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FBI director: gunman's laptop shows him interested in Trump's rally a week before event | Quickcast

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FBI director: gunman's laptop shows him interested in Trump's rally a week before event | Quickcast

www.youtube.com – CBS Miami – 2024-07-24 16:07:31

SUMMARY: In today’s CBS News Miami update, authorities have raised the reward to $10,000 for information leading to the capture of the gunman responsible for the tragic shooting death of three-year-old Ryo Yansy during a birthday party in Fort Lauderdale. Meanwhile, Miami Beach tenants at the Riviera Apartments have received an extension and can stay an additional 30 days after initially being told to vacate. In political news, President Biden will address the nation regarding his withdrawal from the presidential race, allowing Vice President Kamala Harris to become the likely Democratic nominee. Additionally, COVID-19 cases are rising across the U.S., and South Florida’s Coco Gauff will serve as a flag bearer at the Paris Olympics.

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In today’s Quickcast:

FBI Director Christopher Wray is testifying Wednesday at a hearing on the investigation into the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump, and he is revealing new details about the gunman’s actions in the lead-up to the July 13 shooting in Pennsylvania.
Wray told members of the House Judiciary Committee that the gunman, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks, flew a drone near the site of the rally roughly two hours before he opened fire. Wray said investigators recovered the drone in Crooks’ vehicle, and the bureau believes he was watching video streamed from the device to scout the area.
The FBI chief also said agents recovered a total of three “relatively crude” explosive devices: two from Crooks’ vehicle and one from his residence. Crooks had a transmitter that would have allowed him to detonate the devices in his car remotely, but the receivers on the bombs were turned off, Wray said.
Eight cartridges from spent bullets were found on the roof where Crooks opened fire, Wray confirmed. The gunman killed one attendee and wounded Trump and two others.
Investigators have managed to gain access to Crooks’ phone, which Wray said was a “significant technical challenge.” He said agents discovered Crooks was using encrypted messaging apps to communicate.
The FBI, which is investigating the shooting as a potential act of domestic terrorism, does not yet have “a clear picture” of the gunman’s motive, Wray said. But investigators did find that Crooks seemed to become “very focused on” Trump and the rally on July 6. An examination of his laptop revealed that he searched “how far away was Oswald from Kennedy?” on that day, when he also registered to attend the rally.

When President Biden suddenly ended his reelection campaign over the weekend and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, numerous Democrats were quick to point out that former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, had previously supported Harris.
Tweets circulated with an image of a check from 2011 showing that Trump had donated $5,000 to the campaign of then-California Attorney General Kamala Harris. One Democratic lawmaker, Rep. Jared Moskowitz, of Florida, posted the picture of the check with the caption: “Wise investment.”
Campaign finance records show Donald Trump donated twice to reelect Kamala Harris as the attorney general of California. Records show Trump made a $5,000 donation in 2011, months after she was first sworn in, and another $1,000 donation in 2013, one year before she was reelected for a second term.
The Harris campaign told CBS News that she later donated those funds to a nonprofit group advocating for civil rights and human rights for Central Americans, which was first reported by the Sacramento Bee. The paper noted that her donation came in 2015, as she was launching her campaign for the U.S. Senate.
Records also show that Trump’s daughter, Ivanka Trump, made a $2,000 donation to Harris’ campaign for attorney general in 2014.

The remaining residents of a condominium community deemed unsafe in Pembroke Pines have been given roughly a month to leave.
Last year, unsafe structure notices were issued for seven buildings within the Heron Pond Condominium community, 8400 SW 1st Street, that have since been fully evacuated. Additionally, specific units in the seven other buildings were also evacuated. Those ordered to leave did not know if or when they would be allowed to return. Each owner was required to continue paying all bills and fees, according to the property manager.
On Wednesday, the city said an unsafe structure notice had been issued for all remaining units.
The city said that they were informed by the Engineer of Record, ACG Engineering Services Inc., that the remaining structures within the community must be evacuated. In compliance with building and safety codes, the city issued an order to evacuate by August 29, 2024.
“Should the area be placed under a tropical storm weather advisory, units must be evacuated immediately,” according to a statement from the city.

Catch the Quickcast with Najahe Sherman weekdays at 4PM ET streaming on the CBS Miami app and CBSMiami.com

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News from the South - Florida News Feed

Federal judge extends block on Florida immigration law that led to arrest of a U.S. citizen

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floridaphoenix.com – Jackie Llanos – 2025-04-18 14:36:00

by Jackie Llanos, Florida Phoenix
April 18, 2025

A federal judge brought up the arrest in Leon County of Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez, a U.S. citizen born in Georgia, during a hearing Friday in which she extended her block of the new Florida immigration law until April 29.

U.S. District Court Judge Kathleen Williams expressed frustration about the arrests of Lopez-Gomez and others, said an attorney representing the immigrants and groups suing the state.

At issue is Williams’ April 4 order temporarily barring enforcement of a law passed during a special session earlier this year making it a first-degree misdemeanor to illegally enter the state as an “unauthorized alien.”

A Florida Highway Patrol trooper’s arrest of Lopez-Gomez on Wednesday prompted national attention following Florida Phoenix’s reports that he was set to remain in jail because U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had placed a 48-hour hold on him — even after a Leon County judge determined there had been no probable cause for the arrest.

Lopez-Gomez was released from Leon County jail on Thursday evening. The 20-year-old held his mother in a tight embrace and wept when they reunited.

“We appreciate that the federal courts have seen through this blatantly unconstitutional law, but the reality is that, without enforcement, it seems that local law enforcement and Florida Highway Patrol are continuing to ignore the judge and order,” said Miriam Fahsi Haskell, an attorney for Community Justice Project representing the plaintiffs, in a phone interview with the Phoenix. “The reality is that once a person is arrested under SB 4C and booked into jail, that person risks then having an ICE hold on them.”

