The Top 10 of 2025: Take a look at the most popular stories in South Florida
The opening of Alligator Alcatraz and an immigration crackdown.
Sports championships — and disappointments.
Historic local elections and the rejection of Miami political dynasties.
South Florida was let off easy with a relatively tame hurricane season, but 2025 was still full of newsworthy events.
Before we turn to 2026, here’s a look back at the 10 most-read news stories among Miami Herald subscribers in 2025:
10. Trump travel ban: ‘No exceptions’ for Cubans, Venezuelans. Other islands may join Haiti on list
In this March 13 story, Cuba reporter Nora Gámez Torres and Haiti reporter Jacqueline Charles reported that a Trump administration plan would impose an absolute ban on entry by Cuba and Venezuelan nationals, regardless of what country they live in, with no exceptions for the elderly, the sick or harassed dissidents, and would also extend similar but slightly less harsh restrictions on Haitian nationals.
9. Political titan Katherine Fernandez Rundle under fire: Wayward prosecutor, botched cases, a fed-up judge
Investigative reporters Brittany Wallman, Ana Claudia Chacin and Claire Healy recapped how State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, long a fixture of popularity and political triumph in Miami-Dade County, entered 2025 on unfamiliar ground following allegations that her office had strayed from its duty and meted out lopsided justice in 2024.
8. Doctor staged drowning to cover up daughter’s murder during Miami vacation: MDSO
In July, breaking news reporters Milena Malaver and Devoun Cetoute reported on an Oklahoma pediatrician who faced a murder charge after Miami-Dade detectives say she killed her 4-year-old daughter and then staged it as an accidental drowning.
7. Testimony of girls on boat leads to another charge for George Pino
In August, David Goodhue and Grethel Aguila reported on an additional manslaughter charge for real estate broker Geroge Pino for the 2022 boat crash that killed 17-year-old Luciana “Lucy” Fernandez and seriously injured her classmate, Katerina “Katy” Puig. The new charge came following the testimony of several of the girls who were on the boat when it crashed.
6. Family dispute ends in shootout near Tropical Park that kills 1, injures 2: deputies
In April, Devoun Cetoute, Milena Malaver and David Goodhue covered a breaking news event that led to an enormous police response: A heated family dispute at a Miami-Dade auto mechanic shop near Tropical Park that ended in a shootout that killed one person and injured two others.
5. Justice Department, driven by Trump policy, plans to go after naturalized U.S. citizens
In July, federal courts reporter Jay Weaver reported that President Donald Trump directed the Justice Department to bolster its resources in a major crackdown on naturalized citizens suspected of unlawfully obtaining their U.S. citizenship.
4. ‘A son, a brother and a friend.’ Miami-Dade Deputy Devin Jaramillo is fatally shot
In November, Devoun Cetoute, David Goodhue and Jay Weaver reported that a Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputy was fatally shot when he responded to a vehicle crash in the southwest area of the county. Video showed Deputy Devin Jaramillo was trying to subdue the man moments before he was shot.
3. Fire extinguished at Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra’s multimillion-dollar home
In November, Milena Malaver, Carl Juste and David J. Neal reported on a two-alarm fire that broke out overnight at the home of Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. Firefighters battled the blaze for eight hours before extinguishing it at the five-bedroom home with a pool and tennis court in one of Miami-Dade’s priciest neighborhoods.
2. Two dead, suspect in custody after sheriff’s deputy’s son opens fire at FSU
In April, Ana Ceballos in Tallahassee and Milena Malaver in Miami reported on an incident at Florida State University where the son of a Leon County Sheriff’s deputy killed two people and wounded six others after gaining access to his mother’s handgun and going on a campus rampage, according to police.
1. Two girls dead, two others critical after barge hits sailboat in Biscayne Bay: Coast Guard
In July, David Goodhue and Carl David Goette-Luciak reported that two girls died and two others were in critical condition after a large barge crashed into a summer-camp sailboat with five children and a camp counselor aboard in Biscayne Bay near Hibiscus Island in Miami Beach, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. A third girl died a few days later.
This story was originally published December 24, 2025 at 5:00 AM.