LAUREN BOOK

State and federal legislators called for reforms to help stop sex trafficking in Florida, after the South Florida Sun Sentinel revealed disturbing state complicity in its Innocence Sold investigative series and accompanying podcast.

More than 14,000 citations have been issued to 6,669 hotels and other public lodging establishments in Florida for violating a 2019 law meant to curb human trafficking, a Sun Sentinel investigation has found. But not a single fine has been issued and the sex trade continues to thrive behind hotel room doors.

More than 14,000 citations have been issued to 6,669 hotels and other public lodging establishments in Florida for violating a 2019 law meant to curb human trafficking, a Sun Sentinel investigation has found. But not a single fine has been issued and the sex trade continues to thrive behind hotel room doors.

This slideshow requires JavaScript. Senator Lauren Book recently won re-election to the Florida Senate by more than 20 points, and addressed her supporters and the media by saying, “Fighting for South Florida families in Tallahassee has been the honor of a lifetime and I am grateful to have earned the trust of my constituents. “As a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, Sen. Book knows what it’s like to feel that you don’t have a voice, or that your voice doesn’t matter. She suffered in silence for years, and now she has made it her mission to ensure other marginalized voices are heard in the halls of power. She added, “I look forward to continuing this journey of advocacy and service to make South Florida and the Sunshine State the best possible place to live, work, and play.“To see more #Miaminews from #Aventura to #Coralgables to #SouthMiami, #Pinecrest, #Palmetto Bay and #Cutler Bay and all throughout #Miamidadecounty go to:

After a bitter battle, Lauren Book will keep her senate seat.

Lauren Book's state Senate win came after months of verbal sparring and combat between two powerhouse politicians vying for victory in one of the hottest elections in Broward County.

The Democratic challenger to Gov. Ron DeSantis is just one of the highly anticipated races that was decided Tuesday night in Florida’s Primary Election.

There’s little, if anything, that’s forward-thinking or positive in Broward’s hottest political contest of the summer. The protagonists, Lauren Book and Barbara Sharief, are competing ferociously for a seat in the Florida Senate.

On the latest episode of This Week in South Florida, host Michael Putney is joined by Broward County District 35 candidates Lauren Book and Barbara Sharief and Miami-Dade District 6 candidates Jorge Fors and Victor Vazquez.

Two veteran politicians are vying for the nomination for the state senate in newly-drawn District 35 that includes most of western Broward County.

Former Broward Commissioner Barbara Sharief filed a lawsuit against her Florida Senate District 35 opponent on Friday in Broward County.

Former Broward County Commissioner Barbara Sharief is suing state senate challenger Lauren Book, accusing her of defamation and libel in a $1 million lawsuit filed Friday afternoon.

The Democratic dogfight for one state Senate seat is getting downright nasty.

The heated race for Florida Senate District 35 is getting nasty. Two Democratic women who agree on most issues are resorting to personal attacks as they both campaign for votes in Broward County.

A Plantation man was sentenced Tuesday to one year and one day in prison for his attempted extortion of state Sen. Lauren Book, D-Plantation.

It was sentencing day for the then-teen who was charged with extorting Florida State Sen. Lauren Book.

Two experienced Democratic women have engaged in a contentious campaign for the Florida Senate District 25 in Broward County.

The hottest 2022 election in Broward is the Florida Senate showdown between Democrats Lauren Book and Barbara Sharief. Voting during the Aug. 23 primary is open to all voters, since there's no other party running. The winner will go to Tallahassee. It could leave political scars when the campaign is over. “Both are well-respected. I wish it didn’t have to be this way.”

Gov. Ron DeSantis’s efforts to manage his statewide and national political fortunes will be complicated if Florida becomes an epicenter of the abortion battle.

Democratic Sen. Lauren Book and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Shultz joined a group to protest the Supreme Court’s decision to do away with women’s constitutional protections for abortion on Friday in Fort Lauderdale.

Jeremy Kamperveen, the man accused of extorting State Sen. Lauren Book by threatening to release explicit photos of her, has entered a plea of no contest, WPLG-Ch. 10 is reporting.

A 20-year-old Broward County man accused of targeting Florida Sen. Lauren Book and threatening to leak partially nude photos to Fox News to end her political career pleaded no contest in court Wednesday.

