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Imagine looking for a job and not having access to a phone to find out if you’re wanted for a second interview. Millions across America face that obstacle yearly. As Matt Horn reports – Florida is working towards making sure everyone has a phone no matter how much money you make.

From days gone by, when there were four families to one phone to one family with four phones. The need to stay connected is as important now as ever before. That’s why Mamie Barber attended a kick off event for the National Lifeline Awareness Week.

“I know for myself being a low income family, this program will help me,” said Barber.

The purpose of the meeting is to get these applications into the hands of low-income families so they can stay connected with others.

Over the next week a number of events will be held across the state — making sure everyone can stay in touch..

“There are a lot of benefits for having this cell phone for those who need it,” said wireless representative Tammy Johnston.

Statewide – more than 1-million Floridians need assistance to get phone services. An increase of 9-point-7 percent from last year.

“It’s a program that is growing, that recognizes the financial situation many families are in today,” said PSC Chariman Ronald Brise.

Senator Bill Montford says everyone who is eligible for the program should get a phone. “This is an effort today to provide that service to the people who need it. The one’s under financial stress at this point,” said Senator Montford.

For Barber – she says it doesn’t matter how much money you have – but having access to a phone is needed for all.

“Don’t judge us because where we live at or anything else because we’re all still human,” she said.

The discount service costs 111 dollars a year.

The dirt has re-filled the holes where two bodies were removed from unmarked graves at the former-Dozier School for Boys in Jackson County.

Decades since leaving the Dozier School for Boys, families still re-live the horror they say took place daily at the reform school.

“It don’t make sense that you go there and can’t come back as a child,” said Regimond Bouie, who attended Dozier.

Bouie says he was beaten multiple times in the ‘White House’ in the late 1950’s. His brother Sam Palmer says their cousin is one of the bodies buried in an unmarked grave, leaving the family with unanswered questions for decades.

“I’ve heard a lot of stories, saying children ran away,” said Palmer. “I don’t believe it at all.”

Bouie and Palmer both agree they hope the exhuming of bodies will allow families to provide proper funerals for the love ones who never got to say goodbye.

“If you can bring closure to any family, you know I think that’s what it is. You can’t change what happened,” said Bouie.

The two bodies removed have been sent to the University of South Florida where DNA testing will begin. “If we can identify those individuals, its an absolute success,” said USF Researcher Erin Kimmerle.

Even though there is no clear sign these bodies are Palmer’s cousin, researchers expect to find up to 50 skeletal remains in unmarked graves; leaving surviving family members optimistic answers will be found.

Researchers are planning on returning to exhume more bodies by October or November depending on how much it rains this fall.

University of South Florida Researches searching for skeletal remains in the Florida Panhandle have wrapped up the first phase of their search. As Matt Horn reports, there is still a long way to go before nagging questions of abuse are answered.

Just feet away from their gravesites at the former-Dozier School for Boys, skeletal remains exhumed Monday afternoon are ready to be examined.

“Preliminary analysis of dental remains show, suggest they are 10 to 13 years old,” said Researcher Erin Kimmerle.

A team of 25 researchers will now take evidence back to the University of South Florida to figure out just who was found in the graves and collect more evidence on the remains.

“More information we can write up a little narrative about that individual and send samples off for DNA testing,” she said.

Horror stories from inmates beaten at the ‘White House’ at the school sparked an investigation in 2008.

Researchers started looking at dozens of marked and unmarked graves last year after a law enforcement report was inconclusive. After a political tug of war with local officials, they began exhuming bodies this weekend. At least 50 bodies are expected to be found in the unmarked graves. Plans are in the works to prepare for a longer dig this fall.

“We’ve got to have power and water and sewer and lights. We’ve got to have everything you would need to operate for over a month,” said volunteer Larry Bedore.

Researchers will be back at the campus over the next year to search for other forgotten former-students who are believed to be buried in unmarked graves. The goal is to return any remains to loved ones.

Researchers say further DNA testing will be sent to the University of North Texas – which will help the group identify the remains found over the weekend.

Marianna,  and Jackson County Florida, population 50 thousand, are about to become the center of attention. Reports of beatings and boys being sent  to the Dozier School for Boys, never to return, have fueled speculation about brutality at the facility.

