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Federal Court testimony in the case of a Tallahassee man charged with making a threat over the Internet to kidnap and harm protestors at the State Capitol painted the 33-year-old man as either a dangerous extremist or a man whose friends think is a loose cannon, who used over enthusiastic words on the internet.

The FBI arrested Daniel Baker last Friday after he distributed a flyer both on and off line.

It calls for right-wing Capitol protestors to be encircled and trapped inside the building.

In a video, Lawrence Keefe, US Attorney for Florida’s Northern District, said the arrest sent a message.

“We will take all appropriate actions against credible threats,” said Keefe.

The FBI testified Baker came to their attention after returning from fighting against the Syrian Government.

Federal prosecutors argued that Baker’s decade of homelessness and his written threats, are reason to keep him behind bars.

A roommate, a friend and his landlord all painted a picture of a good, but hapless individual.

“And he’s just a joy to be around. He’s bright, he’s energetic, he’s an entrepreneur. He’s volunteering for all kinds of things in the community. He’s the kind of person we more of,” said Suzanna Matthews, Baker’s landlord.

“He’s an eccentrically spoken person, so I would take it all with a grain of salt,” Desiree Dattis, Baker’s friend.

Dattis is a teacher and homeless advocate.

She first met Baker a decade ago.

She eventually let the homeless man camp in her backyard for a year.

“He’s a genuinely a nice guy and this just a lot of talk,” said Dattis.

And Baker’s roommate Eric Champagne told the court Baker did not want to hurt anyone.

“The FBI themselves were warning about this and I think he took the FBI warning seriously and I think he was just trying to protect his neighbors,” said Champagne.

And the Federal Public Defender admitted that Baker could be shaky, but that he would benefit from mental health sessions if he is released.

The judge did not rule from the bench and said a written order with be forthcoming.

61-year-old Mark Wayne Clark of Tallahassee was arrested for making a false report of a bomb at the State Capitol.

The call came from a bar several miles to the east of the building just before 3 AM.

The threat was overheard by one of the bar’s employees and police were called.

The arrest was made at the bar.

Employees at the Capitol were kept out of the building until 9 AM Thursday morning while police used explosive sniffing K-9’s to determine the threat was a hoax.

Threats of a large protest on Inauguration Day and violent counter demonstrators failed to materialize at the state Capitol Wednesday.

Just a few came to have their voices heard peacefully.

The show of force was continual.

Troopers were stationed under the Capitol, police drones were in the air, the National Guard was on the Capitol’s roof and spotters were on nearby buildings.

Police and reporters outnumbered demonstrators.

Len Murray drove in from Ft. Lauderdale, motivated by the riot at the US Capitol two weeks ago.

“We’ve got to heal the nation. We’ve got except the election. It’s been tried in the courts,” said Murray, who described himself as an independent.

“If violence breaks out, I’m going home,” said Robert Allen, another protestor who drove from Brandon to the Capitol.

Unlike our nation’s Capitol, police in Tallahassee proved it was better to be over prepared.

Trump supporters Earl and Susie Austin made the drive from Jacksonville.

“And we’re just trying to make a little bit of protest over the way the elections were ran, how poorly it was done,” said Earl.

Also from Jacksonville, retired navy vet Jamie Fucito.

“Just wanted to see how many patriots would show up,” said Fucito.

We asked if he was disappointed by the low turnout.

“Yeah I am,” said Fucito.

Two women from St. Augustine wouldn’t talk with us until we coaxed this response.

”We don’t trust the media,” said one of the women.

The were also two women who came dressed as angels.

They sang Amazing Grace, promoting peace not politics on their agenda.

“God told us to come today,” said one of the women, who called herself only ‘Angel Paula’.

A man arrested last week for attempting to incite violence counter protests at the Capitol has his first appearance Thursday in Federal Court when his request to be released on bond will be heard.

With a new administration comes new optimism or pessimism for state lawmakers, depending on which side of the political aisle they fall on.

Legislators are already setting expectations for how the new President may impact the state.

It was no secret that under the Obama Administration, the Republican Florida Legislature and Governor often found themselves at odds with the federal government.

Now the conservative controlled state government is gearing up for at another four years under a liberal President.

“I just hope we don’t see a Federal Government that tries to push the state farther to the left than it’s ready to go like we saw with the administration of President Obama,” said State Senator Ray Rodrigues.

Rodrigues worries the work to expedite everglades restoration under the Trump administration could be impacted by President Joe Biden.

“We could see the Federal Government go back to the ways that they did under President Obama and just put Everglades restoration on the back burner,” said Rodrigues.

The Governor has also raised some concerns.

As Trump goes, so does his tight personal relationship with the Oval Office.”

