FLORIDA REAL ESTATE BROKER GETS PRISON FOR 3 FRAUD CASES
A South Florida real estate broker was sentenced to more than three years in federal prison for three separate fraud convictions totaling more than $5 million. A federal judge imposed the sentence Tuesday on 44-year-old Christopher Wayne White of Fort Lauderdale. White was also ordered to pay more than $4 million in restitution.
POLK COUNTY VOTES TO JOIN APPEAL AGAINST JUVENILE JUSTICE
Polk County commissioners voted unanimously to join in a joint appeal against the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice to recover $4.8 million the agency overbilled the county since 2009. The county intervened in a lawsuit last year in which the counties prevailed, but County Attorney Michael Craig said DJJ didn’t comply with a settlement. After first agreeing to repay $4.8 million, Craig said DJJ officials are now only willing to pay $1.3 million.
PANAMA CITY AIRPORT ADDS INTRASTATE FLIGHTS
Silver Airways will begin offering daily flights from Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport to Tampa and Orlando. The airlines announced Monday that it will offer twice-daily flights to Orlando International Airport and once-a-day flights to Tampa International Airport on March 19.
NORTH MIAMI BEACH BANS USE OF MUG SHOTS IN POLICE TRAINING
Dozens of angry residents attended the North Miami Beach City Council meeting to decry the police department’s policy of using mug shots of black men as targets at the shooting range. The Miami Herald reports some residents carried poster-sized photos of Police Chief J. Scott Dennis riddled with bullet holes Tuesday night as they demanded his resignation. After some two hours of heated debate, the council voted to permanently ban the practice and to review police policies.
NEW YORK POLICE: FLORIDA BOY FOUND DEAD IN BATHTUB AT CAMP
Authorities are investigating the drowning of an 18-month-old boy found in a bathtub at a Catskill Mountain day camp in upstate New York. State police say Benzion Zisha Lieberman was found by his mother at about 9:30 Tuesday morning at Evergreen Estates Day Camp in Loch Sheldrake, New York. The child was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was declared dead. Officials say the family lives in North Miami Beach.
