Poll finds Florida voters disapprove of ICE, divided over Trump handling of immigration

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/8 1:00A Anthony Man

Floridians likely to vote in this year’s midterm elections are deeply divided over President Donald Trump’s handling of immigration, polling shows, and a majority disapproves of the way ICE is handling its job. The University of North Florida...

‘Not going anymore’: Immigration enforcement hits Florida school enrollment, attendance

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/8 1:00A Camila Gomez, Steven Walker

In early January, an Apopka mother heard reports of ICE raids near her daughter’s Orange County elementary school. Terrified, the immigrant from Honduras texted her five-year-old’s teacher. The...

Bipartisan opposition blocked a dozen ICE warehouses. Can Orlando do the same?

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/8 1:00A Ryan Gillespie

ICE’s plan to vastly expand its national detention network has faced a wave of bipartisan blowback , scuttling multiple planned warehouse conversions across the country. Rumored sales or leases to Immigration and Customs Enforcement have been...

Winter arts roundup: Yuja Wang, Jasmine Forsberg, Disney concerts and more

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/7 11:00P Matthew J. Palm

Where does the time go? These first months of the year have been so extraordinarily busy that my writing hasn t been able to keep up with all I ve been doing. So here s a look at multiple special...

Paddling the Ocklawaha River during a drawdown reveals lost springs, cypress graveyard

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/7 1:00A Patrick Connolly

Florida is unparalleled in its concentration of pristine, shimmering, azure-blue freshwater springs, tallying more than 1,000 such examples throughout the state . These natural gems give a glimpse...

‘Wow the world’: Orlando wants to spend $35 million to lure Olympics qualifying and NBA All-Stars

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/6 9:06A Stephen Hudak

Orlando wants to host an NBA All-Star Week in 2029 or 2030 and Olympic qualifying competitions in 2028 for flag football, skateboarding and other sports to be included in the Summer Games in Los Angeles, but organizers say they need $35 million...

Kissimmee police lieutenant, ‘sergeant of the year,’ arrested for misusing surveillance video

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/6 6:46A Cristóbal Reyes

A recently promoted Kissimmee police lieutenant turned herself in Thursday for allegedly accessing a surveillance video without authorization, months after an internal investigation into the matter initially recommended no criminal charges. Lt....

Maxwell: Florida censors ‘racism’ references out of college textbook

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/6 5:14A Scott Maxwell

For the past few years, Gov. Ron DeSantis and GOP legislators have been on a censorship tear that would make 17th-century book-burners offer a round of Puritanical applause. They’ve targeted books that promote diversity, that discuss LGBTQ issues...

Friday is mostly dry with low chances for rain in the afternoon

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/6 2:27A Garfield Hylton

Friday is mostly dry with low chances for an afternoon shower across the interior. There is a 20 percent chance of showers after 3 p.m., according to NWS Melbourne. Temperatures continue to be above normal, ranging from the low to mid 80s. There is...

How the University of Florida law school got faculty to ‘bend the rules’ for AG James Uthmeier

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/6 2:18A Garrett Shanley

TALLAHASSEE — Leaders at the University of Florida’s law school sidestepped internal rules to rush Attorney General James Uthmeier into a part-time teaching role, granting unusual leeway to a politically powerful adjunct professor earning a...

Florida surgeon general wants to abolish school vaccine mandates. Lawmakers aren’t on board

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/6 1:53A Steven Walker

Though Florida s top medical official proclaimed last fall that the state would end all vaccine mandates for school children, six months later the Florida Legislature looks unlikely to take the drastic, first-in-the-nation action. Some lawmakers...

New downtown plaque points out Disney history-making spot

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/6 12:54A Dewayne Bevil

A plaque has been placed on the downtown Orlando building where Walt Disney made history with the 1965 announcement that included his development plans for Central Florida. Folks strolling around Lake...

Theme parks perking up plantlife after freezes

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/5 5:20A Dewayne Bevil

The colder-than-usual winter for Florida has been a challenge to homeowner lawns and to horticulture teams at Central Florida’s theme parks. At Walt Disney World , it meant covering up elaborate...

Central Florida man charged with murder; mother also arrested in 3-year-old’s fatal beating

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/5 1:59A Richard Tribou

A Marion County man arrested after the fatal beating death of a 3-year-old girl now faces homicide charges, while the girl s mother was also arrested for child neglect. The Marion County Sheriff s Office announced the new charges Wednesday in the...

Central Florida getting warmer with some chance for rain Thursday

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 3/5 12:59A Richard Tribou

Temperatures across Central Florida remain higher than normal with the mid-80s expected inland on Thursday along with a chance for afternoon rain, according to the National Weather Service in Melbourne. An east coast sea breeze will steadily move...