Dr. Thomas Van Lent, one of Florida's most celebrated scientists, was sentenced to 10 days in jail after being found guilty of indirect criminal contempt by a judge. Van Lent had been the chief scientist of the Everglades Foundation for 17 years and was accused of a "secret campaign of theft and destruction" by the foundation, alleging a plot to "enrich himself" by misappropriating trade secrets. The case led to Van Lent's resignation and bankruptcy, and revealed the organization's internal conflict over the $25 billion restoration project. The project, approved by Congress in 2000, is among the most physically and politically complex in the world and aims to restore the flow of water through the lower half of Florida’s peninsula.