Florida

When COVID-19 began ravaging large U.S. cities like New York and Los Angeles in March 2020, I was living in Orlando, Florida. And while the people living and working in the city were upended, my life remained relatively unchanged. I watched as my friends from around the country were ordered to stay inside. Meanwhile. I…

A Florida man was arrested Saturday after plowing his vehicle into a Catholic church and then setting the building on fire as parishioners were inside preparing for Mass, according to officials.The Marion County Sheriff's Office said Steven Anthony Shields, 24, crashed his van through the front doors of Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Ocala around 7:30…

Florida set a weekly record of nearly 500 coronavirus-related deaths, a roughly 16 percent increase from the last highest weekly mortality rate reported in May.The state’s Department of Health reported 95 new deaths Saturday, bringing the weekly total to 496 fatalities, which is an average of 71 deaths a day.Florida’s weekly mortality average three weeks…

A teen was facing charges for a would-be armed home invasion robbery in Florida in which his two accomplices were shot and killed and he was wounded, authorities said.The person who shot them was the homeowner victim who had a gun and used it to defend himself when he encountered the intruders in his home in…

President Trump renewed his opposition on Friday to Venezuela’s socialist dictator, Nicolás Maduro, showcasing a hard-line position popular with Florida’s Latino voters and accusing his presumptive Democratic rival, former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., of supporting “pro-Communist policies” across Latin America.Speaking at a round table in Doral, Fla., with Venezuelan and Cuban political exiles,…