 Over Labor Day weekend the University of South Florida began exhuming bodies from unmarked graves. The majority of local residents are unhappy. They say the past is the past and should stay that way. 

“I believe it’s going to be a hornets nest” said John Cooper, a motorcyclist. Glenda Retherford works at Walmart. She believes whatever happened, couldn’t happen today.“Times are different. Things are different, People were different. It wouldn’t happen today, I don’t think.”

Insurance agent John Perkins says the money could be better spent taking care of kids today. “I mean, its something that happened fifty-sixty years ago. You know, let bye gones be bye gones” says Perkins.

 In allowing researchers to begin exhuming bodies, Attorney General Pam Bondi acknowledged local concerns. “Marianna, Florida currently is a beautiful place to live” says Bondi. The community is not universally opposed. Charlie Robert owns rental property.

“I think they need to do it” he told us. But a local judge and county commissioners…all of whom must face voters…took a stand against allowing the search for bodies. County Commissioner Jeremy Branch worries about the negative light being cast on the community. “What we are acting on are allegations made by criminals and juvenile deliquents” says Branch

The look for bodies could go on for as long as a year. But finding out what really happened over the one hundred year plus history of the school  is likely to remain buried forever.

 

 

The search for bodies at the former Dozier School for boys in the Panhandle entered into its third day. The search for answers is moving one inch at a time.

Inch-by-inch the antagonizing nightmare of the Dozier’s past is creeping closer to the surface…a bittersweet reminder of Florida’s troubled history.

“It’s really amazing to be able to put sort of a face to this list of individuals, these children we’ve been researching about, thinking about, meeting their family,” said USF Anthropologist Erin Kimmerle.

A team of researchers have been digging since Saturday. Sunday evening teeth and skull fragments were discovered in a grave being unearthed.
Monday the careful dig for answers continues.

“As the exhuming of bodies continue — family members are providing DNA to the researchers in an attempt to figure out who is buried at the closed school,” Matt Horn reported.

31 crosses dot the gravesites where the excavating is taking place. The chilling part – around 100 students are thought to be buried on the school
grounds. A lack of state records make it difficult for researchers to locate all of the bodies.

“When we initially came out here and started that is an area that would have been under thick brush,” said Kimmerle.

Questions started to surface in 2008 as abuse allegations made it to then-Governor Charlie Crist. An investigation he requested showed there were at least 31 bodies unaccounted for in the cemetery. Researchers are now working to put together additional missing links.

”It’s very meticulous work, I don’t think the public knows exactly the hard work it is. But, I have the blisters to show you its very hard work,” said research volunteer Brett Harding.

As the process continues, the shell of Dozier is all that remains intact outside of Marianna. As the chilling history is starting to rear it’s ugly head one inch at a time.

Governor Rick Scott and the Cabinet voted to allow USF researchers to exhume the bodies earlier this summer.

After nearly a two year suspension following the hazing death of Florida A&M’s band is ready to re-take the field.

Florida A&M’s band hasn’t missed a beat since a nearly two year suspension.

”It’s really unbelievable, you know what I’m saying? Being in a position where the bands gone and now the bands back,” says band member Zachary Nealy.

The band was suspended after the hazing death of 26-year-old drum major Robert Champion in November 2011. Doctors say Champion was hit more than 300 times during the hazing ritual.

The incident forced the resignation of the university president and faculty members, while felony and misdemeanor charges against more than a dozen former band members. A new band director was hired earlier this year.

The band: 146 members strong is ready for a new chapter in its storied history.

”…Let the world know we’re talented musicians, talented group of students and they’re going to rise to the occasion,” said Ralph Jean-Paul.

Part of the new culture includes stricter guidelines for band members. Buses left two hours later than expected because of the extensive checklist. It verifies each band member’s enrollment status and GPA. ”A few different processes, but its for accountability, so its all great. It’s going to serve a for a bigger purpose,” said Jean-Paul.

”Five buses are taking the marching 100 back to Orlando the same city they last performed in nearly two years ago,” reports Matt Horn.

“The band will exemplify good character and integrity on the trip, its going to be an awesome trip. We will not let our fans our university or anyone down,” said Nealy.

The band will perform for the football team’s first game on Sunday at the Citrus Bowl.

