Month: January 2026

By Ed DiOrio

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    UNITY TOWNSHIP, Pennsylvania (WTAE) — Wigs n’ More Mastectomy Boutique is a locally owned shop in Unity Township. It’s been in business for more than 25 years.

Those who work at the store call themselves a family.

“We could not be closer as a team,” Carla Gigliotti said. “We are all buds. We joke around all day long. We’re super tight. It’s just a laid-back environment for the most part.”

The boutique helps women every day.

“We’re very busy most of the time,” Gigliotti said. “Cancer is very prevalent. We help ladies get wigs for their treatment needs and also breast care products if they have breast cancer.”

The shop was busy again Tuesday morning. However, they weren’t assisting customers.

“I started hearing my name being called from across the building,” Gigliotti said. “I ran to the back. I thought [Sheri and Dawn] were joking around at first.”

The shop had to help one of its own.

“Dawn was on the floor,” Gigliotti said. “Her nose was bleeding. Her face was blue. She was making guttural sounds. I was just panicking. I thought ‘Oh my god, that’s my friend on the floor. You’re just trying to get the messages off the machine, get a cup of coffee, and then boom, medical emergency.”

“Sheri, one of the workers, came outside screaming for my name and waving her arms,” Greg Hendrickson, one of the store owners, said. “I’m like ‘Now what?’ She said Dawn was having a heart attack.”

Dawn’s coworkers found themselves in a situation they were trained for but weren’t familiar with.

“I am certified in CPR, but I’d never used it before,” Gigliotti said. “I worked in personal care homes for 12 years. I’ve been trained over and over, but I never got a call on the floor where I worked.”

Gigliotti started giving chest compressions.

“I was dripping sweat,” she said. “I was just pouring sweat. It was terrifying. All I could think was to keep her up, keep her up, keep her up so that she could have an oxygen supply. I remembered my training and did the best that I could for her. You’re terrified. Your adrenaline is going. You’re just waiting for help to arrive.”

After a few minutes, Hendrickson came in to take over.

“I started the compressions,” the retired maintenance foreman said. “They always preached safety to us. At meetings, we learned CPR. You never really forget the process. I picked her head up and gave her mouth-to-mouth. Then, I started getting noises from her. Dispatchers are on the phone, and they’re telling me not to stop and keep going.”

Medics arrived within minutes. Dawn’s work family was anxious for the rest of the day, wondering if their friend would be OK.

“I kept asking my wife if she had heard from Dawn,” Hendrickson said. “’Has anyone heard from Dawn?’ I went through all [of the emotions].”

On Wednesday morning, the shop got a call.

“She called us from her own cellphone,” Gigliotti said. “She sounded a little groggy. They had just taken the tube out of her throat, but she’s doing OK.”

Dawn is in stable condition at Westmoreland Hospital.

Her family at the boutique is a big reason why.

“We all played a part in saving her life yesterday,” Gigliotti said. “We were really happy to hear from her. It was a relief. It made me cry.”

“Anybody and everybody should learn CPR because it works,” Hendrickson said. “I found out that it works. You relive that experience of training and apply that to [Dawn].

Looking back, everyone inside did what they normally do. They helped a woman in need.

“We’re all a family here, and that really showed that,” Gigliotti said. “We love her. We miss her, but we’re glad she’s OK.”

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Rachael Perry

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    FORT PIERCE, Florida (WPBF) — The mother of a Fort Pierce teen who was shot and killed says the suspect’s motions for temporary release are taking a toll on her.

Larry Lamar Smith is accused of shooting and killing 19-year-old Myrah Zeigler at a rented Fort Lauderdale home on May 19, 2025. For the second time, court records show he requested that a judge grant him a furlough or temporary release from the Broward County Jail.

According to court records, Smith originally requested to be released temporarily to attend the birth of his child. However, at a Wednesday morning hearing, his attorney said the baby had been born on Monday and requested that Smith be granted temporary release to visit his newborn child.

