HENDRY COUNTY Hendry County crash closes eastbound lanes on State Road 80 A crash in Hendry County closed the State Road 80 eastbound lanes near Birchwood Parkway early this morning.
CAPE CORAL 2 evacuated from Cape Coral house fire The Cape Coral Fire Department responded to a house fire that forced two people out on Thursday morning.
Nokomis Arrest made in Sarasota shooting that killed a Port Charlotte man The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office arrested a man for the Sunday shooting that killed a man from Port Charlotte.
the weather authority Feeling hotter this Thursday afternoon The Weather Authority is tracking a hot Thursday with more humid conditions attributed to “feels like” temperatures nearing 100°.
BONITA SPRINGS Food truck catches fire in Bonita Springs The Bonita Springs Fire Control & Rescue District has been working to extinguish a food truck fire that occurred on Thursday.
WINK NEWS Keeping your kids safe online over summer break As students enter the summer break, the use of tablets and phones will increase, which stresses the importance of online protection.
Annual Fort Myers Film Festival officially underway The Fort Myers Film Festival opened their 14th annual edition in Downtown Fort Myers on Wednesday night, featuring 92 films within the next four days.
Baby survives fentanyl overdose, Collier couple arrested Somewhere between the infant’s mother getting into the shower and getting out, it got its hands on a piece of tin foil.
FORT MYERS How dangerous is the five-point intersection in Fort Myers? Fort Myers City councilman Liston Bochette claimed that the closure of the Caloosahatchee Bridge will make the “5 points” intersection in Fort Myers more dangerous.
FORT MYERS Downtown Fort Myers hosts its 14th annual Film Festival The 14th annual Fort Myers Film Festival has announced it will return to Downtown Fort Myers on Wednesday night.
Live fire training takes place across Lee County Thick, grey smoke filled the air in Fort Myers’ southward village.
FORT MYERS FSW’s new summer program helps freshmen transition to college Amanda Bent, a first-year, work-study student at Florida Southwestern State College, isn’t like most college freshmen.
The drastic change in the middle class in the past ten years A recent analysis study from GOBankingRates determined the range of income needed to earn a spot in the middle class in all 50 states.
Insurers are using drones to inspect homes Insurers are figuring out if your home is worth their risk without even stepping foot on your property. Consumer advocates worry this is going to make the state’s insurance crisis even worse for homeowners. Industry experts believe using drones are a better way to asses homes.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) Nikki Haley says she will vote for Donald Trump following their disputes during Republican primary Nikki Haley said Wednesday that she will be voting for Donald Trump in the general election, encouraging the presumptive GOP nominee to work hard to win support from those who backed her in the primary.
HENDRY COUNTY Hendry County crash closes eastbound lanes on State Road 80 A crash in Hendry County closed the State Road 80 eastbound lanes near Birchwood Parkway early this morning.
CAPE CORAL 2 evacuated from Cape Coral house fire The Cape Coral Fire Department responded to a house fire that forced two people out on Thursday morning.
Nokomis Arrest made in Sarasota shooting that killed a Port Charlotte man The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office arrested a man for the Sunday shooting that killed a man from Port Charlotte.
the weather authority Feeling hotter this Thursday afternoon The Weather Authority is tracking a hot Thursday with more humid conditions attributed to “feels like” temperatures nearing 100°.
BONITA SPRINGS Food truck catches fire in Bonita Springs The Bonita Springs Fire Control & Rescue District has been working to extinguish a food truck fire that occurred on Thursday.
WINK NEWS Keeping your kids safe online over summer break As students enter the summer break, the use of tablets and phones will increase, which stresses the importance of online protection.
Annual Fort Myers Film Festival officially underway The Fort Myers Film Festival opened their 14th annual edition in Downtown Fort Myers on Wednesday night, featuring 92 films within the next four days.
Baby survives fentanyl overdose, Collier couple arrested Somewhere between the infant’s mother getting into the shower and getting out, it got its hands on a piece of tin foil.
FORT MYERS How dangerous is the five-point intersection in Fort Myers? Fort Myers City councilman Liston Bochette claimed that the closure of the Caloosahatchee Bridge will make the “5 points” intersection in Fort Myers more dangerous.
FORT MYERS Downtown Fort Myers hosts its 14th annual Film Festival The 14th annual Fort Myers Film Festival has announced it will return to Downtown Fort Myers on Wednesday night.
Live fire training takes place across Lee County Thick, grey smoke filled the air in Fort Myers’ southward village.
FORT MYERS FSW’s new summer program helps freshmen transition to college Amanda Bent, a first-year, work-study student at Florida Southwestern State College, isn’t like most college freshmen.
