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The Department of Children and Families is giving out grant money to help treat mentally ill patients in county jails. Today in Tallahassee, DCF gave Leon County 7-hundred thousand dollars. Statewide, 21 other grants were awarded. Some of the money is used to train law enforcement officer how to identify mentally ill inmates. The money will also be used to pay for inmate counseling. Mentally ill inmates cost taxpayers 7 times as much as regular inmates. Bill Janes is the Assistant Secretary of Mental Health for DCF. Janes said, with a little help some of the inmates could lead productive lives.

“We need to get them out of the jails so they don’t escalate into a prison environment or a state hospital. We need to treat them in the community, help them live productive sustained lives,” said Janes.

Part of the money will also help fund a drug and mental health court. DCF plans to expand the programs to all county jails in Florida.

The state spent almost 40 million dollars this year to help 15 counties switch from touch screen to optical scan voting machines. The idea was to have a verifiable paper trail, but as Mike Vasilinda tells us, a close election doesn’t mean every vote will now be counted.

Hear it Here: Recount Ballots? Only in the Movies

The ballots from the 2000 election still occupy 4 thousand cubic feet in the state archives. They have never been fully counted by hand. For many, this scene of canvassing boards holding the ballots up to the light is a vivid memory of the closest election in history. It is a scene you won’t see this election.

Unlike 2000 when supervisors could look at every ballot, current law says there can not be a manual recount, not matter how close the election.

Florida law does have a section titled Manual Recount. But even the state’s top election official, Secretary of State Kurt Browning says the title is a sham:

“It’s just to make sure an over vote is an over vote and an under vote is an under vote. That’s it. There’s no manual counting of ballots where you are going to put Jones ballots in one pile and Smith’s ballots in another”.

After spending almost 40 million dollars to switch from touch screens to a paper trail, Florida is no closer to knowing the actual result of a close election than it was in 2000.
Leon supervisor Ion Sancho says the law needs to be changed.

“Florida has made the decision to go with speed and finality over accuracy”, says Sancho.

Ironically, it was big county elections supervisors who this spring blocked a change in law that would have allowed a full manual recount.

State law does allow an after election audit of one to two percent of the votes cast to check machine accuracy, but it does not specify the audit has to be in a race that might be too close to call.

The ballots from the disputed 2000 election are still being stored in the state archives They fill nine rows stacked floor to ceiling and occupy more than 4 thousand cubic space of temperature controlled space. The man in charge of them, Secretary of State Kurt Browning, would like to shred them, saying they have no practical use and can’t be counted.

“They have no administrative value; We can’t go back now and recount them if we wanted to because they are paper and paper has a tendency to dry out and become brittle. Keep in mind that a lot of those ballots up there are punch card ballots, they are not scan optical ballots. You have the whole issue of chads. They’re taking up valuable space. We’re paying rent on that space. We could be storing other important documents”.

Interest in the ballots has been rekindled by a made for cable movie about the 2000 election.

Governor Charlie Crist is expected to sign a 66 billion dollar state budget before the week is out. At least one group has suggested that in even a tight budget year, lawmakers found more than 100 million dollars for special projects know as “turkeys”, but the Governor says he is inclined to to veto very little this year.

“It’s difficult to put together a budget with 6 billion dollars less funds, but they did it and I think they did it fairly reponsible, smart way…that protects our environment, that salary increases to hard working public school teachers. These are challenging economic times and they did some great work”, Crist told reporters

Budget cuts would have been more severe than they are, but lawmakers were able to dip into trust funds set up after the state settled with big tobacco for more than 13 billion dollars.

With gas topping four dollars a gallon there is renewed interest in drilling for oil off of Florida’s coast. Asked if he has changed his opposition to a ban on drilling closer to Florida beaches, Governor Charlie Crist sounded open to the idea this morning.

“North America is a place where there is a lot of oil, whether it’s in Montana, North Dakota, or Alaska, or other places. I think people need more of it in order to reduce the cost”.

But when asked point blank if he would support drilling. He said no, and turned the topic to conservation and alternative sources such as ethanol from sugarcane.

Drivers who go 50 miles an hour over the speed limit could soon end up behind bars, if the governor signs legislation on his desk. As Whitney Ray tells us, people who earn their living on the road like the idea.

Hear it Here: Speeders Could Face Jail Time, License Taken Away

Robert Lamb has dozens of lives in his hands. Lamb drives a bus. He hates speeders.

“They can kill somebody, besides killing themselves,” said Lamb.

Lawmakers passed a bill increasing penalties for excessive speeders, people who exceed the limit by 50 miles an hour.

If you’re caught driving 50 MPH over the speed limit one time you could face a thousand dollar fine. Caught twice and you could have to pay 2,500 bucks and loss your license of an entire year. Caught three times and you could be off the road and behind bars.