According to court documents, Smith agreed to be released with an electronic monitoring device on him and a curfew to visit the newborn child.

Smith was previously granted a temporary release to attend his father’s funeral in August. However, this time, the judge denied the motion.

Zeigler’s mother, Alacia Ford-Barron, told WPBF 25 News that each time Smith requests to be released, her heart shatters.

“It’s like reliving it all over again. I take it back. I relive it every day. I’m not going to lie. I relive it every day. Every time I open up my eyes, I relive it. But when he puts in a motion, it’s like, you’re not holding yourself accountable for what you did,” she said.

Ford-Barron said the first time he was released was hard enough.

“Just stop. Stop it. Hold your head up. Hold yourself accountable for what you did and learn from it. It’s irritating me. It’s really irritating me. It has already taken a lot out of me. It’s taking part of me away, and the little bit that I have left, it’s taking,” she said.

She said it’s frustrating to hear him ask to be released to visit his newborn child when her’s was taken from her.

“I can’t say, hey, can I get a motion? and say, hey, let me go and spend time with my daughter. No, I can only go to a grave site and talk to my baby, or just talk to her wherever I am. I can’t hold her. I have to grab clothes; I still have clothes that smell like her,” she said.

Now that Smith is a father, Ford-Barron said she hopes he’ll understand the emotional toll these motions take on a grieving parent.

“You’re going to be able to feel a parent’s love, a parent’s protection, wondering if your child is going to make it the next day. You are going to feel it real soon, and I hope you do feel it because you need to understand what as a mother I’m going through,” Ford-Barron said.

Since Smith was granted release the last time a motion was filed, Ford-Barron said she was expecting it to happen all over again. She’s now breathing a sigh of relief.

“I just, I thank God. I know there’s a God above, and I know that he’s working in my favor,” she said.

She also expressed her gratitude towards Judge Thomas J. Coleman, who denied the motion.

“I appreciate him so much for what he did today. You didn’t do it for me. You did it because it’s right, what’s right. So I do understand that. But I just want to say as a mother, thank you,” Ford-Barron said.

Through all the grief, frustration, and anger, Ford-Barron said she knows her daughter is looking down on her and is proud of the way she continues to fight.

“What I want everyone to know about Myrah is that she was a fighter, but she was also a lover. She had a big heart, and my daughter went out strong. She touched a lot of young people’s hearts. That I can say. Because of that, as her mother and as her family, we’re going to make sure Myrah’s name stays alive,” she said.

Ford-Barron said she’s started an organization called Myrah’s Purpose to help other young people navigate growing up and processing hard moments.

“If I could save one or two lives a year, that matters to me a lot,” she said.

She said even just talking about her daughter puts a smile on her face, and she’ll never stop fighting for justice.

“I’m going to keep coming and coming and coming. So just remember who I am and remember that every step and every voice, every thing that I say, I’m standing all for Myrah,” she told WPBF.

Zeigler’s family and friends celebrated what would be her 20th birthday last month. Her mother said it was hard, but it’s just one of many ways they’ll keep her memory alive.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Pamela Comme

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    VOLUSIA COUNTY, Florida (WESH) — A Volusia County EMT says a payroll error that began shortly after her promotion in 2023 has left her facing a demand to repay more than $62,000, money she says she never knew was an issue and repeatedly questioned.

Natasha Davis was promoted to lead EMT with Volusia County in late 2023, around the same time the county now says payroll errors began. Davis said she noticed inconsistencies in her pay early on and contacted the human resources department, seeking clarification.

“I was asking how much I make an hour, and they were unable to tell me, and they said my paychecks were correct,” Davis said. “So, I just assumed that they were correct.”

Davis said she reached out at least four more times over the following months and was told each time that her pay was accurate.

Two weeks ago, she said, that changed.

Davis received a letter from the county stating she had been overpaid and now owes more than $62,000, money the county says must be recovered due to a payroll error. About 30 EMTs received similar letters, according to the county, but Davis said she was told she owes the highest amount.

