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John R Henry was executed by the state last night. He is the 18th inmate to die under Rick Scott’s Governorship, but when the sun rose this morning at Florida State Prison, there were still 397 people on death row.

It took Rick Scott almost 10 months after taking office to carry out his first execution.

“The sentence of the state of Florida vs John Henry was carried out at 7:43 PM” is how prison spokesperson Jessica Cary announced the first Florida execution since a botched lethal injection in Oklahoma in May.

Wednesday’s execution of John R. Henry was Scott’s 18th.

At 18, Rick Scott has executed more people than any other Governor in his first term. Surprising in some ways because it’s a duty he says he never thought about when he was seeking the office. “You know, look, executions are a solemn duty of the Governor. It’s not something I thought about when I was going to run, but I uphold the laws of the land” Scott told reporters this week.

Only Jeb Bush sent more to their maker…21…but it took him 8 years.At the prison Wednesday night, the niece and cousin of the victims said it was about time. “I just want to thank the state for finally taking care of this…it’s been a long time coming”  said Selena Geiger, who waited 25 years from her aunt’s killing to execution.

Since 2010 there have been 19 executions, but  65 more arrived on death row.

At the State Capitol, Protestors gathered to remember the victims and the killer. One reason for the increased pace of executions may be because many cases have exhausted their appeals. Death Penalty Opponent Sheila Meehan was asked her thoughts on why there are more executions. “Do you think its this Governor or do you think its finally these cases have been brewing for 25 years.”

“No, I think it’s this Governor and his General Counsel Pete Antonacci” responded Meehan.

217 of the current death row residents arrived there before the year 2000.It was 29 years from John R Henry’s crime to his execution. Eddy Wayne Davis, who raped and murdered an 11 year old girl is set to die July 10th. (Use some of the stats I sent for your counties sending people to death row).

A lack of hurricanes for the past 8 years will soon start saving you some money. As Matt Galka explains, dropping the hurricane tax comes 18 months early.

The 2004 and 2005 Hurricane seasons battered Florida. 8 storms, highlighted by 2005’s Hurricane Wilma, cost the state’s Hurricane Catastrophe Fund more than $9 billion dollars.

“We paid the claims but we’re still paying off the bonds that were necessary so the claims could quickly be paid off 8 years ago,” said Sam Miller with the Florida Insurance Council.

That state charged insurance customers assessments to help foot the bill. The so-called hurricane tax collected between $350 and $500 million dollars a year for the CAT fund since 2007.  A 1.3 percent charge on home and auto policies will be ending this January.

The Florida Insurance Council says putting money back in people’s pockets doesn’t hurt.

“It’s a very good thing that CAT Fund assessments are ending. It means a 1.3 percent reduction in insurance rates,” said Miller.

Just because the assessment is going away for now doesn’t mean it will be gone forever.

The CAT fund has about $17 billion in reserves. But Florida TaxWatch Chief Economist Jerry Parrish says a bad year could wipe that money away.

“Just because we’ve paid for this last series of storms and we have some cash, doesn’t mean that there’s no probability of assessments. We still could have assessments if there is a large enough storm or series of storms,” said Parrish.

The assessment was scheduled to end in July of 2016 which means the 1.3 percent savings is coming 18 months early.

Nearly 100 felons in Florida asked for clemency Wednesday seeking civil rights restoration. As Matt Galka explains, a heavy backlog in the system has protestors crying foul and calling for the state to go back to the old system.

Robert Mallan’s appeal to the executive clemency board didn’t go the way he wanted. Mallan was convicted of kidnapping a 10 year old boy in Tampa.  He’s been out of jail since 1991 but his civil rights haven’t been restored.

“It looms over you and sometimes your past, you have to explain certain situations,” said Mallan.

Former Governor Charlie Crist established the automatic restoration of civil rights for former felons. Governor Rick Scott and the cabinet pulled the plug on the program immediately after taking office.

Human Rights advocate Mark Schlackman says the difference in numbers is startling.