“I may not be a phone call away from getting everything done soon,” said Governor Ron DeSantis in a December interview.

Florida Republicans are also critical of Biden’s plan to involve FEMA in vaccine distribution.

“We don’t need additional bureaucrats to get the vaccine out and into the arms of Floridians. What we need are more vaccines,” said Rodrigues.

But Florida Democrats like State Senator Lori Berman argue the state should take help wherever it’s offered.

“And I don’t know why the Governor would in any way not be in favor of something that’s going to get more vaccines in peoples’ arms,” said Berman.

And while Republican state legislators may have their concerns at the federal level, what happens here in Florida ultimately is still in their hands, as it has been since Republicans took control of both the Florida House and Senate in 1997.

And some State Lawmakers are looking to honor the outgoing President here in Florida.

Legislation filed on Inauguration Day would rename U.S. Highway 27 the “President Donald J. Trump Highway”.

Floridians have been legally prescribed medical marijuana since 2017, but there’s nothing in state law that prohibits employers from discriminating against patients.

Advocates are hoping 2021 will bring employment protections for the state’s nearly half million medical marijuana patients.

Megan Kahn graduated with a degree in social work last year.

She got her professional license soon after and around the same time was prescribed medical marijuana.

Then she got a job offer in her field.

“I sent in all my documentation. I sent in a picture of my card and my prescription. Everything,” said Kahn.

But the job offer was revoked when THC showed up in her drug test.

“This is a clear cut case of medical discrimination,” said Josephine Cannella-Krehl, founder of MMJ Knowledge.

The employer went even further, and reported her as an ‘impaired clinician’.

Megan was told she would have to complete a year-long rehab program or lose her license.

“I can’t even drink alcohol. It’s abstinence completely,” said Kahn.

Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Nikki Fried told us medical marijuana employment discrimination is affecting almost every industry.

“We need to start to realize this is a medicine and people are taking it for medical benefits and they should not be discriminated against inside of their workforce,” said Fried.

Employment protection legislation was filed in the State Legislature last year, but never got a committee hearing.

Advocates hope lawmakers will see it differently this year, with more than 600,000 unemployed Floridians looking to rejoin the workforce.

For now, Megan and other patients will have to choose between their medicine and their livelihoods.

“It’s really hard to know that, with people doing things legally, people are still being treated like criminals, still losing employment and being discriminated against,” said Kahn.

Megan has found an employer willing to work with her, but she still has to complete the rehab program to save her license.

We reached out to the Department of Health and asked what if any rule or policy it has concerning medical marijuana patients and their ability to hold professional licenses.

We have not gotten a response.

Florida National Guard troops remain on active duty to protect Florida’s Capitol following an FBI alert that put all 50 state capitol’s on alert over the weekend.

Additional security precautions remain in effect and will continue at least through Wednesday’s Presidential Inauguration.

An occasional helicopter circled the Capitol Tuesday, just as it has since Sunday.

Armed spotters remain on the Capitol itself and surrounding buildings.

On the advice of law enforcement, City Hall and the county courthouse, which sit as bookends on a short street next to the Capitol, are closed for business through Wednesday.

Curtis Richardson is the longest serving Tallahassee City Commissioner.

“There are no services being provided to the general public at this point, because we are hoping people will stay home and not come to the downtown area so that they can be safe and not put themselves and others in harms way,” said Richardson.

Security looks a lot like it does every four years for the Governor’s inauguration with hundreds of officers present, out of sight, unless they are needed.

A flyer produced by the self described leftist radical arrested by the FBI last week calls on demonstrators to answer a call to arms on Wednesday.

Daniel Baker is being held without bond until a hearing the day after the inauguration.

“If you pose a threat to public safety, we will come for you. We will find you. And we will prosecute you,” said US Attorney for Florida’s Northern District Lawrence Keefe.

On Sunday, Tallahassee Mayor John Dailey praised the Governor for sending national guardsmen to protect the Capitol.

“I know that he cares for the safety of Tallahassee and the Capitol Complex as much as I do as well,” said Dailey.

The guards’ deployment order runs through Sunday night, but law enforcement told us the length of the deployment is being reassessed every day.

According the the City of Tallahassee, no one has requested a permit to demonstrate on Inauguration Day.

Former department of health employee Rebekah Jones posted bond Monday morning after turning herself in to authorities Sunday night.

Jones is accused of accessing a state emergency alert system and taking confidential information from the department of health.

There were three messages police attribute to Jones.

All of them urged Department of Health employees to ‘speak out before another 17,000 are dead’.

“You have been charged with a third degree felony,” said Judge John Cooper at Jones’ first court appearance.

The state requested she be prohibited from accessing the internet as a condition of her release.

