Jury Selection Begins Monday In Lottery Store Murder
November 13, 2013
Jury selection begins Monday for Malcolm Troy McGhee, one of the two men accused in the robbery and shooting death of a Davisville lottery store owner just over a year ago.
McGhee’s trial is expected to last about two days on charges of premeditated first degree murder and robbery with a firearm for the shooting death of 74-year old Thomas “Tommy” Kroll during a robbery on November 6, 2012, at the State Line O’ Yes Lotto on Highway 97.
His co-defendant, Brent Dewayne Lambeth, 21, has pleaded no contest to second degree murder. Under his plea deal, he will receive no more than 30 years in prison, provided he testifies against McGhee.
Investigators said McGhee and Lambeth targeted Kroll’s business because they had previous purchased “Spice” there and the duo intended on robbing the store of more of the synthetic marijuana.
Pictured top: The scene outside the State Line O’ Yes Lotto on Highway 97 following the murder of store owner Thomas Kroll on November 6, 2012. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Freeze Warning Tonight
November 13, 2013
There is a freeze warning in effect for tonight for all but the coastal areas. Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
- Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 27. North wind around 5 mph.
- Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 61. Wind chill values between 25 and 35 early. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
- Thursday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 47. East wind around 5 mph.
- Friday: A 30 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 71. East wind 5 to 10 mph.
- Friday Night: A 20 percent chance of rain. Patchy fog after midnight. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 57. East wind around 5 mph.
- Saturday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Patchy fog before 9am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a high near 75. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming southeast in the afternoon.
- Saturday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 62. East wind 5 to 10 mph.
- Sunday: Showers likely. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 76. South wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
- Sunday Night: Showers likely. Cloudy, with a low around 64. South wind around 10 mph becoming southwest after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
- Monday: Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 72. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
- Monday Night: A 30 percent chance of showers. Partly cloudy, with a low around 52.
- Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 62. Breezy.
- Tuesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 37.
- Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 58.
Pictured top: A bee feeds on a flower in Bratt Tuesday afternoon, ahead of a cold front. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
In Hot Pursuit 5K This Weekend On Pensacola Beach
November 13, 2013
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office’s Sixth Annual In Hot Pursuit 5K is scheduled for this Saturday on Pensacola Beach. There will be a fun beach course, great door prizes, and medals for the winners. All proceeds from the race will go to support the Florida Sheriff’s Association Youth Ranches.
The race will start at 8:00 a.m. near the Pensacola Beach Pavilion. Registration is $20 for adults. Day of the race registration is $25. Register online at www.active.com or download a printable race form at escambiaso.com. Packet pick up will take place Thursday, November 14 and Friday November 15 from 4-7 p.m. at Running Wild, 312 East Cervantes Street in Pensacola.
The In Hot Pursuit 5K is sponsored in part by NorthEscambia.com, along with Century Link, Allen Turner Hyundai, Berney Office Solutions, Marianna Airmotive, The Grand Marlin, John Peacock/Edward Jones, The Fraternal Order of Police, Gulf Winds Credit Union, Walmart, Navy Federal Credit Union, May’s Construction, The Sandshaker and News Talk 1370 WCOA.
Florida’s Highway Speed Limit May Increase To 75 MPH
November 13, 2013
A bipartisan measure filed Tuesday could shorten the more than 800-mile drive from Pensacola to Key West to less than half a day of travel.
Sens. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, and Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth, proposed a bill (SB 392) that would allow a 75 mph speed limit on some highways and also boost speeds on other roads. Brandes said the idea is to adjust speed limits on interstates and certain rural highway to accurately reflect what most motorists are already driving.
“If people are driving within rates they’re comfortable with, we need to adjust the minimum and maximums speeds to what 85 percent of people are already driving,” Brandes said. “That’s what this bill would allow.”
The proposal would direct the state Department of Transportation to determine the safe minimum and maximum speed limits on all divided highways that have least four lanes.
The DOT would then be able to increase travel on the state’s “limited access highways” to 75 mph and raise the maximum posted limit on divided four-lane highways in sparsely populated rural areas from 65 mph to 70 mph. The DOT could also hike speeds by 5 mph, to 65 mph, on other roads they deem safe.
Florida’s highways have had a 70 mph maximum since 1996, the last time the speed limit was reviewed.
In a news release from the senators, they pointed to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration numbers that indicate the fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled has consistently declined since 1996.
However, the proposal will face safety questions.
