Cape Coral man faces 16 charges after fleeing multiple traffic stopsSanibel residents brace for traffic surge with new advisory and app aid
NORTH FORT MYERS Cape Coral man faces 16 charges after fleeing multiple traffic stops Marcus Selby, 24, is facing multiple charges after a dramatic series of events involving Cape Coral police and Florida Highway Patrol troopers.
SANIBEL Sanibel residents brace for traffic surge with new advisory and app aid Sanibel residents are bracing for increased traffic as the city issued a “heavy traffic advisory” for the entire week.
FGCU FGCU’s Casey Santoro battles back from Achilles injury FGCU women’s basketball player Casey Santoro is back on the floor after suffering an Achilles injury a season ago.
BABCOCK RANCH Heaviest Florida panther ever recorded located in Babcock Ranch Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission biologists recently captured and collared the heaviest Florida panther ever recorded.
Lee County deputies using VR for safe high-risk training scenarios The Lee County Sheriff’s Office has taken a significant step forward in training by incorporating virtual reality technology.
NAPLES FC Naples signs local soccer star Joffre followed his dream across continents after graduating from Gulf Coast. Now he’s back on the professional soccer pitch in his hometown.
FORT MYERS BEACH Fort Myers Beach businesses face floodplain compliance deadline Fort Myers Beach’s businesses face pressure to comply with floodplain regulations or leave the island by March 1.
NAPLES Persistent red tide bloom off Naples to Boca Grande raises concerns As the weather warms up, more people are heading to the beach. However, those with beach plans in Southwest Florida should be aware of the persistent red tide affecting the coastline.
FORT MYERS Community aids in search for missing pitbull after Lee County crash A crash on I-75 near Daniels Parkway in Lee County turned a routine drive into a heartbreaking search for a missing pet.
LEHIGH ACRES Community supporting Lehigh Acres church after destructive fire A massive fire recently burned the Christ at Crossroads Church in Lehigh Acres, and the community is rallying to support the church’s recovery.
FORT MYERS Kids battling cancer in Fort Myers receive cuddly companions from donor Children battling cancer in Fort Myers are finding comfort in a special friend thanks to a generous donor.
2 SWFL veterans find relief at Harry Chapin Food Bank Two veterans in Southwest Florida routinely receive vital support through local food distributions, highlighting a significant issue affecting many who have served our country.
Researchers found lasting effects from COVID-19 COVID-19 cases today are less severe than five years ago, but new research indicates severe infections may have lasting impacts on the heart.
PORT CHARLOTTE Connecting service dogs with veterans A 76-year-old veteran is transforming lives by connecting fellow veterans with support dogs, and the results have been life-changing.
Peace River Wildlife Center celebrates reopening Peace River Wildlife Center in Punta Gorda reopened at Ponce de Leon Park after being closed since hurricanes Helene and Milton flooded the center and its hospital that treats injured wildlife.
NORTH FORT MYERS Cape Coral man faces 16 charges after fleeing multiple traffic stops Marcus Selby, 24, is facing multiple charges after a dramatic series of events involving Cape Coral police and Florida Highway Patrol troopers.
SANIBEL Sanibel residents brace for traffic surge with new advisory and app aid Sanibel residents are bracing for increased traffic as the city issued a “heavy traffic advisory” for the entire week.
FGCU FGCU’s Casey Santoro battles back from Achilles injury FGCU women’s basketball player Casey Santoro is back on the floor after suffering an Achilles injury a season ago.
BABCOCK RANCH Heaviest Florida panther ever recorded located in Babcock Ranch Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission biologists recently captured and collared the heaviest Florida panther ever recorded.
Lee County deputies using VR for safe high-risk training scenarios The Lee County Sheriff’s Office has taken a significant step forward in training by incorporating virtual reality technology.
NAPLES FC Naples signs local soccer star Joffre followed his dream across continents after graduating from Gulf Coast. Now he’s back on the professional soccer pitch in his hometown.
FORT MYERS BEACH Fort Myers Beach businesses face floodplain compliance deadline Fort Myers Beach’s businesses face pressure to comply with floodplain regulations or leave the island by March 1.
NAPLES Persistent red tide bloom off Naples to Boca Grande raises concerns As the weather warms up, more people are heading to the beach. However, those with beach plans in Southwest Florida should be aware of the persistent red tide affecting the coastline.
FORT MYERS Community aids in search for missing pitbull after Lee County crash A crash on I-75 near Daniels Parkway in Lee County turned a routine drive into a heartbreaking search for a missing pet.
LEHIGH ACRES Community supporting Lehigh Acres church after destructive fire A massive fire recently burned the Christ at Crossroads Church in Lehigh Acres, and the community is rallying to support the church’s recovery.
FORT MYERS Kids battling cancer in Fort Myers receive cuddly companions from donor Children battling cancer in Fort Myers are finding comfort in a special friend thanks to a generous donor.
2 SWFL veterans find relief at Harry Chapin Food Bank Two veterans in Southwest Florida routinely receive vital support through local food distributions, highlighting a significant issue affecting many who have served our country.
Researchers found lasting effects from COVID-19 COVID-19 cases today are less severe than five years ago, but new research indicates severe infections may have lasting impacts on the heart.
