‘A monster’: Families, wounded confront Parkland shooter

Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz’s two-day sentencing hearing began Tuesday with the families of the 17 people he murdered getting their first chance to speak to him directly, using emotional and often angry terms to describe the devastation he brought to their lives. Debra Hixon — the wife of athletic director Chris Hixon, a Navy […]

Opponents try again to block Florida’s so-called ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law

After a federal judge rejected an earlier attempt, students, parents and teachers filed a revised lawsuit seeking to block a new Florida law restricting classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation. The challenge, filed Thursday in the Northern District of Florida, argues that the plaintiffs have suffered “concrete harms” from the law (HB 1557), […]

Man flying paramotor helps save woman who ended up in Miami-Dade canal

A South Florida realtor on a paramotor suddenly found himself helping save a woman’s life Sunday morning. “It was totally a God thing,” says realtor Christiano Piquet. “I was just at the right place at the right time.” Piquet uses his paramotor to get a bird’s eye video of properties he’s selling. What he initially […]

Antisemitic messages shown on Jacksonville stadium, highway overpass

Officials in Jacksonville condemned multiple antisemitic messages that appeared in public spaces this weekend including a football stadium, a highway overpass and a downtown building. An antisemitic message referencing rapper Kanye “Ye” West was seen scrolling on the outside of TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville during the Georgia-Florida college football game on Saturday. In the […]

Divers carve ‘spooktacular’ jack-o’-lanterns underwater in Florida Keys

An offbeat Halloween tradition took place in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary this past weekend when scuba divers submerged 25 feet beneath the surface to carve jack-o’-lanterns during the annual Underwater Pumpkin Carving Contest. In waters off Key Largo Saturday afternoon, underwater artists of all ages used dive knives and other carving tools to […]

Pink Shell prepares to lodge construction workers on Fort Myers Beach

In this Gulfshore Business report, it’s a long road ahead for one resort on Fort Myers Beach after Hurricane Ian devastated the area. The Pink Shell Resort lost its ground floor in the storm, and they don’t expect to open to the public until 2024. But the owner of the resort told Gulfshore Business they […]

Parking lot shootout in Tallahassee leaves 1 dead, 8 wounded

A shootout in Tallahassee in which “dozens and dozens of shots were fired” left one dead and eight wounded, and police shot one of three suspects who were later detained, authorities said. Tallahassee police officers responding to reports of the shootout in the parking lots of a liquor store and restaurant Saturday night saw a […]

Concerns rise as Russia resumes grain blockade of Ukraine

Russia resumed its blockade of Ukrainian ports on Sunday, cutting off urgently needed grain exports to hungry parts of the world in what U.S. President Joe Biden called a “really outrageous” act. Biden warned that global hunger could increase because of Russia’s suspension of a U.N.-brokered deal to allow safe passage of ships carrying grain […]

Powerball grand prize climbs to $1B without a jackpot winner

The Powerball jackpot keeps getting larger because players keep losing. It happened again Saturday night as no one matched all six numbers and won the estimated $825 million grand prize. That means the next drawing Monday night will be for a massive $1 billion, according to a statement by Powerball. The winning numbers Saturday night […]