Crews battle 2.5-acre brush fire near Alico and Eagle Village DriveJake’s story: A mother’s mission to share her son’s story and help other young people
ESTERO Crews battle 2.5-acre brush fire near Alico and Eagle Village Drive San Carlos Park Fire District is on the scene fighting a 2.5-acre brushfire near Alico and Eagle Village Drive.
FORT MYERS Jake’s story: A mother’s mission to share her son’s story and help other young people One Fort Myers mom is turning her pain into purpose after her son, who she refers to as her “heavenly Angel,” took his own life.
CAPE CORAL New renderings for the Cape Coral Yacht Club promise a bright future The Cape Coral Yacht Club, which has been part of this community since the 1960s, will now have a new look after Hurricane Ian’s devastating effects.
LEHIGH ACRES Owner bars public from Barefoot Lake, LCSO installs Watch Tower Every weekend, roughly 200 people go to Barefoot Lake in Lehigh Acres to relax, fish, swim and have a good time.
CAPE CORAL Concern over water shortage in Cape Coral Concern is flowing through Cape Coral as neighbors are seeing their canal levels low and their wells run dry.
FORT MYERS FSW softball swinging for success in the postseason Now their focus shifts to states which means the newbies are looking to the experienced sophomores for advice.
BONITA SPRINGS Young SWFL tennis player competing with professionals You may not know her name now, but you might want remember it because 16-year-old Cookie Jarvis-Tredgett is already competing with professionals.
NORTH NAPLES ‘It’s all about connection,’ Statement Peace makes jewelry with sustainability in mind The brand Statement Peace, once started inside founder Jessica Lee’s home, is now in 2,700 stores across the country
Pine Manor 2 arrested for firing gun at birthday party in Pine Manor A party ended with two people behind bars.
FORT MYERS Shooting investigation on busy Fort Myers street Police are conducting a shooting investigation that involves a traffic crash near Michigan Avenue and Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard.
FGCU New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis ready to build on department’s success New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis talks about the department’s future amid the age of NIL and the transfer portal.
FORT MYERS More middle-aged women being treated for acne You probably thought you broke up with it after high school, but acne is rearing it’s ugly blackheads in adult women.
Lee County student ran up and hit teacher in head, report shows The report says a 13-year-old student ran up and smacked a teacher in the head because multiple classmates offered him money to do so.
NAPLES Collier Planning Commission continues discussion for apartments near Fiddler’s Creek The developer of Fiddler’s Creek wants to build hundreds of luxury apartments on a slice of a 600 acre-plus property known as section 29.
CAPE CORAL Fatigue sets in for third day of FEMA hearings Flying several hours to come to a FEMA code compliance hearing in Cape Coral is the reality for John Gasparini from Maryland.
ESTERO Crews battle 2.5-acre brush fire near Alico and Eagle Village Drive San Carlos Park Fire District is on the scene fighting a 2.5-acre brushfire near Alico and Eagle Village Drive.
FORT MYERS Jake’s story: A mother’s mission to share her son’s story and help other young people One Fort Myers mom is turning her pain into purpose after her son, who she refers to as her “heavenly Angel,” took his own life.
CAPE CORAL New renderings for the Cape Coral Yacht Club promise a bright future The Cape Coral Yacht Club, which has been part of this community since the 1960s, will now have a new look after Hurricane Ian’s devastating effects.
LEHIGH ACRES Owner bars public from Barefoot Lake, LCSO installs Watch Tower Every weekend, roughly 200 people go to Barefoot Lake in Lehigh Acres to relax, fish, swim and have a good time.
CAPE CORAL Concern over water shortage in Cape Coral Concern is flowing through Cape Coral as neighbors are seeing their canal levels low and their wells run dry.
FORT MYERS FSW softball swinging for success in the postseason Now their focus shifts to states which means the newbies are looking to the experienced sophomores for advice.
BONITA SPRINGS Young SWFL tennis player competing with professionals You may not know her name now, but you might want remember it because 16-year-old Cookie Jarvis-Tredgett is already competing with professionals.
NORTH NAPLES ‘It’s all about connection,’ Statement Peace makes jewelry with sustainability in mind The brand Statement Peace, once started inside founder Jessica Lee’s home, is now in 2,700 stores across the country
Pine Manor 2 arrested for firing gun at birthday party in Pine Manor A party ended with two people behind bars.
FORT MYERS Shooting investigation on busy Fort Myers street Police are conducting a shooting investigation that involves a traffic crash near Michigan Avenue and Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard.
FGCU New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis ready to build on department’s success New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis talks about the department’s future amid the age of NIL and the transfer portal.
FORT MYERS More middle-aged women being treated for acne You probably thought you broke up with it after high school, but acne is rearing it’s ugly blackheads in adult women.
Lee County student ran up and hit teacher in head, report shows The report says a 13-year-old student ran up and smacked a teacher in the head because multiple classmates offered him money to do so.
NAPLES Collier Planning Commission continues discussion for apartments near Fiddler’s Creek The developer of Fiddler’s Creek wants to build hundreds of luxury apartments on a slice of a 600 acre-plus property known as section 29.
CAPE CORAL Fatigue sets in for third day of FEMA hearings Flying several hours to come to a FEMA code compliance hearing in Cape Coral is the reality for John Gasparini from Maryland.