The third offense is a felony. You can be fined, face 5 years in prison or have your license taken away for 10 years. Sheriff’s Deputy Steve Barrow said people doing 50 over the limit on the interstate face a bigger problem than prison time.

“You can expect to see a massive crash, somebody going that speed,” said Barrow.

The speeder isn’t the only one whose life is on the line.

“It’s scary when someone drives around you 50 miles over the speed limit,” said Suzan Piehler.

The bill also penalizes bikers who pop wheelies. If the governor signs the bill it would go into effect on October first.

We’re all paying record prices for gas, but if you think the guy behind the register is cleaning up, think again. As Mike Vasilinda tells us, the high prices are actually cutting into most gas stations’ profit margin.

Hear it Here: As Gas Prices, Credit Card Fees Rise, Gas Station Profits Suffer

Credit card fees are based on price, not gallons. So when the price of gas goes up, so do the processing fees. Station owner Charlie Rooney says the fees make it hard to turn a profit.

“Ironically, the higher the price of gas goes, the more people turn to the credit card, which in turn makes higher fees,” Rooney said.

The fee on this card is two percent. The fee on this one, as high as three. Which explains why not everyone takes every card.

Eight of every ten gas purchases are made with a credit card. So as the price climbs, more stations are beginning to offer a discount of a nickel or more per gallon if you pay cash. Motorists filling up liked the idea.

“I’d like to save as much as I can. It’s really expensive,” state employee Erika Norwood said.

“That would be a good thing. I just put in 50 dollars. That’s 12 gallons,” taxi driver William Wheat said.

Jim Smith of the petroleum Marketers Association says more stations will soon be offering cash discounts.

“The average retailer is around 9.8 cents gross profit per gallon,” Smith said “And if they’re giving 8 cents to the credit card company, that’s 1.8 cents a gallon gross profit, which they’re trying to make their living with and that doesn’t work.”

Some of major gas chains frown on cash discounts, but for some stations and motorists, they may be the only means of survival.

People wanting to take advantage of a program to help harden homes and lower insurance rates will have to wait. The My Safe Florida Home program gives free wind inspections. As Whitney Ray tells us, thousands of people are on the waiting list, but there are some things you can do now to prepare.

Hear it Here: Wind Inspections Save Homes, Money

Ken Walton knows what it takes to keep a house safe from a storm. Walton inspects homes for My Safe Florida Home. The program is overseen by Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink. Sink said the goal is to save homes and money.

“You may be sitting on a gold mine in the form of a discount from your insurance company,” said Sink.

The program offers free wind inspections. The report is sent to the homeowner’s insurer. If the house is above par the homeowner’s insurance premium is lowered.

The programs call center is flooded with 2,000 Floridians requesting inspections everyday. The Govett’s got through. The couple built their home in the 60’s.

“We just tried to build a house that’s going to last,” said Frank Govett.

Ken Walton inspects the Govett’s home. He wants to know if the house is reasonably flood proof.

“Anything a home owner can do to keep that water from getting in the home that is a big issue,” said Walton.

And the best way to keep water out is to keep the roof on.

Installing hurricane proof windows and doors can also protect your home and lower your insurance premium. The wait time for a home inspection is about three weeks. Seventy percent of homeowners who get an inspection save at least 2,000 dollars on their wind insurance premiums.

Florida’s Attorney General wants your help to catch the bad guys. The Attorney General’s Office has posted a list of its 30 highest profile cases on it’s new most wanted website. The people on the list are wanted for a wide range of crimes including drug trafficking and money laundering. The AG’s Director of Law Enforcement Relations Emery Gainey said the site should have a far reaching effect.

“We’re looking for these individuals and we want to bring them to justice as quickly as possible. We believe the web is an excellent tool, we’re getting that information out across the state of Florida and throughout the nation and quit frankly in other countries as well,” said Gainey.

If you recognize any of the wanted you’re asked to call your local law enforcement agency. You can remain anonymous.

Motor vehicle offices across the state will close down because of budget cuts. The Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles is losing 15 million dollars in this year’s budget cuts. The department will avoid layoffs, but will have to close 13 driver’s license offices. The department’s spokeswoman Ann Nucatola said they don’t expect service to suffer much.

“We’re working hard to make sure the impact to our customers is minimal. We have moved some of our folks to different locations to help pick up some of the extra traffic that we’re going to be expecting at those locations,” said Nucatola.

The department encourages drivers to use its online services or make an appointment before stopping by any of the remaining offices.

Thursday a member of the British Parliament begged the State Clemency Board to release a UK citizen from a Florida prison. Krishna Maharaj was convicted of a double murder in Miami in 1986. As Whitney Ray tells us, some members of the British Government believe Maharaj was framed.

