Preseason Poll: Northview Chiefs Number One In Florida 1A
August 17, 2011
The Northview High School Chiefs are the top-ranked Class 1A football team in Florida, according to rankings released by the national website maxpreps.com.
Maxpreps ranked Northview No. 1 in Class 1A, followed by Jefferson County (Monticello) at No. 2 and Holmes County at number No. 3.
Freeport — the Chiefs’ October 21 opponent — is ranked at No. 5. Other ranked 1A teams that Northview will faced this year are Vernon at No. 7, Chipley at No. 12, Baker at No. 17, South Walton at No. 20.
The Chiefs will begin play with a Fall Classic against Bay High School on August 26. Northview begins regular season play September 9 on the road at Marianna.
Pictured: Two Northview defenders take down a Trinity Christian Conqueror in the Class 1A Semifinals last December. NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Flomaton Man Busted With 300 Pot Plants
August 17, 2011
An Alabama man was arrested after admitting ownership of about 300 marijuana plants found on his property Monday.
A law enforcement aircraft operating in Escambia County, Alabama, located the marijuana plants in the area of Crabtree Road off Lambeth Road northwest of Flomaton.
Agents with the 21St Judicial Drug Task Force and deputies with the Escambia County (Ala.) Sheriff’s Office were contacted and responded to the scene where they were met by the property owner, Donald Huie. Authorities said Huie admitted that the plants were his.
Agents executed a search warrant and found about 300 marijuana plants ranging in height from four inches to seven feet in the immediate vicinity of Huie’s residence. They also reported finding a small amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia inside his residence.
The 62-year old Huie was booked in the Escambia County Detention Center in Brewton on charges of first degree unlawful possession of marijuana , second degree drug manufacturing and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia.
Overcoming Handicaps: Molino Artist Instructs Century Care Residents
August 17, 2011
A physical handicap should not stand in the way of art — that’s what residents of the Century Care Center learned Tuesday from a Molino artist.
Shawn Rudd, 38, suffers from muscular dystrophy. He can barely left his right arm without the assistance of his left. Unable to reach up to a traditional easel, he paints with his canvas flat on a table.
“The residents can’t use the ‘I can’t do that, I’m handicapped excuse’,” Activities Director Mae Hildreth said of Rudd’s new painting class offered to Century Care Center residents each month.
Tuesday, residents learned about watercolor technique from Rudd, adding color to black and white sketches he prepared.
“If it goes as well as I believe it will, we will have a gala art show in a few months,” Hildreth said.
For more photos from Tuesday’s art classes, click here.
Pictured above and below: Century Care Century residents learn about watercolor painting Tuesday. Pictured inset: Molino artist Shawn Rudd. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Alice Mae James Cochran
August 17, 2011
Mrs. Alice Mae James Cochran, 95, of Atmore, died Monday, August 15, 2011.
Mrs. Cochran was a native of Freemanville and a resident of Atmore for most of her life. She was a member of the Homemaker’s Club, a quilter for the Quilting Club, an accomplished oil painter, an avid gardener and a member of the Pine Level Primitive Baptist Church.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Jeff Cochran; five brothers, Arthur James, Herman James, Alvin James, Archie James and Dennis James; three sisters, Mattie Pearl Slay, Louise Thomley and Frances Lambert.
She is survived by two sons, Jerry (Ginger) Cochran of Atmore and Ronald “Lefty” (Judy) Cochran of Pace; a daughter, Sheila (Warren) Adams of Orange Beach; eight grandchildren; 21 great-grandchildren; 13 great-great-grandchildren; and one sister, Sybil Baldwin of Riverside, CA.
Visitation services will be held Friday, August 19 from 1 p.m. until funeral time at Pine Level Primitive Baptist Church. Funeral services will begin at 2 p.m. with Elder Gene Freeland and Elder Gary James officiating.
Burial will follow in the Pine Level Cemetery with Petty Eastside Chapel Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
Pallbearers will be Craig Adams, Jeff Adams, Jim Cochran, Pat Lambert, Richard James and Terry Lambert. Honorary pallbearer will be John James.
Back To School: School Bus Schedules
August 17, 2011
School begins Monday in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.
Escambia County has released its school bus routes and schedules for the upcoming school year. Santa Rosa County does not provide their routes and schedules publicly due to privacy concerns. Santa Rosa County parents can contact their child’s school or call (850) 983-5100.
The following are the bus schedules for North Escambia area schools:
- Bratt Elementary
- Jim Allen Elementary
- Molino Park Elementary
- Ernest Ward Middle
- Ransom Middle
- Northview High
- Tate High
The following are the bus schedules for all Escambia County Schools:
Elementary Schools
- Bellview Elem
- Beulah Elem
- Blue Angels Elem
- Bratt Elem
- Brentwood Elem
- Cook Elem
- Cordova Park Elem
- Ensley Elem
- Ferry Pass Elem
- Global Learning Academy
- Hallmark Elem
- Hellen Caro Elem
- Holm Elem
- Jim Allen Elem
- Lincoln Park Elem
- Lipscomb Elem
- Longleaf Elem
- McArthur Elem
- Molino Park Elem
- Montclair Elem
- Myrtle Grove Elem
- Navy Point Elem
- Oakcrest Elem
- Pine Meadow Elem
- Pleasant Grove Elem
- Scenic Heights Elem
- Semmes Elem
- Sherwood Elem
- Spencer Bibbs Elem
- Suter Elem
- Warrington Elem
- Weis Elem
- West Pensacola Elem
- Yniestra Elem
Middle Schools
- Bailey Middle
- Bellview Middle
- Brown Barge Middle
- Ernest Ward Middle
- Ferry Pass Middle
- Gulf Breeze Middle
- Ransom Middle
- Warrington Middle
- Woodham Middle
- Workman Middle
High Schools
- Escambia High
- Gulf Breeze High
- Northview High
- Pensacola High
- Pensacola High
- Pine Forest High
- Tate High
- Washington High
- West Florida High
Other Routes
Louisiana Man Indicted For Escambia Murder
August 17, 2011
A Louisiana man has been indicted for murder by an Escambia County grand jury.