The drastic change in the middle class in the past ten years A recent analysis study from GOBankingRates determined the range of income needed to earn a spot in the middle class in all 50 states.
Insurers are using drones to inspect homes Insurers are figuring out if your home is worth their risk without even stepping foot on your property. Consumer advocates worry this is going to make the state’s insurance crisis even worse for homeowners. Industry experts believe using drones are a better way to asses homes.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) Nikki Haley says she will vote for Donald Trump following their disputes during Republican primary Nikki Haley said Wednesday that she will be voting for Donald Trump in the general election, encouraging the presumptive GOP nominee to work hard to win support from those who backed her in the primary.
MGN WASHINGTON (AP)- Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who was held captive by the Taliban for five years and freed in exchange for five detainees in Guantanamo Bay, will face charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy in a general court-martial, the Army announced on Monday. If convicted, Bergdahl could get life in prison on the misbehavior charge and up to five years for desertion. He also could be dishonorably discharged, reduced in rank and made to forfeit all pay. Bergdahl, 29, of Hailey, Idaho, walked off his post in eastern Afghanistan’s Paktika province on June 30, 2009. He was released in the prisoner swap in late May 2014 that touched off a firestorm of criticism, with some in Congress accusing President Barack Obama of jeopardizing the safety of a nation for a deserter. A date for an arraignment hearing at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, will be announced later. Bergdahl’s attorney, Eugene Fidell, said the convening authority – a high-ranking officer charged with deciding whether evidence warrants a court-martial – did not follow the advice of a preliminary hearing officer. Lt. Col. Mark Visger had recommended that Bergdahl’s case be referred to a special court martial, which is a misdemeanor-level forum. That limits the maximum punishment to reduction in rank, a bad-conduct discharge and a term of up to a year in prison. The U.S. Army Forces Command charged Bergdahl on March 25 with “desertion with intent to shirk important or hazardous duty” and “misbehavior before the enemy by endangering the safety of a command, unit or place.” Misbehavior before the enemy was used hundreds of times during World War II, but scholars say its use appears to have dwindled in conflicts since then. Legal databases and media accounts turn up only a few misbehavior cases since 2001 when fighting began in Afghanistan, followed by Iraq less than two years later. By contrast, statistics show the U.S. Army prosecuted about 1,900 desertion cases between 2001 and the end of 2014. Fidell has argued his client is being charged twice for the same action, saying in a previous television interview that “it’s unfortunate that someone got creative in drafting the charge sheet and figured out two ways to charge the same thing.” Separately, Fidell, a military justice expert who is also a visiting lecturer at Yale Law School, complained about political figures who have made derogatory statements about Bergdahl. Fidell asked that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump “cease his prejudicial months-long campaign of defamation against our client. In October, Trump called Bergdahl a “traitor, a no-good traitor, who should have been executed.” Fidell also asked the House and Senate Armed Services committees to avoid further statements “that prejudice our client’s right to a fair trial.” The House committee last week issued a 98-page report criticizing the Obama administration’s decision to swap the five former Taliban leaders for Bergdahl. Fidell pointed to the fifth page of the report that said the committee would remain abreast of the disciplinary process and ensure that “Sgt. Bergdahl’s behavior is adjudicated as required.” Fidell said he read that as a call to “hammer” Bergdahl for his actions. Bergdahl hasn’t spoken publicly about his decision to walk away from his post or his subsequent five-year imprisonment by the Taliban and the prisoner swap in May 2014 that secured his return to the United States. But during the past several months, he spoke extensively with screenwriter Mark Boal, who shared about 25 hours of the recorded interviews with Sarah Koenig for her popular podcast, “Serial.” Bergdahl says in the interviews that he walked off his base to cause a crisis that would catch the attention of military brass. He wanted to warn them about what he believed were serious problems with leadership in his unit. And he wanted to prove himself as a real-life action hero, like someone out of a movie. “As a private first-class, nobody is going to listen to me,” Bergdahl says in the first episode of the podcast, released Thursday. “No one is going to take me serious that an investigation needs to be put underway.” Bergdahl acknowledges his motives weren’t entirely idealistic. “I was trying to prove to myself, I was trying to prove to the world, to anybody who used to know me … I was capable of being what I appeared to be,” Bergdahl says. “I had this fantastic idea that I was going to prove to the world I was the real thing.” He also discusses the psychological torment of being held captive for years. “How do I explain to a person that just standing in an empty dark room hurts?” Bergdahl recounts. “A person asked me, ‘Why does it hurt? Does your body hurt?’ Yes, your body hurts, but it’s more than that. It’s mental, like, almost confused. … I would wake up not even remembering what I was.”