LEON COUNTY

A Leon County man became a millionaire after playing the Jackpot Triple Play game, the Florida Lottery announced Thursday.

A Florida man won the $2 million top prize while playing the Bonus Cashword scratch-off game, the Florida Lottery announced Wednesday.

The Florida Supreme Court has refused to reinstate a Florida prosecutor who was removed by Gov. Ron DeSantis after making comments opposing prosecutions for abortions or gender-affirming health care.

A school superintendent has reached a settlement with Florida's education department after Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis criticized him for infusing “politically charged statements” and “personal views” into his administration.

A man convicted of fatally stabbing a woman near Florida's Capitol 32 years ago is set to be executed by lethal injection.

A group of Florida A&M University students is suing the state’s university system claiming the historically Black university is underfunded and subject of discriminatory practices compared to other state institutions.

A Florida man will spend nine years in federal prison after pleading guilty to defrauding more than 30 women of more than $1.3 million by pretending to be a doctor on online dating services.

A judge in Leon County ruled Thursday that the ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy is unconstitutional in Florida, but Gov. Ron DeSantis’s administration vowed to continue defending it in court.

Planned Parenthood and other reproductive health care providers are challenging Florida’s ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy on Monday at a state court in Tallahassee.

A 23-year-old man was at Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on Friday accused of killing a man late last year outside of Tony’s Food Store in West Little River.

A Leon County grand jury will be reviewing the investigation into the homicide of a prominent LGBTQ+ advocate, according to the Tallahassee Police Department.

A Leon County grand jury will be reviewing the homicide case investigation into the death of a prominent LGBTQ+ advocate, the Tallahassee Police Department announced on Thursday.

Leon County Circuit Judge John Cooper’s final judgment was officially filed Thursday. It is expected to be appealed by Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state.

As of Wednesday night, 10 school districts in Florida were implementing face mask mandates in defiance of Gov. Ron DeSantis’s executive order.

Ron DeSantis announced Thursday that six new COVID-19 vaccine locations would be opening across the state to help inoculate underserved communities, including three in South Florida. According to DeSantis, more than 44% of the state’s senior population has received the vaccine, which is about 4.5 million seniors. He said he plans to receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine himself when it is more widely available to the public. Separately, Publix announced Thursday that all its pharmacy locations across the state would be administering vaccines as of next week. 247: 1155 NW 11th St., Miami, FL 33136Those interested in receiving the vaccine at one of those locations are asked to visit www.winndixie.com/pharmacy/covid-vaccine.

PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. A judge sided with the state Thursday, deciding that the case over a lawsuit filed by the Florida Education Association to stop reopening should be heard in Leon County, where Tallahassee is located, instead of Miami-Dade. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order saying schools had to open their doors physically at least five days a week. The order does allow local school districts to decide when they reopen based on COVID-19 positivity rates. [The executive order] does not require any particular teacher, student, parent, staff to be physically present at any school, said Angel Cortinas, the states attorney. Theyve refused that mediation.Richard argued that transferring the case would delay any result.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Rebekah Jones’ career as a geospatial data scientist with the Florida Department of Health began in late 2018 and ended recently. Her final e-mail raised questions about the transparency of Gov. It’s a transparency that a group of news organizations questioned in Leon County Circuit Court in a lawsuit filed April 27 to demand that DeSantis release data on cases at prisons and long-term care facilities. She was on supervised pretrial release when President Donald Trump’s coronavirus response coordinator, Dr. Deborah Birx, praised her work. “I will always be dedicated to truth and justice,” Jones wrote, adding she wanted to help others to “understand the world a little bit better.”THE TIMELINE

WPXI via CNNTALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Florida judge struck down a state law that threatened city and county officials with penalties if they approved gun regulations tougher than state laws. Leon County Circuit Judge Charles Dodson said late Friday that Florida lawmakers can prohibit local regulation of firearms. But he said penalizing local officials for passing stricter laws is unconstitutional. The Tallahassee Democrat reports Florida has barred cities and counties from passing gun laws stricter than state laws since 1987, but lawmakers in 2011 approved penalties for local governments and officials. Local officials challenged the law in 2018 after the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.