Florida Attorney General Asks State Supreme Court to Intervene in Proposed Abortion Amendment

Republican Attorney General Ashley Moody of Florida asked the state Supreme Court Monday to review language for a proposed abortion amendment that would enshrine the practice up to viability, according to The National Desk.

The amendment was submitted by Floridians Protecting Freedom (FPF) and has amassed 0ver 400,000 of the 891,523 signatures needed by Feb. 1 to get the amendment on the November 2024 ballot, according to The National Desk. Moody has been vocal in her opposition to the amendment and told the court Monday that she felt FPF’s proposed language did not “satisfy the legal requirements” for a spot on the ballot.

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Florida Supreme Court Ponders Definition of a Riot in 2021 State Law

The Florida Supreme Court is pondering the definition of a riot related to a law passed in 2021 designed to prevent violent protests like those seen in 2020 after the death of George Floyd.

Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, Leon County Sheriff Walt McNeil, Jacksonville/Duval County Sheriff Mike Williams, and Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony were named as defendants in the 2021 lawsuit filed by Dream Defenders and other social justice groups including Black Lives Matter.

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Abortion-Related Bill Filed as Florida Supreme Court Ponders Six-Week Ban Law

A bill seeking to prevent Florida women from being prosecuted for seeking abortions out of state was filed last week as the state Supreme Court considers the constitutionality of the state’s six-week abortion ban. 

In a news release, Florida Senate Minority Leader Lauren Book, D-Davie, said she had filed legislation to prevent pregnant women and girls from being criminally charged and imprisoned for obtaining an abortion, stating that the new bill — Senate Bill 34 — was in response to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ claim that only abortion providers would be prosecuted.

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Florida Initiative to Prohibit Abortion Restrictions Qualifies for State Court Review

Floridians Protecting Freedom, sponsors of an initiative that would prohibit restrictions on abortions before fetal viability, have submitted 297,586 valid signatures as of Sept. 1, qualifying the proposal for a review by the state Supreme Court.

The initiative would provide that “no law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s health care provider.” The amendment would not change the state legislature’s ability to require parental notification for abortions sought by minors.

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DeSantis Announces Plan to Empanel Grand Jury to Investigate Wrongdoing Linked to COVID-19 Shots

Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on Tuesday that he has petitioned the Florida Supreme Court to empanel a statewide grand jury to investigate “any and all wrongdoing” linked to the COVID-19 shots to bring accountability to those who have engaged in misconduct.

In its petition to the state Supreme Court, the DeSantis administration said that the “pharmaceutical industry has a notorious history of misleading the public for financial gain” and the grand jury will probe “the development, promotion, and distribution of vaccines purported to prevent COVID-19 infection, symptoms, and transmission.”

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Al Lawson Files to Run for Florida’s 2nd Congressional District After Redistricting Fight

Congressman Al Lawson (D-FL-5) has filed to run in Florida’s second congressional district against incumbent Rep. Neal Dunn (R-FL-2). Lawson currently holds the seat for district five, but the months-long congressional redistricting fight to preserve the boundaries of district five was secured in favor of the new maps earlier this month. Therefore, Lawson is seeking to unseat Dunn.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has backed the redistricting process including proposing the boundary changes for district five, claiming that it was an unconstitutional, racial-based gerrymander. District five, as of right now, snakes from Tallahassee across North Florida to Jacksonville’s northside. It comprises a majority minority district.

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Florida Supreme Court to Hear Arguments Related to Local Government Gun Regulations

The Florida Supreme Court will hear arguments next week in a dispute over a 2011 state law that allows for penalties if city and county officials pass gun regulations. The hearing comes amid a ramped up debate over gun laws due to recent mass shootings in Texas and New York.

The case made it to the Supreme Court when a coalition of local governments and Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried filed notices back in June 2021. The notices were the initial steps in asking the Supreme Court to hear the case and came a month after the 1st District Court of Appeal denied a request to send the case to the Supreme Court.

The efforts to get a Supreme Court hearing came after a Tallahassee-based appeals court upheld the constitutionality of the 2011 law in April, 2021

Since 1987, Florida has barred cities and counties from passing regulations that are stricter than state firearms laws, and the penalties in the 2011 law were designed to strengthen that “preemption.”

The law was challenged by local governments and officials who were urged to take action after the February 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland that killed 17 people. However, attorneys for the local governments indicated in  a 2019 court document that the requested actions were not taken up by elected officials due to the potential penalties outlined in the 2011 state law.

The requested actions included such things as requiring procedures or documentation to ensure compliance with background checks and waiting periods for gun purchases and requiring reporting of failed background checks.

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Florida Supreme Court to Hear Challenge to ‘Marsy’s Law’ Over Tallahassee Shootings

Florida Supreme Court Building

The Florida Supreme Court is set to take up a legal battle regarding “Marsy’s Law,” which is a 2018 constitutional amendment passed by voters that shields the identities of victims of crimes. An official date has not yet been set.

The City of Tallahassee and several news organizations are appealing a decision by the 1st District Court of Appeal backing the law and protecting the identities of Tallahassee police officers when they utilized use-of-force in more than one shooting incident. The law enforcement officers maintain they were the victims and felt compelled to use deadly force.

