Escambia Man Arrested On 36 Child Porn Counts
June 28, 2013
An Escambia County man was arrested Thursday afternoon on child pornography charges after investigators determined he had downloaded sexually explicit pictures and movies of children from the internet onto his cell phone, iPad and external computer hard drives.
Jairo Scott Domanski, 30, was charged with 36 counts of possession of obscene material/child pornography. He was booked into the Escambia County Jail on a $108,000 bond.
Agents with the North Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force initiated a search warrant at Domanski’s residence on Tuesday after he was identified via the internet as
downloading child pornography.
Additional charges are pending, and the investigation is continuing to determine if he transmitted files and/or downloaded additional child pornography, police said.
Task force members from the Officer of Homeland Security assisted the Pensacola Police Department with the investigation.
Night Of Music And Comedy To Benefit Cpl. J.R. Spears Memorial Scholarhip Fund
June 28, 2013
The Cpl. J.R. Spears Memorial Scholarship Fund will present a night of music and comedy Saturday at Tate High School featuring Grand Ole Opry Comedian T. Bubba Bechtol. Special guest will be entertainer and 2010 Tate High School graduate Leslie Ann Godwin.
Doors open at 6:30 Saturday night; the show begins at 7:00. Admission is $10, with all proceeds going toward the Cpl. J.R. Spears Memorial Scholarship Fund at Pensacola State College. Concessions will be on sale during the show.
After the show, birthday cake will be served to celebrate Spears’ birthday, which is Sunday.
For tickets, call Tim at (850) 324-9907. Tickets will also be sold at the door.
Tate Grad Hoffman Signs Golf Scholarship With Faulkner
June 28, 2013
Tate High School 2013 graduate Jared Hoffman has signed a scholarship to play golf at Faulkner University in Montgomery. Hoffman is pictured with Athletic Director David Venettozzi. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Scott Signs Virtual Education Bill
June 28, 2013
Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday signed a virtual education bill meant to spur some kinds of online courses. The measure (HB 7029) aims to encourage the use of massive open online courses, known as MOOCs, in Florida schools. Out-of-state companies would be able to provide the courses under the change, and “blended” courses that include some online instruction and some classroom time would be exempt from class-size requirements.
Supporters of the bill said it will help Florida adapt its education system to take advantage of new technology. But opponents criticized the measure for allowing out-of-state providers to qualify for the programs.
The bill was one of four signed Thursday by Scott.
Others included a transportation measure (HB 85) that allows the use of public-private partnerships for county road projects and extends the terms for leases that the Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority may enter into from 40 years to 99 years. Another bill (SB 1784) allows the Military Base Protection Program to secure non-conservation lands to serve as added buffers to protect military installations.
Deputies Search For Shooter
June 28, 2013
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is seeking information about a shots fired incident that occurred Wednesday afternoon at a convenience store in the 2900 block of West Jackson Street.
Deputies made contact with witnesses who said two black males got into a scuffle before one pulled a gun and fired at the other. Surveillance video captured an image of the individual who investigators believe is the shooter inside of the store, as well as the suspected shooter’s vehicle outside of the store.
Braves Slip By Wahoos
June 28, 2013
The Mississippi Braves took their second straight game against the Pensacola Blue Wahoos, 3-2, on Thursday night at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium in front of a capacity crowd of 5,038. It was the 15th sellout of the season. Despite the loss, the Blue Wahoos remain just a game out of first place behind the Jacksonville Suns.
Daniel Renken got the start for Pensacola and gave up a solo homer to Jose Martinez with two outs in the first inning to give the Braves a 1-0 lead. Renken settled down in the next couple frames before the Wahoos tied it up in the last of the third on an RBI groundout from Yorman Rodriguez.
Mississippi took the lead for good, though, in the fourth. After a leadoff walk to Edward Salcedo, Christian Marrero blasted an RBI double to right-center to put the Braves on top 2-1. Marrero would come around to score on a fielder’s choice off the bat of Barrett Kleinknecht.
Pensacola would get a run right back in the last of the fourth inning on a leadoff homer from Marquez Smith, his first blast as a Blue Wahoo. That would be all of the offense though, as neither team would scratch across a run in the final five frames.
The Wahoos had the tying run in scoring position in the fifth and sixth innings but weren’t able to push across the tying tallies against the best pitching staff in the league. Gus Schlosser (6-2) picked up the victory for Mississippi by allowing just two runs on five hits in five innings. James Hoyt, Andrew Russell, and Mark Lamm allowed just one hit over the final four frames with Lamm picking up his 10th save of the year.
Renken fell to 2-6 for the Wahoos, despite a quality start. He allowed three runs on five hits in six innings while striking out six.