Raising speed limits above 70 mph, as 16 states have done for select roads since the national speed limit was lifted in 1995, has led to more deaths from speeding accidents as reaction times are reduced and the severity of injuries is made greater, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety in Arlington, Va.
“Higher speeds make crashes more likely because it takes longer to stop or slow down, and the crashes that happen are more likely to be deadly. It’s physics 101,” said Russ Rader, a spokesman for the Insurance Institute.
A 2009 study by the American Journal of Public Health found a 3 percent increase in road fatalities attributed to higher speeds after the 1995 repeal of the national speed limit, with the increase growing to 9 percent on rural interstates with higher limits, Rader said.
More importantly for those questioning the increases, motorists have continued to go above the posted limits as other states have raised the minimum and maximum limits.
In the decade after the speed limit was raised in Nevada and New Mexico from 65 mph to 75 mph on rural interstates, the proportion of passenger vehicles exceeding 80 mph tripled in Nevada and nearly tripled in New Mexico, according to the Insurance Institute.
The Journal of Public Health study was conducted before Maine increased the speed limit to 75 mph for the northern end of Interstate 95 in 2011. The increase made that section of road — between Old Town and Houlton — the first to top 70 mph east of the Mississippi River.
Louisiana allows 75 mph on sections of Interstate 49, which is west of the Mississippi River.
Brandes admitted he had some early reservations about adjusting the limits, but the senators said they are comfortable allowing state engineers to determine if any increase is warranted.
“Allowing professionals to determine safe speeds based on the engineering standards of individual highways is simply common sense,” Clemens said in the news release. “A five mile per hour increase is unlikely to have an impact on road safety, but we’ll let the experts do their job.”
The proposal will be considered during the 2014 legislative session. Currently, there is no House sponsor for the proposal.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Local Art Students Recognized As Winners
November 13, 2013
Numerous local high school and middle school students from the North Escambia area were recognized for their art entries in the School Art Exhibit at the recent 2013 Pensacola Interstate Fair.
The winners were as follows:
** MIDDLE SCHOOL ***
Art Program Award of Excellence
Bailey — Art Educator: Tracey Burnett
Category – Drawing
First Place — Elizabeth Teets –Woodham
Second Place — Olivia Brown –PATS Center
Third Place — Stephanie Jones –Woodham
Category – Mixed Media
First Place — Andrew Gregg –Bailey
Second Place — Maggie Heckler –Workman
Third Place — Joshua van Fleet –PATS Center
Category – Painting
First Place — Olivia Johnson –Woodham
Second Place — Victoria Caton –Workman
Third Place — Tiana Williams –Woodham
Category – Printmaking
First Place — Jeff Gibbs –Ransom
Second Place — Haleigh Gordon –Woodham
Third Place — Haley Arnold –Ransom
Category – Sculpture
First Place — Katrina Booth –Bailey
Second Place — Christopher Odom II –Woodham
Third Place — Lauren Brown –Ransom
BEST-IN-SHOW
Madeline Houser — Painting
Winston Foster, Educator — Woodham
Honorable Mention
Eric McClain — Drawing — Workman
Danielle Myers — Drawing — Ransom
Trinity Vorachack — Drawing — Bailey
Dayan Zachariah — Drawing — Workman
Addison Haskew — Mixed Media — Workman
Sam Pavelites — Mixed Media — PATS
Aimee Monk — Painting — Ransom
Ellie Dalton — Printmaking — Bailey
Travis Laws– Printmaking — Bailey
Cam Le — Printmaking — Woodham
Patrick Bowden — Sculpture — PATS
Nicole Brady– Sculpture — Ransom
** HIGH SCHOOL ***
Art Program Award of Excellence
Escambia — Art Educators: Marie Henderson, Ruth McAulife
Category – Beginning Art
First Place — Gabrielle Thomas — Milton
Second Place — Hannah O’Brien — Pace
Third Place — Mercedes Waugh — Escambia
Category – Ceramics
First Place — Ariel Foster — Tate
Second Place — Elena Brooks — Pace
Third Place — Rachel Joyner — Pine Forest
Category – Digital Arts
First Place — Kolby Copeland — Jay
Second Place — Brandon Harberson — Tate
