Month: February 2026

By Tyaun Marshburn

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    EL PASO, TEXAS (KVIA) — An El Paso woman is sharing her journey of addiction, recovery and resilience in hopes of inspiring others through fashion and community.

Bright Woman Boutique manager Karla Lara says she spent nearly 15 years battling drug addiction before deciding to change her life.

“I was addicted to drugs for about 15 years of my life,” Lara said. “One day, I just gave up.”

Behind the smile she showed the world, Lara says she felt lost. That changed after a chance encounter at Del Sol Church, where she found support during one of the lowest moments of her life.

Now nearly a year sober, Lara manages her sister’s boutique, Bright Woman Boutique, crediting her family especially her sister for believing in her recovery.

“My family has so much faith in me,” Lara said. “My sister put a lot of support toward me and what I’ve been doing, so I decided I had to help her out, too.”

For Lara, sisterhood extends beyond bloodlines. She says it’s about connection, encouragement and shared strength among women.

The boutique was recently featured in Audi El Paso Fashion Week, an experience Lara says she will cherish.

“I’m seeing the empowerment of women,” she said. “There are so many women here in El Paso that actually support each other.”

Inspired by the help she once received, Bright Woman Boutique is now giving back by offering a free dress rental for special occasions. Lara says the initiative is meant to ease financial stress for women and families who may not be able to afford expensive attire.

“Why spend so much money on a dress when you already have so many other expenses?” Lara said. “This is just an option so everyone can have their special day.”

“It gives you more support knowing other women have gone through things too,” Lara said. “I love that I can empower somebody else with my story.”

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 Nick Sloan

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    KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KMBC) — Kansas City firefighters rescued a woman who became trapped deep inside a storm drain Wednesday night.

The Kansas City Fire Department said crews were called around 7:20 p.m. to the 3200 block of North Ameristar Drive after receiving reports of a person stuck underground.

When firefighters arrived, they confirmed a woman in her 40s was trapped several hundred feet inside a storm drain pipe.

Rescue crews with the department’s specialized rescue division secured the area and sent a team into the pipe to reach the woman and begin extrication.

After nearly 90 minutes of rescue operations, firefighters were able to free the woman around 9:30 p.m., according to the department.

Fire officials said the woman had been stuck for several hours before being rescued.

She was transported to a local hospital for evaluation and was reported to be in stable condition.

No other injuries were reported.

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 Scott McDonnell

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    MAINE (WMTW) — While some serving time may pass the hours with cards and cribbage, others are spending that time working.

At the Southern Maine Women’s Reentry Center in Windham, Ashley Mackie is filling her time with classes and coding.

“I have to fix some of the questions that aren’t coming up properly,” Mackie said.

Mackie was sentenced to six and a half years in prison. She has served three.

She is one of almost 40 residents in Maine prisons holding down remote jobs while incarcerated.

“I get paid by the hour. I get a check once a month,” Mackie said.

The Maine Department of Corrections says the average salary for full-time work across male and female inmates is between $50,000 and $70,000 a year. Some inmates earn more than $100,000 annually.

“We have an individual in Mountain View that’s a senior software engineer,” said Commissioner Randall Liberty of the Maine Department of Corrections. “And the beauty of him making six figures is he’s able to pay restitution back to victims. He’s able to pay court fees and fines. He’s able to pay child support. He’s paying his mortgage. He’s able to put money aside.”

Liberty said when individuals have purpose, the positives are hard to ignore.

“In 2017, we had 87 assaults on staff at the Maine State Prison,” Liberty said. “In 2023, we had seven — so, significant reduction in violence, creating a non-adversarial environment. And we’ve had great success doing it.”

The program also requires residents to pay toward their own room and board.

After that, Mackie said she is able to send money to her family instead of the other way around.

“A lot of us are qualified to hold positions,” Mackie said.

Working while incarcerated, she said, proves residents can be worthy employees.

“A lot of us really want to do better, and we are working our best to be better,” Mackie said.

More than 15 outside employers are currently participating in the remote work program, hiring people who are serving time. Other states have tested similar ideas, mostly limited to small groups working call center jobs.

The Department of Corrections said states across the country have reached out to learn how Maine’s program works.

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 Audrey Biesk

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    North Carolina (WXII) — Children’s Home Society of North Carolina is actively recruiting a family to adopt 14-year-old, Zori who currently lives in foster care.

“I’m kind, I like to help and I am loving,” said Zori. “I just want people to be happy.”