As Florida and much of the U.S. impose major restrictions on access to abortion, Florida residents don’t like the trend. The overwhelming majority of Florida residents — including more than half of Republicans — want abortion legal in most or all cases, a Florida Atlantic University poll shows.

Florida will require statewide recertification of condominiums over three stories tall under new legislation Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law.

Florida legislators leave without lowering property insurance rates

Florida’s 7 million homeowners can forget about any immediate relief from rising property insurance rates.

Consumers should not be charged any dealer fees when buying out a car lease. That has been the focus of two recent Local 10 News investigations.

The Supreme Court’s verdict on abortions rights will be one of the most important in history for millions of women, regardless of where they stand on the issue.

Advocates of women’s rights met on Tuesday in Fort Lauderdale. They were reacting to news that abortion may no longer be protected as a constitutional right in the United States.

Abortion rights activists are mobilizing in the aftermath of the leaked draft of a Supreme Court opinion indicating the justices plan to overturn the Roe vs. Wade decision that broadly legalized abortion across the U.S. Step One: A late afternoon rally in Fort Lauderdale, one of among many mobilization events planned across the country. "We are going to be living in a post-Roe world. It is dangerous, it is scary."

Diapers will be tax free in the state of Florida, beginning on July 1.

Gov. Ron DeSantis says he will sign a 15-week abortion ban into law after Florida’s legislature joined the trend of Republican-led states anticipating a U.S. Supreme Court decision that could sharply limit abortion rights in America.

Governor Ron DeSantis previously signaled his support for the proposal and is expected to sign it into law.

The measure in Florida comes as Republicans across the country move to tighten access to the procedure.

Florida Senate Republicans voted on Thursday night to pass a ban on abortions after 15 weeks that already passed the House and Gov. Ron DeSantis supports.

Abortions after 15 weeks would be banned in Florida under a proposal Republican senators have given final passage and sent to Gov. Ron DeSantis for his expected signature.

Florida Republicans have pushed a bill to ban abortion after 15 weeks with no exceptions for rape, incest or human trafficking.

Lawmakers debated the bill on Wednesday, and one South Florida lawmaker revealed something very personal.

On the latest episode of the This Week in South Florida podcast, hosts Michael Putney and Glenna Milberg welcome State Sen. Annette Taddeo, attorney J.C. Planas, congressional candidates Rosalind Osgood and Joseph Carter, and Chair of Miami-Dade's Black Affairs Advisory Board Stephen Johnson.

Florida Republicans have rejected a move to create exemptions for rape, incest and human trafficking in their proposal to ban abortions after 15 weeks.

On the latest episode of the This Week in South Florida podcast, hosts Michael Putney and Glenna Milberg are joined by Rep. Carlos Gimenez, state Sen. Lauren Book, head of security at the Jewish Federation of Broward County Michael Tapper, and regional director of the Anti-Defamation League Florida Division Lonny Wilk.

On the latest episode of This Week in South Florida, hosts Michael Putney and Glenna Milberg are joined by Rep. Carlos Gimenez, state Sen. Lauren Book, head of security at the Jewish Federation of Broward County Michael Tapper, and regional director of the Anti-Defamation League Florida Division Lonny Wilk.

The bill sponsored by Book, a Democrat, would strengthen Florida's revenge porn law​.

The bill sponsored by Book, a Democrat, would strengthen Florida's revenge porn law​.

Florida State Sen. Lauren Book was sexually abused as a child for years by her nanny.

State Sen. Lauren Book often has told the story about how she was sexually abused by her nanny for six years when she was a child. “Truth be told, if it weren’t for my children, I would have ended my life,” she said.

