LCSO: Lehigh Acres shooting investigation underwayRock for Equality: SWFL non-profit hosts benefit concert for Palestine
lehigh acres LCSO: Lehigh Acres shooting investigation underway The Lee County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting in Lehigh Acres early Saturday morning.
Rock for Equality: SWFL non-profit hosts benefit concert for Palestine A Southwest Florida non-profit hosted a benefit concert on Friday night to help with humanitarian aid in Palestine.
Warm, breezy Saturday with a few showers possible The Weather Authority is forecasting a breezy, warm weekend in store across Southwest Florida, with the chance of a few showers, particularly on Saturday.
CAPE CORAL Active investigation underway in South Cape Coral Cape Coral police are investigating at a home on Southwest 49th Terrace in South Cape Coral early Saturday morning.
16 transported after 2 airboats crash in Collier County According to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, two airboats crashed south of U.S. 41 east between mile markers 74 and 75, leaving well over a dozen people injured.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA New bill filed: Auto shop and law enforcement must work together to solve hit-and-run crashes There could be new detectives on the block, located in your nearest auto shop. A new state bill aims at trying to stop hit-and-run drivers from getting away.
CAPE CORAL New leash on life; Cape Coral shelter dog beats cancer with drug being tested for humans A drug now being studied in human trials to kill cancerous tumors, is already approved and helping animals.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral planning a new interchange with I-75 The city of Cape Coral is in the early stages of planning a new interchange with I-75, an idea that has been discussed for more than a decade.
Tracking invasive species after hurricanes Hurricanes Helene and Milton didn’t just bring wind and rain, they brought new threats to southwest Florida’s ecosystem.
PUNTA GORDA Woman in Punta Gorda shooting charged with 2nd degree murder A woman in a homicide investigation on Nasturtium Drive in Punta Gorda has been charged with 2nd-degree murder.
Lee County mother continuing fight to get children a bus stop The school district already told her she lives too close to the school to qualify for a bus route but she has not given up.
NORTH NAPLES Grant Thornton Invitational returns to Tiburon Golf Club Stars on the PGA and LPGA Tours are back in Southwest Florida for the Grant Thornton Invitational at Tiburon Golf Club.
FORT MYERS Black Flag brings classic punk energy to The Ranch in Fort Myers Legendary punk band Black Flag made their mark in Southwest Florida during the Fort Myers stop of their “First Four Years” tour.
Charlotte Technical College breaks ground on aviation facility The Charlotte County School District is flying high and keeping its “Space Academy” designation with a new aviation training facility for students.
CAPE CORAL Man arrested in connection with Cape Coral home invasion The Cape Coral Police Department has announced the arrest of one of three men suspected in a home invasion that took place earlier this month.
lehigh acres LCSO: Lehigh Acres shooting investigation underway The Lee County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting in Lehigh Acres early Saturday morning.
Rock for Equality: SWFL non-profit hosts benefit concert for Palestine A Southwest Florida non-profit hosted a benefit concert on Friday night to help with humanitarian aid in Palestine.
Warm, breezy Saturday with a few showers possible The Weather Authority is forecasting a breezy, warm weekend in store across Southwest Florida, with the chance of a few showers, particularly on Saturday.
CAPE CORAL Active investigation underway in South Cape Coral Cape Coral police are investigating at a home on Southwest 49th Terrace in South Cape Coral early Saturday morning.
16 transported after 2 airboats crash in Collier County According to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, two airboats crashed south of U.S. 41 east between mile markers 74 and 75, leaving well over a dozen people injured.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA New bill filed: Auto shop and law enforcement must work together to solve hit-and-run crashes There could be new detectives on the block, located in your nearest auto shop. A new state bill aims at trying to stop hit-and-run drivers from getting away.
CAPE CORAL New leash on life; Cape Coral shelter dog beats cancer with drug being tested for humans A drug now being studied in human trials to kill cancerous tumors, is already approved and helping animals.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral planning a new interchange with I-75 The city of Cape Coral is in the early stages of planning a new interchange with I-75, an idea that has been discussed for more than a decade.
Tracking invasive species after hurricanes Hurricanes Helene and Milton didn’t just bring wind and rain, they brought new threats to southwest Florida’s ecosystem.
PUNTA GORDA Woman in Punta Gorda shooting charged with 2nd degree murder A woman in a homicide investigation on Nasturtium Drive in Punta Gorda has been charged with 2nd-degree murder.
Lee County mother continuing fight to get children a bus stop The school district already told her she lives too close to the school to qualify for a bus route but she has not given up.
NORTH NAPLES Grant Thornton Invitational returns to Tiburon Golf Club Stars on the PGA and LPGA Tours are back in Southwest Florida for the Grant Thornton Invitational at Tiburon Golf Club.