With hundreds of people moving to Florida daily – more and more sinkhole reports are expected statewide. As Matt Horn reports sinkholes are already on the rise after a rainy summer.

From one end of Florida to the other – the threat of sinkholes – are imminent.

“We’re going to have more sinkholes, that’s just a result of living here in Florida,” said state assistant geologist, Harley Means.

Florida geologists say the rainy summer has helped speed up the process for many of these sinks across the state… Several Florida sinkholes have made headlines after forming in heavily populated areas – like the one near Disney World earlier this month. As common as sinkholes are – geologist say man has helped speed up the process.

“Certain times of the year or certain events can trigger sinkholes,” said Means.

The Tallahassee sinkhole opened up last week – although unlikely to cause any damage to nearby houses – people in the area say they will keep a close on the hole.

“It doesn’t worry me too bad. It worries me a little about peoples houses close to it,” said Bart Herndon.

With more people moving to Florida – geologist say the number of sinkhole reports will undoubtedly go up. Creating a possible recipe for disaster.

“We can’t predict exactly when and where a sinkhole will occur,” said Means.

Sinkholes are most common from Central Florida through the Big Bend in North Florida.

A security breach earlier this summer has the State Department of Health scrambling to keep your information private. As Matt Horn reports, skeptics say they don’t believe new proposals will protect patient privacy.

Florida’s online prescription database is ground zero for security issues.

”We wanted to make sure that we feel like its secure. Security is priority number one for the Department of Health on health information,” said Deputy Secretary Marty Stubblefield.

Earlier this summer the Department of Health was forced to review security after 33-hundred Floridians medical information wrongfully made it into the hands of 5 attorneys in Volusia County. D-O-H says even after the breach the department’s number one mission is keeping people’s information private.

“The biggest changes on who we accept as having access being able to deny access as well as being able to say this person is too much,” said Stubblefield.

This week the department held a public hearing on the security issues. Opponents worry the changes the department is proposing, including restricting law enforcement access, wont do anything to protect patient privacy.

”We really hope the DOH is willing to go back to the table to consider recommendations that the ACLU put forth and come back with something that sort of makes sense,” said ACLU lobbyist, Pamela Burch Fort.

Critics fear DOH will make security changes without adding the feedback from the public hearing – forcing the skeptics to rely on lawmakers next spring at the capitol.

“At some point we will be reviewing the next iteration of the proposed rules,” said Burch Fort.

The agency says it will publish its proposal in September and take public comments before adopting any changes.

A one-of-a-kind marriage between two females have sparked controversy in Florida and in Texas. As Matt Horn reports this same-sex marriage couple used a Texas court ruling against itself to marry…making their situation a one of a kind in America.

This marriage has been one of the biggest blessings and biggest obstacles for Kim and Carolyn Van der Linde. That’s because Kim was born a male.

“I started out maybe feeling a little odd about it, because yeah it is a little big different. But, after a while, I just realized this is the one, so does it matter,” asked Carolyn van der Linde.

After dating for three years, the couple decided to take the next step and tie the knot. Although Florida laws ban same-sex marriage; the couple decided to challenge a similar Texas law.

“How you’re born is what you are, whether you’re transgender or not, it doesn’t matter; and that basically told me, we can get married there as a heterosexual couple,” said Dr. Kim van der Linde.

Kim who is a biologist at Florida State University was able to prove under Texas law that their marriage is in fact legal. That’s because she has male chromosomes while her wife has female chromosomes.

The couple found a judge to marry them as a heterosexual couple in San Antonio, Texas.

“We went in and she was like okay. It was very awkward because I was addressed as mister,” said Kim.

However, the Van der Linde’s marriage isn’t recognized in Florida, since the state considers them a same-sex couple; and not a heterosexual couple like Texas.

“Loopholes, contradictions and discrimination and that makes for bad policy,” said attorney Eliabeth Ricci.

Two weeks ago – Kim, who is from the Netherlands – finally received her green card allowing her to stay in Florida with Carolyn. Making this bi-national couple’s marriage one of the most unique in the country.

The 1999 Texas court case had nullified a marriage between a male and a transgender female saying the chromosomes a person is born with is the gender a person is, even after a sex change. Which made the marriage between the Van der Linde’s possible.