This undated file photo provided by St. Johns County Sheriffs Office via Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, shows Father Rene Wayne Robert, a Roman Catholic priest in Florida whose body was found in rural east Georgia, in 2016. Robert devoted his life to helping society’s most troubled people, a mission that continues even after his death. The priest signed a “Declaration of Life” insisting that in the event of his murder, his killer should not face execution. (FHSMV/St. Johns County Sheriffs Office via AP, File) ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. (AP) – The Rev. Rene Robert devoted his life to helping society’s most troubled, working with drug addicts and criminals and even signing a “Declaration of Life” that called for his killer to be spared execution in the event of his murder. More than two decades after filing that document, his wish will be tested. Robert’s body – shot multiple times – was found in the Georgia woods last year after a multistate manhunt led to the arrest of Steven Murray, a repeat offender Robert had been trying to help for months. Police said Murray asked the 71-year-old priest for a ride in Jacksonville, Florida, then kidnapped him and drove him across the state line. Days later, Murray led officers to the priest’s body, police said. Prosecutors plan to seek the death penalty if Murray is convicted of murder, citing the slaying’s aggravated nature. That decision was based on the facts alone, Augusta Judicial Circuit District Attorney Ashley Wright told The Associated Press. “We don’t look at whether the victim is a priest, a nun, a philanthropist, a drug dealer or something else,” she said. But Catholic officials from Georgia and Florida plan to protest Tuesday on the courthouse steps in Augusta, citing Robert’s own words opposing capital punishment. “I request that the person found guilty of homicide for my killing not be subject to or put in jeopardy of the death penalty under any circumstances, no matter how heinous their crime or how much I may have suffered,” states the document Robert signed in 1995, notarized and witnessed by an attorney, that he insisted be kept in his personnel file. Prosecutors frequently don’t have access to the wishes of a murder suspect’s victim when making such decisions, let alone a statement so clearly opposed to capital punishment. Even so, it’s one of many factors, and the choice ultimately is the prosecutor’s, said Georgia State University law professor Lauren Sudeall Lucas, who lectures on capital punishment. “There’s not a lot of legal precedent for this having any real impact,” she said. On a more subjective level, she said, a prosecutor could decide not to seek the death penalty because of Robert’s statement. But ultimately the district attorney represents the state, not the victim, she added. Murray’s attorney, Ryan Swingle, has been a public defender for 15 years, working exclusively on capital cases for the last four. He’s inspired by people like Robert, he said. “It is both my personal and professional hope that his sincere wishes based on his faith will be honored,” Swingle said. He’s not sure what weight Robert’s declaration will be given by the state, court or jury, but said “it should be considered thoughtfully by everyone involved.” Murray smiled and waved at TV cameras during his initial court appearance but has waffled between sorrow and defiance in public. “I’m very sorry and if anybody really loves Father Rene, they’ll forgive me because he was a man of God and forgiveness is forgiveness,” he said after an early hearing in April. “I have mental problems, and I lost control of myself, and I apologize.” Murray struck a harsh tone after another hearing in September: “Tell the world I say f— ’em,” he told reporters. Asked about his client’s statements, Swingle said “I think he’s expressed sincere remorse and has done so publicly, and I think that speaks for itself.” Since his latest arrest, Murray has twice attempted to kill himself in jail. He didn’t respond to an interview request mailed to the Clayton County jail near Atlanta. Murray grew up in South Carolina in an abusive family, said his sister Bobbie Jean Murray. A brother is in prison for murder, their father’s been in and out of prison, and the abuse led Murray to drugs and crime at an early age. He met the priest through a girlfriend, Ashley Shreve; the couple did drugs together, and Robert often gave them money, against their families’ wishes. “They used him, no doubt,” Bobbie Jean Murray said. “He gave Ashley a credit card. They used Father Rene to get what they wanted, and I do feel like he was an enabler.” Robert was so devoted to addicts that he’d lend them his car and walk home alone through high-crime neighborhoods, according to colleagues at San Sebastian Catholic Church in St. Augustine, Florida. His compassion for the poor compelled him to scrape leftovers from dinner plates into baggies to feed people in the streets, the colleagues said. “He spent almost all of his money on others and then begged for himself,” said the Rev. John Gillespie, the first to report the fellow priest missing. “I teach to students: Do the things Rene did, but don’t do them the way he did them.” Fran Gradick, Shreve’s mother, said a bank card in her daughter’s name, linked to Robert’s bank account, showed up in the mail after her daughter overdosed and went to jail, just before Robert disappeared. “I begged him for years, this goes back 13 years, ‘please step away, please quit,'” Gradick said. Robert always honored the privacy of the people to whom he ministered, even when relatives had questions, said the Rev. Heriberto Vergara, who worked with Robert in prisons. They considered their work with even the most violent criminals to be like any confession – a private spiritual matter. “He had the conviction of a priest that these people also are important to God,” Vergara said in Spanish. Robert’s sister, Deborah Bedard, initially wanted Murray to be executed but told The Florida Times-Union newspaper she changed her mind after learning of her brother’s letter. Murray’s sister sees the letter as heaven-sent. “I feel like that was an act of God,” Bobbie Jean Murray said. “I’m praying for a miracle, and God’s got it in his hands.”