Florida, Punta Gorda | featured news

STUART, Fla. (AP) — Health officials say they’ve confirmed three cases of dengue fever contracted in central Florida.
Dengue fever is a viral disease transmitted by mosquitoes. Millions of cases are reported worldwide each year, but it’s rare for anyone t...

JACKSONVILLE (AP) — A weekend shooting has now claimed the lives of two Jacksonville teenagers.
The Florida Times-Union reports 14-year-old Megan Simmons was taken off life support Wednesday night and died a short time later. Her best friend, 13-year-old ...

NAPLES, Fla. (AP) — It’s a little like the story of Goldilocks and the three bears.
A 7-year-old Naples boy on Wednesday saw a bear napping on his lanai. The boy was home with his babysitter and then frantically texted his mom.
“Sleeping OMG,” the boy tex...

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Police say a 12-year-old girl is dead following a shooting that also left her grandmother injured.
The shooting took place about 11:30 p.m. Wednesday in Miami Gardens.
Miami Gardens police detective Mike Wright says the girl die...

GAINESVILLE (AP) — Pet bunny rabbits are getting eviction notices from the University of Florida.
But they aren’t just picking on dwarf rabbits. The university recently sent letters giving students until Thursday to get rid of birds, guinea pigs and bunni...

MIAMI (AP) — Charges are pending against two men accused of tossing a Molotov cocktail into a Miami home.
The incident took place around 6 p.m. Wednesday.
The Miami Herald reports the Molotov cocktail sparked a fire that heavily damaged a portion of the h...

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — One of the South Florida men convicted plotting a terrorist attack on the Sears Tower in Chicago has been arrested again, this time on drug charges.
Federal prosecutors said Thursday that 29-year-old Burson Augustin tried to sell $...

CAPE CORAL, Fla. (AP) — A southwest Florida man faces a possible life sentence for shooting a Cape Coral police officer.
A Lee County jury found 21-year-old Yousel Rivera guilty Thursday of attempted first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer with a...

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — A Florida man charged with first-degree murder in the death of a teenager following an argument over loud music coming from the teen’s car will not go on trial until next year.
A Duval County judge on Thursday granted a defense m...

MOSCOW (AP) — Pole vault great Yelena Isinbayeva condemned homosexuality Thursday after criticizing competitors who painted their fingernails in rainbow colors to support gays and lesbians in the face of a new anti-gay law in Russia.
The Russian, who won ...