LEHIGH ACRES FGCU softball team helps Habitat for Humanity build three homes The Florida Gulf Coast University softball team helped Habitat for Humanity build three homes Saturday.
ESTERO Home Base Golf Tournament helps SWFL Veterans Veterans hit the green at the Copperleaf Golf Course on Saturday. This was part of the Home Base golf tournament.
FORT MYERS At least one person dead after propane truck collides with golf cart Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a crash that has left one person dead and another injured Saturday morning.
Scattered storms ahead for your Saturday plans The Weather Authority is tracking weekend temperatures in the low to mid-90s this weekend with a chance for scattered storms this afternoon.
WINK NEWS SWFL Scoreboard: High School Football Week 3 Thunderstorms tried to put a stop to week three of high school football on Friday Night, but gridiron action prevailed.
Man accused of plotting murder-for-hire denied bond A man suspected of being involved with a murder-for-hire plot will stay behind bars. Ryan Toranzo had his renewed motion to set bond denied today in Collier County Court.
LABELLE Two dead after crash on State Road 80 According to the Florida Highway Patrol, there was a crash on State Road 80 that has left at least one person dead Friday evening.
DeSoto County looks to recruit more teachers While it can sometimes be easy to fill a classroom with students, it is not so easy for teachers. Schools across the nation and locally in Southwest Florida are still dealing with the challenges of teacher shortages. With class back in session, so is teacher recruiting for DeSoto County schools. The assistant superintendent, Jake Reynolds, […]
IMMOKALEE ROAD Push for change after deadly crash on Immokalee Rd. We’re told the woman was driving with two kids in the car when a semi ran a red light and hit her Thursday morning.
FORT MYERS BEACH Mobi-Mats deployed on Fort Myers Beach A walkway to paradise! Brand new and blue, the Mobi-Mat is making things easier for Fort Myers Beachgoers.
NAPLES Women of Steel business conference inspiring and empowering women Focused, hardworking, empowered. These women have made a name for themselves as Women of Steel.
NAPLES Beloved Collier County bus driver retires after 20 years After 20 years of getting kids to school safely, a beloved Collier County bus driver is retiring.
Wade Wilson has new death row mugshot Convicted double-killer Wade Wilson has a new death row mugshot.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Sizzle Dining is back in SWFL It’s Sizzle Season! Local restaurants are ready to welcome new faces by offering exclusive menu deals to attract new customers.
LEHIGH ACRES FGCU softball team helps Habitat for Humanity build three homes The Florida Gulf Coast University softball team helped Habitat for Humanity build three homes Saturday.
ESTERO Home Base Golf Tournament helps SWFL Veterans Veterans hit the green at the Copperleaf Golf Course on Saturday. This was part of the Home Base golf tournament.
FORT MYERS At least one person dead after propane truck collides with golf cart Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a crash that has left one person dead and another injured Saturday morning.
Scattered storms ahead for your Saturday plans The Weather Authority is tracking weekend temperatures in the low to mid-90s this weekend with a chance for scattered storms this afternoon.
WINK NEWS SWFL Scoreboard: High School Football Week 3 Thunderstorms tried to put a stop to week three of high school football on Friday Night, but gridiron action prevailed.
Man accused of plotting murder-for-hire denied bond A man suspected of being involved with a murder-for-hire plot will stay behind bars. Ryan Toranzo had his renewed motion to set bond denied today in Collier County Court.
LABELLE Two dead after crash on State Road 80 According to the Florida Highway Patrol, there was a crash on State Road 80 that has left at least one person dead Friday evening.
DeSoto County looks to recruit more teachers While it can sometimes be easy to fill a classroom with students, it is not so easy for teachers. Schools across the nation and locally in Southwest Florida are still dealing with the challenges of teacher shortages. With class back in session, so is teacher recruiting for DeSoto County schools. The assistant superintendent, Jake Reynolds, […]
IMMOKALEE ROAD Push for change after deadly crash on Immokalee Rd. We’re told the woman was driving with two kids in the car when a semi ran a red light and hit her Thursday morning.
FORT MYERS BEACH Mobi-Mats deployed on Fort Myers Beach A walkway to paradise! Brand new and blue, the Mobi-Mat is making things easier for Fort Myers Beachgoers.
NAPLES Women of Steel business conference inspiring and empowering women Focused, hardworking, empowered. These women have made a name for themselves as Women of Steel.
NAPLES Beloved Collier County bus driver retires after 20 years After 20 years of getting kids to school safely, a beloved Collier County bus driver is retiring.
Wade Wilson has new death row mugshot Convicted double-killer Wade Wilson has a new death row mugshot.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Sizzle Dining is back in SWFL It’s Sizzle Season! Local restaurants are ready to welcome new faces by offering exclusive menu deals to attract new customers.
MGN MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Officers on Thursday cleared away a protest encampment that sprang up in front of a Minneapolis precinct following the fatal police shooting of a man last month, arresting eight demonstrators and erecting a fence to dissuade others from trying to return. The police ordered around 50 chanting demonstrators to disperse at about 4 a.m. and soon began removing tents and equipment while firefighters extinguished campfires. Dump trucks carried away tents and supplies while crews removed makeshift barricades that had been blocking the street in front of the station and erected a high fence to keep people off the lawn and sidewalk. “It was time,” Mayor Betsy Hodges said at a news conference. “We have been balancing the safety needs of the precinct with the right for people to protest and have their voices be heard.” Demonstrators led by the local Black Lives Matter group had gathered outside the 4th Precinct station since shortly after the Nov. 15 shooting of 24-year-old Jamar Clark. He died the following day. Police officers responding to a report of an assault in which Clark was a suspect said they arrived to find him interfering with paramedics who were trying to treat the victim. Police say a struggle followed and Clark was shot. Some community members have alleged that Clark was handcuffed when he was shot, but police dispute this. State and federal investigations are underway. The protesters have demanded the release of any videos showing the shooting, and that a special prosecutor be appointed instead of leaving it up to a grand jury to decide whether the officers should face charges. Seven people were arrested during the eviction for obstructing the legal process and another was arrested for trespassing, Police Chief Janee Harteau said. Nobody was injured, she said. “I do want to make notice to future protests that we will continue to support and facilitate your First Amendment rights and freedom of speech. But, we will also support and enforce the ordinances of the city of Minneapolis and the laws of the state of Minnesota,” Harteau said. Protesters won’t be allowed to set up similar encampments or block streets for extended periods, the police chief said. It wasn’t immediately clear when operations would return to normal at the station. The new temporary fence blocked the sidewalk along the entire block and public access to the front door. A new fence across the street left the sidewalk open, a potential place for protesters to gather. The protesters who weren’t arrested dispersed peacefully and planned to regroup for a demonstration at 4 p.m. outside City Hall. Nekima Levy-Pounds, president of the Minneapolis NAACP and a protest leader, said before the rally that the raid would have “a chilling effect on free speech” but vowed that the city hadn’t heard the last from them. Levy-Pounds, a law professor at the University of St. Thomas, said the protesters have a list of demands in addition to release of the videos and justice for Clark. They plan to push for a comprehensive criminal justice task force to look at racial disparities in law enforcement. They want the police station turned back into the community center it once was. They want better police training to eliminate the use of deadly force against unarmed citizens. And they want more paramedics of color because they might have handled the situation that led to Clark’s shooting differently, she said. Asked if more demonstrations or civil disobedience might be part of their strategy for achieving those goals, Levy-Pounds wouldn’t rule them out. “We’re not going to take anything off the table. It’s going to take all those things to get some semblance of justice for African-Americans and all vulnerable citizens,” she said.