Davis said she heard rumors about possible pay issues before receiving the letter. When it was finally presented to her, she said the moment was overwhelming.

“I heard about this being a rumor, so I was upset, and I took myself out of service for the whole night,” Davis said. “Then, they came and presented this to me. … I had a panic attack.”

Davis took about a week off work. Under the county’s repayment plan, about $500 a month will be deducted directly from Davis’ paycheck until the balance is paid off, a process that could take years.

Davis said the repayment will be especially difficult because she was already working about 70 hours a week to make ends meet. As a single mother, she worries about how the deductions will affect her ability to support her child.

“What am I going to feed my child?” Davis said. “That’s the whole reason why I work that much.”

Davis said she believes the situation is unfair, especially because she says she tried to alert the county that something might be wrong.

“We basically work almost more than anyone else in the company,” she said. “And it’s just amazing how they come back and tell me I owe money back.”

Davis is scheduled to meet with the county soon and hopes to negotiate repayment terms. Until now, she said, the only information she has received is what was included in the letter.

The union representing EMTs released a statement saying it is seeking full documentation, detailed explanations of how the errors occurred and clarity regarding the county’s legal authority to recover paid wages over multiple years. The union also said it has contacted the U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division for guidance.

County officials previously told WESH 2 they are required by law to recover the overpaid wages.

WESH 2 has requested copies of emails Davis says she sent to the county raising concerns about her pay and has reached out to Volusia County for a response to her claims. As of publication, the county had not responded.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Stewart Moore

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    MERRITT ISLAND, Florida (WESH) — A Merritt Island neighborhood is reeling after a man with a hatcher and pitchfork damaged property and assaulted individuals early Wednesday morning.

Charles Reed Knight was arrested by the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office shortly after and booked with trespassing, battery, criminal mischief charges along with armed burglary and assaulting law enforcement charges.

“I opened the door and there was a strange man in the corner of my porch with an ax hitting my security camera,” said Laura Boles, a homeowner, who described the incident.

The attack escalated as neighbors awaited help, with Knight reportedly causing further destruction and chaos in the area.

“He broke their water system. He was jumping up and down on their rocking chairs, and then he come over, and he would break the pillars on mine, and he was throwing things, and he was just very erratic,” Boles said. “He had a bloody rope. He still had the ax in his hand.”

Another resident, Loc Vo, recounted his experience, saying, “He was, you know, approaching me and slamming me on the head and a race. Was raising my arm real quick, together and always running away from him, and he started chasing me up and down, back and forth for three to four minutes until he ran out the breath.”

Knight is facing several charges, including felonies for criminal mischief, armed burglary of a dwelling, and resisting an officer with violence, and he is being held without bond on these charges. Neighbors are demanding that Knight face the maximum penalty.

“My autistic daughter, who’s 28 witnessed the whole thing. We were terrorized by this man for a good 15 minutes on camera. He needs to go away for a long time. Our Sheriff needs to put him away for 10 or 20 years,” a neighbor said.

Knight is due in court for his first appearance tomorrow. He has been arrested two prior times in Brevard County for DUI.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Britt Leoni

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    BONITA SPRINGS, Florida (WBBH) — In a world as big and beautiful as ours, each of us is bound to find something that lights us up.

As a horticulturist at the Wonder Gardens, Dr. Jan Abernathie finds that something is all around him.

“Plants! I just like them,” said Abernathie. It’s a passion he found at a young age.

“I started out doing this when I was a kid,” said Abernathie. “I lived right on the campus at the University of Illinois. They had a horticulture division. I think I bothered those people something terrible, … looking at the garden, running through the greenhouses.”

That led him to pursue a career in botany spanning over five decades.

“Got a job at the Caribbean Gardens. I worked there for 16 years. Then I got a job at the Botanical Gardens and worked there for about four years,” said Abernathie.

After caring for thousands of plants, he is as dedicated as ever to his work. Even at 96-years-old, retirement is not in his vocabulary.

