Florida: 5 Things To Know For November 14

Your daily look at news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about today.

VERMONT MAN CHARGED IN POLO MOGUL JURY TAMPERING

A Vermont man is facing federal charges in Florida after allegedly claiming in text messages he could sway a jury considering DUI manslaughter charges against a prominent polo mogul. James Perron of Tinmouth, Vermont, made his initial court appearance Thursday in West Palm Beach but did not enter a plea and did not immediately have a lawyer. A judge set arraignment for Dec. 1.

SCIENCE LESSON SAVES LIFE OF ONE FLORIDA STUDENT

A fifth-grade science lesson saved the life of one elementary school student. Tashawn Roberts was checking the pulse in his neck during a lesson on the circulatory system when he found a lump. The boy was rushed into surgery for a golf-ball sized aneurysm in his neck. Had it gone undetected, it could have ruptured and caused brain damage or ended Tashawn’s life.

FLORIDA MAN EXECUTED FOR STEPDAUGHTER’S SLAYING

A Florida man who fatally shot his sleeping wife and then raped and killed his young stepdaughter 22 years ago has been put to death for the child’s slaying. Chadwick Banks was pronounced dead at 7:27 EST Thursday after a lethal injection at Florida State Prison, the office of Gov. Rick Scott said. Banks was condemned for the September 1992 killing of 10-year-old Melody Cooper. Banks also received a life sentence for the murder of his wife, Cassandra Banks, in a community outside the state capital of Tallahassee.

JUDGE STICKS TO BP GROSS NEGLIGENCE RULING

A federal judge in New Orleans is sticking to his ruling that said BP’s conduct in the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil rig disaster amounted to “gross negligence.” It could mean close to $18 billion in federal penalties for the oil giant. BP attorneys filed a motion in October arguing that a key finding that led to the “gross negligence” ruling was based on testimony about cement used to seal the completed Macondo before the April 2010 explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig. BP asserted that the testimony had been excluded from a trial on the issue.

FLORIDA SUPREME COURT ORDERS RELEASE OF SECRET EVIDENCE USED IN REDISTRICTING TRIAL

The Florida Supreme Court, in a blunt and highly critical ruling, hasordered 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 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 a judge ruled this summer two congressional districts were improperly drawn to aid the GOP.