Your daily look at news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about today.
FLORIDA SET TO EXECUTE MAN FOR 1992 SLAYING
Florida is scheduled to execute Chadwick Banks for the 1992 murder of his stepdaughter. Banks’ execution by lethal injection was set to take place at 6 p.m. Thursday, pending a final appeal at the U.S. Supreme Court. The 43-year-old was convicted in 1994 of two counts of first-degree murder for the slayings of his wife, Cassandra Banks, and his 10-year-old stepdaughter, Melody Cooper, and sexual battery of a child for raping the girl before shooting her.
FLORIDA SUPREME COURT ORDERS RELEASE OF SECRET EVIDENCE
The court on Thursday unanimously ordered that emails and documents, as well as transcript from a closed portion of a landmark redistricting trial, be unsealed. The ruling was unanimous. Justices rejected arguments from Republican political consultants who argued they had constitutional rights to keep the documents private. Groups challenging Florida’s congressional map sought the documents in an effort to show that outside consultants helped the GOP-controlled Legislature to draw up new districts in violation of amendments passed by voters.
GOV. RICK SCOTT ORDERS DROP IN THE PRICE OF FLORIDA’S LIFETIME HUNTING AND FISHING LICENSES
But the the break will only last for a brief time and it is available only for state residents 21 years old or younger. Scott hasordered the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to lower the cost of a “lifetime sportsman’s license” to $500 for young people. It currently costs $1001 for anyone 13 and older. The fee drop is available from Nov. 24 to Dec. 31.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WOMAN AND HER DAUGHTER GIVE BIRTH AT THE SAME HOSPITAL ON THE SAME DAY
Heather Penticoff and her daughter Destinee Martin each found out they were pregnant on the same day. They had the same due dates and, for separate medical reasons, doctors at Lee Memorial Hospital in Fort Myers decided to induce both of them Tuesday. Penticoff’s daughter Madeline was born first, and Destinee’s son Damien was born almost three hours later. Penticoff says the births are “like having twins without carrying twins.”
NORTH MIAMI REACHES SETTLEMENT WITH FORMER BOARD OF MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART
The city will keep the majority of the museum’s 600-work permanent collection, $1 million in grants and the rights to the MOCA name. The rest of the artworks will go to the Institute of Contemporary Art, newly founded in Miami by former members of MOCA’s board. The settlement closes a lawsuit filed in April by the former board members against the city, claiming the museum’s municipal landlord failed to properly maintain the facility, provide adequate security or pay the interim director.
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