Good Morning! On this day in 1921, Morgan Bonaparte “Bone” Mizell, Florida’s most famous Cracker cowboy, died at the Fort Ogden depot while waiting on a telegraphed money order. His death certificate read: “Moonshine—went to sleep and did not wake up.”
The Et Cetera section below features a story about a Florida high school student who landed an 11.99 GPA. Our Poll question asks how much your high school GPA mattered to your real life. Hit reply if you’ve got thoughts.
Are you frustrated with a phone battery that never seems to last the day? You are not alone, and the fix usually is not a trip to the store or a few hundred dollars for a new device. A handful of settings buried in your phone are quietly draining power all day long, and most of them are switched on by default without you ever knowing. In today’s episode of The Flyover Podcast, Ayla walks through seven quick changes that can stretch your battery well past what you are getting now. Tune in here to learn more.
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Lawmaker Defends Himself at Harassment Trial
Opening statements began Monday in Tallahassee in the civil sexual harassment trial of state Rep. Fabian Basabe, who is serving as his own lawyer.
Former legislative aide Nicolas Frevola and former intern Jacob Cutbirth sued the Miami Beach Republican in 2023, alleging lewd comments, unwanted touching, battery, and defamation. Basabe denies all the claims.
Basabe’s attorney withdrew from the case in March 2025, telling the court Basabe wanted to represent himself. The arrangement allows the lawmaker to cross-examine his accusers and testify on his own terms.
Two state ethics complaints tied to the allegations were dismissed this year for lack of probable cause. Basabe, first elected in 2022, represents Miami Beach and nearby coastal communities.
Nursing Homes Seek Haitian Worker Exemption
Florida’s largest nursing home association is asking the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to exempt Haitian workers from the end of temporary protected status (TPS) for Haitian immigrants, warning that as many as 35,000 of the state’s healthcare workers could be affected.
In a July 7 letter to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Florida Health Care Association CEO J. Emmett Reed asked that “critical long-term care workers” be allowed to continue working while pursuing lawful immigration status. The group represents more than 650 facilities.
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in June that lower courts can’t block the administration from ending the protections for Haitians and Syrians. Federal immigration officials say affected work permits will now expire on July 24.
DHS has said conditions in Haiti have improved and that TPS “was never intended to be a de facto asylum program.”
Lee entered as a qualifier and was the youngest player in the draw. He’s the first qualifier to win a junior Grand Slam since Noah Rubin in 2014 and the first American boys’ champion at Wimbledon since 2021.
Hewitt, 17, is the son of 2002 Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt, who watched from the stands at No. 1 Court. Down a break in the deciding set, Lee broke back twice and sealed the title with a backhand winner.
Lee trains at the USTA National Campus in Lake Nona, where his mother, Tina, is the head tennis professional. “A year ago at this timeI was sitting at home on the couch, didn’t know if I was going to play tennis again,” he said.
