in the erin andrews $75 million peephole civil trial. >> jennifer leigh is in the news center with new details. what happened. >> this is what we know at this point. the jury ruled that both michael barrett and the company that owned the nashville marriott where par et recorded a nude video d -- barrett recorded a nude video of andrews are both to blame. >> what amount of damages have you awarded the plaintiff erin andrew. >> 55 million. >> the jury decided that barrett was 51% responsible, and that the company that operated the marriott was 49% responsible. again, that total award was 55 million-dollars. that breaks down to roughly barrett owing andrews $28 million, and the company owing her $26 million. this case, of course, unfolding over the last couple of weeks. some very emotional testimony we heard last week from erin

paula and steve andrews, who works here, our lead investigator for 8 on your side. it was a rough day on the stand, a rough week on the stand, with that emotion coming to fruition in a jury verdict, again, of $55 million. jenn. >> in our tampa news center, jen, thank you. and there is another trial in the news tonight, one that people on twitter are calling the most entertaining courtroom drama in months. terry balea better known as petersburg courtroom. he is suing the web site gawker for a hundred million dollars for publishing a sex tape with him in it. jeff patterson joining us live st. petersburg. jeff, hogan is a wrestling figure, always acts larger than life. how is he in the courtroom? >> reporter: yeah, good evening, keith, actually rather soft spoken today, black suit, black bandanna, silver cross,

courthouse today the release of the sex tape ruined his life. >> i was aware of a security camera inside the house. >> reporter: heather clem is the ex-wife of radio personality, bubba the love sponge and the woman seen in a dark and grainy security camera sex tape with hulk hogan. jurors saw her in a recorded deposition. they say terry balea, hulk hogan in person. >> the character is larger than life. it's the all american character. >> reporter: hogan told the jury about his relationship with bubba the love sponge. >> i believed in my heart he was my best friend. >> reporter: he went onto tell the jury about his failing marriage with linda balea and how bubba and heather started talking about how heather wanted to have sex with him. hogan claims bubba approved of the sex. >> i was there, and he handed me a condom. my gut didn't feel right. >> reporter: the sex was recorded on the security

>> i was embarrassed what it did to me as a person. but it was even embarrassing as a character. hulk hogan was embarrassed. >> reporter: hogan claims he was physically upset when he found out the tape was public. >> i just started violently shaking. i couldn't stop. >> reporter: the defense is trying to show that terry balea, hulk hogan knew that there was security cameras in the house, and perhaps knew was going on. he will be back on the stand tomorrow as the trial continues. >> it's expected to go on for a while now, jeff patterson reporting live in st. petersburg, thank you. a health alert, a haines city man accused of passing himself off as a legitimate doctor. license. somebody contacted the florida department of health when they heard that man well cordova offering medical advice on a

>> we have done a couple of days worth of surveillance, and then did an undercover operation to, you know, find the probable cause that he was doing that. >> cordova is now charged with practicing without a license, and scheming to defraud. right now, republican presidential candidate marco rubio is in tampa campaigning for your vote. it is an up hill battle based on polling. if rubio has any chance at all of winning the race to the white house, he will need florida voters to help him do it. political reporter, candace mccowan joining us live from the tampa convention center. the florida senator sounds optimistic, i know, but he's a realist, he knows he needs to win his home state next week. >> reporter: absolutely, and optimistic message. keith, good evening, rubio wrapping up his speech here in the past 20 minutes and taking some time to shake hands and take pictures with supporters before heading onto seminole county. the first thing he said when he came out and spoke to this

here in florida. that's what matters. he made that very clear, and he is trailing in the polls behind donald trump, although that lead is narrowing, donald trump is still winning, and it's imperative time for marco rubio. florida is your playground, donald trump is doing well here. what do you do now at this point to try and catch up to him. >> we do what i did back in 2010. i was an underdog against someone who was running, charlie crist, pretending to be a republican but wasn't. it's the same thing with donald trump, now. we have experience taking down people and defeating someone who's pretending to be someone they're not. we'll do it again. it's going to be a lot of hard work. i need everyone's help, but we can do it. >> reporter: rubio also saying that a vote for anyone else, like john kasich or ted cruz would be a vote for trump because he is the one most likely to beat trump in florida, and also the one that's most likely to beat hillary clinton. >> we shall see. all we can do is wait at this point, and if you're a florida

candace mccowan live in tampa. keep in mind, if you are a registered republican or democrat, you can cast your vote right now, doug that in person -- you can do that in person. early voting is underway. florida's primary is march 15 march 15th, everything you need to know about that is on wfla.com. now, an 8 on your side consumer alert. sarasota deputies have removed credit card skimmers equipped with blue tooth. this is one of the first cases sarasota. they were found at a mobile cattlemen roads. the crooks used the skimmers to steal credit card data and access it remotely without touching the gas pump. and two fishermen are lucky to be alive after sinking off the coast of boca grand. here's video of the rescue, taken from the coast guard. commercial fishing boat starting to take on water.