Third Place — Leanna Yarber — Pensacola
Category - Drawing
First Place — Daeshika Smith — Milton
Second Place — Aileen Herman — Escambia
Third Place — Jessica Mann — Pine Forest
Category – Jewelry/Textiles
First Place — Rebecca Edwards — Escambia
Second Place — Mitchell McMullen — West Florida
Third Place — Allison Koelker — Escambia
Category – Mixed Media
First Place — Lindsay Scruggs — Pace
Second Place — Lindsey Granger — West Florida
Third Place — Patrick Rich — Escambia
Category – Painting
First Place — Faith Dorsey — Tate
Second Place — Colleen Mason — Washington
Third Place — Jasmin Rhea — Milton
Category – Photography
First Place — Kimberly Howard — Tate
Second Place — Kaylee Toyne — Pine Forest
Third Place — Ian de Jarnette — Escambia
Category – Printmaking
First Place — Sean Miller — Pine Forest
Second Place — Jessica Mann — Pine Forest
Third Place — Rosa Reeves Casas — Pine Forest
Category – Sculpture
First Place — Kayla Wood — Escambia
Second Place — Celena Ferrante — Pace
Third Place — Maggie Rogers — Washington
BEST-IN-SHOW
Taylor Walden
Escambia High School
Educator: Marine Henderson
John Frenkel, Sr. Award
Mary Bond
Pensacola High School
Educator: Andrea Cain
Honorable Mention
Kayla Callahan — Beginning Art — Tate
Kiona Celestino — Beginning Art — Escambia
Aidan Garcia — Beginning Art — Escambia
Alyssa Perez — Beginning Art — Pine Forest
Hannah Lenox — Beginning Art — West Florida
Maiah Mason — Beginning Art — Washington
Brianna Tillman — Beginning Art — West Florida
Mark Williams — Beginning Art — Washington
Sarah McMurray — Ceramics — Escambia
Carly van Ostenbridge — Ceramics — Pensacola
Jared Anderson — Digital Arts — Tate
Haleigh Craven — Digital Arts — Tate
Holden McCaskill — Digital Arts — Jay
Tyrik Anderson — Drawing — Escambia
Keiana Davis — Drawing — Pine Forest
Rebecca Edwards — Drawing — Escambia
Mallory Gilmore — Drawing — Pace
Yifei Liu — Drawing — Pensacola
Monique Lucas — Drawing — Pine Forest
Lauren Shumpert — Drawing — Pensacola
Jequan Andrews — Mixed Media — Escambia
Kristen Bonanno — Mixed Media — Washington
Elizabeth Nichols — Mixed Media — Tate
Ashley Schroeder — Mixed Media — Escambia
Tyler Tyree — Mixed Media — Escambia
Kenna Kirkpatrick — Paintinging — Escambia
Hannah Power — Paintinging — West Florida
Clara Ortega — Paintinging — Pensacola
Taylor Walden — Paintinging — Escambia
Belle Fehr — Photography — Pensacola
Kenzie Marti — Photography — Washington
Hannah McKerley — Photography — Pensacola
Paige Palmer, Julie McKinley , Sawyer Smith — Photography — Tate
Kaylee Toyne — Photography — Pine Forest
Scott Baker — Printmaking — Washington
Katrina Foster — Printmaking — Washington
Tessa Funderburk — Printmaking — Washington
Monique Lucas — Printmaking — Pine Forest
Tuyet Phan — Printmaking — Washington
Destiny Redd — Printmaking — Pine Forest
Jamie Robinson — Sculpture — Escambia
Celena Ferrante — Sculpture — Pace
Florida Appeals Court Orders Release Of Teacher Data
November 13, 2013
Teachers’ results under a Florida Department of Education formula meant to measure student learning must be released to the public, the 1st District Court of Appeal ruled Tuesday.
A unanimous three-judge panel sided with The Florida Times-Union — which had sought the release of the results from the “value added” model — and overturned a Leon County Circuit Court ruling sealing the records.
The appeals court rejected arguments by the state and a teachers union that the documents should be exempt under a part of state law that shields teacher evaluations from public view until the end of the following school year.
Circuit Judge John Cooper had ruled that, because teacher evaluations are often closely tied to the findings of the state model, releasing the records would essentially open up evaluations to the public. Cooper ruled that each year’s results should not be available to the public for three years.
The evaluations are based on three years of data. Under Cooper’s ruling, the results each year would have been delayed for three years, until they were no longer in use. So the 2009-10 results, for example, wouldn’t have been available until after the 2012-13 school year, instead of being available after 2010-11.
The three-year totals would have been available the year after they were used.
