Fort Myers teen finds dead body in bed of his truckFGCU softball falls to No. 4 Florida in NCAA Tournament
FORT MYERS Fort Myers teen finds dead body in bed of his truck A 16-year-old in Fort Myers drove to school, drove home, drove to the barbershop and back home again. Then, he noticed a swarm of flies in the back of his truck.
Scottie Scheffler facing felony charges; local attorney reacts The attorney we spoke with told us that, at a minimum, we’d spend the night in jail before having our first appearance and getting bail.
GAINESVILLE FGCU softball falls to No. 4 Florida in NCAA Tournament The FGCU softball team couldn’t keep up with the No. 4 Florida Gators as the Eagles drop their first Regional game 6-0 to the Gators.
Summer Safety: Swim safety tips to know before the summer The pool is warming up to be the hot spot for kids and families this summer. It’s now also the number one leading cause of drowning deaths for children ages 1-4 in the state.
FORT MYERS BEACH ‘The Whale’ restaurant to break ground on new building The Whale is a place that has shown great strength and determination.
COLLIER COUNTY Endangered Florida panther deaths surpass 2023 total in 5 months It’s taken wildlife officials just over four and a half months to report finding more dead endangered Florida panthers than in all of 2023.
FORT MYERS FMPD honors 7 officers and 2 K-9s who died in the line of duty dating back to 1930 Nine lives were given, and all nine will remain remembered. A lifetime of gratitude for the fallen officers.
Firefighter recovering from heat exhaustion after battling flames in Collier County It happened at Progress Rail, a transit corporation on Mercantile Avenue just before 5am on Friday.
FORT MYERS How do SWFL graduation rates compare to the state average? How do graduation rates for Charlotte, Lee and Collier Counties stack up against the state? WINK News crunched the numbers.
FORT MYERS Community divisive over ‘justified’ officer-involved shooting of Christopher Jordan A detective who killed an unarmed black man in a controversial shooting will be back at work on Monday.
CAPE CORAL Family submits civil complaint against Cape Coral Police Department The family of a 13-year-old boy who was struck and killed while riding his scooter has officially filed a civil complaint.
FORT MYERS Community reacts to ‘justified’ officer-involved shooting of Christopher Jordan Leaders with the NAACP are saying there is a divide between the black community and Fort Myers police.
NAPLES Inside look at $21 million Naples Players Theater, set to open at the end of May On Friday, as the theater’s 70th season approached, leaders and organizers invited WINK News for a ‘hard-hat-tour’ to showcase the new additions and construction updates.
FORT MYERS Detective who fired fatal shot at Christopher Jordan returns to work Monday Fort Myers police have confirmed to WINK News the detective who shot and killed a man inside his home will return to work Monday morning.
FORT MYERS Bishop Verot onto first state semifinals in nearly a decade A trip to the FHSAA State Semifinals has been a long time coming for the Bishop Verot Vikings who have not been since 2016.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers teen finds dead body in bed of his truck A 16-year-old in Fort Myers drove to school, drove home, drove to the barbershop and back home again. Then, he noticed a swarm of flies in the back of his truck.
Scottie Scheffler facing felony charges; local attorney reacts The attorney we spoke with told us that, at a minimum, we’d spend the night in jail before having our first appearance and getting bail.
GAINESVILLE FGCU softball falls to No. 4 Florida in NCAA Tournament The FGCU softball team couldn’t keep up with the No. 4 Florida Gators as the Eagles drop their first Regional game 6-0 to the Gators.
Summer Safety: Swim safety tips to know before the summer The pool is warming up to be the hot spot for kids and families this summer. It’s now also the number one leading cause of drowning deaths for children ages 1-4 in the state.
FORT MYERS BEACH ‘The Whale’ restaurant to break ground on new building The Whale is a place that has shown great strength and determination.
COLLIER COUNTY Endangered Florida panther deaths surpass 2023 total in 5 months It’s taken wildlife officials just over four and a half months to report finding more dead endangered Florida panthers than in all of 2023.
FORT MYERS FMPD honors 7 officers and 2 K-9s who died in the line of duty dating back to 1930 Nine lives were given, and all nine will remain remembered. A lifetime of gratitude for the fallen officers.
Firefighter recovering from heat exhaustion after battling flames in Collier County It happened at Progress Rail, a transit corporation on Mercantile Avenue just before 5am on Friday.
FORT MYERS How do SWFL graduation rates compare to the state average? How do graduation rates for Charlotte, Lee and Collier Counties stack up against the state? WINK News crunched the numbers.