Lauren’s Kids has recently won a 2021 Suncoast Regional EMMY Award for their Safer, Smarter Kids Kindergarten curriculum videos won in the Informational/Instructional category. “There is nothing more important than keeping our children safe. “Thank you to the Suncoast Regional EMMY team for helping to amplify our efforts to teach personal safety from a place of fun — not fear.”Lauren’s Kids CEO, Lauren Book, M.S. Ed., career educators, and developmental psychologists created the Safer, Smarter Kids curriculum to educate children, teachers, and parents, arming them with information to keep kids safe. For more information on safety resources for schools and families, visit https://safersmarterschools.org/ and https://safersmarterfamilies.org/

Lauren’s Kids has recently won a 2021 Suncoast Regional EMMY Award for their Safer, Smarter Kids Kindergarten curriculum videos won in the Informational/Instructional category. One in 3 girls and 1 in 5 boys will become victims of child sexual abuse before the age of 18, but 95% of this abuse IS preventable with education and awareness,” says Senator Lauren Book, Founder/CEO of Lauren’s Kids. “Thank you to the Suncoast Regional EMMY team for helping to amplify our efforts to teach personal safety from a place of fun — not fear.”Lauren’s Kids CEO, Lauren Book, M.S. Ed., career educators, and developmental psychologists created the Safer, Smarter Kids curriculum to educate children, teachers, and parents, arming them with information to keep kids safe. For more information on safety resources for schools and families, visit https://safersmarterschools.org/ and https://safersmarterfamilies.org/

A 19-year-old Broward County man who is out on bond for allegedly attempting to extort Florida Sen. Lauren Book by threatening to leak explicit photos and videos refused to answer questions on Friday.

A South Florida teen tried to get $5,000 from a state senator after threatening to release what he said were sexually explicit photos of her, authorities said. Jeremy Kamperveen, 19, of Plantation, was arrested last month and charged with extortion and cyberstalking, according to a Broward Sheriff's Office arrest report. The arrest report didn't name the victim, but Florida Sen. Lauren Book, whose district includes part of Broward County, released a statement Thursday saying the threatening messages had been sent to her.

A 19-year-old Broward County man targeted Florida Sen. Lauren Book and threatened to leak partially nude photos to Fox News to end her political career.

Senate President Wilton Simpson on Thursday removed Senate Democratic Leader Sen. Lauren Book from a chairmanship role, a change that comes less than two weeks before the start of legislative committee hearings.

On the latest episode of This Week in South Florida, hosts Michael Putney and Glenna Milberg speak with Mango's owner Josh Wallack, Miami Beach commissioner Mark Sumelian, state Sen. Lauren Book, Monroe County Administrator Roman Gastesi and Executive Director of the History Miami Museum Jorge Zamanilly.

Last week, hours after the Supreme Court declined to block a new restrictive abortion law in Texas, Florida lawmakers announced the move to pass something similar.

Miami-Dade County's town of Surfside wants you to support those impacted by the building collapse.

April is both National Sexual Assault Awareness Month and National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and Aventura-based nonprofit Lauren’s Kids is announcing awareness campaigns and sharing free resources all month long to help prevent child sexual abuse and support survivors. Their message is especially critical this year, as the FBI has warned that incidences of child sexual abuse and exploitation have spiked during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to raising awareness through education programming and EMMY Award-winning public service announcements, Senator Book and the Lauren’s Kids Foundation work to support children’s advocacy centers across the state as they help victims of abuse heal into thriving survivors. Sadly, 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 5 boys will become victims of sexual abuse before they turn 18, and 1 in 5 children who touch a digital device will be sexually solicited. These statistics are shocking, but the solution is clear: 95% of this abuse and exploitation IS preventable through education and awareness.

Alcee Hastings, the longtime Congressman serving South Florida, has died at 84 after a battle with pancreatic cancer.

In an unprecedented time where in-person fundraising events are unable to be held, the Lauren’s Kids Foundation is getting creative in its efforts to prevent abuse and protect childhood. The Foundation’s 2021 virtual walk challenge will take the place of Lauren’s Kids’ annual “Walk in My Shoes” 1,500-mile trek across the state and “42 Hours” walk-a-thon event at the Florida Capitol. and raise funds while participating in weekly live walks with Lauren’s Kids’ Founder and CEO, Senator Lauren Book, who herself is a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. Daily, weekly, and overall top walkers and fundraisers will be eligible to win prizes including social shoutouts, messages from Lauren, Lauren’s Kids giveaways, and more! Join Lauren’s Kids in the fight to prevent abuse & protect childhood by registering to walk at LaurensKids.org.

