-
Less than a week before convicted murderer James Ford is scheduled to be put to death by lethal injection, the Florida Supreme Court on Friday unanimously rejected an appeal aimed at blocking the execution.The Supreme Court issued a 22-page opinion upholding a Jan. 23 decision by Charlotte County Circuit Judge Lisa Porter, who turned down arguments by Ford’s attorneys. Ford is scheduled to be executed Thursday at Florida State Prison in the 1997 murders of Greg and Kimberly Malnory at a Charlotte County sod farm.
-
The Fort Myers Police Department located a missing and abducted 2-year-old child Monday afternoon.
-
Two scammers from out-of-county were intercepted by a Charlotte County Sheriff's Office detective in a Punta Gorda Publix parking lot after they tried to sell items from their trunk while parked in a handicapped parking space.A report from the Sheriff's Office indicated that on Monday, a detective in an unmarked vehicle observed suspicious activity in the Publix parking lot at 2310 Tamiami Trail in Punta Gorda while he was picking up his lunch.
-
With inmate James Ford scheduled to be put to death Feb. 13, a Charlotte County circuit judge Thursday rejected an argument that the execution should be blocked because Ford had the mental and developmental age of a 14-year-old when he murdered a couple in 1997.The 22-page ruling by Circuit Judge Lisa Porter could be the first in a series of decisions as Ford’s attorneys try to prevent the execution. Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a death warrant on Jan. 10.
-
A lawsuit against five people who allegedly violated the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Fort Myers in 2022 will be dropped, lawyers representing the anti-abortion protestors confirmed Friday.Three of the five are among 23 convicted anti-abortion proponents who were pardoned by President Donald Trump Thursday.The Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, or FACE ACT, prohibits using force, threats of force or physical obstruction against any person because they are seeking or providing reproductive health services.On Friday, President Trump issued an order for the Department of Justice limiting enforcement of the FACE Act. The order means those FACE Act prosecutions still on the legal docket — such as the Fort Myers case — will be dismissed.
-
Five members of an alleged retail theft crime ring are facing charges for thefts made at a number of retailers in 14 of Florida's 20 judicial districts, including the Twentieth, which covers Lee, Charlotte, Collier, Glades and Hendry counties.
-
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed a death warrant for a man convicted of brutally murdering a couple at a Charlotte County sod farm in 1997.James D. Ford, 64, is scheduled to be executed Feb. 13 at Florida State Prison in the murders of Greg and Kimberly Malnory. It would be the first execution this year in Florida and would come after one inmate was executed in 2024.
-
In what could be a first-of-its-kind ruling in Florida, an appeals court Tuesday said a drug-sniffing dog's alert did not justify police searching a car because the dog could not differentiate between medical marijuana and illegal pot.The ruling by a three-judge panel of the 5th District Court of Appeal in a Lake County case could add complexity to police searching vehicles without obtaining warrants.
-
The Florida Highway Patrol said a Cape Coral man told troopers he was a CIA agent when the pickup he was riding in, which sported flashing red and blue emergency lights, was stopped Thursday on I-75 in Collier County.
-
Two of the more than 30 people injured in what is being termed as a terror attack in New Orleans Wednesday morning have been confirmed as former students from the Canterbury School in Fort Myers.Congressman Byron Donalds on Wednesday posted the names of the two injured students, Elle Eisele and Steele Idelson, both 2023 graduates of Canterbury. Social media posts say Eisele is studying at the University of Georgia while Idelson is attending San Diego State University.Further details on their injuries were not available.
WGCU is your trusted source for news and information in Southwest Florida. We are a nonprofit public service, and your support is more critical than ever. Keep public media strong and donate now. Thank you.