FORT MYERS Community divisive over ‘justified’ officer-involved shooting of Christopher Jordan A detective who killed an unarmed black man in a controversial shooting will be back at work on Monday.
CAPE CORAL Family submits civil complaint against Cape Coral Police Department The family of a 13-year-old boy who was struck and killed while riding his scooter has officially filed a civil complaint.
FORT MYERS Community reacts to ‘justified’ officer-involved shooting of Christopher Jordan Leaders with the NAACP are saying there is a divide between the black community and Fort Myers police.
NAPLES Inside look at $21 million Naples Players Theater, set to open at the end of May On Friday, as the theater’s 70th season approached, leaders and organizers invited WINK News for a ‘hard-hat-tour’ to showcase the new additions and construction updates.
FORT MYERS Detective who fired fatal shot at Christopher Jordan returns to work Monday Fort Myers police have confirmed to WINK News the detective who shot and killed a man inside his home will return to work Monday morning.
FORT MYERS Bishop Verot onto first state semifinals in nearly a decade A trip to the FHSAA State Semifinals has been a long time coming for the Bishop Verot Vikings who have not been since 2016.
A Florida suburb. Credit: CBS Miami Less than a week after Florida lawmakers rushed to make property-insurance changes, a contractors group filed a constitutional challenge Tuesday that targets a new insurance law restricting attorney fees in lawsuits against insurance companies. The Restoration Association of Florida and Air Quality Assessors, LLC, an Orlando firm that does work such as mold testing and leak detection, filed the lawsuit in Leon County circuit court. It came after lawmakers last week passed a measure (SB 2-D) to try to bolster a troubled property-insurance market that has led to homeowners losing coverage and seeing spiraling premiums. Lawmakers gave final approval to the bill on Wednesday, and Gov. Ron DeSantis signed it on Thursday. Insurers have long blamed litigation and attorney fees for driving up costs. The new law took a series of steps to try to address those issues, but the constitutional challenge focuses on part of the measure that deals with what is known as “assignment of benefits.” In assignment of benefits, homeowners sign over their insurance claims to contractors, who then seek payment from insurance companies – often spurring lawsuits about claims and payments. Contractors in the past have been able to recover their attorney fees from insurers if they are successful in the lawsuits, a concept known as “prevailing party fees.” But the new law stripped contractors of being able to recover prevailing-party fees when they are assigned benefits. Homeowners can still recover prevailing-party fees if they file lawsuits directly against insurers, but the contractors cannot. The lawsuit alleges that the change violates equal protection and due-process rights and denies contractors access to courts. “Claims submitted to insurers for work performed by contractors under an AOB (assignment of benefit) are generally not large in monetary amount,” the lawsuit said. “When the insurer delays, underpays or does not pay a claim at all, contractors are forced to commence an action against the insurer to recover the full amount due for the work performed. Without the corresponding right to recover prevailing party fees, SB 2-D makes it economically unfeasible for the contractor to pursue its lawful rights and remedies in court. Invoices for work performed by contractors under AOBs are generally not significant enough for a lawyer to agree to represent the contractor on a contingency fee basis and it is not economically reasonable for the contractor to … pay a lawyer on an hourly basis to recover the amount(s) owed.” The lawsuit said invoices for work done by Air Quality Assessors and many other members of the association often total $2,500 to $3,000. “The inability to recover prevailing party attorneys’ fees will effectively shut the courthouse door to plaintiffs because it will be cost-prohibitive to pay an attorney for these types of small claims,” the lawsuit said. But William Large, president of the Florida Justice Reform Institute, a business-backed group that lobbies to reduce litigation, said in a statement after the law passed that “property insurance lawsuits have exploded over the last several years, overwhelming Florida’s insurance market.” “Senate Bill 2-D contains significant litigation reforms and gets to the heart of escalating rates and limited coverage – lawsuit abuse,” Large said. Assignment of benefits has long been a contentious issue in the insurance industry. The Legislature in 2019 put additional restrictions on assignment of benefits, at least in part because of an increase in residential water-damage claims. But contractors contend that assignment of benefits helps homeowners who are unfamiliar with making sure insurance claims are handled properly. “AOBs are not new and have been used for a long time, especially during emergency weather situations,” the lawsuit said. “In Florida, AOBs are prevalent in the residential property context when homeowners suffer damage to their home and need to hire contractors to repair the issues.” The lawsuit, which includes seeking a preliminary injunction against the law, names as defendants Melanie Griffin, secretary of the state Department of Business and Professional Regulation, and Donald Shaw, executive director of the Construction Industry Licensing Board. This insurance law case has been assigned to Leon County Circuit Judge Layne Smith, according to an online docket.