Zori is a thoughtful and intelligent teen who has big plans for her future. She is on the honor roll, enjoys school and hopes to attend early college. “I got more A’s this semester than last semester, so I was proud of myself. It really showed I was working trying to improve,” Zori said.

WXII 12’s Audrey Biesk met Zori for a private soap making experience to get to know her more. The owner at Lizzie’s All-Natural Products in downtown Winston-Salem, Christen Funderburk, also known as Lizzie gave them a one-on-one lesson.

“I like the color of the flowers and the soap smell, it smells good,” explained Zori. She got to pick out botanicals and essential oils for her soap.

Click the video player above to see the whole experience. Plus, Zori got to pick out inspirational stickers to decorate the soap box with.

When asked what makes her feel the most loved. She said, “When people treat me right and be there for me when I need them.”

Zori has a deep desire to be adopted and have a forever family. “I want them to support me and I just want them to help me go through college,” she said. Zori also hopes to stay active. “I like to go out and do stuff and I like to go out to dinner and to the mall and stuff. I’ve always wanted to go to the Bahamas.”

Zoris recruitment team at CHS said she doesn’t mind having siblings in her forever home.

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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    VERO BEACH, Fla. (WPBF) — The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a disturbing confession in the death of a woman found inside her apartment.

According to court records, the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office responded to a welfare check on Monday at an apartment on 5090 Fairways Circle in Vero Beach. The police report shows that the son-in-law of Patricia Dibella, 76, told dispatchers his son called him to say Dibella was dead.

Deputies responded to the community, where they found Dibella’s grandson, Nicholas Ivey, standing outside. According to the police report, Ivey told investigators Dibella was dead inside the home.

A corporal at the scene went inside the apartment, where they found Dibella lying in her bed. Based on her condition, the corporal immediately determined she was dead.

While at the scene, investigators say they informed her grandson, Ivey, that he was being taken into custody and claim Ivey then spontaneously told one of the detectives that he killed his grandmother. Furthermore, while driving to the sheriff’s office, detectives report Ivey spontaneously uttered, “She came at me with a knife.”

When they arrived at the sheriff’s office, detectives questioned Ivey, who, according to court records, told them Dibella poked him in the back with a kitchen steak knife.

According to the police report, Ivey told detectives he killed his grandmother, Dibella, on Sunday by “snapping her neck” and punching and stomping on her head while she was on the ground. He reportedly told detectives he moved her body from the kitchen floor and laid her on her bed.

Court records show Ivey told detectives he used towels to clean the blood off the kitchen floor and placed the knife in the kitchen drawer.

Ivey is quoted in the police report as saying the sweatshirt he was wearing during their interview was the one he was wearing when he killed Dibella. Detectives say he informed them that he washed the sweatshirt along with the towels because they were covered in blood.

According to the police report, Ivey told detectives he tried calling his father, but he didn’t pick up. He said he did not call 911 because he wanted to talk to his father to decide what to do first.

The police report shows Ivey told detectives that, after killing his grandmother, he went into Dibella’s closet where her purse was located, removed her wallet, and took her credit cards. The following day, investigators say Ivey drove Dibella’s vehicle to the store where he purchased cigarettes and a beer, using Dibella’s credit card.

Once he returned home from the store, investigators say Ivey contacted his father, informing him that he killed Dibella.

Ivey was booked in the Indian River County Jail on charges of grand theft auto, criminal use of personal identification, unlawful possession of stolen credit cards, and fraudulent use of credit cards.

However, Ivey has not been charged in Dibella’s death.

WPBF 25 News reached out to the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office to ask why that is.

In a statement, a spokesperson said, “The pc (probable cause) affidavit reflects the facts known at the time of arrest. Formal murder charges are determined and filed as soon as certain evidence is processed. That process is still ongoing, but we expect charges consistent with murder.”

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 James Curtis Digital Content Producer

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    CHARLOTTE COUNTY, Fla. (WBBH) — A man was sentenced to 15 years in prison Thursday for stealing and reselling trailers meant for Hurricane Ian victims in Charlotte County who lost their homes.

According to Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, Ivan Gutierrez Miranda was convicted in December 2025 of RICO, conspiracy to commit RICO, organized scheme to defraud and five counts of dealing in stolen property.

Miranda was sentenced to 15 years for each count, and they will be served concurrently.

