrage continued Monday over Floridas new standards for teaching Black history.

Hes not going to rewrite and redefine black history, not while were still alive, said Reverend Dr. RB Holmes Jr. of Bethel Missionary Baptist Church during a Zoom call with other Florida religious leaders, civil rights activists, and community organizers.

The group held a virtual press conference Monday morning to announce a series of actions they are taking in response to Floridas newly adopted social studies curriculum for middle schoolers. Critics believe the curriculum, which Floridas Board of Education approved last week, suggests slaves benefited from being enslaved.

Its just insulting, its demeaning, it should not exist, said Transformative Justice Coalitions Barbara Arnwine.

While the new guidelines include teaching some of the harsh conditions slaves were subject to, it also includes instruction on how slaves developed skills, which in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit, according to the curriculum.

Its insulting to imply that somehow we have to be enslaved to get any kind of skills, Arnwine added during the Zoom.

As a result, Reverand Holmes Jr. announced they will be protesting the new education policies by holding demonstrations, creating their own history teaching task force, opening new freedom schools, and filing a new lawsuit against the state.

During a presidential campaign stop in Utah over the weekend, Governor Ron DeSantis appeared to try to distance himself from his home states latest classroom controversy.

I didnt do it. I wasnt involved in it, he said before quickly doubling down.

I think what theyre doing is probably going to show some of the folks that eventually parlayed being a blacksmith into doing things later in life, DeSantis said when asked about it by reporters.

DeSantis press team was quick to strike back by tweeting out excerpts from a recent ABC News interview with Dr. William Allen, one of the members who served on Floridas African American history standards work group, which helped create the new standards.

It was never said that slavery was beneficial to Africans. What was said, and anyone who reads this will see this with clarity, is the case that Africans proved resourceful, resilient, and adaptive and were able to develop skills and aptitudes which served to their benefit both while enslaved and after enslavement, Dr. Allen told ABC News.

You can develop resiliency in a million ways. It doesn't have to involve the enslavement of Black bodies, said House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell on Monday. Over the weekend, she called for the resignation of Floridas Education Commissioner, Manny Diaz Jr., a former Republican Senator before Governor DeSantis appointed him the states education boss.

What they're suggesting is that look on the bright side of slavery. There is no bright side, said Fentrice.

Last week Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz tweeted that Florida is focused on teaching accurate African American history. As for calls for his resignation, as of Monday afternoon, neither the Commissioner nor his office provided a response.

Last month, Florida chartered two planes to fly 36 asylum-seeking migrants from New Mexico to Sacramento as part of the states $12 million migrant relocation program. Governor Ron DeSantis embraced the program to shine a light on Americas ongoing border issues.

If theres a policy to have an open border, then I think these sanctuary cities should be the ones that have to bear that, Governor DeSantis said last month in response to questions about the flights.

But five weeks later, the DeSantis administration has yet to release public documents revealing how the flights were arranged and how much they cost.

This is the least transparent administration that I've seen in the 35 years that I've been doing this work, explained Michael Barfield, Director of Public Access at Floridas Center for Government Accountability.

Last year, the non-partisan nonprofit sued the DeSantis administration after the state delayed turning over records related to its first round of migrant flights to Marthas Vineyard.

The center won, and the state eventually released hundreds of records related to those flights (the state appealed a ruling it violated Florida sunshine laws, and that case is pending). But Barfield said Floridas ongoing secrecy about its migrant relocation program recently prompted calls to his office from California Governor Gavin Newsoms Legal Affairs Secretary, who is also seeking details about the Sacramento charters.

They reached out to us because they are experiencing exactly what everyone else is, which is delay and denial of access to information about what and how these events came together, Barfield explained.

In an email acknowledging its communication with Barfields group, a spokesperson from Governor Newsoms office stated, For a state known for its sunshine, Tallahassee is awfully cloudy these days. In an effort to access basic public records from the Office of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, our office has been in touch with Florida's Center for Government Accountability.

Little is known about the California flights on Floridas dime.

In its only statement about the flights released after 5 pm on June 6

(after both flights landed in Sacramento), a Floridas Division of Emergency Management spokesperson described the flights as voluntary. In an edited video provided by the agency as part of its statement, the migrants shown appeared to be signing consent forms smiling, happy, and celebrating.

