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Big Brother won't ogle beaches in Florida town

Due to the cost, the Martin County Commission decided this week against spending $300,000 on a high-tech video surveillance system which would "talk back" to people, warning them not to have sex on the beach.

Source: WorldNetDaily, January 24, 2008

Cell Phone Video Shows Officer Throwing Down Bystander Videotaping Traffic Stop

Cell phone video of an Orlando officer throwing a bystander to the ground after the man was noticed videotaping a traffic stop has prompted accusations of police brutality.

IMAGES: Cell Phone Video

Source: Local6, January 7, 2008

Village begins foreclosure bid on truck owner's home

Jeff George is currently appealing an additional $10,150 in fines related to the monster truck and aesthetic violations with the house, said Lynda Walker, a code enforcement supervisor.

Source: Palm Beach Post (online), August 2, 2007

Christian group locked out of university

A lawsuit has been filed against the University of Florida, accusing officials there of discriminating against a student organization because its members must be Christian men.

Source: WorldNetDaily, July 14, 2007

School dance turns teen away

Now, the Goforths are demanding an apology from the school. They want to know why their son was turned away when other kids who are not students at the school were allowed in. Samantha wound up taking her cousin, who was let inside - no questions asked - even though at the time, she was a student in Michigan.

Source: St. Petersburg Times (online), November 19, 2006

Gardens resident pushing for city to display Nativity

When the Palm Beach Gardens resident was driving past city hall last year, she noticed the lighted menorah facing Military Trail. But she saw no Nativity to commemorate her Christian faith.

Source: Palm Beach Post (online), November 4, 2006

Ho-ho-no! Holiday play axed at school

But on the second day of practice, fifth-grader Kayla Vance was told she can't play Mrs. Claus in A Penguin Christmas because the principal has axed any mention of the word "Christmas" in holiday festivals.

Source: Palm Beach Post (online), September 29, 2006

Central Fla. city's immigrant crackdown could stop Wal-Mart

City [Avon Park] leaders are considering revising a proposed ban on assistance to illegal immigrants after learning its broad scope might block the construction of a Wal-Mart....

Source: The Ledger (online), July 13, 2006

Former Tampa worker gets $4,500 after being fired for displaying Confederate plate

Carpenter, was a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, when he was fired in September 2002. He put the vanity plate on the front of his truck and it was not the official one issued by the state of Florida, which does not have a Confederate flag license plate.

Source: Sun-Sentinel, April 21, 2006

City censors paintings as too religious

A Florida city has barred three paintings from a city hall display celebrating Black History Month because they contain small references to the Christian faith.

Source: WorldNetDaily, February 9, 2006

Students may be required to take Spanish

A proposal in Tallahassee is causing a stir in schools in Southwest Florida. The state's top democrat is supporting a plan to make Spanish classes mandatory for all students in kindergarten through second grade, just like English or Math.

Source: NBC-2 (online), November 10, 2005

School board bans religious holidays

Rather than add a school holiday for Muslims who were requesting one, a Florida school board has canceled all religious observances – including Yom Kippur, Good Friday and the day after Easter.

Source: WorldNetDaily, October 27, 2005

Florida's 'Force with force' law sparks campaign to warn tourists about potential violence

On Saturday it will become legal to use force on an attacker without first trying to escape the confrontation.

Source: Sun-Sentinel (online), September 26, 2005

Business owner told to dump U.S. flags

A Florida business owner has been cited by the city of Orlando for displaying several U.S. flags in the windows of her office building – and a religious-freedom law group has gone to bat for her.

Source: WorldNetDaily, September 9, 2005

'Digital birth ID' stirs privacy debate

A defense contractor has proposed that the state assign a "digital birth certificate" to each of its 16 million residents, in what some experts say is the best way to protect privacy and others fear is an entrée into a dystopian future.

Source: Palm Beach Post (online), August 13, 2005

Iris Scanning To Begin At Orlando International Airport

Florida's busiest airport will begin using high-tech iris-scanning technology to filter out possible terrorists and add an additional layer of security, according to Local 6 News.

