‘Lucy’s Law’ aims to enhance boating safety after Florida Keys accidentLocal record store and venue, Beach Records, closing after 6 years
‘Lucy’s Law’ aims to enhance boating safety after Florida Keys accident A proposed bill in Florida, known as “Lucy’s Law,” seeks to increase penalties for vessel collisions, accidents, and casualties.
IONA Local record store and venue, Beach Records, closing after 6 years Beach Records, a record store doubling as a music venue, is closing down after hundreds of shows held and many more records sold.
FORT MYERS BEACH Fort Myers Beach businesses thrive as spring break crowds return Fort Myers Beach is bustling with activity as spring break draws crowds to the area. The influx of visitors is a welcome sight for local businesses, especially after the community faces challenges from recent hurricanes.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral businesses worry over parking loss in road expansion Cape Coral is set to undergo a significant change with a road expansion project on Cape Coral Parkway, increasing it from four lanes to six.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Most Wanted Wednesday: Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for March 12, 2025 This weekly Most Wanted Wednesday WINK News segment features fugitives from justice in Southwest Florida.
FORT MYERS 97.7 Latino hosts Fort Myers event to aid St. Jude kids this March WTLQ 97.7 Orgullo Latino is gearing up for its annual Partners in Hope event.
Is a mini-retirement right for you? Experts share insights Taking a temporary extended break from work, known as a mini-retirement, is becoming a popular trend, especially among younger generations.
FSW Transfer portal boosts FSW baseball’s roster with D1 talent In the age of the transfer portal, Florida Southwestern baseball is made up of players who have transferred from various prestigious programs.
NORTH PORT Day in the life of CoolToday Park’s mascot, Palmer Palmer, the friendly palm tree, roams the ballpark spreading joy wherever he goes.
MATLACHA Residents voice traffic control concerns for Little Pine Island Bridge The Little Pine Island Bridge has been a main focus of recovery for southwest Florida since Hurricane Ian damaged it in 2022, but construction has been a headache for people on the island since then.
FORT MYERS RSW Phase 2 expansion begins despite delays The second phase of the RSW expansion project has officially broken ground, even as the first phase encounters delays.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral boaters warned of sunken barge hazard in Caloosahatchee River A barge capsized in the Caloosahatchee River near Jaycee Park, leaking fuel into the water is causing a hazard for boaters.
WINK NEWS Estero crash on I-75 involves four cars; trooper unharmed A traffic crash on Tuesday evening involving multiple vehicles occurred on Northbound Interstate 75 near Estero.
Hair loss could be unexpected side effect of losing weight Hair loss can be an unexpected side effect of losing weight. While shedding between 50 to 100 strands of hair a day is normal, losing more could indicate a problem.
Lee County School District central office under hiring freeze; superintendent weighs in The Lee County School District’s central office is currently under a hiring freeze. WINK News confirmed this exclusive development.
‘Lucy’s Law’ aims to enhance boating safety after Florida Keys accident A proposed bill in Florida, known as “Lucy’s Law,” seeks to increase penalties for vessel collisions, accidents, and casualties.
IONA Local record store and venue, Beach Records, closing after 6 years Beach Records, a record store doubling as a music venue, is closing down after hundreds of shows held and many more records sold.
FORT MYERS BEACH Fort Myers Beach businesses thrive as spring break crowds return Fort Myers Beach is bustling with activity as spring break draws crowds to the area. The influx of visitors is a welcome sight for local businesses, especially after the community faces challenges from recent hurricanes.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral businesses worry over parking loss in road expansion Cape Coral is set to undergo a significant change with a road expansion project on Cape Coral Parkway, increasing it from four lanes to six.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Most Wanted Wednesday: Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for March 12, 2025 This weekly Most Wanted Wednesday WINK News segment features fugitives from justice in Southwest Florida.
FORT MYERS 97.7 Latino hosts Fort Myers event to aid St. Jude kids this March WTLQ 97.7 Orgullo Latino is gearing up for its annual Partners in Hope event.
Is a mini-retirement right for you? Experts share insights Taking a temporary extended break from work, known as a mini-retirement, is becoming a popular trend, especially among younger generations.
FSW Transfer portal boosts FSW baseball’s roster with D1 talent In the age of the transfer portal, Florida Southwestern baseball is made up of players who have transferred from various prestigious programs.
NORTH PORT Day in the life of CoolToday Park’s mascot, Palmer Palmer, the friendly palm tree, roams the ballpark spreading joy wherever he goes.
MATLACHA Residents voice traffic control concerns for Little Pine Island Bridge The Little Pine Island Bridge has been a main focus of recovery for southwest Florida since Hurricane Ian damaged it in 2022, but construction has been a headache for people on the island since then.
