Mental block
For years, the state Department of Children and Families has allowed patients with diagnosed mental illness to remain in city and county jails rather than admit them to state psychiatric facilities. The practice is against state law: Florida Statutes require mentally incompetent defendants to be placed in state custody within 15 days. The state has failed to meet the standard for hundreds of patients. DCF’s own data show the average wait is 124 days. State officials attribute the lapse to a shortage of forensic hospital beds. And according to a new lawsuit, the state isn’t moving to correct the problem. Though Florida needs an estimated 2,034 new beds if it wants to meet industry standards by 2029, and 1,602 new beds just to maintain its current occupancy rate, DCF didn't seek any money for new beds in the 2026-’27 budget.
Guest: 4th Judicial Circuit Public Defender Charles Cofer
Really ‘Old Florida’
The transformation of the state of Florida from a largely uninhabitable backwater into a home for millions of residents is due in great part to the invention of air conditioning. But it was the railroad that opened up the coastline to waves of vacationers, who came to stay at luxury hotels or recover from various ailments in the area’s sulphur and mineral springs. A new exhibition at St. Augustine’s Lightner Museum captures life at the dawn of that era. Florida Before Flagler is a collection of photographs by Hugo Meyer, who documented Florida in the 1870s and 1880s, before it was transformed by railroad magnate Henry Flagler. We talk to the museum’s executive director about what the show tells us about Northeast Florida then, and now.
Guest: David Bagnall, executive director, Lightner Museum
Jags vs. Patriots
After falling to the Denver Broncos at Mile High Stadium last weekend, the Jacksonville Jaguars returned to home soil to face last season’s Super Bowl runners-up, the New England Patriots. The Jags dominated from the onset, winning 35-6. The upset was so significant, the NFL RedZone stopped covering it dubbing it a “runaway” victory. We recap the matchup with our Jaguars season correspondent to see if injuries plaguing the Patriots made an impact and what to look for next week when the team faces off against the Bengals in Cincinnati.
Guest: Rachel Phillips, sports reporter and anchor, First Coast News