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A 2018 Constitutional amendment approved by 62 percent of Florida voters continues to be controversial. The so called “Marcy’s Law” is designed to give crime victims rights and protect their identity, but the language is now being used to protect the names of on duty police officers involved in shootings. As Mike Vasilinda tells us, the case is finally going to the state Supreme Court. 

This body cam video from last May shows the moments before police shoot a transgender woman who had just stabbed a neighbor.

“An enhanced version of the video showing Tony assuming the shooting position was provided by the Tallahassee Police department.

Afterwards, the Police Benevolent Association sued to keep the officers name, and that of another, secret under Marcy’s Law which is designed to protect crime victims.

“I found it disturbing what my clients experienced” said Luke Newman, the PBA Attorney.

“They certainly signed up to patrol our streets and keep us safe. They didn’t sign up to be charged at with a hunting knife or have a gun pointed at them” added the attorney.

A lower court ruled against the PBA, but an appellate court ruled the names could be  private.

Now the case is going to the state Supreme Court. And those who oppose the secrecy say police officers aren’t average citizens when they are on duty.”

“This is precisely what they signed up for” says former US Attorney and Florida First Amendment President Pamela Marsh.

“Law enforcement receives significant training on being attacked.  And going into violent interactions” says Marsh.

Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri says the secrecy ruling was correct, but bad for the long term.

“I don’t think it’s good public policy that a law enforcement officer gets to use deadly force, and remain anonymous. I don’t think its the American way” says Gualteri.

The Supreme Court hasn’t set a date for a hearing, which means a decision could be a year away or longer.

In a statement, Tallahassee City Attorney Cassandra Jenkins, who filed the notice of appeal, said “With respect for the (appellate) court’s opinion and appreciation of the difficult work performed by police officers every day, the decision has far-reaching implications related to public transparency and is deserving of final review by Florida’s highest court.”

Former Governor Charlie is making his sixth run for statewide office and an hour before he officially announced, Ron DeSantis, the current Governor, was already lobbing criticisms and telling Crist and other Democrats to bring it on.

Charlie Crist is just three for six in winning statewide races.

Four of them as a Republican, one as an independent and once again for Governor in 2014 as a Democrat.

That prompted this response from the Governor.

“But now I see he’s voting with Nancy Pelosi one hundred percent of the time. He could probably give it a run for the Green Party and San Francisco liberal Green Party, so who knows what’s gonna happen with that,” said DeSantis.

Minutes later, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried was asked about making the race herself.

“We have seen from this Governor in the last two and a half years that he must be a one term Governor. And as the only statewide elected Democrat, it makes absolute sense for me to be running for Governor. But today is not the day for me to make that announcement,” said Fried.

And then she had this two say about Crist. “His seat is one that probably only Charlie Crist can hold on to. So really, I would liked to have encouraged him to remain in Congress,” said Fried.

Fried also laid out criticism of Governor Ron DeSantis.

Crist did the same in his announcement video.

“He doesn’t believe in a woman right to choose. He doesn’t listen. He doesn’t care,” said Crist in the ad.

And to that, the Governor basically said: Bring it on.

“I implore them, from my political interests, run on closing schools. Run on locking people down. Run on closing businesses and ruining. I would love to have that debate,” said DeSantis.

Just over five million people voted when Crist won the Governor’s race in 2006.

Last year, more than 11 million ballots were counted.

Orlando Democratic Congresswoman Val Demings, who was briefly considered for the Vice Presidency under Joe Biden is also considered a strong contender to get into the Governor’s race.

The trial of a man accused of threatening violence at the state Capitol on Inauguration Day began in federal court Tuesday.

The government says the former army sniper attempted to call people to arms to attack protesters.

Daniel Baker faces two counts of making true threats of violence.

One for a flier posted on his social media accounts calling Floridians to arms and encouraging them to defend the State Capitol against ‘racist armed terrorists’ he feared would storm the building on Inauguration Day.

The other, for a Facebook group he’s accused of making, calling for similar action.

A group of Baker’s friends were present in court for jury selection.

They didn’t talk Tuesday, but in January they told us Baker is misunderstood.

“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 Eric Champagne, Baker’s roommate and friend.

A number of potential jurors admitted they would have a hard time separating their feelings about the January 6th insurrection and the facts of the case.

Others were excused for already having knowledge about the case or having already formed an opinion.

In opening arguments the defense didn’t contest the evidence against Baker, saying this trial wouldn’t be a case of ‘who done it’.