“It’s literally trying to kill a gnat with an axe. It’s simply not practical,” said Jones’ Attorney John Baptiste while arguing against the state’s terms.

The judge declined to prohibit her from internet access across the board.

He set her bail at $2,500 on the condition she not access any state computer systems.

“My point is to ensure that she doesn’t do anything through the internet that is illegal,” said Cooper.

Police confiscated Jones’ computer during a search of her home in December.

In the probable cause affidavit police said they found evidence on Jones’ computer that linked her to the messages.

They also said they found she had downloaded confidential contact information for more than 19,000 people.

Jones is also facing a cyber stalking charge from 2019.

Her latest arrest violated a plea deal that had been previously agreed upon.

Upon her release, Jones had little to say about the charges, but did tell reporters she had tested positive for COVID after entering the jail.

“I just wanted to tell you guys to make sure you take care of your own health. COVID is by no means over and we’re still going to be dealing with this virus for a lot longer,” said Jones.

Jones faces a maximum of six years in prison.

Her lawyer vowed to vigorously fight the charges.

She’s armed with a deep wallet, having raised more than half a million dollars between two Gofundme accounts.

Jones was fired from the Department of Health in May of 2020 for what the state described as ‘insubordination’.

Jones has claimed she was fired for refusing to manipulate COVID statistics put out by the state.

A lone demonstrator was the only person to show up at the State Capitol in Tallahassee today: His message, share the love. While quiet today following an FBI warning that put all fifty state capitols on alert, snipers and spotters were positioned on roof tops around the complex, helicopters circled, and hundreds more police and national guardsmen were quietly out of sight. The giant flag usually flying at the state Vietnam Memorial was removed to prevent damage.

Tallahassee Mayor John Dailey told reporters the arrest Friday of a man who planned a counter protest as well as the national guard troops on hand served to keep people away.

“I hope nothing happens.” said Mayor Dailey. “I hope that we continue to have the peaceful days we always do and that we enjoy. But hope alone is not a plan. We are prepared. The great men and women of our law enforcement community have been working around the clock, have been working at every level. We are prepared.”

The order calling up the national guard has them activated through Thursday, the day after Joe Biden’s inauguration. State police are also expected to remain at heightened alertness through mid week. 

The capital city cancelled its annual Martin Luther King Day parade set for tomorrow. It has been rescheduled for February 6th. 

Floridians, especially seniors, are one step closer to being protected from scams relating to the COVID vaccine.

The first bill approved by a newly created legislative committee on the pandemic would make it a felony for someone to fraudulently charge someone for offering to put them at the front of the vaccine line.

Reports of vaccine scams are growing.

Jared Moskowitz is the Director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management and is in charge of the vaccine distribution network.

“People are trying to set up fake calendars, fake appointments. You know, we have foreign actors trying to hack systems. I mean, it’s just the worst of society,” said Moskowitz.

Seniors are top targets and Zayne Smith with AARP said members are calling about offers to pay to get on a vaccination list.

“I mean, if you pay us now, you’ll have your vaccine tomorrow. Those are so egregious against people who are really vulnerable right now, and just wanting to get back to normal life,” said Zyne Smith.

Government publications are clear.

If someone wants you to pay them to get on a list to be vaccinated, go to the head of the list or if they want your social security number or credit card information, it’s likely a fraud.

The first bill to come out of the newly created State House Pandemics and Public Emergencies Committee would make it a felony to offer to put someone at the front of the vaccine line.

“I think this bill sends a loud and clear message, that hey, if you engaged in this type of activity, we’re coming after you,” said bill sponsor Rep. Ardian Zika.

AARP calls the legislation a big step in the right direction.

“You know, this bill and the move by the legislature right now to really cut this off right now before it becomes a bigger issue is great and something we really appreciate,” said Smith.

The early movement of the legislation is designed to send the message to fraudsters to stop now, before major jail time is on the table.

A first offense would be punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.

A second conviction could earn perpetrators up to 15 years behind bars.

In addition to criminal charges, the Attorney General can also file civil actions to recover damages.

State lawmakers are facing a $2.1 billion pandemic-induced budget shortfall for the budget starting in July, and that’s the best case scenario according to state economists.

The revenue shortfall means lawmakers will face tough decisions crafting next years state budget.

The word of the day at the first meeting of the Senate Appropriations Committee was unprecedented.

“The work before us is unprecedented and there’s going to be a lot demanded on this committee to think innovatively, to think how we can do things efficiently,” said Senate Appropriations Chair Kelli Stargel.

While state economists project a $2.1 billion shortfall, the number is heavily dependent on how the economy recovers, something difficult to project in a once in a lifetime pandemic.

“If you just run your models, they don’t know how to deal with this event,” said Amy Baker, a state economist at the Office of Economic and Demographic Research.

