Vixay Phonxaylinkham took refuge in the ocean with his family to escape the terrifying flames that spread rapidly

Florida’s Republican Governor Ron DeSantis has suspended another elected Democratic prosecutor from office on accusations that she failed to impose mandatory sentences for certain crimes and let juvenile offenders avoid incarceration. Florida’s Ninth Judicial Circuit State Attorney Monique Worrell, who was elected in 2020 and took office in 2021, has been “clearly and fundamentally derelict” in her duties, Mr DeSantis alleged in a press conference on 9 August. Ms Worrell – the only Black women serving as a state prosecutor in Florida – had recently announced her intention to run again in 2024. An executive order signed by the governor and Republican Secretary of State Cord Byrd accuses the Democratic state attorney of “systematically” allowing people to avoid jail time, either by dropping charges or declining to allege provable facts. He acknowledged that prosecutors like Ms Worrell “do have a certain amount of discretion about which cases to bring and which not” but he claimed that she has “abused” that discretion and “effectively nullified certain laws in the state of Florida”. Last year, Mr DeSantis suspended Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren after he criticised the governor’s positions on abortion care and gender-affirming care for transgender people. A federal judge affirmed the suspension but admonished the governor for falsely accusing Mr Warren of relying on a blanket policy to avoid prosecuting certain cases with which he disagreed. “The allegation was false,” US District Judge Robert Hinkle said in a ruling issued on 20 January. “Mr Warren’s well-established policy, followed in every case by every prosecutor in the office, was to exercise prosecutorial discretion at every stage of every case. Any reasonable investigation would have confirmed this.” Mr DeSantis has appointed Orlando-area judge Andrew Bain to replace Ms Worrell. She had recently come under fire from Republican officials following a shooting that left three dead in February, with a suspect with an alleged history of criminal offenses on the streets at the time of the shooting; 19-year-old Keith Melvin Moses is charged with three counts of first-degree murder. He has pleaded not guilty. Democratic officials in Florida have accused the governor of using politically motivated removals of elected prosecutors to elevate his national profile as he campaigns for the 2024 Republican nomination for president. “This is absolutely disgusting,” Orlando-area state Rep Anna Eskamani said in a statement. “Her removal is a complete slap in the face to Orange and Osceola County residents and another example of Governor DeSantis eroding our local control and democracy,” she added. “This politically motivated action by the governor in a predominantly Democratic part of the state should alarm everyone. DeSantis is extreme, unfit to serve, and must be held accountable.” Read More Ron DeSantis replaces campaign manager as 2024 bid falters The presidential candidates who have so far met criteria to join first RNC debate DeSantis once again defends slavery curriculum: Enslaved people ‘showing resourcefulness’ developed ‘skills’ DeSantis won’t rule out national abortion ban but suggests there’s no ‘mileage’ left in Congress

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As a heatwave take over much of America and Europe, with seawater in Florida reaching 100 degrees or more, much of Greece on fire, and July set to be the hottest month in living memory, some are still putting their head in sand about climate change and what the heatwave means for our Earth. Some right-wing conspiracy theorists have suggested that the heatwave is in fact a hoax and the numbers being reported are false. GB News presenter Neil Oliver has accused the BBC "and others" of "driving fear" by using "supposedly terrifying temperatures", in a clip that has been viewed over 2 million times. Oliver claims that the reported temperatures of "40 this and 40 that... were obtained using satellite images of ground temperatures," he said. "That's never been the temperature that's used in weather reporting and forecasting." Many conspiracy theorists have latched onto the temperature reported by BBC from the interior of Sicily (47C) and a weather station in sea-side Palermo (37C) from the BBC weather app, as proof that the BBC is faking its data. The BBC disputed the claims, stating that ground temperatures "are not used in the BBC's weather reporting and forecasting" unlike Oliver's false claim. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Oliver also retweeted other claims that climate data is manipulated and false, showing he is just one of many who are promoting such conspiracies. Former Fox News commentator Steven Milloy called it the "heat wave hysteria hoax": Some conspiracy theorists in the UK have argued that the heatwave and climate change are a hoax due to most of the country facing heavy wind and rain during the summer: However, the heavy rain fall during typically warmer and drier months is another sign of climate change's effects. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

The number of people sickened by salmonella from cut and whole cantaloupes has more than doubled in a week