“Charlie Crist’s administration granted more than 150,000 civil rights restoration for ex-felons, during the current administration, that number is closer to 1,200,” said Shlackman.

While many at the meeting were looking to get their voting rights back, protesters say the state’s clemency policy is a form of voter suppression.

Ex-offender and voting rights advocate Lashanna Tyson traveled with a group from Orlando to speak out against the policy and backlog of people looking for restoration.

“This is voter suppression in the worst way, this is voter suppression in the absolute worst way. You are disenfranchising two million people to control the vote,” said Tyson.

We asked the Governor about automatic restoration after the meeting.

“What I think about when you hear these cases today, is I think about the victims. I think about what happened to them,” said Gov. Rick Scott (R-Florida).

Florida’s prison population demographics suggest that many of the people in the backlog are minorities. The ACLU of Florida is sending out questionnaire to state cabinet candidates asking their thoughts on the automatic restoration of civil rights. The group says it will publish the responses and non-responses.

The U.S. Department of State says as many as 40,000 people are being trafficked in the country, with many of them right here in Florida. As Matt Galka tells us, new laws signed Tuesday clamp down on traffickers in our state.

Niki Cross didn’t know if she’d be standing in the Capitol Tuesday.

“I never would have imagined 40 years ago when I was chained in a third floor attic by the ankle that I’d be standing doing this today,” she said.

The human trafficking survivor cried tears of joy as Florida’s governor signed two new laws Tuesday. The new legislation will provide stiffer penalties for people trafficking kids.

“The ability for surviors to help receive the protection and care they need is critical to their recovery and that is why we are here,” said Gov. Rick Scott (R-Florida).

More money will also be available to help victims. Victim turned advocate Connie Rose says the funding can turn lives around.

“For one it’s going to open doors. Because we need that money. We need that funding to be able to pay our safe houses, to give them the restoration services they need,” said Rose.

Help in the fight against human trafficking is coming from an unlikely place: truck stops.

“The truckers, where do you take a little girl to traffick her? A truckstop. And the truckers have now partnered with us and they are our eyes and ears calling in suspicious reports of human trafficking,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi.

The US state department estimates Florida has the third highest human trafficking rate in the country. The average age of people sold into human trafficking trade is 12 to 14 for boys and 11 to 13 for girls.

A strain of low TCH medical marijuana known as Charlotte’s web will soon be available to cancer patients and people who face seizures. The legislation has been signed by Governor Rick Scott, but as Mike Vasilinda tells us, the bill signing was quiet and private because of the political implications in an election year.

Eleven year old Ray Ann Mosley is the poster child for low thc marijuana legislation. The bill cleared on the final day of the legislative session after constant prodding from Ray Ann’s parents. “We are just so thankful, and just really looking forward to the day Ray Ann gets to start treatment” says her mom, Holly.

The legislation could help as many as 125 thousand families. But it was signed behind closed doors without fanfare. The reason. Political implications of approving anything to do with pot. We asked Rick Scott if the low thc bill negated the need for a broader medical marijuana vote in November. He responded: “And so I personally will be voting against it, but its a ballot issue and everybody around the state will have the opportunity to vote.”

Attorney General Pam Bondi is taking the same politically cautious route…keeping kids from suffering is good, but she‘s staying out of the vote on smokable marijuana. “I just encourage everyone to read the entire amendment” says the Attorney General.

The Medical marijuana vote is not partisan. It has support across the political spectrum. In a tight election, votes matter. Advocates like Jodi James from the Florida Cannabis Action Network are pushing forward. “We’re grateful for the folks who are getting this. We are thrilled that 90 percent of the House and Senate are saying the same thing we’ve been saying. And that is this is a great medicine for the people who need it.”

The first prescriptions for low THC marijuana can’t be written before January…two months after voters go to the polls. Before any prescriptions can be written, doctors must undergo a yet to be developed training course. The state must also select as many as 5 nurseries to grow the marijuana.

Florida is one of three states with executions scheduled this week. They are the first since a botched execution in Oklahoma in May.