In his return to Pensacola, outfielder Donald Lutz picked up two hits to lead the Wahoos’ offense. Yorman Rodriguez singled in the fifth to extend his Double-A hitting streak to nine games and overall hitting streak (combined with High-A Bakersfield) to 18 games.
The two teams will square off in the rubber match of the five-game set on Friday night. Josh Smith (5-6, 3.65) gets the call for Pensacola against Mississippi’s Aaron Northcraft (3-5, 3.86).
story by Kevin Burke
Northview Diamond Club Meets Tonight
June 27, 2013
The Northview High School Diamond Club will meet at 6:30 tonight in the Northview media center.
Officers for the upcoming year will be elected at this meeting, and plans for the future will be discussed. Everyone interested in Northview baseball is invited to attend.
Century Signs Off On $40 Million Bond Issue For UWF Conference Center, Hotel
June 27, 2013
For an update to this story, click here.
The Town of Century signed off Wednesday on a $40 million bond issue that will allow the University of West Florida’s development arm to move forward with plans for a hotel, conference center, new student housing and more. The University of West Florida Business Enterprises, Inc. has entered into an affiliation agreement with Vieste, LLC, for the project.
A bond issue totaling about $40 million by the Capital Trust Agency was approved Wednesday by the Century Town Council and was previously approved by the Gulf Breeze Town Council as members of the Capital Trust Agency, an independent public body for the purpose of financing or otherwise accomplishing development programs. Century entered into the Capital Trust Agency with Gulf Breeze in 1999 with Century essentially serving as the “second signature” for CTA.
Century has received over $650,000 in fees since the inception of CTA. Wednesday’s approval of a $40 million bond issue for UWF will earn Century about $14,000 in fees upon closing.
The CTA is structured in such a way to indemnify Century from any financial risk, whether it be from a company that defaults on repayment or any other legal liabilities, according to Matt Dannheisser, attorney for both Century and Gulf Breeze. The funds used for the bonds are from the CTA’s coffers, not from Century or Gulf Breeze.
The $40 million UWF project will include 356 student housing beds plus 54 beds dedicated to guest housing, a conference and academic center and parking amenities. The 18 acres at the east entrance of the campus on Davis Highway will also include space for retail development.
UWF will receive acertain percentage of gross revenue from the annual income generated from the student housing, hotel, conference center, restaurants and retail.
The private developer will fund,design, construct and develop the project. There will be no state or university funds utilized. UWF will continue to own the land and will execute a 50 year lease with the development partner. After the 50 years lease term, UWF BEI will own the improvements.
Vieste originally approached the Escambia County Housing Authority looking for a bond issue, the the authority declined to finance the development, but the authority won’t finance bonds that are not investment grade, Matt Dannheisser, attorney for both Century and Gulf Breeze, said.
Dannheisser said the bond issue could close within a week, depending on the bond market.
Pictured top: Development plans for the east entrance of the University of West Florida. Pictured inset: Attorney Matt Dannheisser explains the project to the Century Town Council Wednesday afternoon. Pictured below: (L-R) Dannheisser, Century Clerk Leslie Gonzalez, and Century council members Gary Riley, Ann Brooks and Sandra McMurray Jackson. Council member Annie Savage participated in the meeting by phone. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
‘I’m In Trouble’ – Molino Man Searching For Lost Wedding Band, Keys
June 27, 2013
A Molino man is asking for the public’s help in finding and returning items that include his wedding band.
He had placed his keys, wedding band attached, on the hood of his vehicle and drove off last Tuesday morning. He believes the keys likely fell off the vehicle in the area of Oreo Drive, the Highway 97 and 95A intersection or Bet Raines Road.
“Help, I’m in trouble,” he said about losing the wedding band. He’s been married for 29 years and described the ring as just a “plain man’s wedding band” that sure means a lot to him and his wife. “I’d sure like to get it back.”
The keys included fobs for a Cadillac and a GMC, several keys and the all-important wedding band.
Anyone finding the items is asked to call (850) 449-6080. A reward is offered.
Disabled Man Struck, Killed By Vehicle On Nine Mile Road
June 27, 2013
A disabled man was killed Wednesday night when he was struck by a car on Nine Mile Road.
The accident happened just after 9:00 on Nine Mile near Beulah Road, in front of a Tom Thumb, according the Florida Highway Patrol. John T. Cowan, 67, was in an electric mobility-assistance scooter when he pulled into the path of a 2008 Kia driven by 52-year old Robert Dunn of Seminole, Ala., according to the FHP. Cowan was pronounced deceased at the scene.
Dunn was not injured.
The Florida Highway Patrol is continuing their investigation.