Christopher Eugene Stallworth, 25, was indicted for first degree murder, burglary while armed, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and grand theft auto.
On July 24, 2011, the badly beaten body of Jerry Wayne Ledden was found at his home on Mitchell Lane by his sister and brother-in-law.
Ledden’s Cadillac, guns, and cell phone were missing from the residence. Stallworth has been behind bars since July 27 on suspicion of homicide in connection with the death of the 65-year-old man. He will be arraigned on August 18, 2011.
Former Escambia Contractor Wanted In Five States For Fraud
August 17, 2011
Authorities are looking for a former Escambia County man wanted in five states for contractor fraud.
The St. Charles Parish (Louisiana) Sheriff’s Office is looking for Philip Livesay, 64, because they say he was paid a $6,150 deposit to do concrete work at a fire department there.
Livesay allegedly showed up for work a couple of days, doing very little work, and then disappeared. The St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office said the work was never completed, the money was not refunded and no one can find Livesay.
Livesay has outstanding warrants in Escambia County for grand larceny and fraud, and he is also wanted for similar crimes in South Carolina, Michigan and Virginia.
He is a former resident of Old Corry Field Road in Escambia County.
Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Philip Livesay is asked to call their local law enforcement agency.
No Injuries In Brewton Plane Crash
August 17, 2011
There were no injuries in an aircraft mishap Tuesday morning in Escambia County, Alabama.
The pilot of a fixed wing single engine Piper plane apparently experienced mechanical problems as he was landing at the Brewton Municipal Airport and ran off the runway into a ditch.
The plane had taken off from Grouby Field in Prattville, Alabama, about 7:14 a.m. with a planned destination of Brewton, according to tracking site Flightaware.com. The pilot’s identity was not available. The aircraft, according to the Federal Aviation Administration, is registered to William Hereford of Pell City, Alabama.
Florida’s Top Transportation Officials Tour Escambia County
August 17, 2011
Florida’s top transportation officials toured several Escambia County locations Tuesday to understand the area’s transportation needs.
Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Ananth Prasad and District Secretary Tommy Barfield toured the Port of Pensacola, the Pensacola Gulf Coast Regional Airport, and the GE Turbine Manufacturing facility during a daylong tour of the Escambia County area.
Officials said the main focus of the visit was to gain better knowledge on how transportation plays a major role in the day to day operation of sea and airports in Escambia County and Northwest Florida.
“Today’s port and airport visit highlights the interconnected nature of transportation and the need to make critical investments in infrastructure to unleash private sector investment and job creation,” Prasad said.
“Our visit to Pensacola is a reminder of the role we play in a three way partnership between the City of Pensacola, Escambia County and the department. This partnership continually encourages investment into job creation in Northwest Florida,” Barfield said.
Jury Picked In Double Murder Trial Of Cantonment Man
August 16, 2011
A jury was seated Monday morning in the double murder trial of Phillip Arnold, the Cantonment man accused in the stabbing death of a pregnant Cantonment woman and her baby last summer.
The 66-year old Arnold, is facing two first degree premeditated murder charges for the stabbing deaths of Angela Castella Brown, 44, and her newborn child on July 5, 2010, in Cantonment. Arnold’s trial is set to begin Thursday and is excepted to last two days.
Brown, who was six months pregnant, underwent an emergency C-section after she was stabbed. The newborn, later named Angela Chambers, died just over seven hours after being delivered.
Arnold, 65, of 349 South Chipper Road, fatally stabbed Brown in the chest, according to the State Attorney’s Office. Arnold and Brown were neighbors, and that was their only known connection, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies were dispatched to the stabbing at a mobile home at 349 South Chipper Road about 8:35 p.m on July 5. When they arrived, witnesses told deputies that Arnold fled into a nearby wooded area. As deputies were arriving in the area, EMS personnel advised they had seen a black male running down the railroad tracks on South Chipper Road.
Witnesses at the scene reported observing a black male known to them as Arnold running from the scene moments before they discovered the victim, according to the Sheriff’s Office. K-9 officers attempting to track Arnold discovered a knife that was believed to be the murder weapon. As deputies were surrounding the area to search for Arnold, he called sheriff’s dispatchers about 9:10 p.m. Arnold said he was at a home at 2473 Stacey Road and that he wanted to turn himself in. He was taken into custody without incident.
Brown was the mother of seven other children ranging in age from an infant to 18-years old.
Arnold remains in the Escambia County Jail without bond.