John Henry is scheduled to die on Wednesday for the murder of his ex wife and her son just a few days before Christmas in 1985. Governor Rick Scott says he isn’t concerned about potential problems.

“So again, what I do is focus on making sure that we do things the right way here. I think about the right way of doing these things. Its a solemn duty to do this, but what I think about the whole time is the families” says Scott

Henry’s lawyers are arguing he is not mentally competent to be executed with an estimated IQ of 78. Georgia and Missouri are the other two states with lethal injections scheduled this week.

500 Florida lawyers are asking the state Supreme Court to raise bar dues by a hundred dollars a year, from 265 to 365 dollars.

The money would be used to provide legal services for the poor. But the Bar leadership is pushing back. President Eugene Pettis says lawyers have already given million in time and money. He calls legal access a society wide problem much like hunger. “But when you have that crisis, you don’t go to the local grocery store and say give us more of your food…put it on sale. We come together as a community and say let us all come together to solver this crisis” says Pettis.

The incoming Bar President plans a summit of state leaders later this summer to work on solution for providing legal aid. Even when the current system was functioning at full capacity, only one in five was getting the legal help needed.

Former State Senator Nan Rich, the dark horse Democrat who has been running for Governor for two years, qualified for the ballot today.

Rich will face Republican turned Independent turned Democrat Charlie Crist on August 26th. She is calling for a debate between the two, which Crist has so far refused.

“There is a word called trust about someone who’s changed all of their positions 180 degrees…so I think the best thing to do is have a debate, get that discussion out there, and then the voters will decide” says Rich.

Rich says she will concentrate her efforts in the Democratic vote rich Broward County, which she represented in the legislature.

Hundreds of candidates qualified today for state and local officers on what is the official opening of the 2014 campaign season, and as Mike Vasilinda tells us, the candidates include those for the highest office in the state.

Sheria Griffin hand delivered the paperwork making Charlie Crist an official candidate for Governor. Included in the packet…the qualifying  check for just over 78 hundred dollars. We asked the sixth grade teacher why she was there. “Rick Scott has constantly cut funding for education and I believe Charlie Crist is for education” said Griffin.

The now official Democratic gubernatorial candidate spent just over an hour listening to the concerns of a group of teachers.

“it’s all about the future” he told them.

Afterwards, Crist said the fix was easy…elect him to the job he had until 2011. “What I would not do is what Rick Scott has done. He’s taken almost an entire university and wiped it off the map by taking almost 30,000 bright future’s scholarships. It’s unconscionable” said Crist.

Campaigning in Tampa, Governor Rick Scott took aim at Crist. “Well as we know Charlie Crist left us with a mess. He left me with a 3.6 billion dollar budget deficit. But we turned around our economy. Charlie Crist lost 832,000 jobs when he was Governor.”

An aid for Governor Rick Scott filed his paperwork, including three years of income tax returns late in the afternoon. Scott called on Crist to do the same. “I believe in transparency” said Scott.  “I’m asking Charlie and Carol to release their income tax returns.”

Rick Scott picked up two surprise opponents on the first day, and Charlie Crist will see a real Democratic opponent on Tuesday.

The filings are the beginning of what will be the most expensive governor’s race in the states history.

A series of reports linked 478 child deaths to a lack of follow up by the Department of Children and Families over a six year period.  At least 30 other child deaths went unreported under the departments watch.

“Local folks did not use the incident reporting system to document those notifications, they elected not to do so because they believed there were some security breaches in that system,” said Interim DCF Secretary Mike Carroll.

Interim Secretary Mike Carroll has been on the job less than two months. The investigation into the reports ended last week. Although some reports were withheld for months, Carroll says the whole thing was inadvertent.

“I’m disappointed that our actions down there and decisions that we made lead to a perception that we were hiding records or destroying records that certainly is not accurate. I think I’ve taken the action that’s appropriate based on what’s appropriate. Now I’d like to move forward,” he said.

The details of the investigation are hidden which has caused children advocates to raise some red flags.

Mike Watkins from Big Bend Community Cares cited the amount of child deaths as a reason for more child welfare money during legislative session.