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Florida Supreme Court Calls for Additional State Appeals Court

Florida Supreme Court Building

The Florida Supreme Court is calling for creating a sixth state appeals court. One of their reasons for making the call is “serious underrepresentation” of appellate judges from Jacksonville.

“The creation of a new district court, like any other significant change in the judicial system, would be accompanied by some degree of internal disruption, but we conclude that any such internal disruption in the district courts associated with the creation of a sixth district court would be short-lived and would be outweighed by the benefit of enhanced public trust and confidence,” said the Florida Supreme Court’s majority opinion shared by Chief Justice Charles Canady and Justices Jorge Labarga, Alan Lawson, Carlos Muniz and John Couriel.

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Florida Supreme Court Hears Case Regarding Red-Light Cameras, Fees

After hearing arguments in a potential class-action lawsuit regarding credit card fees and red-light cameras, Florida Supreme Court justices seemed skeptical in siding with the motorist who filed the suit.

The motorist, Steven Pincus, filed the lawsuit in Miami against American Traffic Solutions, Inc. (ATS), who Pincus says improperly charged him with a $7.90 credit card fee after paying a $158 fine for running a red light in 2018.

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Florida Lawmakers Launch Congressional Redistricting

Florida Senate Capitol

As a result of the 2020 census, Florida will gain one additional congressional seat, and Florida lawmakers will begin the process to redraw district lines in the upcoming fall committee weeks with the 2022 legislative session beginning in January.

“Prior to the start of the 2022 Regular Session the Legislature will hold interim committee meetings, at which time the committees that conduct the redistricting and reapportionment processes may meet,” according to the Florida Senate’s redistricting site.

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Florida Supreme Court Justice Stephen Grimes Dies at 93

Former Florida Supreme Court Justice Stephen Grimes passed away at 93. He was the 72nd justice to serve on Florida’s high court since Florida’s statehood. Grimes served from 1987 to 1997 and served as Chief Justice from 1994 to 1996.

Grimes was appointed by Florida Gov. Bob Martinez after a long career as a lawyer with Holland & Knight in Bartow, Fla. After his Supreme Court retirement in 1997, Grimes returned to Holland & Knight to continue practicing law.

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Florida Appeals Court Denies Motion Related to Concealed Weapons Licensing Case

A motion to move a case concerning concealed-weapons licensing to the Florida Supreme Court was denied by the 1st District Court of Appeals in a 12-3 vote on Friday.

The case was filed by a Floridian by the name of R.C. in court documents, who was denied a concealed-weapons license by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DACS). R.C. was convicted of a felony in 1969 his civil right to possess a weapon was restored. 

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Florida Supreme Court to Hear Tobacco Industry Case

The Florida Supreme Court announced they will be taking up a case potentially making it harder to sue cigarette companies.

Florida’s high court decided to hear the case after the 1st District Court of Appeals overturned a verdict in a 2006 class-action lawsuit which saw individuals had the ability to sue cigarette companies for potentially misleading information regarding the dangers of smoking.

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SCOTUS to Take Up Florida Medicaid Case

United States Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of the United States has announced they will be taking up a legal battle over a decade in the making regarding how much money a state can recoup after a legal settlement.
The issue revolves around Gianinna Gallardo, who was struck by a bus in 2008 and suffered drastic injuries. Gallardo’s parents reached an $800,000 legal settlement, and the accident left Gallardo in a vegetative state.

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Florida Supreme Court Rules Against Marijuana Industry Challenge

Florida Supreme Court Building

Earlier this week the Florida Supreme Court unanimously ruled against a challenge from the medical marijuana industry, backing the state’s strict regulation of the industry’s business model standardized by the Florida legislature.

The challenge was filed by a marijuana company, Florigrown, where they contested the legislation put in place which limits the amount of medical marijuana licenses issued in Florida and requires dispensaries to grow and process their product. Florigrown was denied a license to become a medical marijuana treatment center in 2017.

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Police Protection Under Marsy’s Law Heads to Florida Supreme Court

Florida Supreme Court Building

A lawsuit filed by two police officers after separate use-of-force incidents claiming that they are entitled to protection under Florida’s recently-adopted Marsy’s Law Constitutional amendment will head to the state Supreme Court for a decision. 

“A three-judge panel of the 1st District Court of Appeal last month sided with two Tallahassee police officers, who argued that, as victims, they were entitled to privacy protections included in Marsy’s Law,” WFSU reported. 

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Florida’s First Black Supreme Court Justice, Joseph Hatchett, Dies at 88

The Florida Supreme Court announced on Saturday that former Florida Supreme Court Justice Joseph W. Hatchett died in Tallahassee on Friday, April 30, 2021 at age 88.

Hatchett became the first African American to serve on Florida’s highest court when he was appointed by Governor Reubin Askew in 1975. Hatchett was Florida’s 65th Justice since statehood was granted in 1845.

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Florida Supreme Court Quashes Amendment That Would Outlaw ‘Assault Weapons’

The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday struck down an amendment that would ban the ownership of assault weapons due to misleading wording.

Ban Assault Weapons Now, which prohibited the “possession of assault weapons,” banned magazines holding more than 10 rounds and mandated registration for these guns, was set to appear on the 2022 ballot. However, justices voted 4-1 to ensure this doesn’t happen, according to the Washington Examiner.

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