As you get ready to load the family into the car for a long Labor Day holiday, state officials are planning a crackdown on speeders. As Matt Horn explains, the Florida Highway Patrol is part of not only a state but a national enforcement effort.

Every day – officers stop drivers who are breaking the law—and sometimes encounter people with tempers. Florida Highway Patrol Sergeant, Ryan Martina says he understands emotions are high during each traffic stop. But the goal is to keep people safe on Florida’s roads.

“Its all about safety. Its not about revenue or anything like that,” said Martina.

From Jacksonville to Santa Monica, California — Labor Day weekend kicks off a brand new multi-state initiative on Interstate 10 to keep motorists safe.

“All of our troopers that align with the corridor for I-10, they’re going to be looking for aggressive drivers, DUI’s, speeding,” said Capt. Nancy Rasmussen. “I think people are starting to realize that with the increase of traffic along the roadways that they’re slowing down a little bit.”

Across Florida – the number of fatal accidents during summer holiday weekends are down from last year, even though overall accidents are up.

“Slow down, watch the speed limits, stop for stop signs, wear your seatbelt, don’t drink and drive; don’t text and drive,” said Martina.

The increased patrol efforts start on Friday.

This is the first time the seven states along I-10 have worked together to have a special enforcement weekend for a holiday.

The state’s property insurer of last resort is taking a step in reducing the number of policies the company has. The reduction may save some policy holders money, while costing others more.

With 1-point-2 million policy holders, Citizen’s no longer wants to be the states largest insurer.

“One of our goals has been to shrink citizens down to the insurer of last resort,” said Citizen’s spokesperson Mike Peltier.

Citizen’s is spending almost 45-million over 10 years to move policyholders to a private company. New applicants will be required to go through a clearinghouse being set up by the contract. If they’re offered private insurance no more than 15-percent higher than citizen’s rates, they won’t be allowed to use citizens.

Lawmakers passed a bill which was signed into law by the governor which will help citizens reduce their policy count number.

“That was the big reform from the legislature – to try to reduce the size of citizens and we support it,” said Sam Miller with Florida Insurance Council.

Citizen’s says it’s a two prong approach. The first point is to make the company the insurer of the last resort; the second goal is to make sure customers are receiving the best coverage possible.

“To provide customers with what may be comprehensive coverage then they can with citizen’s policy,” said Peltier.

The clearinghouse begins in January 2014.

”We’re trying to give customers the opportunity to find coverage in private market as opposed to coming back to citizens,” said Peltier.

Bolt Solutions beat out five other vendors for the contract with Citizen’s Insurance.

Citizen’s Renewal Customers will only be able to stay with the insurer of last resort if they can’t find cheaper rates elsewhere.

The Department of Juvenile Justice is still dealing with the aftermath of a weekend riot at a Juvenile prison, and now as Matt Horn tells us, the Department faces the possibility of running out of money by spring.

The Department of Juvenile Justice is still cleaning up after a weekend riot at a Polk County Juvenile detention center. Secretary Wansley Waters says she is still looking for answers. “So that we can determine what can be done to prevent this from happening again,” said Secretary Walters.

The Department faces other woes. Just two months into the new budget year, the department faces the possibility of running out of money.

“Our budget that was allocated by the legislature didn’t really fund us to address anything like this,” said Walters.

The problem is a recent court ruling that prohibits the department from charging counties for locking up juvenile offenders. The state is now scrambling to make up a 35-million dollar deficit. There’s another 19 million dollar budget hole after the Federal government stopped sharing health care

“We’re looking for legislature to assist us,” said Walters.

The financial issue is expected to be a one year problem.

“As we move forward, our budget will be whole so we don’t encounter these short falls every year,” said Walters.

Lobbyist Barney Bishop isn’t surprised by the courts decision, but he says DJJ is trying to right any wrongs.

“I think this is a legitimate issue and the secretary is doing the appropriate thing by notifying both the governor and the respected appropriation chairs,” said Bishop.

Although unlikely, it is possible the budget shortfalls could lead to the closure of several juvenile facilities statewide.

For the first time in three years Florida’s sea turtle hatchlings are seeing increased survival rates. The increase is a result of measures put in place to keep the baby sea turtles alive.

