Gary Fineout - page 27

The gunman who shot three people at Florida State University’s library early Thursday before being killed by police was a lawyer who graduated from the school, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official said the shooter was Myron May, who graduated from Florida State before attending Texas Tech University’s law school. The official requested anonymity because he was not authorized to release the name. May was fatally shot early Thursday after he shot three people at the…

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The Florida Supreme Court, in a blunt and highly critical ruling, on Thursday ordered the release of hundreds of pages of emails and documents that could expose the role that Republican consultants played in drawing new congressional districts. The Gainesville-based team of consultants, whose legal bills were paid by the Republican Party of Florida, have tried to keep the documents secret during an ongoing legal challenge to the state’s congressional map. State legislators were forced to alter that map after…

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Attorney General Pam Bondi, who was easily re-elected to a second term, is defending her decisions to take free trips to conferences and socialize with attorneys that represent corporations under investigation by other states. Gift disclosure records show that in the last four years Bondi accepted more than $51,000 worth of meals, hotels and free trips – to conferences in locales ranging from California, Wyoming and Michigan as well as for trips to Mexico and Israel with other attorneys generals.…

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Florida’s two best-known universities – fiercely competitive on the athletic field and among their alumni – are each getting new presidents that vary significantly in their background and experience. The state board that oversees Florida’s state university system on Thursday officially confirmed the selections for the University of Florida and Florida State University. The Board of Governors approved the hires while meeting on the campus of Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. The University of Florida, which is striving to…

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From their style, to their opposing positions on everything from regulating utilities to the need for a ban on same-sex marriage, the Florida’s two main attorneys general candidates seem to have very little in common. Republican incumbent Pam Bondi and Democrat George Sheldon have stark differences about their approach to a post that is arguably the second-most powerful in state government. The attorney general is the state’s chief legal officer, but has numerous duties including defending state laws, handling death…

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The unprecedented wave of television ads airing in Florida’s bitter contest for governor has been paid by a wide array of interests ranging from casino owners, unions, electric utilities, and even the incumbent himself. Campaign reports filed late Friday show that Gov. Rick Scott and his wife donated $12.8 million to the Republican Party of Florida in the past month. Scott maintained that he had to dip into his own wallet to counter what he called a “smear campaign” coming…

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As Florida slowly recovers from the Great Recession, Gov. Rick Scott has asked voters to judge him on his handling of the state’s economy and his ability to bring jobs to the Sunshine State. But in an election campaign with Democrat Charlie Crist that has featured caustic political ads and a debate highlighted by a tiff over a fan, there’s been little discussion about Scott’s management of the $70 billion-plus enterprise that is state government, or the steady stream of…

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