“Any of us that are in the business should be concerned about reports that are not being turned in according to what the statute and policy requires,” said Watkins.

Former DCF secretary George Sheldon says the whole ordeal is very disappointing.

“To not report child deaths, is not only fraudulent, I think it violates the public trust,” said Sheldon.

A bill passed this year will require DCF to post all child death records on its website.

Interim Secretary Carroll suspended DCF’s southeast region administrator for two days without pay as a result of the investigation.  Some lawmakers have said that the investigation has been a cover up.

Father’s Day is this Sunday, but a divorced Florida Dad is crying foul over the state’s family court system. As Matt Galka explains, a bill that would have overhauled divorce court was vetoed last year.

Ray Granstrom says he’s not  a deadbeat. But the court order after his divorce only allows him to see his kids every other weekend. “Only parents know what’s in their children’s best interest. Not attorney’s, not gavels, and certainly not biased judges who abuse their power,” said Granstrom.

Granstrom joined the “Fatherless Day” movement – a national campaign to try and get equal time with kids for divorcees.  Granstrom says he’s also drowning in alimony payments.

“I’ve been attacked by the child support enforcement agency over an order that is void on its face, because it orders me to pay more than what I’ve been earning,” said Granstrom.

The divorced Dad says the Governor and legislature let him down in the past.

Women’s rights groups lobbied to veto a bill last year that would have ended permanent alimony and they say the bill shouldn’t come back. Barbara Devane with the National Organization for Women worked tirelessly to get the bill killed in 2013.

“Every divorce is different, every story is different, and we shouldn’t have the legislature coming up with a cookie cutter bill because one size does not fit,” said DeVane.

2013’s bill would have been retroactive to people paying permanent alimony, something the Governor said he couldn’t support. The legislation went nowhere in 2014.

Devane says the Governor didn’t want to risk anything during an election year. The bill that was vetoed last year would have required judges to give divorced parents equal custody unless there were extenuating circumstances.

If you’re feeling stressed, it’s probably because we’re living in the most stressed out state in the country according to a new survey. Matt Galka explores the factors and tells us what you can do about it.

Your daily commute, the amount of hours you work, and how much you’re spending on housing are just a few factors that went in to making our state the most stressed out in the country.

The national survey from real estate blog Movoto also took into account the amount of Floridians without healthcare. Florida is number 3 nationwide with more than 25% of the population uninsured. Medicaid Expansion advocate Damien Filer says that’s enough to stress anyone out.

“What’s sad about it is that we had an opportunity here in Florida to make a huge impact in terms of the number of people who have access to healthcare, and for two years running the legislature has failed to do so,” said Filer.

The unemployment rate helped Florida rank 1st.  The survey factored in recession numbers which the state says are very different today.

“Our current unemployment rate is 6.2 percent, well below our recession high of 11.4 percent, we’ve added 600,000 private sector job and our job demand is back to where it was prior to the recession. We think we’re doing pretty well,” said Department of Economic Opportunity Executive Director Jesse Panuccio.

So how can Floridians unwind? Well, a massage is a good place to start. Massage therapist Peggy Elliot has been de-stressing people for 26 years. She’s not surprised Florida ranked so high

“I recommend getting on the table and try giving it at least an hour to turn off all your media and enjoy yourself,” said Elliot.

Unfortunately, a one hour rub down can’t fix all the state’s problems. If you’re considering moving to the “least stressed state” then you should pack your bags and head to North Dakota.

FloridaStateUniversity hasn’t had much luck since they began looking for a new president to lead the school. As Matt Galka explains, the search is back to square one.

Not many expected the Florida State president search to get this much public outcry.

“The people do not trust the politicians of Florida to be the president’s of their university,” said FSU English Professor Ned Stuckey-French.

“This process has completely failed the students and faculty of Florida State,” added Students for a Democratic Society president Zach Schultz.

Both were addressing the now weary FSU President Search Committee.

