Charlotte County, Punta Gorda | featured news

(The Miami Herald) — A member of Congress said Tuesday he disclosed the popularity of the erotic sometimes sadomasochistic series “Fifty Shades of Grey” among Guantanamo’s most prized prisoners not to titillate but to set straight for their global followe...

CLEVELAND (AP) — With several swipes from the arm of an excavator and a smattering of applause from spectators, demolition began Wednesday morning on the Cleveland house where three women were held captive and raped for a decade. The house was reduced to ...

WASHINGTON (Bloomberg ) — Consumer borrowing climbed in June after the biggest gain in three months as lenders responded to a pickup in auto sales.
The $13.8 billion increase in credit followed a revised $17.5 billion advance in the previous month that wa...

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) — On the first day Maj. Nidal Hasan went on trial for his life, he claimed responsibility for the 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood. He posed no questions to most witnesses. He said the alleged murder weapon was his, even though no ...

LOS ANGELES — In a rare diplomatic rebuke, President Barack Obama called off an upcoming Moscow summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, sending a stern message of disapproval over Russia’s harboring of National Security Agency leaker Ed...

Bacteria-laden mouths and bleeding gums are giving medical researchers plenty to think about.
Turns out gum disease is associated with a greater risk of developing diabetes, heart disease and even pregnancy complications. And a study released last week fo...

MIAMI — Heavy releases of water from swollen Lake Okeechobee will continue for the foreseeable future to protect the lake’s aging earthen dike during the peak of the Atlantic hurricane season, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Wednesday.
Months of abo...

DES MOINES, Iowa — The allure of capturing the estimated $425 million Powerball jackpot had players in a buying frenzy Wednesday, further confirming a trend that lottery officials say has become the big ticket norm: Fatigued Powerball players, increasingl...

MURDOCK — The Charlotte, Manatee and Sarasota county school boards, along with superintendents of schools and staff, met jointly Wednesday to discuss policy issues and compare notes on operational procedures.
The three boards held a similar meeting last y...

Those dedicated to ending domestic violence — the reported issue that led Charlotte County Sheriff’s Sgt. Michael Wilson to an apartment where he was fatally shot Monday night — say the incident sadly shows such abuse can put everyone in harm’s way.
“It d...