In interviews from early June, shortly after the migrants landed, California Attorney General Rob Bonta told reporters the migrants he spoke with suggested they were lured through false promises of jobs and places to stay.

Its a silly, cruel, inhumane disgusting political stunt, Attorney General Bonta said about the flights at the time.

According to his spokesperson, Bonta also submitted a series of public records requests to Florida that have yet to be fulfilled.

While Florida has contracted with three companies to carry out its migrant relocation program, contracts available online shed little light on specifics and costs of flights.

A new contract with Florida-based Vertol Systems Inc, which has been linked to the Sacramento flights and was the company that facilitated the migrant flights to Marthas Vineyard last year, does not include any specific information about the Sacramento flights. The only cost included in the companys most recent state contract is Stage one- development phase. That cost is listed as a lump sum of $487,000.

All costs associated with the Sacramento flights are details that should be available in invoices, receipts, and other public records Florida officials have yet to make public.

We need this information to be able to perform our mission to educate the citizens about the use of taxpayer resources, and they can make their own decisions about whether they think this is a good idea or a bad one, explained Barfield.

When asked when records about these flights will be released to the public (including responses to our own public records requests), neither Floridas Governors office nor Floridas Division of Emergency Management offered any specific details as of Wednesday afternoon.

Advocates, law enforcement, and family members who lost loved ones to cell phone-related distracted driving crashes gathered at an Orlando hotel on Wednesday to announce the creation of a new statewide coalition aimed at making Florida a hands-free state.

The Just Drive Hands-free Coalition will now begin formally pushing for statewide hands-free legislation that would make it illegal to hold a mobile phone while driving in Florida.

Jennifer Smith, CEO of stopdistractions.org, believes its time to stigmatize cell phone use behind the wheel, similar to drunk driving. Her mother was killed by a distracted driver on a cell phone when her mother was struck.

We dont just simply text or talk on the phone anymore; we video call, live stream, pay bills, shop, you name it, all while were driving. It is imperative to reverse this trend, and we need all hands on deck to change this behavior, she told reporters at a press conference during a statewide conference to reduce crashes among teens.

If successful, a hands-free Florida law would mark a significant shift from the states current no texting and driving law. While the law was beefed up in 2019 to make texting while driving a primary offense, our recent Impact Check investigation discovered the law includes a laundry list of exceptions making it difficult for police actually to enforce. As a result, our investigation found few citations have been issued since the new law took effect.

Last week, a 40-year-old Florida father of two was sentenced to 30 years in prison for causing a deadly crash that killed 9-year-old Logan Scherer in 2016. An investigation found Gregory Andriotis was using his cell phone to download apps and spreadsheets right before he slammed into the Scherers SUV. At the same time, the family was stuck in traffic on I-75 near Brooksville. The conviction is considered the first cell phone-related distracted driving case to go to trial, resulting in a conviction and prison sentence.

To date, 27 states have passed hands-free legislation. Alabama and Michigan are among the most recent states to get hands-fee bills signed into law.

Along with Jennifer Smith, Steven Kiefer has played a significant role in getting these laws passed, including the recent hands-free law signed in his home state of Michigan. Kiefers son, Mitchell, was killed in 2016 by a distracted driver using Snapchat on her cell phone when she slammed into the back of his sons car while he was driving back to Michigan State University from a weekend at home.

After his sons death, Kiefer, a former GM executive, started the Kiefer Foundation to help bring awareness to the problem of distracted driving, encourage new technology to help reduce crashes and deaths from distracted driving and push states to adopt hands-free legislation. He believes Florida is fertile ground for a stronger law focused on cell phone use while driving.

Yes, there will be arguments about other distractions, but the one that is clearly having the most significant impact is the use of the mobile phones. Again, it wont be perfect, but at least it wont have people holding it in front of their face or holding it to their ear, and we know it will reduce crashes, he said.

Kiefer, who recently moved to Florida, said data shows states that have had this law on the books show an immediate reduction in the number of distracted driving crashes and deaths, with some states seeing up to a 20% decrease in crashes and fatalities.