The committee originally intended to interview Republican State Senator John Thrasher. Public disapproval and other candidates applying led to the interview being cancelled. The rocky road continued when the headhunter hired to find the next president quit. Even the search committee is embarrassed.

“Yes, it’s very embarrassing so you really hope that people looking at this process around America won’t be so reluctant and not apply,” said committee member and former State Senator Al Lawson.

The school’s faculty union asked the search committee to pump the breaks and reset the search. FSU’s United Faculty Florida President Jennifer Proffitt presented a petition with more than 1400 names calling for a do-over.

“I think the students and faculty that spoke today made it clear that there are some other things that need to be done,” she said.

The search committee voted to start negotiating with a new search firm.  They will also set a hard deadline for president applications next week.

Music professor Matthew Lata may have summed up the two month ordeal best.

“The search risks resembling a middle school playground squabble,” said Lata.

Faculty suggested that a new president not be hired until 2015. Florida State said that all candidates who have already applied will not need to re-apply under the new search firm. Interim President and former Provost Garnett Stokes will continue to the lead the school in the meantime.

Voters can expect a spirited and expensive campaign over medical marijuana this fall.   Vote No on 2 is raising millions of dollars to fight the amendment, as millions are being spent to support it.  Now a second anti pot group joined the fray this afternoon.

Don’t let Florida Go to Pot is backed by Florida Sheriffs, save our society from Drugs, and Drug Free America. “It’s wrought with loopholes. It is very cleverly written so there can be use and abuse” says Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd when talking about Amendment two.

“Sure, They call it medical marijuana” is one line from an anti pot video produced by Vote No on Two.  Vote No on 2 says the amendment allowing medical marijuana could lead to marijuana for everyone.

“Amendment two. It legalizes drug dealers. It allows teens to buy pot without parental consent.”

But the amendment allowing medical marijuana gives rule making authority to the state department of health to regulate Who, how much and how often. Consultant Brian Vicente was active in Colorado’s medical marijuana and legalization efforts. He says approval means going from the unknown to the known. “And the person purchasing it understands that the product they are buying isn’t something that was sprayed with chemicals,  they actually know the composition of what they are buying, and they can actually talk to someone that understands what it will do for their ailment” says Vincente.

Pro marijuana forces have raised just over five million. Vote no on two reported raising two point six million last month. The vote no on amendment two folks say they will spend whatever it takes to defeat the medical marijuana amendment.

21 states and the District of Columbia already allow some form of medical marijuana. Whether Florida becomes the 22nd will be the subject of millions spent educating people on both sides.  Opponents say nearly half a million people will qualify for medical marijuana, and that more than 1800 shops will open in Florida.

Are charities using the money that is donated to them for the right purposes? As Matt Galka tells us, Florida has learned from past mistakes and is cracking down on the charitable organizations that aren’t giving back.

The Allied Veterans of the World Internet Café scandal changed the way charities are viewed in the state. Then Lt. Governor Jennifer Carroll resigned because of her ties to the $300 million dollar gambling operation posing as a charity. The internet café group actually gave very little to veterans.  The legislature passed a bill this year to try and stop history from repeating itself.

“There was a need to crackdown on some of these charities that were taking money from people who were giving their hardworking money to the charities and then them not giving it to the causes,” said Dept. of Agriculture Press Secretary Erin Gillespie.

The Department of Agriculture says this bill could have helped stop the internet café scandal before it got out of control.

“It would certainly have made it more difficult. It does request more information from charities especially those that take in more than a million dollars. It also bans charities in Florida that had problems in other states which we were not able to do before,” said Gillespie.

11 Florida charities landed on a nationwide “50 worst charities list” last year. State Senator Jeff Brandes sponsored the charity crackdown bill.

“That’s just unconscionable that we would literally steal money from people. They’re saying it was a charitable contribution and they’re just using it to line their own pockets,” said Sen. Brandes (R-St. Petersburg).

Professional solicitors who use telemarketing to collect funds would need to provide fingerprints and background checks and report to the state the contributions that will be used for the charity.

The legislation is awaiting the Governor’s signature.