Degee Darlene White
February 4, 2010
Ms. Degee Darlene White, 38, of Flomaton, AL passed away suddenly on Tuesday, February 2, 2010.
Ms. White was a native of Pensacola, FL and had been a resident of Flomaton for the past 20 years, coming from Wetumpka, AL. She graduated from Flomaton High School in 1989 and later, Auburn University. Ms. White worked as a System Management Specialist for FEMA and attended First Pentecostal Church of Pensacola.
She is preceded in death by her grandparents, Wiley Aaron Cochran, Narvel and Dorothy White, and her uncle, Narvel Spencer White.
Survivors include her parents, Steve and Linda White of Flomaton, AL; daughter, Kiele Cristin Smith of Brewton, AL; sister, Stevie (Tim) Ward of Brewton, AL; grandmother, Sara Cochran of Vaiden, MS; and numerous loving aunts, uncles and cousins.
Funeral services were 2pm Friday, February 5, 2010 at Flomaton Funeral Home Chapel with Rev. Brian Kinsey officiating. Interment will be in Flomaton Cemetery.
Flomaton Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Bratt Man, 72, Guilty Of Child Sex Abuse, Faces At Least 25 Years In Jail
February 4, 2010
A 72-year old Bratt man has been found guilty on child sex abuse charges and will likely spend the rest of his life in jail.
Jody Posey was convicted Wednesday by and Escambia County jury on charges of lewd or lascivious molestation of a child under 12. He was arrested March 5, 2009, for fondling a five-year old girl at his residence at 7100 North Pine Road in Bratt between November 2007 and January 2009.
The child victim took the witness stand and testified about Posey touching her underneath her clothes as she sat on his lap. The most recent molestation reported by the five-year old was January 9, 2009. The girl told officials that Posey told her she would go to jail if she told anyone about the incidents.
The State Attorney’s office also presented testimony from another girl who testified that she had been molested by Posey between 2001 and 2006 at Posey’s home. Posey faces additional charges of lewd or lascivious molestation in that case.
Following the verdict, Circuit Judge Kenneth Williams remanded Posey to custody and set sentencing for Friday afternoon. Posey faces a maximum sentence of life
imprisonment. Florida Statutes require that Posey be sentenced to no less than 25 years imprisonment followed by probation or community control the remainder of his life.
Man Runs From Deputies (Updated With Photo)
February 4, 2010
Escambia County deputies are searching for a wanted man that ran from this morning in Century.
Kenneth Elbert Hammac, Jr., 27, is wanted for a violation of probation warrant on drug related charges. Deputies found Hammac about 10:30 this morning near a car lot on North Century Boulevard, near the intersection of Pond Street. When Hammac spotted deputies, he ran.
He is described as a white male wearing a black jacket, dark hair, blue eyes, about 175 pounds, 6-foot 5-inches tall. His last known address is on Dawson Road.
Anyone with information on Hammac is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at 436-9620.
Train, Truck Collide In Flomaton (With Photo Gallery)
February 4, 2010
There were no serious injuries when a semi-truck and train collided Thursday morning in Flomaton.
The crash happened about 7:15 on Palafox Street, just north of the Florida line. The driver of an empty flatbed semi-truck crossed into the path of an eastbound train. The force of the impact pushed the 18-wheeler around and down the tracks a short distance. The truck driver was transported to Jay Hospital with minor injuries.
The truck stopped on an adjacent set of tracks almost parallel to tanker cars used for hauling gasoline. There was very little damage to the train’s locomotive, and the train did not derail. None of the train’s cars were damaged.
For a NorthEscambia.com photo gallery from the scene, click here.
Pictured above and below: A train versus truck collision Thursday morning in Flomaton. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Former Sheriff’s Office Employee Charged With Stealing Over $100,000
February 4, 2010
A former Escambia County Sheriff’s Office employee was arrested Thursday, accused of stealing more than $100,000 from the department.
Catherine Lister, was charged with grand theft over $100,000, a first degree felony. She was a 32-year employee of the department who retired last Friday from the finance division.
“Recently implemented accounting practices along with discrepancies noticed by employees led to an investigation being launched on Tuesday,” Sgt. Ted Roy, ECSO spokesperson, said. Lister was reportedly keeping two sets of financial records for the office.
Lister was booked into the Escambia County Jail with bond set at $25,000.
Two Cantonment Men Arrested For Wednesday Night Shooting
February 4, 2010
Two Cantonment men are behind bars accused of a Wednesday night shooting over a debt from a previous drug deal.
Cortez Allen, 20, and Derius Griffin, 21, are facing charges of attempted murder, attempted robbery and using a weapon during the commission of a felony.
The two are accused in shooting of Bobby James Burr, 51, in the 200 block of Desoto Road about 10 p.m. Wednesday. Burr was shot in the chest. He reportedly underwent surgery for his wounds Thursday morning at Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola where he was listed in fair condition.
Burr was found leaning on his couch near the front door of the residence when deputies arrived Wednesday night, shot in the left side of his chest. The bullet, according to deputies, exited his back just inches from his spine.
Burr said he started arguing with Griffin over money that Burr owned to Griffin for a “previous drug deal”, according to deputies.
One of the two suspects pulled a weapon, and a struggle ensued. Burr was shot during the struggle. It was not immediately known which suspect pulled the trigger.
Allen and Griffin are in the Escambia County jail, held on $115,000 bond each.
Desperate Hope: Bratt Native Holds Concert, Book Signing
February 4, 2010
Bratt native Candi Pearson-Shelton was among friends, family and fans Wednesday night with a concert and book tour stop in Atmore.