Hear it Here: UK Asks For Mercy, Governor Denys Clemency for British Citizen

British citizen Krishna Maharaj is serving a life sentence in a Florida Prison. Maharaj was convicted of a double murder in Miami. His case has drawn worldwide attention. Parliament member Peter Bottomley traveled 4,000 miles to plea Maharaj’s case.

“When there’s a significant doubt of the fairness of a convictions or the process that led to it or evidence that was not frankly considered, people should be prepared to travel to do that,” said Bottomley.

Maharaj’s attorney begged Governor Charlie Crist and the state Clemency Board to commute his sentence. They say Maharaj was in Ft. Lauderdale at the time of the murders and a man named Hynie Mayjar could have committed the crimes.

“Mayjar was in the room opposite the room where the murders occurred. There was blood on the door of his room,” said Paul Lomas, Maharaj’s Attorney.

The victims’ family wept as they recounted the crime. Governor Crist sided with the family.

“I will deny the application of commute of sentence,” said Crist.

Crist said the decision to deny Maharaj’s request was easy.

There were a lot of high profile people from England who apparently had taken an interest in that case, but that shouldn’t be an influencing factor and it wasn’t today,” said Crist.

Maharaj’s supporters said they’ll keep trying to get their countryman out of jail and back home to the UK.

Soon Florida could be home to the world’s biggest Confederate flag. A Hillsborough County man plans to fly a 30 by 50 foot confederate flag over a busy intersection. The plan has drawn nationwide criticism. Governor Charlie Crist said he wouldn’t fly the Confederate flag in his yard.

“I wouldn’t fly it in my yard. I don’t,” said Crist. “It’s a free country and the first amendment’s important. It’s just something I wouldn’t choose to do.”

The Flag is expected to be raised in Hillsborough County in about a month.

Environmental groups delivered 2,000 petition signatures to the Governor Thursday, asking him to halt a plan to build inside the Urban Development Boundary surrounding the Everglades. The Miami-Dade County Commission approved a plan to develop across the boundary, despite protests by environmentalists and the mayor. Environment Florida Field Director Holly Binns said if the development goes through, more will development could follow.

“Once you start going across that Urban Development Boundary there’s going to be a flood of applications that are going to follow. You know its not just one store, it’s the roads and the infrastructure that goes with this new Lowe’s and then it’s the flood of development that will come right after that,” said Binns.

The Governor has 30 days to overrule the county’s decision.

Higher gas prices have people at the pump and even some US Congressman considering the option of drilling off Florida’s coast. Oil companies already drill 1-hundred 25 miles out at sea. Federal laws keep them from coming closer. One person who hasn’t changed his tune about coastal drilling is Governor Charlie Crist. Crist said Florida’s coast is the last place he wants to see drills.

“I’m opposed to it. You know the higher the price goes its certainly has to have an impact at some point in time, a lot of people talk about our country being more aggressive about notion drilling in other places. The last place I would like to see that happen is off the coast of Florida,” said Crist.

If oil was found off the coast of Florida and drilling was allowed it would take at least eight years before it could be used.

A new law will make it harder for people trying to sell stolen copper. Soon people who give false contact information to metal recyclers will face felony charges. As Whitney Ray tells us, lawmakers hope better record keeping can help stop copper thieves.

Hear it Here: Lawmakers Increase Penalties for Copper Thieves, Beer Keg Crooks

Forget going for the gold, these days copper is the hot commodity and thieves are cashing in. Copper theft is on the rise, with thieves hitting everything from construction sites to city utility buildings. Police say the risk isn’t worth the payoff.

“It’s just not worth that much it’s worth about two dollars and 50 cents a pound, but you’ve got to get a lot of copper in order to get any money out of that,” said Tallahassee Policeman David McCranie.

People bring copper by the truck load to Gator Core, a metal recycler in Tallahassee. Co-Owner Joy Davis said they keep a suspicious eye on their customers.

“If they’ve got more than 30 or 40 pounds, you’re going to ask them where it came from, and if it looks pretty new, you’re definitely going to ask them where it came from,” said Davis.

Davis also copies the seller’s driver’s license and keeps it on file. Police officers will look at the file if they suspect a thief has visited the company.

“When they get there they’ve got to provide their identification and a lot of information which enables us to trace back who sold the product and make an arrest in a lot of cases,” said McCranie.

A new law will require metal recyclers to keep a record of their customers in an electronic database. It will also increase the penalties for anyone who gives a metal recycler a fake ID or false contact information.

The law adds kegs of beer to the list of regulated metals upping the ante for anyone who gambles and tries to cash in on a stolen keg. Many metal recyclers won’t buy kegs and according to Joy Davis they also won’t buy metal from anyone who can’t tell them where it came from.