The investigation was conducted by the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office and the Florida Highway Patrol. It revealed that Miranda operated in the early morning hours ands late evening to blend in during the state of emergency, where RVs and campers were being moved daily to aid people displaced due to Hurricane Ian.

The attorney general also said Miranda is a Cuban national who entered the United States illegally. After he serves his sentence in the Department of Corrections, he will be turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for deportation.

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 Taylor Epps

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    BUFFALO, New York (WKBW) — It was supposed to be a fresh start for two Buffalo families. Instead, hours later, a fire destroyed the new apartments and everything inside.

“Got the U-Haul at 9 am,” said Ashley Biviano, a single mother of two. “I unloaded everything by one. Two and a half hours later, gone.”

She saw another family, the Garcia-Colons, moving in downstairs. They’re a family of six with a puppy.

“In just minutes, our fresh start was gone,” the Garcia-Colons wrote in a statement.

Biviano turned the heat on after unloading; that’s when she started smelling something off. She thought it was because no one had lived there in a while and tried to open the windows to get rid of the smoke.

“Didn’t happen. Filled with smoke. My mom texted me, all caps, ‘ Come out now,'” said Biviano. Ashley “I was told by the fire marshal that the room directly underneath me was fully engulfed.”

The Garcia-Colons weren’t home when they got back. They saw their new home, and all of their belongings had been destroyed.

“We lost everything, but we didn’t lose each other. Right now, we’re just trying to stay strong for our kids and take things one step at a time,” the Garcia-Colons wrote in a statement.

It’s not the first time tragedy has struck Biviano’s family. Her son’s father died in a house fire in 2024.

“They were watching that door, wondering if I was going to come out because they know their father didn’t,” said Biviano. “I got in my car and lost it, I was like, that’s pictures of their father when he was a kid, can’t get those back.”

There are GoFundMe pages set up for both families.

You can also donate new (not used) items to the WNY Compassion Connection, 3966 Walden Ave, Lancaster, NY 14086, on behalf of Ashley and family.

Justice, age 7: Size 6 or 7 slim in pants (athletic type for normal days, khaki joggers for school uniform). Shirts, 7/8 or navy blue polo for uniform in boys large. 13 or 1 shoe. Rockwell, age 6: Size 5 pants, size 6 shirts. 10 or 11 shoes. Ashley, 37: Pants 26in (or 2-4 depending on brand (I usually get them at Buckle, hence the inch measurement). Shirts vary…medium is safe, hoodies large. “There were moms that reached out, and they were like I have clothes your size, I have clothes the boys’ size and I was just like, this really is the city of good neighbors,” said Biviano.

The building damage is estimated at $100,000 and $50,000 for the contents, according to city officials.

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 Kaitlin Knapp

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    TALLAHASSEE, Florida (WFTX) — Convicted Cape Coral killer Wade Wilson continues to fight his death sentences as his legal team takes his appeal to the highest court in Florida.

On Thursday morning, Wilson’s attorneys and the state went before the Florida Supreme Court to make their cases. However, the hearing lasted only about four minutes. In October 2019, Wilson killed Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz. It wasn’t until June 2024 when he went to trial. A jury convicted him of both murders and later recommended execution. The judge agreed and sentenced Wilson to death.

Since that day in August 2024, he’s been fighting that sentence.

On Thursday, attorneys for the state and Wilson went before the Florida Supreme Court. What normally would take an hour only went on for four minutes. “I don’t intend to waste this Court’s time re-arguing things that have already been considered.,” said Michael Ufferman, Wilson’s defense attorney.

Ufferman was referring to an opinion the Supreme Court made in December about two other death penalty cases. In those cases, those attorneys argued that Florida law, which now only requires an 8-4 vote for a death penalty recommendation rather than it being unanimous, is unconstitutional. But the Florida Supreme Court said it’s legal.

According to the State Attorney’s Office for the 14th Judicial Circuit, the opinion is critical because “…the Hunt death penalty sentence is the first to be decided by the Florida Supreme Court since the Legislature rescinded the state’s unanimous-jury requirement.”

“I summarize and ask that the court affirm the decision of the lower court,” said Rick A. Buchwalter, assistant attorney general.

Since the Florida Supreme Court decided that, Wilson’s attorney didn’t make any arguments during Thursday’s brief hearing.

Now, Wilson’s attorney says he’s taking this to the United States Supreme Court. It’s not clear when they’ll hear his case or if they even will.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. WFTX’s editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

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.