PORT CHARLOTTE Connecting service dogs with veterans A 76-year-old veteran is transforming lives by connecting fellow veterans with support dogs, and the results have been life-changing.
Peace River Wildlife Center celebrates reopening Peace River Wildlife Center in Punta Gorda reopened at Ponce de Leon Park after being closed since hurricanes Helene and Milton flooded the center and its hospital that treats injured wildlife.
CBS News The Florida sheriff whose department responded to this month’s high school massacre defended his leadership Sunday while insisting that only one of his deputies was on the scene as the gunman killed 14 students and three staff members. Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel told CNN that investigators are looking into claims that three other deputies were on the scene but failed to enter the school when the chance to save lives still existed. To date, the investigation pointed to only one deputy being on campus while the killer was present, he said. Israel also labeled as “absolutely untrue” reports that the deputies waited outside even though children were inside the building needing urgent medical treatment. Israel and the sheriff’s office have come under withering scrutiny after last week’s revelation that deputy Scot Peterson did not go in to confront the suspected shooter, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, during the Valentine’s Day attack. It is also facing backlash for apparently mishandling some of the 18 tipster calls related to the suspected shooter. The tips were among a series of what authorities now describe as the clearest missed warning signs that Cruz, who had a history of disturbing behavior, posed a serious threat. Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s office said Sunday that he asked the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Rick Swearingen to investigate the law enforcement response to the shooting. The agency confirmed it would start the investigation immediately. Israel’s office said it welcomes the investigation and “will fully cooperate with FDLE, as we believe in full transparency and accountability.” State Rep. Bill Hager, a Republican lawmaker from Boca Raton, is calling on Scott to remove Israel from office because of the missed red flags. Israel vowed not to resign, saying he has shown “amazing leadership.” He said Hager’s letter “was full of misinformation” and “shameful, politically motivated.” House Speaker Richard Corcoran stepped up the pressure Sunday, calling on Scott to suspend the sheriff. “In the years leading up to this unspeakable tragedy, Sheriff Israel, his deputies, and staff ignored repeated warning signs about the violent, erratic, threatening, and antisocial behavior of Nikolas Jacob Cruz,” Corcoran said in a letter signed by dozens of lawmakers. 73 elected Republicans in Florida are urging Governor @FLGovScott to suspend @browardsheriff Scott Israel for “incompetence and dereliction of duty” following the Parkland school massacre & response to it. Today, the sheriff told @jaketapper “I’ve given amazing leadership.” pic.twitter.com/DjLgx92Ie6 — David Begnaud (@DavidBegnaud) February 25, 2018 Israel insisted that lapses were being investigated. He told CNN that a deputy who responded to a Nov. 30 call referring to Cruz as a “school shooter in the making” was being investigated by internal affairs for not filing a report. The sheriff said the employee was placed on restrictive duty. “There needed to be [a] report. And that’s what we are looking into – that a report needed to be completed, it needed to be forwarded to either Homeland Security or a violent crimes unit,” Israel said. NRA spokeswoman Dana Loesch told ABC’s “This Week with George Stephanopoulos” that critics shouldn’t blame her organization, gun owners or semiautomatic weapons for the shooting, but Cruz for his own actions and the Broward Sheriff’s Office and the FBI for failing to stop him despite warnings that he was a potential school shooter. “Can we actually look at what really could have prevented this?” Loesch told Stephanopoulos. “That firearm did not walk itself into the school. …The Broward County Sheriff’s Office allowed that firearm to go into that school.” The FBI has acknowledged that it failed to investigate the tip about Cruz that the agency received on Jan. 5. David Hogg, a Stoneman Douglas senior who has become a leader to the student movement, told Stephanopoulos that Loesch’s comments are “disgusting.” He said Loesch’s goal is to “distract” the American public and to benefit the gun manufacturers. Stoneman Douglas students have been pushing for tougher gun laws. Most want AR-15s banned and the age for buying rifles in Florida raised to 21, as it is for handguns. Many want all semiautomatic rifles banned. Uniformly, they want stronger background checks so people like the 19-year-old suspect, who was known to be mentally unstable and violent, cannot buy guns. “They act like they don’t own these politicians. They still do. It is a Republican-controlled House, Senate and executive branch. They could get this done. They have gotten gun legislation passed before in favor of gun manufacturers,” he said. The Associated Press obtained a transcript of the phone call, which spanned more than 13 minutes. During the call, the woman described a teenager prone to anger with the “mental capacity of a 12 to 14 year old” that deteriorated after his mother died last year. She pointed the FBI to several Instagram accounts where Cruz had posted photos of sliced-up animals and rifles and ammunition he apparently purchased with money from his mother’s life insurance policy. “It’s alarming to see these pictures and know what he is capable of doing and what could happen,” the caller said. “He’s thrown out of all these schools because he would pick up a chair and just throw it at somebody, a teacher or a student, because he didn’t like the way they were talking to him.” Later Sunday, Stoneman Douglas administrators, teachers, parents and students are scheduled to meet at the school to discuss its scheduled reopening. Students return to class on Wednesday. Kailey Brown, a 15-year-old freshman, said at a rally last week that she will not be scared when she returns. She was in the building where the shooting happened. “I am going to come back strong with my friends and show that we love each other so much and we are going to get through this,” she said.