A small group of key stakeholders, survivors of childhood sexual abuse, and trauma therapists gathered at a distance in Panama City to reveal the newly- rebuilt “AshBritt Foundation & Lauren’s Kids Trauma Therapy House” at the Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center – the culmination of a multi-year, $800,000+ construction and design project made necessary by Category 5 storm Hurricane Michael in October of 2018. I am overjoyed to have been a part of this journey home.” The Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center serves more than 7,000 survivors of child abuse annually, at no cost to those in need of services. An official 501(c)(3) since 2007, Lauren’s Kids educates adults and children about sexual abuse prevention through in-school curriculum, resources for families, EMMY and ADDY Award-winning awareness campaigns, and speaking engagements around the country and the world. The foundation’s Safer, Smarter Schools K-12 curriculum program is currently used in classrooms in 37 states to teach children about personal safety. The finalized renovations to the Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center in Panama City will be documented in Lauren’s Kids’ new for-television awareness program, “The Journey Home,” set to air in media markets across Florida in April, National Child Abuse Prevention Month and National Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Dr. Michael Mizrachy, a Broward County pediatrician, bonded out of the county’s main jail on Wednesday evening facing charges related to child pornography, according to the Broward Sheriff’s Office. Local 10 News’ Sanela Sabovic spoke to two parents of children that were patients of Dr. Mizrachy. She said her 9-year-old daughter saw Mizrachy just this past October. Mizrachy saw countless patients while working as a pediatrician at West Broward Pediatrics in Plantation. West Broward Pediatrics released a statement reporting Mizrachy’s employment there was terminated last year and there is no evidence that any crimes were committed in the course of his professional duties.

Florida State Senators Lauren Book and Jason Pizzo recently spoke to members of the Aventura Marketing Council/Chamber of Commerce at a Zoom meeting sponsored by the new Hilton Aventura, opening February, 2021. Sen. Book spoke passionately about Lauren’s Kids Foundation which she and her father Ron Book founded in 2007 to prevent childhood sexual abuse and help survivors heal. As a victim of childhood sexual abuse for six years at the hands of a trusted caretaker, Lauren knows that 95% of sexual abuse is preventable through education and awareness. One in 3 girls and 1 in 5 boys will experience the horrors of sexual abuse before their 18th birthday. Regardless of our political affiliations, we should be able to agree on 85% of the issues to help our communities.

Issued by the district’s safety chief, the order rankled many educators, but few voiced their objections as loudly and swiftly as Florida Senator Lauren Book. But in 2010, Book began what quickly became the foundation’s signature Walk in My Shoes trek across Florida. As schools shut down in the spring and summer camps, sports leagues, and other summer programs were cancelled, calls to the Florida Abuse Hotline began dropping. Lacking the proper personal protective equipment, even state social workers who investigate abuse reports stopped visiting children in their homes. Her tormenter was her live-in nanny, a beloved best friend/big sister who joined the Book household when Book was 10.

State Sen. Lauren Book was among those who voted to recommend reinstating suspended Sheriff Scott Israel. Copyright 2019 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved.

Florida Sen. Lauren Book, D-Plantation, wants the state to investigate the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office in the aftermath of the Jeffrey Epstein sex abuse scandal. Ron DeSantis to authorize a state investigation into the circumstances of financier Jeffrey Epstein's ability to leave jail on work release. Sen. Lauren Book, D-Plantation, said in a letter Tuesday that the Republican governor should authorize a Florida Department of Law Enforcement probe into the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office. Epstein was allowed out on work release 12 hours a day, six days a week, while completing a 13-month sentence on prostitution-related charges involving underage girls. If Epstein was able to abuse young girls while under supervised work release, we need to understand very clearly when and how these egregious lapses and abuses occurred so they cannot be repeated."

Michael Huffaker, owner of Express Employment Pros Miami-Dade North, recently presented a Bridge to a Job certificate and a gift card to Emily Munoz, whom he placed as a receptionist in the Aventura office of Ronald L. Book. We give these certificates to our clients who have successfully completed their trial period at the employers office and have transitioned to full-time work at the site. Were very proud to have placed Emily Munoz with Mr. Books law office and delighted that she has become an integral part of their team.Im very honored to be working with the distinguished attorney, Mr. Ron Book, and his entire office. Thanks to Mr. Huffaker who worked diligently to find the perfect job for me, I have learned so much. Ive also had the opportunity to also meet Sen. Lauren Book through her amazing charity, Laurens Kids Foundation, said Emily.