FORT MYERS Black Flag brings classic punk energy to The Ranch in Fort Myers Legendary punk band Black Flag made their mark in Southwest Florida during the Fort Myers stop of their “First Four Years” tour.
Charlotte Technical College breaks ground on aviation facility The Charlotte County School District is flying high and keeping its “Space Academy” designation with a new aviation training facility for students.
CAPE CORAL Man arrested in connection with Cape Coral home invasion The Cape Coral Police Department has announced the arrest of one of three men suspected in a home invasion that took place earlier this month.
In this Sept. 9, 2018 photo, customers watch sports on a giant screen at the sports book of the Ocean Resort Casino in Atlantic City, N.J. Panelists at a gambling conference in Atlantic City, on Thursday, June 13, 2019, predicted 90 percent of all US sports betting will be done online or over smart phones within the next 10 years. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry) Pointing to a “legal fiction,” two pari-mutuel facilities have filed a federal lawsuit challenging a newly approved plan for the Seminole Tribe to operate sports betting in Florida. Owners of Magic City Casino in Miami-Dade County and Bonita Springs Poker Room in Southwest Florida filed the lawsuit Friday contending that a sports-betting plan that lawmakers passed in May violates federal laws. Lawmakers backed the plan as part of a gambling “compact” negotiated this spring by Gov. Ron DeSantis and tribal leaders. Under the deal, the Seminoles would serve as the hub for sports betting, which in the past has been illegal in Florida. Gamblers throughout the state could place bets online, with the bets run through computer servers on tribal property. But the 67-page lawsuit contends, in part, that a law known as the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act does not authorize bets to be placed from off tribal lands. Also, the lawsuit argues that the structure of the plan is an attempt to get around a 2018 state constitutional amendment that requires voter approval of gambling expansions. “In an effort to circumvent this clear prohibition in the state Constitution, the 2021 compact and implementing law provide that a person sitting on her poolside lounge chair or his couch at home placing a sports bet through the tribe is ‘deemed’ not to be placing a bet that is otherwise illegal in the state,” the lawsuit said. “The 2021 compact unlawfully deems the bet to be placed on the tribe’s reservation, where the servers will be located. However, this is nothing more than a legal fiction belied by the fact that sports betting is still taking place outside the tribe’s reservations in a state where sports betting remains illegal.” Sports betting was the highest-profile part of the compact that DeSantis and tribal leaders announced in April. The compact, which lawmakers overwhelmingly approved during a special legislative session, includes the tribe paying $2.5 billion to the state over the first five years in exchange for having control over online sports betting. The tribe also will get other benefits, such as being able to offer craps and roulette at its casinos. The sports-betting part of the deal still requires approval from the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees tribal gaming. Lawmakers acknowledged in May that they expected legal challenges. “Obviously, having this kind of agreement, you’re navigating kind of the icebergs of legal hurdles,” House Speaker Chris Sprowls, R-Palm Harbor, told reporters in May. Sprowls, an attorney, said it was an “open question” whether a legal challenge would be successful. “You know, reasonable people disagree. Some people have looked at it and said, ‘Hey, I don’t think it’s gonna make it.’ I’ve looked at it. I think it will. The reality is that’s going to be resolved by a court,” he added. Jim Allen, CEO of Seminole Gaming, also acknowledged in an interview last month with The News Service of Florida that he expected legal challenges. But he pointed to benefits of the plan for the state. “Our problem is that if you look at the illegal sports betting in online gaming sites, there is billions of dollars that’s occurring on an annual basis already from the citizens of the state of Florida,” Allen said in the interview. “So part of our message to the leadership of the state was it’s happening anyway. It’s not regulated. Many, many times these sites are just a magnet for offshore activity that may or may not include money laundering and many other illegal activities. So why not offer the product, because clearly the citizens have told us they want it.” Under the plan, the tribe would contract with pari-mutuel facilities to help market sports betting. The lawsuit said that would include offering kiosks to place bets at pari-mutuel facilities. But the lawsuit, filed by attorneys from the Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney firm, argues that pari-mutuels would be put at a disadvantage if the plan goes forward, It said “pari-mutuels that are unable to, or choose not to, enter into a marketing agreement with the tribe are completely shut out of any opportunity to offer sports betting.” “Accordingly, the pari-mutuels will not only lose the walk-in traffic on which their business models are based, which will ultimately affect their revenue from slot machines, card rooms, and pari-mutuel wagering, as well as the ancillary entertainment and dining options offered to patrons of their facilities — but they are also being denied the opportunity to compete on a level playing field with the tribe,” said the lawsuit, first reported Monday by the Miami Herald. The Magic City and Bonita Springs facilities are headed by the Havenick family, longtime players in the state’s pari-mutuel industry. The lawsuit, which seeks an injunction, also contends the sports-betting plan violates federal laws known as the Wire Act of 1961 and the Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act.