In Florida, debates around toughening the current no texting and driving law have focused on concerns over freedom and privacy. Kiefer is familiar with those debates and prepared to make his case to Florida lawmakers based on his familys tragedy.

You looking at a phone and running into my child and killing my child; I didnt violate your freedom; you violated my sons personal freedom."

The coalition hopes to get a lawmaker from Floridas GOP majority to sponsor a hands-free bill this next legislative session.

Chances are, youve done it.

Hail a ride by tapping your phone.

But with all the convenience Uber has to offer people on the go, weve also seen stories detailing when an Uber driver is accused of going rogue, taking unsuspecting passengers down a dangerous, dark road.

FL passengers accuse Uber of letting criminals behind the wheel

Now two Floridians claim it happened to them.

Incomprehensible, really, that something like this could occur, said Damian Josefsberg, a South Florida businessman who claims his identity was stolen by an Uber driver.

Ive never felt so violated in my life, said Grace, a young Tampa woman who claims an Uber driver sexually assaulted her.

Grace and Josefsberg are now suing Uber, blaming the ride-sharing giant of failing to properly screen its drivers to allow criminals behind the wheel.

I feel like I lost a piece of myself, Grace told Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone recently about the night, she said, an Uber driver raped her during a ride. Due to the nature of her allegations, Grace asked us not to reveal her face or share her last name.

I would never want anybody else to go through what I went through, she said while recalling the incident.

Ive never felt so violated in my life

It was December 2021.

Grace was with friends in Tampa celebrating her upcoming 21st birthday when she admits she got drunk, very drunk.

Its hard for me to talk about because I dont remember, she said.

According to her lawsuit, after getting separated from her friends, a good Samaritan noticed Graces condition and called for an Uber.

Jane Doe Complaint by ABC Action News on Scribd

But instead of dropping her off at home, the lawsuit states, the Uber driver sexually assaulted her. According to a Sheriffs investigation, Grace was with the Uber driver for nearly four hours. When the Uber driver finally dropped her off at the hotel where her friends were staying, witnesses reported that Grace had her underwear down at her ankles and had soiled herself. After piecing things together the next day, Grace reported the incident to police and was sent to a crisis center for a sexual assault exam.

In a sheriffs report, the driver, Anthony Oliveras Rivera, admitted he and Grace had sexual intercourse in the back seat, but it was only after, he claimed, Grace asked him if wanted to have fun.

When I found out that he said that, it made me feel horrible knowing that he did that to me, and I didnt even remember, and I didnt know, Grace said in response to the recollection he told investigators about the incident.

An Uber driver with a criminal past?

And while her accuser remains in a Hillsborough County jail after pleading not guilty to sexual battery charges in the case, Graces lawsuit against Uber cites records that raise serious questions over how and why Uber would ever allow Oliveras Rivera to be a driver, trusted alone with passengers.

According to the lawsuit, Oliveras Riveras history includes serious run-ins with the law that date back more than twenty years. Those incidents include multiple arrests and a 2002 felony conviction for drug possession and first-degree robbery with a firearm in New York.

Records we obtained also show the man Uber approved to be a driver has a long list of driving violations.

Running a stop sign, speeding and careless driving among just some of the violations he pled guilty to in Florida. His Florida driving record also shows his license was suspended multiple times before the night he met Grace.

Who in their right mind would hire someone with this type of history, said Graces attorney Andrea Lewis.

Uber goes out of its way to advise passengers and all of us that they do have thorough background checks about drivers criminal history, driving history, and any violations that they may have. Yet, someone like this can be employed by Uber. Its mind-boggling, she said.

On its website, Uber describes its driver screening process as a multi-step safety screening process to flag prospective drivers with problem pasts.

Uber defends rigorous driver screening process

In a statement, an Uber spokesperson added its rigorous driver screening process includes working with background check providers and several identity safeguards.

But failures in those background checks and safeguards have resulted in several Uber settlements around the country.

And more lawsuits.

We think its systemic

Including what Damian Josefsberg hopes will become the latest class action lawsuit against Uber for, what he described, as its failure to properly screen drivers.

Josefsberg blames Uber and its outsourced screener, Checkr Inc., after he said someone stole his identity to pass the companys background check.

