FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herselfSurrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society concerns
FORT MYERS FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herself One season in FGCU, freshman pitcher Allison Sparkman is already ruffling feathers in the circle.
Surrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society concerns An large amount of pets are being surrendered by their owners. About half of the dogs at the Gulf Coast Humane Society are surrender dogs.
Students benefitting from millions in sales tax dollars So far, the voter-approved half-cent sales tax has brought in $507 million for the Lee County School District.
PORT CHARLOTTE ‘Shady’: One woman feels misled after federal student loan consolidation It takes some people decades to pay off their student loans. One woman’s last payment was in sight until she took a gamble she said she was told to take.
FORT MYERS Homeless encampments inch closer to neighborhoods Law enforcement has swept multiple encampments, cleaning the trails of mess and muck left behind, and some of these encampments are right in our backyards.
BIG CYPRESS PRESERVE What changes if Big Cypress National Preserve becomes a Wilderness Area? America’s first nationally designated preserve is in Southwest Florida’s backyard, and it is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
Method to treat IBD being used for other health issues Trying to get treatments for the brain when fighting neurological diseases like epilepsy and ALS is a challenge.
FORT MYERS NTSB report reveals new details in helicopter crash after Hurricane Ian The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released its final report on a helicopter crash that occurred in Iona, Florida, shortly after Hurricane Ian.
NAPLES Memorial celebrates the life of John Passidomo Hundreds of friends and family gathered for a memorial at Baker Park in Naples.
‘Latinos in Action’ empowers all students to succeed WINK News talked with teachers who are a part of the program, helping kids reach their full potential.
Immokalee ‘The eyes always draw me in’; Immokalee portrait artist turns dark times into color One of Southwest Florida best portrait artist, Martha Maria Cantu, almost gave up art. Now she’s on the forefront of the city of Immokalee, to make her community filled with color.
GOLDEN GATE Collier commissioners approve agreement for golf complex in Golden Gate Collier commissioners unanimously approved a long term lease and operating agreement to reopen the Golden Gate golf course Tuesday.
PUNTA GORDA Motorcyclists ride in SWFL to help veterans battle suicide A group of veterans from the American Legion are grabbing their helmets and boots for a motorcycle ride to bring awareness to the staggering rates of suicide among veterans.
SARASOTA Alleged sexual abuse victims of Port Charlotte priest comes forward Father Riley worked at three churches in Charlotte County and another in Naples. On Friday, new allegations emerged from a news conference in Sarasota.
PORT CHARLOTTE Port Charlotte priest accused of sexual abuse appears in court A priest accused of sexually abusing four altar boys in Iowa nearly 40 years ago returned to Charlotte County court.
FORT MYERS FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herself One season in FGCU, freshman pitcher Allison Sparkman is already ruffling feathers in the circle.
Surrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society concerns An large amount of pets are being surrendered by their owners. About half of the dogs at the Gulf Coast Humane Society are surrender dogs.
Students benefitting from millions in sales tax dollars So far, the voter-approved half-cent sales tax has brought in $507 million for the Lee County School District.
PORT CHARLOTTE ‘Shady’: One woman feels misled after federal student loan consolidation It takes some people decades to pay off their student loans. One woman’s last payment was in sight until she took a gamble she said she was told to take.
FORT MYERS Homeless encampments inch closer to neighborhoods Law enforcement has swept multiple encampments, cleaning the trails of mess and muck left behind, and some of these encampments are right in our backyards.
BIG CYPRESS PRESERVE What changes if Big Cypress National Preserve becomes a Wilderness Area? America’s first nationally designated preserve is in Southwest Florida’s backyard, and it is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
Method to treat IBD being used for other health issues Trying to get treatments for the brain when fighting neurological diseases like epilepsy and ALS is a challenge.
FORT MYERS NTSB report reveals new details in helicopter crash after Hurricane Ian The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released its final report on a helicopter crash that occurred in Iona, Florida, shortly after Hurricane Ian.
