Florida Courier - July 11, 2014

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JULY 11 – JULY 17, 2014

VOLUME 22 NO. 28

FLOODING THE BORDER

Obama’s $3.7 billion request to Congress reflects deepening concern about thousands of children, many traveling alone, to reach a better life in America. BY CHRISTI PARSONS, LISA MASCARO AND BRIAN BENNETT TRIBUNE WASHINGTON BUREAU (MCT)

WASHINGTON – President Obama asked Congress for $3.7 billion in emergency funding Tuesday to help confront what he called an “urgent humanitarian situation” - the unprecedented influx of children and teens arriving without parents on the Southwestern border. The figure was nearly double what the administration had signaled might be necessary, and it showed the deepening concern at the White House about the more than 52,000 unaccompanied minors, mostly from Central America, who have flocked across the border since October.

Another ‘stand your ground’ dismissal

GOP opposition The unexpectedly large supplemental funding request met with immediate resistance from Republicans in Congress, who said any additional spending should be coupled with stronger border security measures and steppedup deportations, which many Democrats oppose. Administration officials were to testify Wednesday – after the Florida Courier’s press time late Wednesday night – before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson was to appear Thursday before the Senate Appropriations Committee. Lawmakers were expected to press for an explanation of the administration’s strategy for

handling the crisis. Officials said the largest share of the money, $1.8 billion, would go to the Health and Human Services Department to provide food, housing and medical care to thousands of youths who are crammed into emergency detention facilities at U.S. Border Patrol facilities, on military bases and elsewhere as they await processing. An additional $1.6 billion would go to the Justice and Homeland Security departments for more immigration judges and other resources to clear backlogged immigration dockets. Officials also aim to deter other young peoMARK BOSTER/LOS ANGELES TIMES/MCT ple from heading north by using Police officers monitor a crowd protesting the arrival of busmore drone aircraft and other law loads of migrants to the U.S. Border Patrol station in Murrieta, See BORDER, Page A2

Calif., on July 4.

FLORIDA COURIER / OUT AND ABOUT

‘Mario’ at the Supercon Thousands, including this family and friends, attended the Florida Supercon last week in Miami Beach. The Supercon is South Florida’s largest costume play, comic book, anime, animation, video game, fantasy, science fiction and pop culture convention.

Two unarmed men dead; shooter walks BY DAVID OVALLE THE MIAMI HERALD / MCT

MIAMI – The Florida Supreme Court won’t take up the case of an Opa-Locka man who claimed self-defense in shooting and killing two unarmed men during a fight outside a Northwest MiamiDade restaurant. Prosecutors had asked the high court to review a local appeals court decision to grant immunity to Gabriel Mobley under Florida’s controversial Stand Your Ground self-defense law. But this week, high court justices Gabriel without explanaMobley tion issued an order refusing to accept the case, which means Mobley is free and clear of murder charges.

‘Shoot first’ approved

CHARLES W. CHERRY II / FLORIDA COURIER

The decision means Mobley’s case will set legal precedent in Florida. Legal experts have long seen the case as a key test of the controversial law, which elimiSee COURT, Page A2

SNAPSHOTS

Florida Lottery sales hit record-setting $5.3 billion

FLORIDA | A3

FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

with the Seminole Tribe.

No huge jackpots

Pot entrepreneurs fired up over proposed rules

TALLAHASSEE – Floridians’ obsession with lucky numbers and scratch-off tickets continues to grow. To help sales, the lottery annually spends between $28 million and $30 million on advertising – with virtually none going to Black-owned media. Even without a massive Powerball or Mega Millions rollover jackpot to spur sales, the Florida Lottery reported $5.36 billion in sales for the fiscal year that ended June 30. The record-setting mark, up from just over $5 billion a year earlier, comes as state lawmakers have deferred action on questions about the future of gambling – such as whether to allow megacasinos to open – while Gov. Rick Scott tries to strike a new deal

Increased education funding

The overall totals could have been higher if there had been a lucky number jackpot in any of the terminal games: Mega Money, Florida Lotto, Powerball and Mega Millions. “If we have a $600 million jackpot or $550 million jackpot, we just get out of the way and the sales take off,” Delacenserie said. “Last year we didn’t get up that high.” Powerball, which did have jackpots reach $400 million three times last year, generated $469 million for the state. Mega Millions, which was introduced in May 2013, totaled $167 million for the year, while Lotto brought in $349 million.

NATION | A6

Black policy group trying to revive thinktank

SPORTS | B3

World Cup offers a teachable moment for Ghanaian-American

ALSO INSIDE

While about 60 percent of the money played on games is paid out to winners, about $1.49 billion will go to the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund this year, lottery spokeswoman Meagan Dougherty said in an email. The education funding is up from $1.41 billion generated during the previous fiscal year. The lottery’s increased revenues stem largely from continued growth in scratch-off ticket sales, which range in price from $1 to $25 and are now available at more than 13,000 locations throughout the state. Sales of scratch-off tickets grew by 12.7 percent in the past

year, bringing in $3.4 billion. The $25-per-ticket game topped all scratch-off sales last year, averaging $13 million per week. Lottery Deputy Secretary of Sales Tom Delacenserie credited the success to the availability and creative marketing of all the games, along with new offerings such as Lucky Lines, a new terminal game that this month replaced Mega Money.

Jim Turner of The News Service Of Florida contributed to this report.

COMMENTARY: CHARLES W. CHERRY II: RANDOM THOUGHTS OF A FREE BLACK MIND | A4 COMMENTARY: MARC H. MORIAL: UNFINISHED BUSINESS 50 YEARS AFTER CIVIL RIGHTS ACT | A4


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