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The stories near you

• WUFT News: Gainesville police never called an interpreter for the questioning and arrest of a deaf man. He was found guilty this week. "The case highlights gaps in the local legal system to provide equal footing to people who are deaf."

• WUFT News: Alachua County School District will lose out on $2 million for defying a ban on mask mandates. "The original proposal would have cut $200 million from the budgets of 12 Florida districts that defied the state’s mask mandates ban put in place during the height of the Delta variant outbreak. Now, the state is implementing a revised version of the Florida School Recognition Program, which allocates money from a $200 million fund to only the 55 districts who abided by DeSantis' ban."

• WUFT News: Alachua County fines owner of West End Golf Club as residents’ frustrations grow over upkeep. "The property had accrued fines totaling $37,500 from code enforcement violations since its closure in 2019. The debt forced Alachua County to issue a lien on the 75-acre plot, barring it from being sold and effectively obstructing any tentative plans for new development. Peter Min, who manages the property, requested the fine be reduced and the lien be released during the March 3 hearing. Terry Zinn, the special magistrate who presided over the hearing, reduced the fine to $15,000. Min now has until April 9 to pay the reduced fine or it will revert to its original amount."

• WCJB: 660 loads of debris hauled off to landfill during tornado clean-up, more still to clean. "Since March 12, clean-up efforts have been underway and Marion County Engineer Elton Holland said they expect those efforts to continue for the rest of the month. Roughly 660 loads of debris have already been hauled off to the Baseline landfill. Holland said that’s about 20% so far."

• WMFE: Ocala prepares to celebrate its three Olympic medalistS in speed skating. "The city of Ocala will celebrate its trio of speed skating Olympic medalists with a parade on Silver Springs Boulevard and a downtown ceremony Saturday evening."

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Around the state

• WLRN: A study finds Florida has highest number of polluted lakes in the U.S. "Florida has climbed to the top of another ignominious list, thanks to hundreds of thousands of acres of lakes fouled by algae blooms fed by farm run-off and dirty stormwater. In a  new study examining water quality across the U.S., Florida ranked first for the highest total acres of lakes too polluted for swimming or healthy aquatic life. That means water can have high levels of fecal matter and other bacteria that can sicken people or low levels of oxygen or other pollution that can harm fish and other aquatic life. The state ranked second for polluted estuaries."

• Miami Herald ($): ‘We’re back at square one.’ Spring break curfew evokes Miami Beach history on Black visitors. "Miami Beach issued a state of emergency due to 'clear and present danger of a riot or other general public disorder' and imposed a daily midnight to 6 a.m. curfew on the South Beach area that starts Thursday night and ends Monday morning. Critics say those measures cast a negative light over a city that has a history of mistreatment of Black visitors."

• Florida Politics: No state had a bigger gap last year between deaths and births, but migration kept Florida’s population growing. "Florida deaths outnumbered births during the height of the 2020-21 COVID-19 pandemic by more than 45,000 people, slowing the Sunshine State’s otherwise impressive population growth, according to new estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau."

• WFLA-Tampa: Homeowners insurance crisis: Some Florida seniors worry they’ll lose property. "As the market gets smaller, the remaining insurers are increasing rates. Some rates have doubled in a single year."

• News4Jax: Want to buy a fixer-upper in St. Augustine? This 1-bedroom house is for sale for $349,000. "If you are looking for good examples of just how wild the housing market has become in Northeast Florida, look no further than St. Johns County. Two so-called major fixer-uppers in the Lincolnville neighborhood of St. Augustine that just came onto the market are getting lots of attention because of their steep price tags and run-down conditions."

• USA Today Network ($): Gov. Ron DeSantis orders flags at half staff in Florida for Madeleine Albright. "The U.S. and state flags will be 'flown at half-staff at all local and state buildings, installations, and grounds throughout the State of Florida immediately until sunset on Sunday, March 27, 2022,' a memo from the governor's office said."

• Bradenton Herald ($): Florida man who took Pelosi’s lectern in Capitol riot is hosting ‘going to prison’ party. "Before surrendering to serve 75 days in prison for his role in the Jan. 6 insurrection of the U.S. Capitol, including taking House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s lectern, Adam Johnson is hosting a 'going to prison' party. 'Come help me celebrate my last Friday of freedom before I go to prison for the lamest charge in history,' the Facebook event states."

From NPR News

• World: A month into the Russia-Ukraine war: What happened today (March 24)

• World: Biden promises Western allies would respond if Russia uses chemical weapons

• Politics: Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson confirmation hearings: What happened Thursday

• National: The U.S. will take in up to 100,000 Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war

• Health: U.S. airline CEOs call on President Biden to end the federal mask mandate on planes

• Race: People of color helped Hollywood through another pandemic year, a new study says

• Business: Welcome to the wedding boom. How couples are handling the busiest season in 40 years