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White, Marion County woman arrested after shooting Black neighbor
The 58-year-old white woman suspected of shooting through a closed door and killing her Black neighbor in Marion County has been arrested.
Moms for Liberty makes civil rights group’s extremist group list
Florida-founded group Moms for Liberty has been listed in the Southern Poverty Law Center’s “Year in Hate & Extremism 2022” report. SPLC labels Moms for Liberty an “anti-government and anti-student inclusion group.” The SPLC says it has documented 1,225 “hate and antigovernment extremist groups” across the US and is tracking 89 hate groups in Florida. Moms for Liberty was founded in 2021 by former Florida school board members, Tiffany Justice and Tina Descovich. Current Sarasota County school board member Bridget Ziegler was also a co-founder, however, she has since left the group.
Equality Florida CEO speaks in St. Pete
Meanwhile, Nadine Smith, co-founder of the LGBTQ advocacy group Equality Florida, spoke to a civic group in downtown St Petersburg yesterday. The advocate and Florida native stressed the importance of taking action in the midst of the state’s crackdown on LGBTQ rights.
Florida Supreme Court still hearing abortion ban case, despite conflict of interest
The Florida Supreme Court is hearing a case that challenges the state’s 15-week abortion ban, even though one justice may have a conflict of interest. One expert says nothing requires Justice Charles Canady to remove himself from the case, but ethically, the situation doesn’t look great.
Rent hikes keep Tampa residents financially burdened
Tampa renters will need to make more than $80,000 to make ends meet, according to a new study. The Waller, Weeks and Johnson Rental Index shows the average rent in Tampa was $2,118.00 in April, which is up by over 5% since last year.
To live comfortably, renters will need to make $84,750 a year – and close to $51,000 to avoid being what’s known as “severely rent burdened”. Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows residents in the Tampa Bay area make an average of $57,500 a year.
Information from the Florida Public Radio network, News Service of Florida, and Associated Press was used in this report.