The South Florida businessman discovered he was a victim after finding a tax form in his name with the listed employer as Uber.

I had never contacted Uber to be a driver for them. I had no paperwork sent to me from Uber. Ought not for my checking of my tax reports, I wouldnt know even to this point that was driving under my name for Uber, Josefsberg said.

Josefsbergs lawsuit alleged that federal law required Uber to notify him before conducting a background check, which he and his attorney said never happened.

Damian Josefsberg Complaint by ABC Action News on Scribd

We think it is systemic. We think it is a pattern of behavior, and the preliminary evidence weve gathered to date would support that, said attorney Kenney Murena.

When asked if thinks there could be thousands of victims who have had their identities stolen in a similar fashion due to Ubers failed screening process, Murena replied, I do. If not tens of thousands of victims."

Uber isnt talking about either of these lawsuits.

But on its website, the company has forms passengers can fill out if they believe theyve been a victim of identity theft or any other crime.

In its statement, a spokesperson added, While we cant comment on pending litigation, our work on safety never stops.

But these Floridians believe theyre proof thats not true and told us they are still suffering the consequences.

Lives are in peoples hands and theyre hiring people that are doing crazy stuff. Its insane to me, said Grace.

Uber maintains any safety incident represents just a fraction of all rides, and the company routinely updates its approach to rider safety.

If you have information about Ubers background check process, Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone wants to hear from you.

New efforts to beef up Floridas no texting and driving law are starting to move.

Advocates, including Jennifer Smith of stopdistractions.org, are now banding together with other groups to push for hands-free legislation in Florida.

"If we get the phone out of the hand with clear laws that say you cant do these things, just focus on driving, thats when you see lives saved," Smith said.

Her organization, which helped pass Floridas current no texting and driving law, has worked to get hands-free legislation successfully passed in 26 states, most recently Michigan.

Smith sees Florida as fertile ground for hands-free.

The push for a hands-free Florida comes after we discovered Floridas current texting and driving law is one of the weakest in the country.

In an impact check investigation last month https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/state/sheriff-judd-calls-florida-law-banning-texting-and-driving-useless-but-is-it, we found the 2019 law has done little to curb distracted driving crashes or, encourage any significant consequences for texting and driving.

Over a 2 1/2-year period since the law went into effect, we found law enforcement agencies in Florida had issued about 8500 citations in total statewide.

Outspoken Sheriff Grady Judd of Polk County called Floridas current law on texting and driving, useless.

"This is what we call a clunky law. It takes two Philadelphia lawyers and a mental health counselor to dissect this law," he told Investigative Reporter Katie LaGrone in April.

In many of the 26 states that have adopted hands free legislation, Michelle Avola-Brown of Naples Pathway Coalition said states have seen significant changes.

"They are seeing an immediate and significant reductions in crashes and fatalities. So why shouldnt Florida have that same benefit," she said.

This week, 40-year-old Florida father of two, Gregory Andriotis, was given the maximum sentence of 30 years in prison for causing a deadly crash on Interstate 75 near Brooksville n 2016.

The wreck seriously injured Brooke, Jordan and Mallory Scherer, and killed 9-year-old Logan Scherer.

The investigation found Andriotis was downloading apps and spreadsheets on his cell before he slammed into the back of the Scherers SUV while the family of four was stuck in traffic.

The case is the first cellphone-related driving case to go to trial in Florida and now the first to end in a prison sentence.

"Every time someone gets in their car and makes that choice, it will now be met with a punishable action or consequence," an emotional Brooke Scherer moments said after the sentencing was announced.

The Scherers tragedy helped inspire Floridas 2019 law banning texting and driving.

While theyve since moved out of Florida, Brooke and Jordan Scherer hope the end of their case, will motivate lawmakers in Florida to take the current law further to hands-free.

"Our fight has not just been for Logan and Mallory and our family, but for all the other Logans and families that will come after," Brooke Scherer said.

The big challenge for groups advocating for hands-free legislation is getting a Republican lawmaker to sponsor a hands-free bill. Arguments have historically centered around privacy and freedom issues, hot button topics that will likely continue to be a tough sell for Floridas GOP majority.