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How One Murder Changed Florida's Juvenile Sentencing Laws

Spring break is in full swing and a “nice” trip to warm and sunny Florida is on the minds of a lot of people who have had to endure a long, cold winter this year.

But in the early 1990s, Florida had a reputation as a “deathtrap under the palms.” In 1993, the murder of a German tourist — the eighth tourist murder in less than a year — set off a fire storm of “tough on crime” legislation.

From the Here & Now Contributors Network, Wilson Sayre of WLRN reports that murder had some very serious consequences for teenage criminals.

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