“You never learn it all,” said Abernathie. “You just keep trying.”

His co-workers cannot help but watch in awe of his commitment.

“He always tells me at 100, he’ll retire, but even then I tell him, ‘I don’t think you’re going to retire.’ It’s just who he is,” said Kaitlyn Henry, director of Living Collections.

Abernathie proves that when we find that something in life that brings us joy, it’s best to stay rooted in it for as long as we can.

“That’s what makes it worthwhile,” said Abernathie.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Edward Franco

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    LEHIGH ACRES, Florida (WBBH) — Lee County deputies are still searching for a person of interest after a fight among teenagers at Veterans Park in Lehigh Acres escalated with a gunshot, leading to increased security measures at the park.

Newly released 911 calls reveal the fear and urgency in the voices of neighbors as they reported the incident.

“I need the police at the Veterans Park in Lehigh by the playground,” one caller said. “There’s a whole bunch of teenagers beating each other up.” Another caller added, “Somebody just did a gun shoot.”

The sound of the gunshot was captured during one of the calls, with the caller exclaiming, “Oh, there’s shots fired. Shots fired. Shots fired. Shots fired. Shots fired!” Another caller described the scene, saying, “There are about 30 to 40 young guys between, I would say between the ages of 15 and 20. And they are fighting and shooting.”

In response to the incident, the sheriff’s office has installed a surveillance tower to monitor the area where the teenagers fled after the fight.

The incident occurred on Jan. 5 at the park off Homestead Road. Families sought safety behind cars as deputies responded, locking down the park and detaining possible suspects. “Get in the car!” one caller urged, noting they heard just one shot.

A person of interest, seen holding a gun in his left hand, is still being sought by authorities. CrimeStoppers suggests he may attend a high school in Lehigh Acres and could be known as “McGill.” Deputies reported that a suspect also pistol-whipped a victim, who sustained non-life-threatening injuries.

One witness described the scene, saying, “For an hour and a half, they kept walking back and forth, back and forth and, and then this next group came in, and they came in hot.”

Daniel Rayl, a local resident, expressed his disbelief, saying, “To me, it was just. Wow. Cause, you know, we were just at the park playing, like, two hours before that.”

The Lee County Sheriff’s Office continues to follow leads in the case.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By McKenna Alexander

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    LANCASTER, Pennsylvania (WGAL) — The Lancatster Cat Cafe is staying open during a national no-buy protest against ICE, donating all proceeds and staff wages to the Lancaster Neighbor Fund and the Immigrant Defense Network in Minnesota.

During last week’s no-buy protest in Minneapolis, many businesses closed for the day.

According to its official website, the National Shutdown campaign calls for “no work, no school, no shopping” on January 30, urging people to stop “funding ICE.”

The cafe’s owner, Jax Lanza, said, “I think the community at this point knows our hearts and what we stand for and what matters to us. And they really showed up for us with this statement that we’re making.”

The act of solidarity was announced on Facebook and quickly gained traction. Lanza expressed relief at the positive community response, saying, “It’s huge. It’s really humbling. And it’s made my heart incredibly full, that we have this mission and people see it and are also following and shoot and inspiring others, and it’s just really great to be a part of all of it.”

On Friday, the cafe will also provide postcards and information on how to contact senators about ICE’s recent work across the country.

Lanza emphasized the importance of education, stating, “If someone hadn’t educated me, I wouldn’t know what to do. So, we’ve just got to keep moving forward and keep educating ourselves so that we’re, we know what to do in this voice of oppression.”

She also highlighted the significance of small acts of community support, saying, “Those little things right now, like showing up for your community, taking care of your friends, making meals, petting cats. Those are the things that bring us joy right now. And joy is such a form of resistance and an incredibly important one, ” Lanza added.

During last week’s no-buy protest in Minneapolis, many businesses closed for the day.

However, the Lancatster Cat Cafe is staying open to assist the Lancaster and Minneapolis immigrant communities.

It has not been confirmed if any other businesses are doing the same.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.