Every morning during turtle nesting season Bruce Drye walks up and down St. George Island, keeping a close eye on sea turtle nests. Drye has been using his skills to protect baby sea turtles since the mid-1980’s.

When asked where he learned his skills Drye said, “But, I learned how to do all of this as a park ranger.”

As the warm waters of the Gulf crash onshore, Drye says it’s not a life at the beach for these hatchlings.

“The sky will be lighter than the water, and that’s what has drawn hatchlings to the safety of the water for billions of years, and if we have these homes lit up, they’ll go the wrong way,” said Drye

Other predators such as the ghost crab pose a threat to the baby sea turtles.

Turtle nests have been popping up all over the beaches. In 2010, they were moved to the east coast of Florida due to the BP oil spill along the Gulf Coast. Because of those efforts, this could be a record year.

“Hatchling success rates over there nearly as good as if we had left these on the beach by themselves, left them alone,” said Drye.

So far this year 861 nests each containing about a hundred eggs, have been counted statewide.

Beach-goer Jennifer Taylor was on this beach in 2010, she says it’s amazing to see such an abundance of sea turtle nests after the oil spill.

“We were here three years ago, I guess and we saw maybe one or two nests. So seeing these along the beach is pretty amazing,” said Taylor.

With another successful nesting season underway thousands of hatchlings are expected to soon populate the waters off Florida’s coast. As of right now, the number of nests is the second highest on record.

A Florida four year old who has gone most of his life unable to hear clearly has a new lease on life. His use of sound comes just in time for school.

After years of extreme hearing loss since he was just a few months old, Nick Bender was able to hear clearly for the first time this summer.

Four year old Nick Bender cheerfully said, “I hear that, I hear that!”

In June, Bender received a Cochlear Implant; in July the device was turned up high enough for him to finally hear.

Nick’s mother Michelle Bender said, “When they turned it on, its like hearing is back. It’s just amazing with just a flip of a switch with a little minor surgery. It’s just amazing.”>

It’s the second day of school for Nick and because of the implant he’s able to attend a traditional school where he’ll still receive the help he needs.

“He’s going to be able to get speech therapy here that he was needing. He was needing it like 2 to 3 times per week by going to school here,” said Nick’s father Ken Bender.

The implant was placed behind Nick’s right ear.

“He’s actually hearing through here, not through his ear anymore. And then the wires connected to a little processor that’s like a little computer processing the information,” said Michelle Bender.

Through the process the Bender family has made the 2-plus hour drive from Tallahassee to the Nemours Children Hospital in Jacksonville. Now that Nick is able to hear, trips to the hospital will be fewer. Nick can now focus on things other 4 year-olds enjoy, like going to the movies with their parents.

“I went to the movie,” said Nick Bender. “Yes, you went to the movie,” said Michelle Bender.

For Nick and his parents, better hearing will lessen his frequent question: What? and likely replace it with the question, Why’s that?

It’s estimated more than 150-thousand cochlear implants have been performed globally.

The way high school students are drug tested may be changing – and at the parents expense. As Matt Horn reports, this is after some Florida parents started supplying high school students with performance enhancing chemicals.

Before the first football game of the season, there are talks of how schools may monitor student-athletes using performance enhancing drugs.

“Our goal is to protect our student athletes and the sport that they play,” said Shelton Crews.

If the changes take place and there’s a ‘reasonable suspicion’ that a player is using performance enhancing drugs a parent will have to pay for the drug test before the player is allowed back on the field.

Florida Athletic Coaches Association Executive Director Shelton Crews says coaches support the change. “We do support a change; we support this mission of FHSA,” said Crews.

Student athletes say they, too support drug testing to keep the game as fair as possible.

“If you’re using drugs and its helping you play it aint fair for other people to go against you,” said student athlete Andre Thomas.

Many education associations remain tight lipped as they figure out what the changes will mean for schools. The High School Athletic association says if a student-athlete is tested for the performance enhancing drugs, it may cost a parent up to 2-hundred dollars. Players have mixed reaction on who should pay for tests.

State lawmakers approved a test program six years ago to drug test athletes, it was later abandoned because of the price to state taxpayers.

The Florida Association of School Administrators says districts already have the authority to drug test students and have them pay for the test, too.