Source: Local6, May 11, 2005

US police handcuff five-year-old

A lawyer has threatened to sue police officers who handcuffed an allegedly uncontrollable five-year-old after she acted up at a Florida kindergarten.

Source: BBC News (online), April 23, 2005

Easter bunny hunted by PC police

It's a rite of Spring in most suburban shopping malls for youngsters to participate in Easter egg hunts or pose for photos with the Easter Bunny with the same fervor they had for sitting on Santa's lap during the Christmas holiday season.

But in the name of "multiculturalism," malls are phasing out the secular symbol of the Christian holiday.

Source: WorldNetDaily, March 12, 2005

Florida boy accused of assault with rubber band

A 13-year-old student in Orange County, Fla., was suspended for 10 days and could be banned from school over an alleged assault with a rubber band, according to a WKMG Local 6 News report.

Source: Florida Today (online), February 23, 2005

Federal judge rules for Nativity display

A federal judge ruled today a Florida town must allow a display of the Christian Nativity this season.

U.S. District Court Judge Cecilia Altonaga granted a temporary restraining order requiring the town of Bay Harbor Islands to allow a Christian resident to display the Nativity alongside existing Jewish menorahs.

Source: WorldNetDaily, December 15, 2004

Holiday Tree Removed From Federal Courthouse

A Christmas tree that decorated the lobby in new federal courthouse downtown has been removed.

Source: First Coast News, December 13, 2004

Nativity banned but Muslim, Jewish symbols allowed

In New York City, arguments will be presented Monday in a federal lawsuit challenging the city's display of the Jewish Menorah during Hanukkah and the Islamic star and crescent during Ramadan [but not a Nativity] in more than 1,200 public schools while barring Nativity scenes during Christmas.

Source: WorldNetDaily, December 10, 2004

Florida Town to Use Surveillance Cameras

One of the nation's wealthiest towns will soon have
cameras and computers running background checks on every car and driver that passes through.

Source: Newsday (online), April 27, 2004

US village bans Aussie flag

For more than 40 years, Louise Hogberg has proudly flown the Australian flag from a succession of homes in Italy, California and the US east coast.

But in the Florida community of Windermere, the 65-year-old former Sydneysider faces a legal battle to keep it flying.

Source: Herald Sun (online), April 7, 2004

Have your thumb ready to ride the bus

The Pinellas school system is ready to approve a new technology that uses student fingerprints to keep track of who is riding school buses.

Source: St. Petersburg Times (online), February 28, 2004

Wiccans can stay without permit

The Rev. William E. Livingston withdrew his application for a conditional-use permit Monday evening at a Santa Rosa County Commission special rezoning meeting. Livingston said a county employee told him in August the permit was needed if Livingston was conducting church meetings at his home in the 4700 block of Shell Road, just west of Milton.

County Attorney Tom Dannheisser said the county can't require permits for religious or any other gathering in a private residence. However, the county can enforce violations of noise and other ordinances.

Source: Pensacola News Journal (online), January 6, 2004

City condemns man's purple house

The city of Lauderhill, Fla., passed a new law that controls the colors residents can paint their homes and compels the man to repaint within three years, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports.

Source: WorldNetDaily, November 12, 2003

Mexicans sign up for IDs

The ID cards have sparked debate in Florida, as in other states. Advocates say immigrants, even those here illegally, help the economy by doing jobs no one else wants. Without ID, they can't open bank accounts and are easy targets with cash. They need driver's licenses to get to work, and sometimes end up driving illegally when they can't get one, advocates say.

Source: Herald Tribune (online), October 26, 2003

City dumps facial-recognition program

The Tampa Police Department has dumped its facial-recognition surveillance system after it failed to make any arrests in two years.

Source: WorldNetDaily, August 21, 2003

State doesn't show up for appeal of 'Scarlet Letter' adoption law

The state did not show up Thursday to defend the new so-called "Scarlet Letter" law that requires mothers to bare their sexual histories in newspaper advertisements before they can put their children up for adoption.

Source: Source: Sun-Sentinel (online), February 20, 2003

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