Fried seeks funds for schools after DeSantis threatens to withhold money over mask mandates

Gov. Ron DeSantis has threatened to withhold funding sources should a school district go against his executive order and impose a mask mandate. Now, one of his chief critics, Florida Agricultural Commissioner Nikki Fried, is firing back.

Over 15-foot python nabbed during 2021 Florida Python Challenge

The results are in for the 2021 Florida Python Challenge with 223 invasive pythons caught. The 10-day-event last month more than doubled the number of pythons captured the previous year.

COVID-19 spike: In Florida hospitals, 'there are only so many beds'

On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported more than 50,000 new COVID-19 cases in Florida during a three-day span, raising the seven-day average to one of the highest counts since the pandemic began.

Passenger taped to seat after allegedly groping flight attendants

A man on a Frontier Airlines flight ended up being taped to his seat after a series of incidents including allegedly groping female flight attendants and punching a male flight attendant in the face.

Polk sheriff: Disney employees, nurse and California man among 17 arrested in undercover child predator sting

Seventeen suspects thought they were speaking to young teens online, but it turned out they were speaking to undercover detectives across several agencies in central Florida. Among those arrested include Disney employees, a registered nurse, and a married man visiting from California, officials say.

Man running on water inside 'bubble' for charity washes up on Florida beach

The Flagler County Sheriff's Office said a strange vessel washed ashore on Saturday morning. It turned out to be a Central Florida man who was ‘walking on water’ for charity. 

Florida COVID hospitalizations break record

A day after it recorded the most new daily cases since the start of the pandemic, Florida on Sunday broke a previous record for current hospitalizations, as the number of patients in hospitals because of COVID-19 once again broke through the 10,000-person threshold.

CDC: Florida breaks record with more than 21,000 new COVID cases

Federal health officials say Florida has reported 21,683 new cases of COVID-19, the state's highest one-day total since the start of the pandemic. 

Dog found hogtied, mouth taped shut now having 'more good days than bad' as she heals

Petal broke hearts across the internet after a good Samaritan in Orlando found her dumped in a plastic bag, hogtied with her mouth duct-taped shut, and ‘near death.’ T

Riverview boy adopted by HCSO detective after surviving being stabbed, set on fire by father

Ronnie Blair, now 12 years old and adopted by a Hillsborough detective's family after his own father tried to kill him, says he doesn't want to be defined by the night he nearly died. He loves science, his new siblings, and parents. When he grows up, he wants to become an actor.

Man who hid in Spring Hill teen's bedroom for weeks sentenced after pleading guilty to having sex with a minor

A Louisiana man who traveled multiple times to Spring Hill to have sex with a 15-year-old girl he met online will spend the next 15 years in prison. He was captured after the teen's parents found him hiding in their child's closet -- and he had been living in there for a month.

Mold fills home built in 2017, forcing homeowner out while builder tries to identify cause

When Jasmine Miles first saw her shoes covered in a gray film last year, she didn’t know what to think. The Wesley Chapel homeowner says mold has taken over her brand-new house, forcing her to live elsewhere for the last seven months.

Florida babysitter charged with murder 37 years after baby shaken

36 years ago, babysitter Terry McKirchy was sentenced to weekends in jail for three months for shaking a 5-month-old boy so severely that he suffered permanent brain damage. But she now faces a possible life sentence for murder after a medical examiner said the victim succumbed to those injuries at the age of 35, after a life with severe mental and physical disabilities.