"Stand Your Ground" law blocks charges in Broward Walmart shooting
Broward prosecutors closed the case against Melissa Payne, citing "Stand Your Ground" immunity.
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Tania Francois returned to CBS News Miami in November 2022 as Executive Producer Impacting Communities (EPIC), helping tell stories that reflect South Florida's diverse cultural communities.
Her commitment to impactful journalism continues to earn recognition. In December 2024, Tania won an Emmy Award in the Daily News Report category for her reporting from Haiti. That year, she traveled with Missionary Flights International to cover relief efforts in Cap-Haïtien and Pignon during a period of severe instability, when airports and seaports were shut down. Her reporting also earned a 2025 National Association of Black Journalists Salute to Excellence Award in the International category.
In April 2026, Tania was recognized by the Florida Association of Broadcast Journalists as a winner in the Breaking News - Individual category for her coverage of the murder of Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office Deputy Devin Jaramillo. She was also a finalist in the Feature - Culture/Historical category for "The Railroad Shop Colored Addition."
A seasoned multimedia journalist, Tania has extensive experience in television, digital news reporting and public relations. She believes every story, whether good or bad, holds a valuable lesson.
Tania's career has taken her to several markets across the Southeast, including Beckley, West Virginia; Shreveport, Louisiana; and Little Rock, Arkansas. She later returned to South Florida to work at WPEC-TV, the CBS affiliate in West Palm Beach, where she served as an assignment editor and hosted social media news briefs.
Tania's first tenure at CBS News Miami was from 2016 to 2018, when she worked as an assignment editor, marking the beginning of her connection with the station.
A proud Haitian American, Tania is the first person in her family born in the U.S. She was born at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, is fluent in Creole and enjoys exploring South Florida's vibrant Caribbean and African American food scenes.
Tania is deeply committed to her community and is an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. and the National Association of Black Journalists. She graduated from Miami Central Senior High School and earned a degree in mass communications with a concentration in broadcast journalism from Bethune-Cookman University. While in college, Tania reported for the Daytona Times, covering presidential visits and community issues.
Tania is currently pursuing a master's degree in mass communications at the University of Florida, specializing in digital journalism and multimedia storytelling. She has a 3.9 cumulative GPA and is expected to graduate in 2027.
In her free time, Tania enjoys volunteering, reading and spending quality time with her family, including her niece, Esther, and her Maltipoo, Beckley.
Broward prosecutors closed the case against Melissa Payne, citing "Stand Your Ground" immunity.
City officials say they'll wait for the written ruling before deciding what happens to the 3 council members.
She graduated from FIU, finished medical school, and entered residency — then lost her ability to work.
CBS News Miami has followed the Ponthieux family's journey from Little Haiti to the halls of Congress as they advocated for Temporary Protected Status recipients.
The teenager was born in the United States, as was her brother. Her mother, who has lived in South Florida for nearly 20 years, had been residing in the U.S. under TPS.
Haitians are being advised that a pending asylum application doesn't automatically prevent detention or removal proceedings.
Consular General Yverick Delerme Cyril is encouraging Haitians to make sure they have proper identification on their person at all times.
Work permits tied to Haiti's TPS designation expired at midnight Tuesday morning. Immigration attorney Emmanuella Telfort says the community is now waiting for the final legal step.
At midnight, hundreds of thousands of Haitian immigrants could lose their TPS protections.
Haitians in South Florida have been encouraged to get legal affairs in order, and to speak with estate and family attorneys.
The expiration, scheduled for Friday night, threatens to strip Haitian recipients of their authorization to work in the United States.
A Haitian nurse in North Miami says she fears being forced to return to a country she fled after a kidnapping.
The Supreme Court said that the Trump administration can move forward with its efforts to strip Haitian and Syrian immigrants of TPS.
Immigration attorneys are awaiting guidance following the court's decision, but many understand the current TPS designation for Haitians is set to end July 1.
In March 2027, the Black Press will mark 200 years since the publication of Freedom's Journal, the nation's first Black owned newspaper.