WAFC Local News – January 14, 2026, 8:32 AM
Transcript
I’m Charles Murphy reporting. A disturbance with shots fired in Hendry County. 28-year-old Pedro Granado Rangel has been charged with aggravated assault with a motor vehicle. Deputy reports say two victims say they were followed by Rangel, who was driving in an erratic manner. One said he fired a round with a .22 Ruger to scare off Rangel. They also allege Rangel attempted to ram their vehicle. Rangel denied he committed a crime and said the victims had been parking on the road, spying on him and driving erratically on his street. There are no injuries in the incident. The state and Senate convened for the 2026 legislative session today. The Florida House stands ready, ready to work with anyone who is willing to put the needs of our state first. This year I look forward to providing voters the opportunity to pass meaningful property tax relief. House Speaker Daniel Perez and Senate President Ben Albritton told the members of the chamber that affordability is on the top of the mind of Floridians. On the Democratic side, Ventris Driscoll, the House Minority Leader, says she doesn’t see any property tax help, but maybe property insurance getting done. I think we’ve been talking about property tax reform for years and we’ve yet to see anything from the majority that actually gives real rate relief to homeowners. If you look at the affordability agenda that’s been put out by the Senate and House Democratic caucuses, you’ll see that that’s one of our bills. It’s time to move towards an interstate compact. What we propose could lower costs immediately as much as 30 percent. The governor is suggesting a special session on property taxes in the spring. In his State of the State message, DeSantis highlighted all his accomplishments over the past seven years. He gives his final State of the State message and said he’s proud he’s made Florida the state of law and order. We are showing that it can be done. We’re proving that freedom can be preserved, that order can be maintained, that opportunity can be expanded, and that self-government can, in fact, endure. Arrests are continuing at a steady rate with this super speeder law. We had one in Okeechobee last week, 101 miles an hour going to jail. Lieutenant Quag Bueno with the Highway Patrol says tougher penalties on these super speeders could help. The unfortunate reality is we certainly have stopped many individuals that continue to violate this law, but we will continue to do so because not only are we, in essence, preventing the tragedy from occurring, we’re also sending a very strong message to these individuals that continue to engage in this type of extreme behavior. Lieutenant Indiana Miranda says she thinks the law is a step in the right direction. She says they typically see people going 100 miles an hour or faster on four-lane roads like I-95. Unfortunately, they put themselves at risk and they also put our troopers at risk. Now, our troopers are certified and trained to drive in high speeds. However, I am very, very glad we actually have a law for that super speeder. Before, it was just a traffic citation or a very high fine. Now, we have the consequence of taking you to jail. I’m Charles Murphy, WAFC News.
Recorded from the WAFC daily newscast (Glades Media).