Give Miami Day is on November 17, 2022! Mark your calendar and join us for this day of mass philanthropy. Your generous support is vital in allowing us to continue our mission of serving poor and disenfranchised residents throughout Florida. Here are two meaningful ways that you can increase your impact leading to Give Miami Day: […]
Jacksonville agrees to stop requiring sex offenders to post “no candy” signs at Halloween
by Andrew Pantazi September 22, 2022 This Halloween, the city of Jacksonville will stop enforcing a local ordinance that required registered sex offenders to post a “no candy or treats here” sign every year. The city agreed to stop enforcing the law in response to a federal lawsuit it faced challenging the law’s constitutionality. The lawsuit had cited […]
Florida’s troubled prison system wants to shut down lawyer-to-inmate phone calls that can reveal cruel and illegal conditions
Florida’s troubled prison system wants to shut down lawyer-to-inmate phone calls that can reveal cruel and illegal conditions By Noreen Marcus,FloridaBulldog.org Florida prison officials want to change a rule to keep lawyers from talking to inmates who may need their help; the new rule would place inmates who could be defense witnesses completely out of earshot. […]
3 Brevard County registered sex offenders file federal lawsuit against county
Finch Walker – Florida TodayView Comments Published 12:56pm Three Brevard County registered sex offenders are plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit against the county, alleging violation of their First Amendment rights when they could not attend public County Commission meetings because doing so “would place them within 1,000 feet of a school and they feared being arrested and […]
Florida prisons will soon have more disability accommodations
HANNAH CRITCHFIELD – Aging and seniors reporter Published Dec. 2 Here’s what that means for the state’s aging incarcerated population. Change is coming for members ofFlorida’s aging incarcerated population who live with disabilities. The Florida Department of Corrections and Disability Rights Florida have reached a settlement following allegations that the state prison agency was failing to […]
City of West Palm Beach considering removal of panhandling restrictions
Steve King, Reporter WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Panhandling could soon be legal in West Palm Beach, as the city commission gets ready to discuss rolling back restrictions. The city commission will discuss possibly repealing the city’s panhandling ordinance, which makes it unlawful to panhandle or solicit in certain areas, during Monday’s meeting. Go to […]
FJI awarded $10,000 by The Foundation for Improvement of Justice
FJI is excited and honored to share that we were awarded the Paul H. Chapman Award from The Foundation for Improvement of Justice. The Award recognizes significant accomplishments that improve the justice system and can serve as an effective model for others. The Award includes the Paul H. Chapman Gold Medal, a check for $10,000, […]
Judge Says Fort Lauderdale’s Anti-Panhandling Law Treads on First Amendment
A federal judge has put a hold on Fort Lauderdale’s anti-panhandling law, rejecting the city’s attempt to paint beggars as a public-safety hazard. The nine-year-old ordinance prohibited panhandlers from asking for money in public parks, near sidewalk cafés, and in the vicinity of businesses and ATMs, among other places. Panhandling in the restricted areas was […]
‘Do You Have Some Spare Change?’ Panhandlers Gain Ground in Suit Against Fort Lauderdale Over Constitutional Issues
In South Florida, a federal district judge ordered the City of Fort Lauderdale to pause its panhandling ordinances because they are likely unconstitutional restrictions on free speech, as they violate the first amendment. And U.S. District Judge Roy K. Altman, in issuing the preliminary injunction against the city from enforcing its two panhandling ordinances, put […]
ACLU alarmed, seeks to overturn ruling on Boynton mom filming police
Journalism organizations and civil rights groups are joining forces to overturn a West Palm Beach appeals court decision that they claim could block the press and the public from videotaping police. Raising the specter of cellphone footage that captured George Floyd’s murder by Minneapolis police, ACLU attorneys on Friday urged the 4th District Court of Appeal […]
A Bill Limiting Youth Solitary Confinement In Florida Failed This Year. Here’s What The Practice Entails
What sticks most with Catherine Jones is the darkness. At night, when the sun no longer streamed through the small window of her isolation cell, the cockroaches would come out. Alone, tucked away in the corner of her cell, she’d beg the guard outside to keep her lights on through the night. Some would. Some […]
Judge tells Florida prison system: You can’t harass inmates just for complaining
A federal judge granted a protective order on Monday to inmates suing the Florida Department of Corrections and its secretary, Mark Inch, for what they say are unconstitutional isolation practices. The inmates — housed in isolation at Santa Rosa Correctional Institution, Florida State Prison, Lowell Correctional Institution and the Reception and Medical Center, a prison […]
Homeless Broward residents challenge Fort Lauderdale’s anti-panhandling laws in court
FORT LAUDERDALE — Mike Messina and Bernard McDonald, who are lifelong Broward County residents and have been homeless at various points in their lives, are challenging Fort Lauderdale’s anti-panhandling laws. They say the measures are an unconstitutional restriction of free speech. One of Fort Lauderdale’s ordinances prohibits anyone from requesting donations in all public parks, city parking […]
DeSantis’ latest proposal would harm the Black community | Letters
The draft text of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ first piece of proposed legislation since COVID-19 began to pummel Florida is finally circulating. The Defeat COVID-19 and Renew Florida Act? No — The Combatting Violence, Disorder, and Looting and Law Enforcement Protection Act. DeSantis’ proposed legislation is his reaction to the protests this summer after the killings […]
Arrested panhandler fights city’s law, saying it violated his free speech right
More than 100 people have run afoul of Pompano Beach’s ban on street solicitation in recent years, leading to a string of arrests and citations. But for one arrested homeless man, it has become a battleground for repealing the law that landed him behind bars. Bernard McDonald, a homeless and disabled laborer, is suing the […]
Senate proposal funds Department of Corrections pilot program, officer pay raises
The Senate is proposing spending more than $5.5 billion on the state’s Department of Corrections, court system and law enforcement agencies (SB 2500). That number includes general revenue and trust fund revenue. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Criminal and Civil Justice Chair Jeff Brandes said DOC has serious serious problems on which lawmakers must take action. […]
Claim of chronic overcrowding at Brevard Jail lands county back in federal court
For years, the Brevard County Jail has housed hundreds of inmates over its “operational capacity,” in apparent violation of a 27-year-old court decree, according to a motion filed in federal court in Orlando last week by a prisoners’ rights group. The Miami-based Florida Justice Institute filed the motion, seeking an order to show cause as to […]
Federal Judge Refuses to Dismiss Lawsuit Challenging Juvenile Solitary Confinement
A federal judge Friday rejected a request by the state Department of Juvenile Justice to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the use of solitary confinement for juveniles. The Southern Poverty Law Center, Florida Legal Services and the Florida Justice Institute sued the state in September and alleged that placing juveniles in solitary confinement violated the constitutional […]