onto a life raft just as the boat sank. listen here to the moments as the captain frantically called for help. >> we're sinking, coast guard, 16, we have the life raft, she's going under now. we have the life raffle down she's going under. >> they were scared to pieces. amazingly they were able to get out just in time. you can see the strobe light with the fisherman in the life raft, making easier for the coast guard to find them. they were both air lifted to safety. >> all the pressure. but he sounded pretty cool, coast guard, you there, you there. >> they were there. thank goodness for our coast guard. more trouble tonight for patty the doll. >> who the dog is accused of attacking again. and bay area schools in chaos, our 8 on your side investigation exposed a financial mess. i want to show you who's now stepping in to help.

stretch of weather came right into this nice warm monday, it tells us what we're going to expect the next couple of days temperatures reaching the 80s. a warm weekend and eventual rain chance. we'll talk about that in your

new tonight, there has been a biting incident involving this dog named padi. he bit a service dog at the clinic. she made national news when she bit a child who cornered her. that was in june. legislation was born from that attack that allows pet owners to appeal when their dog bites someone. no word tonight on what will happen to padi after this latest biting incident. noah's hurricane hunters are looking for a hangar to call home. and lakeland regional airport is making its case. it needs to be out of deal air force base next year. lakeland lender is a big contender to take on the project because they have an 8500-foot runway, plenty of hangar space, and there's less air traffic here. >> it would be just great to have another hundred employees coming out to the facility. right now we have 75 businesses and organizations located there with over a thousand people a day going to work in our buildings and our hangars and to add another hundred and all

airplanes to our facility would be exciting to us and we look forward to the opportunity. >> noah came to lakeland in facility. then again, st. petersburg clear water airport is also considering housing the hurricane hunter aircraft. the boys and girls club of tampa bay got a huge record setting gift today from lightning owner jeff finnick, he and his wife are donating organization. it will renovate the rec center. the current facility includes tennis and basketball courts but you know what, finnick's hand is in the mix and that means a roller hockey rink will probably, most likely be included. >> just because we're in florida, just because we're in tampa bay florida doesn't mean that hockey isn't a great sport. it is as great a sport here as it is in toronto and canada, and we want everybody to have the ability to experience it and play it.

individual gift in the 90-year history of boys and girls clubs in tampa bay. the rec center will be renamed the jeff and penny finnick family park boys and girls club. still to come tonight, the financial mess around several bay area schools has the state's attention. coming up next, they're going to start to pull funding. we're going to show the impact this could have on children. we'll have that investigation, plus steve

now, an 8 on your side investigation, schools in chaos. >> the gravy train has run out. the state is cutting off money for books, computers and furniture to a company that runs charter schools until they can get their act together. one of those troubled schools is more than a million dollars in the hole and in danger of shutting down for good. >> the state wants some accountability before they hand over more taxpayer money. mark douglas has been work ongoing this story, and you have the latest. >> i do. four charter schools operated by new point charters are circling the drain, and the state is closing its capital fund checkbook until someone answers a lot of serious financial questions. >> new point has to know that we're not running scared. >> reporter: bruce mcwilliams is one of a growing number of anxious parents who are trying

charter school from a financial crisis, a crisis they blame on windsor's for-profit management company. >> we're getting louder and stronger. we can get rid of the management company, get a management company that cares about the children. >> one of four new point charter schools that the pinellas school district recently declared in a deteriorating financial condition. the state department of education agrees and insists a corrective action plan must be submitted within 30 days. >> it's getting very serious, and it's going to all come out. >> where can we find people from new point. >> reporter: maybe so, when we tried to get answers, new point managers avoided our questions wherever we went. now the doe is cutting off funds for basic needs. a letter mailed last week warns state capitol outlaid payments for new point pinellas academy and will be on hold until the

the same goes for new point pinellas, and windsor prep. >> the department of education saying they are going to hold off on releasing more funds to the school is a concern because we need text books, computers, revenue. >> reporter: our investigation shows new point has a long history of troubled charter school management across florida. windsor parents now fear it's their turn. school. my daughter has been there in four years. the school. >> the amount of money set aside for these schools in the state's capitol outlay fund amounts to tens of thousands of dollars all together. there are bigger money questions at stake here. windsor is running a million dollar deficit under new point's management, and new point has reportedly loaned hundreds of thousands of dollars to those schools. >> and what do we really know about these loans, anyway. >> not as much as we should. very little, in fact, i have made a public records request to find out the details, they

tonight, we are getting lawyers involved because that's taxpayer money and we deserve to know what the terms are and where the money is going, and who's paying, and who signed off on it. >> we're all paying for it. >> exactly. >> you would think the state would want to know. >> you would think so. >> stay on top of this one for us. >> we will. >> thank you, mark. we have seen that few clouds today. this is the have -- the view from western citrus county. a gorgeous evening there. other spots around the region. temperatures generally in the 70s, we have seen around the area today, and again we're looking for a beautiful day tomorrow, certainly on the warmer side. jupiter is visible after 7:00 p.m. tonight. then moving over us at midnight, in opposition to the sun at this point. so this is the eastern sky this evening, that's jupiter very bright in the eastern sky. this evening, 71 degrees staying warm, mostly clear skies for it. it looks like our forecast low of 58 degrees.