Instead, the public defender said their case would rely on whether Baker actually intended to carry out the threats made, or even whether he was capable of doing so.

The prosecution in its opening arguments pointed to Bakers past military service and his time spent fighting in Syria with an anti-ISIS militia group as evidence Baker was capable and likely to have carried through with the online threats.

The prosecution said it will take two or three days to lay out there case against Baker, then the defense gets its turn.

Baker is expected to take the stand.

Ag Commissioner Nikki Fried on Tuesday asked tough questions of the man who runs the State Department of Environmental Protection.

She wanted to know why decisions were made a decade ago not to close the former phosphate mine that leaked more than a quarter million gallons of nutrient rich contaminated water into Tampa Bay.

“Piney Point has been a ticking time bomb. And we know that there were letters and communications sent to DEP with the gravity of the upcoming situation. We are not going to allow Noah or this administration to push it under the rug and say everything is going to be okay. We’re throwing hundreds of millions of dollars, taxpayers dollars, to an environmental disaster with no, hey what happened? How did we get here?” said Fried.

Fried also asked what the state is doing to protect 27 other phosphate stacks located throughout the state.

She was offered a private briefing on the matter, but did not get a public response.

Homeowners are experiencing sticker shock as home insurance rates are rising rapidly in Florida.

New reforms designed to lower rates take effect July 1st, unless vetoed by the Governor, but it could be more than a year before rates stabilize.

Florida’s 6.2 million property insurance customers are seeing double digit hikes for homeowners insurance, and reform legislation doesn’t deal with one of the biggest cost drivers.

“Roofs are covered under the amendment, just like they have been in the past in your homeowners policy,” said Senate sponsor Jim Boyd.

Co-sponsor Senator Jeff Brandes explained lawmakers couldn’t agree on a sliding scale to replace a roof based on its age.

“What they see as roofs are getting older, they are having to replace these roofs that are 20 years old that were frankly at the end of their useful life anyway,” said Brandes.

The legislation also makes significant changes to the way attorneys are paid.

“If everybody’s reasonable, then everybody pays for their own attorneys fees. Before it was if you got one dollar more, then the insurance company had to pay all the legal fees,” said Brandes.

Even supporters have said it’s going to take 18 to 24 months for the legislation to make a dent in rates.

Democrats tried freezing current rates while the changes take place.

“And lets make sure it saves consumers money and doesn’t create more profit for an industry,” said State Senator Janet Cruz.

It failed.

House Democrats told us they believe the rejection makes the legislation one sided.

“It’s a bill that’s really meant to put as much money into an insurance companies pockets as is humanly possible,” said Representative Evan Jenne.

Under the legislation, homeowners have to accept a quote from a private insurer, even if it is up to 20 percent more than the state’s insurer of last resort.

The legislation also prohibits third party adjustors from offering incentives to inspect your roof, and provides penalties for those who skirt the law.

Lawmakers may have left for home after wrapping up the 2021 legislative session, but they are already planning to be back in the Capitol in two weeks.

They’ll spend up to a week debating a new gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe.

Already, campaigns for and against the gaming deal are underway.

On the final day of session, the Governor teased the deal while touting the record $101.5 billion state budget.

“Our budget looks great, but why not get more in the kitty, right?” said Governor Ron DeSantis.

The Governor has said the deal will bring in $6 billion to the state by 2030.

A new ad by the tribe also pitches the deal as a win for the economy.

One of the biggest items in the compact is the legalization of sports betting.

“The parimutuels can contract with out-of-state clients to run the back end, but everything goes back to the tribe. The tribe can also contract with out of state to get that done,” sad State Senator Travis Hutson, who has spent years working on gambling legislation.

The deal also allows the tribe to offer craps and roulette.

Any product lawmakers agree on is sure to be challenged by anti-gabling groups, who are already arguing the new compact constitutes an expansion of gaming and has to be approved by voters.

“If Amendment 3 wasn’t designed to stop something like this, the biggest expansion of gambling in Florida history, then what did voters mean by it exactly?” said John Sowinski, who authored the Voter Approval of Casino Gambling constitutional amendment.

Lawmakers believe because any new gaming will run through the sovereign Seminole Nation, the 2018 constitutional amendment doesn’t apply.

“I hear there’s an Oklahoma case that’s very similar that has gone through the federal process. So I think we’re on solid ground,” said Hutson.

Lawmakers have slated five days to work on the gaming issue and it’s possible they’ll finish even sooner.

However, any legal challenges to the Gaming Compact aren’t likely to be resolved with such haste.