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➤Statewide: Attorney General James Uthmeier announced subpoenas to General Mills, Pillsbury, and other companies over potassium bromate, a flour additive banned in much of the world and linked to kidney damage at high exposures. The subpoenas seek safety research, buyer disclosures, and sales records to Florida schools. No lawsuit has been filed. (See Details)
➤Miami-Dade: The Florida Department of Health advised against swimming at three area beaches after tests found elevated Enterococcus bacteria: Golden Beach, Bark Beach at 79th Street, and North Shore Ocean Terrace at 73rd Street. The advisory remains in effect until follow-up testing shows safe levels. (See Details)
➤Lake Worth Beach: A 63-year-old man faces a felony charge after Florida Fish and Wildlife investigators say he listed a protected Atlantic hawksbill sea turtle shell on Facebook Marketplace for $2,700. (See Details)
➤Flagler Beach: The city commission voted July 9 to seek a $43 million state grant to build a reclaimed water system, the first step toward a 2021 state mandate to stop discharging treated wastewater into the Intracoastal Waterway by 2032. (More)
➤Miami Beach: A manhole fire ignited an electrical vault in a building near 230 Lincoln Road, triggering an explosion that injured three people and forced evacuations and street closures. The victims were taken to Mount Sinai Medical Center with minor injuries and are expected to recover. (See Details)
➤Miami Gardens: Former NFL quarterback Teddy Bridgewater joined state Sen. Shevrin Jones Sunday for a ceremonial signing of the Teddy Bridgewater Act, which lets high school head coaches spend up to $15,000 of their own money on food, transportation, and recovery services for players. Bridgewater’s suspension for doing that at Miami Northwestern inspired the law. (More)
➤Palm Coast: Flagler County deputies found a 14-year-old girl with autism who got lost riding her bike, ending a nighttime search with a reunion. The teen managed to FaceTime her mother just before her phone died. (More)
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➤ Six Florida Gators baseball players heard their names called in the MLB draft that wrapped Sunday, led by first-rounder Liam Peterson, picked at 19th overall by the Guardians. Four more Seminole pitchers went on day two to push Florida State’s total to seven. The Jacksonville area produced seven picks. (See Details)
➤Rivals named Florida State the early favorite for Chandler Dyson, a four-star 2028 quarterback from Warner Robins, Georgia, who has visited Tallahassee four times. Florida, meanwhile, is in the early mix for Lukas Prock, a New Jersey passer ranked sixth among his class’s quarterbacks. (More)
➤CBS Sports named Florida one of college football’s six biggest wild cards for 2026, Jon Sumrall’s first season in Gainesville. The roster added 52 newcomers. (See Details)
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➤ Orlando’s city council is holding a workshop on what November’s property tax amendment could mean for the city’s budget. The measure would exempt the first $150,000 of homestead value from taxation, rising to $250,000 in 2028. (See Details)
➤ Hilton and the Reuben Brothers will convert the W South Beach into the Waldorf Astoria Miami Beach, the brand’s first hotel in the city. The oceanfront property closes in August for renovation and is scheduled to reopen in winter 2027 with 348 suites. (See Details)
➤ Florida’s average price for gas hit $3.82 per gallon Sunday after a 13-cent late-week jump tied to renewed U.S.-Iran tensions and uncertainty around the Strait of Hormuz. (See Details)
➤ Madeira Beach commissioners voted 4-0 Wednesday to approve an 87-room Marriott Tribute Collection condo-hotel at John’s Pass Village, an approximately $115 million project with retail, restaurants, a rooftop pool, and a public parking garage. Developers expect it to open in 2028. (See Details)
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➤ Lee County deputies flew a drone into a storm drainage pipe Monday to locate a dog named Fletcher, who had crawled deep inside in the Portico community. Guided by the drone’s live feed, Fort Myers Shores firefighters cut access points into the pipe and pulled him out. (See Photos)
➤ Steinbrenner High valedictorian Vaibhav Bhaskar, 17, graduated with an 11.99 weighted GPA, believed to be a Florida record, and it may stand forever. Hillsborough County changed its GPA formula to cap future students at 5.0. He’s headed to Duke to study finance and economics. (Read Story)
➤ Howl-O-Scream, SeaWorld Orlando’s Halloween event, returns for its sixth year, Sept. 11 through Oct. 31, and the first of five haunted houses revealed is Everything Must Stay, set in a suburban home no one can sell because buyers keep fleeing in terror. (See Details)
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The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes. Clicking the links will take you directly to these stories:
➤ How can you make your phone battery last significantly longer without buying a new device? (Hear More)
➤ Homeless encampments have taken over 12 blocks near a popular New York City museum, and workers say the city has stopped clearing them. (Hear Episode)
➤ A fire tore through a crowded bar in Thailand this weekend, killing dozens. (Listen Now)
How much would you say your high school GPA mattered to the rest of your life?
Lawmaker Defends Himself at Harassment Trial