Most uncertain, is the recovery of the tourism sector.

State economists predict it could take between one and two years.

“We don’t expect it to come back whole cloth even in that slow recovery,” said Baker.

And the state is also facing higher expenditures on social programs like Medicaid, which is projected to increase by $700 million.

That means lawmakers will have to look for cuts anywhere they can.

“We’re going to have a conservative budget. I’m not going to build a budget this year on the high hopes of the future,” said Stargel.

Looking to add revenue, legislative leaders already have ideas in the works.

Among them, collecting state sales already owed tax on internet purchases.

That would increase revenues by at least $700 million a year.

“I don’t believe that it’s a tax increase. I think it’s a tax collection issue, not a tax increase issue. We’re not changing the tax at all,” said Stargel.

The latest budget projections are nearly $600 million better than in September.

Additional federal stimulus could paint an even more optimistic picture, at least in the short term.

State economists’ latest projections are largely based on data from November and September.

It’s not clear how those numbers may change as a result of the fall and winter COVID spike the state has experienced since then.

A new study from the University of South Florida released today shows that men are more likely to get vaccinated at 64 percent, compared to just 53 percent of women.

African Americans are also less likely than others to get a vaccine.

The study found 60 percent of both whites and Hispanics said they will either “probably” or “definitely” get vaccinated, compared to only 49 percent of African Americans.

State Representative Fentrice Driskell said the distrust dates back to when Black share croppers infected with syphilis, were enrolled in the Tuskegee Experiment and intentionally not treated throughout the program’s 40-year run.

“There also can be concern about, in the African American community, mistrust just generally of doctors and people not going to get check ups as regularly as they should. So when that’s the baseline, it’s even much more difficult to get some members of that community to be willing to try something deemed as experimental as a new vaccine,” said Driskell.

Jared Moskowitz, Director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management said Thursday his second biggest problem, behind basic supply of vaccine, is that he only gets a six day notice on the number of new doses being sent to the state, creating problems in the distribution system.

“Well we’re building infrastructure, we’re expanding, we’re trying to bring more locations online and then we can’t feed them or locations that are open, close because we can’t re-feed them. So it is a gigantic issue,” said Moskowitz.

On Wednesday the state’s Surgeon General reported the federal government is supplying between 200,000 and 250,000 doses a week.

If that rate doesn’t increase, the state could be looking at more than a year before it’s able to vaccinate the general population.

Speaking to the first meeting of the newly created State House Pandemics and Public Emergencies Committee, State Emergency Director Jared Moskowitz explained why it’s important for snowbirds spending time in Florida are eligible to get the vaccine.

But he also said the state in no way is encouraging Vaccine tourism.

“Vaccinating snowbirds, people who live here, rent, own a house, pay taxes, contribute to the economy, they are eligible. If they get sick while they’re here, they wind up in our hospitals. But that is very different than vaccine tourism. Vaccine tourism is not permitted. It is abhorrent. People should not be flying here to get a vaccine and flying out,” said Moskowitz.

It could take more than a year to vaccinate all Floridians based on the number of vaccine doses the state is currently receiving on a weekly basis.

The timetable came to light as the Florida Surgeon General fielded tough questions from state senators.

Testifying before the Senate Health Policy Committee, State Surgeon General Dr. Scott Rivkees said COVID vaccine supply isn’t meeting the demand.

“How you convey during a pandemic, it’s a very difficult conversation to have and frankly, it’s heartbreaking,” said Rivkees.

But Senators like Aaron Bean pushed for some sense of a timeline for their constituents.

“We have to be able to say, we don’t have any now, but it’s coming. When’s it coming?” said Bean.

After taking similar questions from other lawmakers, Rivkees laid out the current situation.

“We’re getting about 200,000 [to] 250,000 doses a week,” said Rivkees.

At that rate, it would take more than a year to vaccinate the general population, but Rivkees provided some hope for optimism.

“This is our path out of the pandemic and I don’t think there’s any question that we are going to see a substantial increase in terms of vaccine availability,” said Rivkees.

The state has received 1.6 million vaccine doses to date.

Of those, more than 600,000 have been administered, leaving about a million doses still in the freezer.

There’s also been difficulty interpreting the Governor’s executive order.

Some home health care works report being turned away for vaccinations.

Rivkees made it clear, any health care worker in direct contact with patients is eligible to be vaccinated.

Committee Chair Manny Diaz said the state needs to do a better job clarifying that intent.

“Usually I would expect that that’s being handled by the Department of Health because they’re in the front line on this,” said Diaz.

The Surgeon General also addressed issues with vaccine scheduling web sites crashing, saying the Department of Health is working on a state wide scheduling portal that will likely roll out in the next few weeks.