Community Justice Project, the ACLU of Florida, Americans for Immigrant Justice, and Florida Legal Services attorneys are representing the plaintiffs: the Florida Immigrant Coalition, Farmworker Association of Florida Inc., and two women without permanent legal status.

David Matthew Costello, lead attorney representing Attorney General James Uthmeier, declined to comment, and a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office did not respond to the Phoenix’s questions. The other defendants are the statewide prosecutor and state attorneys.

Binding?

During the hearing at the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of Florida in Miami, attorneys representing the state argued that law enforcement is not bound by Williams’ order, Fahsi Haskell said. Another hearing is set for April 29.

“The Court enters a [temporary restraining order] prohibiting Defendants and their officers, agents, employees, attorneys, and any person who are in active concert or participation with them from enforcing SB 4-C,” Williams’ order states.

Two other men were with Lopez-Gomez when the trooper stopped the car because the driver was going 78 mph in a 65 mph zone, according to the arrest report. The driver, Estiven Sales-Perez, and another passenger, Ismael Sales-Luis, were also charged with illegal entry as “unauthorized aliens.” The driver was also charged with driving without a license.

ICE has taken custody of Sales-Perez and is holding him in a Tallahassee field office, according to the online detainee locator system.

“Florida Highway Patrol will continue to work willingly with our federal partners to engage in interior enforcement of immigration law,” a spokesperson for the agency wrote in a statement to the Phoenix.

Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried called the arrest a kidnapping.

“Where does the lawlessness of this administration stop? If this can happen to an American-born citizen, it can happen to any of us,” she said in a statement.

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HOPE Florida board agrees to take actions to improve situation amid controversy | Florida

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HOPE Florida board agrees to take actions to improve situation amid controversy | Florida

www.thecentersquare.com – By Tom Joyce | The Center Square contributor – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-18 13:39:00

(The Center Square) – After weeks of controversy and leadership shake-ups, the HOPE Florida Foundation Board has approved measures it hopes will fix its problems with transparency and legal compliance.

Initially set for Thursday morning, the meeting was rescheduled for the afternoon due to cyberattacks.

Joshua Hay, who chairs the charity’s board and serves as the CEO of Indelible Solutions, led the meeting.

Hay laid out the tasks the board needed to approve. Actions the board approved included reviewing its IRS Form 990 to ensure legal compliance, adopting articles of incorporation, starting an annual budget process, and completing other paperwork necessary to comply with state law.

Hope Florida lacked an annual budget. Hay offered to work with the Department of Children and Families to draft a preliminary budget. He said the organization needs better financial planning to reach operational stability and hire staff in the future.

“As you all know, and as we’ve spoken about, there’s no staff, so a lot of those responsibilities are falling on me,” Hay said during the meeting. “I am helping out to move the Foundation forward, and I will start development of the budget in coordination with the Department.”

Hay said he would work with the Foundation’s lawyers and accountants to ensure the forms, which were prepared quickly over the past few weeks, are accurate. He said he’ll bring the necessary updates back to the board for approval.

Hay also wanted to nominate board members as vice president, treasurer and secretary so they could take on more responsibilities. However, the board members tabled the motion, contending they need more time to review the roles of said positions.

Additionally, the board agreed to meet monthly moving forward, instead of quarterly, to address some of its ongoing problems.

Board member Tina Vidal-Duart suggested that the board delegate tasks to all its members to help it address its ongoing problems at the next meeting, if Hope Florida lacks the funds to hire staff to address those problems.

“It is obviously too much work for one person to handle, and I think all of us would be willing to step up and take on responsibility for some of these things going forward,” Vidal-Duart said during the meeting.

Hay appreciated that suggestion, noting he has had to cancel several business meetings to handle the Foundation’s matters.

Hay wants to hire an executive director soon. He is also working with the Florida Department of Children and Families to possibly add more staff.

The meeting came as Mohammad Jazil, a lawyer the Foundation recently brought in to help fix compliance issues, resigned earlier in the week.

Jazil resigned after state Rep. Alex Andrade, R-Pensacola, urged Hay to fire Jazil.

House members say a $10 million donation from healthcare giant Centene to HOPE Florida was used to fund the opposition to an unsuccessful ballot measure that attempted to legalize recreational marijuana in Florida last year. The $10 million donation was part of a $67 million settlement that Centene reached with the state over Medicaid billing.

Jazil worked on the no side of the marijuana ballot question, according to media reports. He served as legal counsel for Keep Florida Clean.

Amid these controversies, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has defended HOPE Florida and said Republicans maligning it are helping Democrats.

“It’s a private charity. It is not the government. This is why I think first of all, the whole thing that the House leadership is doing is a manufactured fraud. This is a hoax,” DeSantis said, as The Center Square previously reported. “So you know, for some of these Republican leaders to be joining with liberal Democrats and liberal media to manufacture smears against HOPE Florida, against me, against the First Lady. It just shows you they are not on your team. They are not doing what they said that they would do.”

First Lady Casey Harper founded Hope Florida in 2021.

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How Florida State University shooting unfolded

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www.clickorlando.com – Brenda Argueta – 2025-04-18 13:26:00

SUMMARY: A shooting at Florida State University on Thursday resulted in two deaths and six injuries. The shooter, identified as 20-year-old Phoenix Ikner, the son of a deputy and a university student, opened fire near the student union. Law enforcement neutralized the threat within five minutes after Ikner began shooting around noon. He was shot and taken into custody by police. The two fatalities were not students; one worked in campus dining. The six injured individuals are in stable condition and expected to recover. In response, the university canceled athletic events for the weekend. Authorities are still investigating the motive.

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