But the appeals court said Cooper’s ruling improperly expanded the personnel exemption.
“Had the Legislature wanted any matter material to a teacher’s evaluation to be exempt from disclosure, the Legislature would have exempted personnel files as a whole,” Judge William Van Nortwick wrote for the court. “To the contrary, personnel files of public school teachers are generally subject to disclosure.”
The dispute is in some ways an outgrowth of the fierce battle over a performance-pay law that passed the Legislature in 2011. Teachers unions bitterly opposed the bill, which led to the Department of Education formula to measure student learning.
But the Florida Education Association, the largest union, joined the Department of Education in fighting the Times-Union’s request for the records. In a statement following the decision, FEA President Andy Ford urged the public to be careful when considering the results when they were released.
Ford said the model is “deeply flawed,” and that many teachers are no longer evaluated based on test scores because of more recent legislation.
”The evaluation data on teachers that is about to be made public is meaningless, which is why we joined in to enforce the public records exemption and prevent it from being published,” Ford said. “The numbers to be released are subject to misinterpretation. They have not been put in their proper context.”
A spokesman for the Florida Department of Education said Tuesday afternoon that the agency was still studying the decision.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
Learn How To Do Business With ECUA At Workshop
November 13, 2013
This Friday, the Florida Small Business Development Center and the University of West Florida’s Procurement Technical Assistance Center Program, will offer a free workshop entitled, “How to do Business with the Emerald Coast Utilities Authority”.
The event, re-scheduled from early October when Tropical Storm Karen was expected to affect our area, will be held in Pensacola at 9999 University Parkway, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. This will be the last of the quarterly-scheduled meetings offered in 2013.
The informational meeting will educate attendees about the potential of doing business with the ECUA, while increasing participation in obtaining future ECUA contracts. Participants will learn about the bidding process, qualification requirements, future business opportunities, and how the ECUA hiring process is conducted.
ECUA speakers will include; Stephen P. Holcomb, director of wastewater infrastructure, Peter Wilkinson, purchasing and store manager, and Frances Webb, HR generalist.
The workshop is free; however, pre-registration is recommended. For additional information contact Laura Subel, PTAC procurement specialist, via email at lsubel@uwf.edu, or by calling (850) 474-2549. Participants may register on-line at https://clients.floridasbdc.org/center.aspx?center=41080&subloc=0
Florida Lieutenant Governor Vacancy At Eight Months
November 13, 2013
Gov. Rick Scott gave little indication Tuesday about how the search for a lieutenant governor is proceeding, as the vacancy in the position hit eight months.
“I’m still reviewing it,” Scott said. “Look, there’s a lot of great people around the state that could be great at lieutenant governor, and so we’re still going through the process.”
Former Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll stepped down March 12. If Scott were unable to fulfill his duties before a lieutenant governor is named, Attorney General Pam Bondi would take over as governor.
by The News Service of Florida
Freeze Warning For Tonight
November 12, 2013
There is a freeze warning in effect for Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. Another freeze is expected for Wednesday night.
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
- Tonight: Clear, with a low around 31. Wind chill values between 25 and 30. North wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
- Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 54. Wind chill values between 25 and 35 early. Northeast wind 10 to 15 mph.
- Wednesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 28. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
- Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 61. East wind around 5 mph.
- Thursday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers after midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 49. East wind around 5 mph.
- Friday: A 40 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 67. East wind 5 to 10 mph.
- Friday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 54. East wind around 5 mph.
- Saturday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 73. East wind 5 to 10 mph.
- Saturday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 56.
- Sunday: A 30 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 75.
- Sunday Night: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 57.
- Monday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 76.
Hunt Continues For Molino Armed Burglary Suspect
November 12, 2013
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is continuing their search for a man wanted in connection with an armed burglary in Molino.
Garland David McKenzie II, 20, is wanted for an October 17 burglary in the 200 block of Oreo Drive. During the burglary, currency, jewelry and electronics were stolen.
The Sheriff’s Office has not said if McKenzie is suspected in two October 10 Molino burglaries that they termed “significant”. One burglary occurred in the 600 block of Brickton Road and another the same day in the 6000 block of Brickyard Road. Electronics and a significant amount of valuables were stolen in both incidents.
Anyone having information as to the whereabouts of Garland David McKenzie II or any of the Molino area burglaries is asked to contact Escambia County Sheriff’s Office investigators at (850) 436-9580 or (850) 436-9620.