ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
A man looks at cardboard gravestones with the names of victims of opioid abuse outside the courthouse where the Purdue Pharma bankruptcy is taking place in White Plains, N.Y., Monday, Aug. 9, 2021. Purdue Pharma’s quest to settle thousands of lawsuits over the toll of OxyContin is entering its final phase with the grudging acceptance of most of those with claims against the company. A confirmation hearing is to open in U.S. Bankruptcy Court on Thursday for a deal that removes control of the company from members of the wealthy Sackler family and requires them to contribute $4.5 billion to opioid abatement While most states and others with claims have signed on, there’s still deep anger that Sackler family members would receive protection from lawsuits under the deal. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) The former president and board chair of the company that makes OxyContin told a court Wednesday that he, his family and the company did not cause the opioid crisis in the United States. Richard Sackler, a member of the family that owns Purdue Pharma, was asked under oath during a federal bankruptcy hearing whether he, his kin or the company bear responsibility. For each, Sackler answered simply: âNo.â In statements and court papers, Sackler family members have consistently denied wrongdoing in the opioid crisis, even as the company they own has twice pleaded guilty to federal crimes over their opioid practices. But itâs rare for family members to be asked about it point-blank in open court. The hearing in federal bankruptcy court in White Plains, New York, was held via videoconference. Richard Sackler has not appeared in public forums in recent years outside video of a deposition he gave in a lawsuit in 2015. His denial of responsibility for the opioid crisis comes a day after his son testified that the family wouldnât accept a settlement without guarantees of immunity from further legal action. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Drain said Wednesday that he expected testimony to be completed Thursday and final arguments to begin Monday, and that a decision is likely later next week. During Wednesdayâs hearing, Richard Sackler said he had laryngitis, and his voice was sometimes soft. In response to more than three hours of questions, mostly from Maryland Assistant Attorney General Brian Edmunds, his most common answer was, âI donât recall.â Sackler, whose father was one of three brothers who nearly 70 years ago bought the company that later became Purdue Pharma, didnât recall emails he wrote a decade or more ago; whether Purdueâs board approved certain sales strategies; whether a company owned by Sackler family members sold opioids in Argentina; or whether he paid any of his own money as part of a settlement with Oklahoma to which the Sackler family contributed $75 million. Often, he answered questions with more questions, asking for precision. When Edmunds asked him if he knew how many people in the U.S. had died from using opioids, Sackler asked him to specify over which time period. Edmunds did: 2005 to 2017. âI donât know,â Sackler said. He said that he had looked at some data on deaths in the past, though. (The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has tallied more than 500,000 deaths in the U.S. to opioid overdose, including both prescription drugs and illicit ones such as heroin and illegally produced fentanyl, since 2000.) At another point, Edmunds asked whether he ever had conversations with sales managers. âCan you define what you mean by sales managers?â Sackler asked. Edmunds did. Then Sackler said he didnât recall any such conversations. Edmunds asked about a disagreement over company sales targets at one point. Sackler corrected him. âYou used the word âdispute,ââ he said. âIt wasnât a dispute. It was a difference of opinion.â The previous words of Richard Sackler, now 76, are at the heart of lawsuits accusing the Stamford, Connecticut-based company of a major role in sparking a nationwide opioid epidemic. In the 1996 event to launch sales of OxyContin, he told the companyâs sales force that there would be âa blizzard of prescriptions that will bury the competition.â Five years later, as it was apparent that the powerful prescription pain drug was being misused in some cases, he said in an email that Purdue would have to âhammer on the abusers in every way possible,â describing them as âthe culprits and the problem.â For those reasons, the activists crusading against companies involved in selling opioids often see Sackler â who was president of the company from 1999 to 2003, chair of its board from 2004 through 2007, and a board member from 1990 until 2018 â as a prime villain. Members of the wealthy family have long avoided the spotlight in the business world and welcomed it in philanthropy. But in recent years, museums, including the Louvre in Paris and universities, such as Tufts in Massachusetts, that theyâve supported have cut ties over the opioid crisis. Richard Sacklerâs testimony came a day after his son, David Sackler, testified. The younger Sackler, who also served on Purdueâs board, reiterated something that has long been the familyâs position: They will agree to their part of the plan to restructure Purdue only if family members receive protection from lawsuits over opioids and other Purdue action. If those provisions do not stay in the deal, David Sackler said, the family would instead face lawsuits. âI believe we would litigate the claims to their final outcome,â he said. On Wednesday, Richard Sackler said the family would not agree if states that oppose the deal were not bound by it and allowed to move ahead with lawsuits against the company and family members. Under the proposed settlement, members of the Sackler family would give up ownership of Purdue and contribute $4.5 billion over time in cash and control of charitable funds. Most of the money, along with Purdueâs future profits, would be used to abate the opioid crisis. Some would go to individual victims and their families.