Cape Coral man accused of threatening underage Polk County girls

FORT MYERS, Fla.- A Cape Coral man is accused of threatening underage girls with rape and arson unless they sent him nude photos. Lucas D. Bales, 25, is facing multiple charges including extortion, aggravated stalking of a minor, and threatening to kill or cause bodily harm for the crimes committed in Polk County. The investigation began on […]

NTSB to launch second search mission to El Faro

MIAMI (AP) – Federal investigators are launching a second search of the wreckage of a freighter that sank Oct. 1 near the Bahamas, officials said Thursday. The two-week expedition organized by the National Transportation Safety Board is expected to begin in April, according to a news release. Investigators hope to locate the data recorder or […]

Brazil and US university reach deal on Zika vaccine

BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) – Brazil has signed an agreement with a Texas research hospital to develop a vaccine against the Zika virus, the country’s health minister said Thursday, adding the goal is for the vaccine to be ready for clinical testing within 12 months. Minister Marcelo Castro said at a news conference that the government […]

Airfare prices dropping

(CNN Money)- Here’s some good news for travelers: It’s getting cheaper to fly. The average price for domestic airfare dropped 6.2% to $372 in the third quarter of 2015 from 2014, according to the Department of Transportation. That’s the cheapest since 2010. Fliers can thank the expansion of low-cost airlines and the plunge in oil […]

Jury: Smokers didn’t prove Marlboros have defective design

BOSTON (AP) – A federal jury has rejected claims by a group of Massachusetts smokers who sued Philip Morris USA to try to force the cigarette maker to pay for lung cancer screenings. The jury in its verdict Wednesday found that smokers in the class-action lawsuit didn’t prove that Marlboro cigarettes were defectively designed. The […]

Fantasy sports companies defend embattled industry

BOSTON (AP) – Daily fantasy sports companies say their industry remains viable despite a rocky start to 2016. The industry’s top companies, DraftKings and FanDuel, are on the defensive after taking hits to their businesses in recent weeks as scrutiny by state policymakers across the country continues to intensify. This week, it was disclosed that […]

Son: Gunman who killed 2 deputies had emotional problems

ABINGDON, Md. (AP) – The son of a gunman who fatally shot two Maryland sheriff’s deputies before he was killed in a shootout says his father was a heavy drinker with emotional problems, but never spoke poorly of police. Jeremy Evans told WBAL-TV he believes his father, David Brian Evans, 68, thought he’d spend the […]

Storm-battered cruise ship returns to New Jersey homeport

BAYONNE, N.J. (AP) – A cruise ship battered by a major storm in the Atlantic Ocean returned to its New Jersey port on Wednesday night. Royal Caribbean’s Anthem of the Seas docked at Bayonne’s Cape Liberty shortly after 9 p.m., its passengers cheering wildly. It was escorted by two tugboats and a Coast Guard vessel. […]

Post-NH, a tense Clinton-Sanders rematch

WASHINGTON (AP) – Grudge match. Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders get back in the debate ring Thursday night with an increasingly bitter family score to settle. The debate comes just 48 hours after Sanders’ victory over Clinton in the New Hampshire primary by 22 percentage points, a jagged pill made more so […]