Fans can buy $30 t-shirts, $27 baseball hats, and an $8 set of bumper stickers to advertise their support for the attorney general and the makeshift facility he’s credited with coming up with the idea for.
Author Archives: Kate Payne
Kate Payne is The Florida Trib's state government reporter.
She’s spent her career in nonprofit newsrooms in Florida and Iowa and her reporting has run the gamut, from interviewing presidential candidates on the campaign trail to middle schoolers in the lunch line.
Kate has won awards for her political reporting, sound editing and feature writing and was named 2024 journalist of the year by the Florida chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.
Kate’s previous newsrooms include the Associated Press, Iowa Public Radio and WLRN Public Media in Miami. Her stories and photographs have been published by The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, NPR and PBS, and her reporting on the death penalty has been cited in a filing at the U.S. Supreme Court.
You can reach Kate at kate.payne@floridatrib.org
Posted inFlorida Election Coverage
The U.S. has never elected a Black Republican governor. Can Florida?
While Republicans have supported a number of Black nominees for governor across the country, no Black Republican in American history has been able to accomplish what Byron Donalds is attempting.
Posted inCriminal Justice
How state officials fought for months to keep a lid on Hope Florida report
This week, a higher court issued a damning rebuke of the grand jury and its report, which the court found was ‘careless in its grammar, mistaken in its law, and unfaithful to its own record.’
Posted inState Government
DeSantis exercises ‘unprecedented’ power to label groups ‘domestic terrorists’
Gov. DeSantis and the Florida Cabinet voted to advance the terrorist designations Tuesday, approving the proposal in just over 30 seconds and with no discussion.
Posted inCriminal Justice
How AI-powered bungling by Florida cops cost a father his freedom and $45,000
The Florida Trib’s investigation shows how a justice system meant to promote public safety instead failed an innocent person at nearly every step of the process.
Posted inFlorida News Articles & Reporting
How we cracked the code on an AI-driven ‘local news outlet’ in South Florida
In a world awash in digital mysteries that disappear down a rabbit hole, The Trib was actually able to get to the bottom of this bizarre whodunnit, thanks to a collaboration with ‘Question Everything.’
Posted inImmigration
‘Alligator Alcatraz’ detainees were held in cages the size of a phone booth
The report gives a rare glimpse into the sprawling makeshift facility that was built in a matter of days by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration.
Posted inImmigration
This state agency owes millions in immigration bills. Lawmakers just cut a check
The emergency preparedness fund was originally set aside for recovery from hurricanes and other natural disasters. This past year, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration used much of the money to build and operate the now-shuttered Everglades immigration detention facility dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz.”
Posted inState Government
Democrats want to impeach Uthmeier, but accountability may rest with the voters
Uthmeier, now under fire for his role in the Hope Florida scandal, has previously threatened mayors, county commissioners, and state attorneys with removal from office for failing to meet his legal standards.
Posted inState Government
Where are they now? Key actors in Hope Florida scandal got promoted
Despite finding the $10 million was misappropriated, the grand jury said there was “insufficient evidence” to charge anyone criminally – because no one would admit to orchestrating the scheme.