NAPLES Memorial celebrates the life of John Passidomo Hundreds of friends and family gathered for a memorial at Baker Park in Naples.
‘Latinos in Action’ empowers all students to succeed WINK News talked with teachers who are a part of the program, helping kids reach their full potential.
Immokalee ‘The eyes always draw me in’; Immokalee portrait artist turns dark times into color One of Southwest Florida best portrait artist, Martha Maria Cantu, almost gave up art. Now she’s on the forefront of the city of Immokalee, to make her community filled with color.
GOLDEN GATE Collier commissioners approve agreement for golf complex in Golden Gate Collier commissioners unanimously approved a long term lease and operating agreement to reopen the Golden Gate golf course Tuesday.
PUNTA GORDA Motorcyclists ride in SWFL to help veterans battle suicide A group of veterans from the American Legion are grabbing their helmets and boots for a motorcycle ride to bring awareness to the staggering rates of suicide among veterans.
SARASOTA Alleged sexual abuse victims of Port Charlotte priest comes forward Father Riley worked at three churches in Charlotte County and another in Naples. On Friday, new allegations emerged from a news conference in Sarasota.
PORT CHARLOTTE Port Charlotte priest accused of sexual abuse appears in court A priest accused of sexually abusing four altar boys in Iowa nearly 40 years ago returned to Charlotte County court.
– In this Monday, Nov. 14, 2016 file photo, Jared Kushner, son-in-law of of President-elect Donald Trump walks from Trump Tower, in New York. Kushner is taking steps to distance himself from his sprawling New York real estate business, in what is the clearest sign yet he is planning to take a position in his father-in-law’s administration. Kushner, who is married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka, must clear a series of hurdles before he takes any post in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File) (CBS) — The Department of Justice has some good news for President Trump: its Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) has concluded that Mr. Trump’s decision to hire his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as a senior White House adviser does not violate federal anti-nepotism laws. The OLC issued a 14-page memo on Friday saying that the president is not barred from appointing Kushner because federal law grants the president special hiring authority that exempts him and his hires from anti-nepotism laws. Anti-nepotism laws prevent presidents from appointing family members to government positions. The statute, from 1967, reads: “A public official may not appoint, employ, promote, advance, or advocate for appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement, in or to a civilian position in the agency in which he is serving or over which he exercises jurisdiction or control any individual who is a relative of the public official.” The law specifically identifies the president as one of the “public officials” the law applies to and a “son-in-law” as a prohibited relative. But federal law also authorizes the president “to appoint and fix the pay of employees in the White House Office without regard to any other provision of law regulating the employment or compensation of persons in the Government service.” “The most natural and straightforward reading of [the law is] the President may appoint relatives as employees in the White House Office ‘without regard to’ the anti-nepotism statute,” the OLC concluded. The OLC said the federal law is intended to give the president “broad discretion” in hiring White House employees. Kushner, 35, is married to Mr. Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump and has served as a close adviser throughout the campaign and the transition. When Mr. Trump signed his first executive order from the Oval Office Friday night, for example, Kushner was in the room. The memo also found a second legal path to permit Kushner’s hire, citing precedent that anti-nepotism rules do not apply to the White House because it is not an “Executive agency.” There have been previous instances where the OLC has been asked to grapple with this question. In 1977, the office advised that President Carter would not be able to appoint first lady Rosalynn Carter to serve as chair of the President’s Commission on Mental Health as it was independent from the White House. Another example was in 1983 when it was asked to decide whether the president could appoint a relative to the Presidential Advisory Committee on Private Sector Initiatives. The OLC found that was very similar to the problems raised by Mrs. Carter’s proposed service and concluded that the president could not appoint a relative as a member of that commission. “In choosing his personal staff, the President enjoys and unusual degree of freedom, which Congress found suitable to the demands of his office,” the memo concludes. The memo was written by Deputy Assistant Attorney General Daniel Koffsky. He has been at the Justice Department for decades, and former Attorney General Eric Holder referred to him as a “living repository of OLC’s precedents and practices.” © 2017 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.