temps close to the average, and some -- a light jacket to start. temps close to the average, and weather max app, good download, in fair weather like we're seeing right now. 56 degrees at 7:00 a.m. 68 degrees at 9:00 a.m. temps 80 at 3:00 p.m. going to be a warm one, partly cloudy skies and a beautiful warm day. that is the trend. 75 degrees temple terrace. so a little bit cooler on the beach. you can see from treasure island to clear water beach. brandon, 76. 73 in lakeland. low 70s, frost proof, bartow, 76 in crystal river north port. 75. high pressure is the big feature. the ridge of high pressure is controlling the weather across the bay area, the state of florida and much of the southeast. it's holding back anything from arriving in the area. that's a cold front to break down this ridge, so as long as this is in place, the surface high, with a southeasterly flow, it's going to bring in mild weather conditions. warm temperatures, a bit more moisture into the atmosphere as well.

as the week progresses, just gets a little warmer each day. spring breakers are here. and this evening only a few clouds remaining, fairly warm for us. the flow around the area of high pressure is anchored off the east coast, keeping any kind of activity at bay back to the west for really most of the week. as we get into tuesday afternoon; a few clouds returning, fair weather clouds, partly cloudyish, especially in the afternoon hours. wednesday morning, mild temperatures, quiet conditions, and you can see the rain back to the west of us. places like texas, oklahoma, into kansas. they're going to see showers and potentially strong thunderstorms, but we will be under control this high pressure. this will eventually break down at the end of the week, but for now, all of it stays back to the west. a strong control of this ridge. you can see how much it dominates the southeast in the state of florida, but wet conditions in places like texas. no surprise, pollen is back in a big way, especially the oak trees, tuesday, wednesday, thursday in the high category. don't need to tell you.

68 degrees to start. very close to the average for this time in march. next three days, temps progressively get warmer. add more humidity each day, and as a result, the overnight lows are a bit warmer too. mid-60s for lows you can see there, and the rain chances crawl back. we think the timing on that appears to be saturday at the moment. this time it can change. that's our current thinking. of course the time change as well this weekend, and 63 degrees for a low there sunday morning. may back off a little bit with a weak front coming through. it's going to stay warm, guys. >> and i'm ready to spring forward, aren't you. >> thanks for the reminder, i had forgotten about the time change. >> i forget myself. >> look at his clock, always springing around. spring forward with more daylight. coming up in sports a busy day of nfl roster cuts and one huge retirement. >> dan lucas has more on the

on the same day as the retirement as in peyton manning, the bucs had a retirement of their own, and a quiet good-bye from left guard logan mankins leaves a big spot to fill on the bucs offensive line. eleven seasons in the nfl, nine of them with the new england patriots. he not only secured the left side of the bucs o-line for two years, he mentored everyone in the process. players like left tackle donovan smith, and quarterback jameis winston, both of those players were rookies during mankins eleventh year. >> logan can do whatever he wants to do. he has given so much to this game. i thank him last year for protecting me and having my back always. i'm always going to have his

i'm anxious to see when is he going to get inducted into the hall of fame. >> and of course no shock today, but still plenty of tears, the 18 year hall of fame bound career quarterback peyton manning, officially came to an end. manning joked in his speech that he holds the rookie record for interceptions and there are others that may never be broken, including manning's dedication to the game. >> when someone thoroughly exhausts an experience, they can't help but revere it. i revere football. i love the game. so you don't have to wonder if i'll miss it. absolutely i will. >> and today, the value spark championship hall of fame line backer, derek brooks revealed he received a text message informing him of his decision, and of course many battles years. >> he challenged me mentally, no doubt about it, you know,

had to go back and look at it again, and make sure that's what i saw. the chest match from the neck up, the quarter snap was always something that i looked forward to, and some i won, some i lost. >> and former bucs head coach lovie smith now the head coach at illinois. he was introduced this afternoon. takes over the program that won five games last year. love valley by the way, still -- lovie, by the way, still on the bucs payroll, for $6 million this year. if that's not enough news, jonathan duran, ending his standoff with general manager, the suspension lifted and he will report to the ahl syracuse crunch for practice tomorrow. message delivered from mr.izerman. >> it took a while. >> very happy for for him by the way. >> lightning going for the tenth in a row in philly. >> let's do it. >> steve, looks like a great night ahead. beautiful, low 70s, partly cloudy, fantastic, and warmer weather for the week.

>> don't go anywhere, nbc nightly news is next. >> jenn and steve are back at 10. we'll see you here at 11.

tonight, breaking news. erin andrews awarded millions after a stalker secretly taped the sports reporter at a hotel. the jury taking only hours to decide. going for a knockout. trump tries to make florida a two-man race while clinton hopes to make michigan sanders' last stand and one of wild cards decides whether he'll shake up the race. reagan. funeral arrangements announced for the former first lady as new tributes pour in. emergency. deadly storms on the west coast forcing high water rescues and shutting down roads, and the danger isn't