Candi was promoting her first book, Desperate Hope: When Faith in God Overcame My Despair, a book that chronicles the journey through the death of her brother Rick Pearson and the glory of God in the midst of the tragedy.
She and her husband Jonathon had been in California for about four months when she received the news about her younger brother who was living in Atlanta.
“We get a phone call saying Ricky was sick, a serious kind of sick,” she said. Forty days later, he was dead from Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.
Candy and Rick Pearson’s family found strength in a verse from Isaiah 40 — “A voice cries in the wilderness, Prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight in the desert a highway for our God…. Then every eye will see the glory of the Lord revealed.”
Drawing inspiration from that verse, she penned what would become the title track on the Dove Award winning album Glory Revealed, and she was soon on the album’s tour with artists Mac Powell, Shane & Shane, Brian Littrell and others.
After performing Glory Revealed during her Wednesday night concert at Grace Fellowship in Atmore, Candi sat down and talked about her book.
“I don’t really think of it as a grief book,” the Northview High School graduate said. “It’s a book about hope, a well placed hope.”
Earlier in the afternoon, she held a book signing at the First National Bank & Trust in Atmore.
For more concert photos, click here.
For more on Candi Pearson-Shelton’s book, click here.
Pictured top: Bratt native Candi-Pearson Shelton performs the title track from the Dove award winning album Glory Revealed Wednesday Night at Grace Fellowship in Atmore. Pictured inset: Candi reads from her new book Desperate Hope: When Faith in God Overcame My Despair. Pictured bottom. Candi held a book signing Wednesday afternoon in Atmore. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Story In Wall Street Journal About Atmore Casino
February 4, 2010
Thursday’s Wall Street Journal features a story about the Wind Creek Casino & Hotel in Atmore.
The story details the battle over gambling raging in Alabama courts, and the battle for Southern dollars between Atmore and Biloxi, including the surprise that the operators of casinos in Biloxi had when the 178-foot long Wind Creek blimp recently floated over their establishments on the Mississippi Coast
In the WSJ article, Wind Creek executives would not reveal any details about their bottom line, but said business is better than expected, one year after the $245 million facility opened.
To read the Wall Street Journal article, click here.
Pictured: The Wind Creek Casino & Hotel in Atmore. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Jay’s Hendricks Signs With The USA Jaguars
February 4, 2010
Wednesday was National Signing Day, and it was a big day in Jay for Rush Hendricks.
Hendricks signed on the dotted line and committed to play football for the University of South Alabama Jaguars, a team that played football for the first time last season.
“I’m very excited about the opportunity to be a part of a new program. I look forward to being able to contribute to the team this fall. Coach Jones, and Coach Rodrigue are going to help me find out what I’m made of, and I’m ready,” Hendricks told NorthEscambia.com. “I haven’t met a single person involved with the program that isn’t 100% fired up about what is happening on campus and with the football program. The fact that they expect us to set a standard for excellence is an honor, and I am proud to be a part of the foundation of USA football history.”
Due to an injury, Hendricks only played five games during his senior season for the Jay High School Royals, rushing for 750 yards as a running back for the Royals. On the defensive side, playing linebacker, he had 45 tackles, eight of them for losses.
Hendricks has participated in summer camps at Florida, Florida State, Auburn and Alabama — where he made the Sabian team for two years. He’s been named a 2009 Pensacola News Journal Super Senior, and played offense and defense on the Pensacola Sports Association All-Star team.
Football is not his only sport; Hendricks has played catcher and first base in baseball, part of a district championship team each year of his high school career.
The 225 pound Hendricks is also a star in the classroom at Jay High, where he is currently ranked second in the senior class with a 4.0 GPA in an honors curriculum.
Rush Hendricks is the son of Rick and Nina Hendricks. Nina also attended the University of South Alabama.
The USA Jaguars concluded their inaugural season with a perfect 7-0 mark while outscoring the opposition 321-41. During the 2010 season, they will face 10 four-year schools, including seven home games at Ladd-Peebles stadium in Mobile.
Pictured top: Sister Tessa, mom Nina, Rush Hendricks, father Rick and Jay Coach Elijah Bell. Pictured inset: Hendricks and Coach Bell. Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Escambia Sheriff Sergeant Back Behind Bars
February 4, 2010
An Escambia County deputy first arrested in January after getting into a fight with his wife was booked back into the Escambia County Wednesday afternoon.
Sgt. Edward Henley, 44, was arrested January 16 and charged with false imprisonment, battery and assault domestic violence. He was released from jail three days later with conditions that included no contact with his wife.
Sunday, Henley allegedly had a neighbor enter the Henley residence in Cantonment with a key provided by Edward Henley to retrieve a radio charger. The neighbor had also been checking the family’s mail for Henley, reports say.
Henley is now being held in the county jail without bond.
Deputies responded to a 911 call on Kingsfield Road in Cantonment at about 12:45 a.m. on January 16, according to Sgt. Ted Roy, spokesperson for the sheriff’s department. When deputies arrived and found a marked ECSO patrol car in the driveway, they alerted a supervisor.
“Contact was made with the victim who stated that she and her husband, Sgt. Edward Henley, an Escambia County Deputy of 22 years, were out at a party earlier in the evening,” Roy said. “According to the victim, they began arguing on the way home and once at the residence the argument escalated into a physical confrontation. The victim stated she was struck by the suspect several times at the residence.”
Roy said Henley was charged based upon physical evidence gathered at the scene and statements made.