FORT MYERS RSW Phase 2 expansion begins despite delays The second phase of the RSW expansion project has officially broken ground, even as the first phase encounters delays.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral boaters warned of sunken barge hazard in Caloosahatchee River A barge capsized in the Caloosahatchee River near Jaycee Park, leaking fuel into the water is causing a hazard for boaters.
WINK NEWS Estero crash on I-75 involves four cars; trooper unharmed A traffic crash on Tuesday evening involving multiple vehicles occurred on Northbound Interstate 75 near Estero.
Hair loss could be unexpected side effect of losing weight Hair loss can be an unexpected side effect of losing weight. While shedding between 50 to 100 strands of hair a day is normal, losing more could indicate a problem.
Lee County School District central office under hiring freeze; superintendent weighs in The Lee County School District’s central office is currently under a hiring freeze. WINK News confirmed this exclusive development.
CHARLESTON, S.C. (CBS) — Prosecutors are using Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof’s own words to portray him as a cruel angry racist at his death penalty trial. Roof’s two-hour confession on video to killing nine people at a church Bible study, recorded the day after the shooting, was introduced as evidence Friday, along with a handwritten journal found in his car. “How could our faces, skin color and body structure be so different, but our brains exactly the same?” Roof wrote in one of the less offensive passages. In the video, Roof laughed repeatedly and made exaggerated gun motions as he described the massacre. He wanted to leave at least one person alive to tell what happened, he explained, complaining that his victims “complicated things” by hiding under tables. He thought about shooting drug dealers, but they might shoot back, he said. Instead, Roof told the FBI, he picked the historic Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in June 2015 because there likely wouldn’t be white people there, and the people he chose to slaughter were more likely to be meek. “I knew that would be a place to get a small amount of black people in one area,” Roof said, later adding, “They’re in church. They weren’t criminals or anything.” Surveillance video from the day of the attack in June 2015 showed people walking into the church. Then, in walks Roof, carrying a 45 Glock pistol and seven magazines. Once inside, he opened fire as the faithful rose and closed their eyes to pray. Malcolm Graham, whose 54-year-old sister Cynthia Hurd was murdered, spoke to CBS News. “This was an attack on a race of people and an attack on the Christian church and an attack on humanity,” Graham said. In Roof’s confession video, an FBI agent asked Roof, “Why did you do it?” “I had to do it because somebody had to,” Roof said. “Blacks are raping and killing white people on the streets every day… What I did is still minuscule to what they’re doing to white people every day.” Roof’s lawyers have conceded that he carried out the attack, and are focused on persuading jurors to spare his life in the penalty phase of the trial. They said in opening statements they will call few or no witnesses. Testimony continues next week, and prosecutors said they may rest their case Wednesday. Along with the overt racism, Roof’s confession and notes show the then-21-year-old as naive and immature. He wrote a note apologizing to his mother and saying “as childish as it sounds, I wish I was in your arms.” But Roof meticulously prepared for the shootings. He carried eight magazines that could each hold 13 rounds, but loaded only 11 each so that he could shoot 88 times. That’s a revered number among white supremacists, standing for “Heil Hitler” because H is the eighth letter of the alphabet. At one point, an agent asked if Roof had thought about killing more blacks. “Oh, no. I was worn out,” Roof said. Roof said he left bullets in a magazine so that he could kill himself after the slayings, but changed his mind when he didn’t immediately see any police. He apparently hadn’t heard the news during his 17 hours on the run. About 45 minutes into his interview with the FBI, an agent decided to tell him that nine people were dead. “There wasn’t even that many people in there,” Roof said incredulously. “Are you lying to me?” The video is blurry, making it hard to see Roof’s facial expressions. After being told the details, an agent asked how he felt. “Well, it makes me feel bad,” said Roof, who earlier in the confession estimated he might have killed five. Agents asked Roof why he chose Emanuel AME. He said it’s because he saw it described online as the oldest black church in the South. Survivor Felicia Sanders testified that said Roof sat through the Bible study beside pastor Clementa Pinckney, and opened fire as the rest of the group of 12 closed their eyes for a final prayer. “I was sitting there thinking about whether I should do it or not. That’s why I sat there for 15 minutes. I could have walked out,” Roof said. Church surveillance videos indicate Roof was actually inside for about 45 minutes. Roof also said the killing of Trayvon Martin was a turning point in his life. Martin, a young unarmed black man, was killed by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman in 2012. Zimmerman was acquitted in the shooting. Roof said he started researching black crime against whites on the internet. He told the agents he didn’t talk about his racist beliefs with his friends or family: “They probably won’t agree with me – you know what I’m saying?” Roof hardly looked up as his confession played, mostly shuffling papers in front of him, as he has through much of the trial. In the recording, he told FBI agents he could never look at the families of his victims. And throughout the trial, he has not looked at the dozens of relatives in the courtroom.