The Blues Are Back In Town: Over 25,000 Turn Out For Practice
March 27, 2014
Over 25,000 people turned out Wednesday morning to watch the Blue Angels in their first public practice of 2014 aboard Naval Air Station Pensacola.
Coming off a year with most of their shows canceled due to budget cuts, the Blues were back in Pensacola with a show that wowed the huge crowd with spectacular aerial feats. Following the show, the pilots signed autographs for hundreds in the National Museum of Naval Aviation.
The Blue Angels have changed their Tuesday and Wednesday weekly practice demonstration times onboard Naval Air Station Pensacola (NASP) for the 2014 air show season. The scheduled practice demonstrations will now begin at 11:30 a.m. onboard the air station.
Next month, Blue Angels are scheduled to practice in Pensacola on April 1, 2, 8, 9, 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, 29, 30 behind the museum. Autographs are signed after the Wednesday practices only. Admission and parking are free.
Pictured top and inset: The Blue Angels practice Wednesday morning at Naval Air Station Pensacola. Pictured below: The Blues meet fans and sign autographs in the Museum of Naval Aviation. NorthEscambia.com photos by Ditto Gorme, click to enlarge.
Cantonment Man Gets 20 Years For Violent Attack On Woman
March 27, 2014
A Cantonment man has been sentenced to 20 years in state prison and a prison releasee reoffender.
On February 5, 51-year old Robert Dale Hutslar pled no contest to two counts of aggravated battery with great bodily harm or with a deadly weapon, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, aggravated assault by threat with a firearm, false imprisonment and petit theft.
While at the victim’s apartment on August 8, 2013, Hutslar struck her in the head with a bottle and stole her wallet and food stamp card. Hutslar then strangled her with an extension cord and tied her hands with a telephone cord. Later he retrieved the victim’s firearm from the closet and threatened to kill her. The victim was able to break free from Hutslar and dial 911 before he took the phone and fled.
Hutslar was arrested later that day by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office as he was walking down the road.
The sentenced was handed down by Circuit Judge Gary Bergosh.
Escambia’s Health Declines
March 27, 2014
A new study shows declining overall health rating for Escambia County as compared to the other counties in the state.
The fifth annual County Health Rankings & Roadmaps tool released by the University of Wisconsin and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation shows Escambia County’s overall health outcomes rating fell from 55th to 57th among Florida’s 67 counties.
Compared to Florida’s 66 other counties, Escambia County ranked 51st for length of life, 59th for quality of life, 39th for health factors, 47th for health behaviors, 30th of 67 for clinical care, 38th in social and economic factors and 42nd for physical environment.
The study highlights the many community factors that influence health and using established data.
These rankings are a snapshot of the health of counties across the country and they emphasize that health is not a singular effort but a combined work in progress across all community partners, the Florida Department of Health in Escambia County said in a news release.
“Health impacts each resident of Escambia County, Florida, both on a personal level and as members of our community,” said Dr. John Lanza, local health department director. “While today’s report presents county-level rankings, we realize that promoting optimal health requires the efforts of all branches of our community including government, education, business, and civic organizations.”
Senate Puts Brakes On Red Light Camera Bill For This Year
March 27, 2014
Red-light cameras won’t be turned off in Florida this year.
Without enough votes lined up, Senate Transportation Chairman Jeff Brandes put the brakes on a bill (SB 144) that focused on repealing the state’s red-light camera law. Instead, he proposed changes to increase regulations on the use of the devices.
But Brandes’ Transportation Committee on Wednesday didn’t act on the proposed changes, deciding to postpone a vote on his rewritten bill.
“That shows you the power of this (red light camera) industry,” said Brandes who maintained his opposition to the Mark Wandall Traffic Safety Act of 2010, the state’s red-light camera law, after the postponement.
“What you’re seeing is municipalities that have become addicted to the funds, and in many of these cities it’s not about safety,” Brandes added. “It’s become a backdoor tax increase.”
While moving away from a repeal, Brandes proposed changes that would allow new cameras at intersections but only if their use is justified through traffic engineering studies — a requirement that is included in a House bill. Also, money generated from red-light camera tickets would have to be used for traffic safety improvements, and jurisdictions wouldn’t be able to use the cameras if they fail to provide annual camera-enforcement reports to the state.
Sen. Jeff Clemens, a Lake Worth Democrat who made a motion Wednesday for postponement, said the delay will give committee members “time to step back and take a better look at” the proposed changes.
“I’m not sure they were listening to me,” Clemens said of the support he got for the delay. “I think we’re just doing what was best at this point.”
Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, views the cameras as simply a revenue generator for local communities. But he acknowledged that there isn’t an enough support in the Senate to repeal the cameras. That was evident Wednesday when he couldn’t get his own committee to approve three amendments to his rewritten bill.
“Clearly if I don’t have the votes to adopt simple amendments that are common sense, such as standardizing turns throughout the state of Florida, clearly you would see that the broader issue was not long for this world,” Brandes said.
Two of the amendments failed on 4-4 partly line votes, with Republican Senators Greg Evers of Baker and Miguel Diaz de la Portilla of Miami absent.
One of those amendments, opposed by the Florida Police Chiefs Association and Florida Sheriffs Association, would have allowed motorists to employ a “rolling stop” at speeds up to 15 mph when taking a right-on-red turns if no pedestrians were in the crosswalk at camera-monitored intersections.
The committee also rejected, by a 5-3 vote, an amendment that would have required only warnings to be issued to owners of vehicles caught on camera going through traffic signals 0.5 seconds after the colors changed from yellow to red.
Brandes said he might reintroduce the amendments when the bill returns next week.
Groups such as the Florida League of Cities have opposed Brandes’ bill and similar attempts in the House to dramatically change red-light camera programs. Those groups contend the cameras are a public safety tool. Across Florida, at least 77 county and city governments operate red-light camera programs.
Rep. Frank Artiles, a Miami Republican who is an outspoken critic of the cameras, changed a House bill (HB 7005) on Monday as it went successfully before the House Transportation & Economic Development Appropriations Subcommittee.
Previously, Artiles sought to ban new cameras from going up and wanted to reduce the fines. But the revised House bill would not go as far, calling for steps such as requiring traffic-engineering studies to justify the need for new cameras.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Motor Vehicle Fee Cuts Await Scott’s Signature
March 27, 2014
The largest portion of Gov. Rick Scott’s proposed $500 million in tax and fee cuts is on the way to Scott’s signature.
The House and Senate formally sent a reduction in vehicle registration fees (SB 156) to Scott’s office Wednesday, giving him a week to sign or veto the bill. Scott is certain to sign the measure, which he has touted for months.
The bill, which takes effect September 1, would reduce the fees by a total of $309 million in the budget year that begins July 1 and $395 million the following year. The savings for each vehicle will vary by type, but many motorists will see the fees drop by $20 to $25.
Woman Convicted In Toddler’s Drowning In Neighbor’s Landscaping Pond
March 27, 2014
An Escambia County woman was convicted Wednesday on negligent manslaughter and three counts of child neglect stemming from the drowning of her toddler in a neighbor’s small pond.
Jennifer Lynn Eiland, 32, will be sentenced April 10. Her 14-month old, Alana Mae Eiland, was found unresponsive in her neighbor’s landscaping pond in August 2013 in the 10600 block of Betmark Road, just off 10 Mile Road.
The neighbor was alerted to the child by one of the child’s siblings. First responders attempted rescue efforts, but Alana Mae was pronounced dead shortly after arrival at a local hospital.
Neighbor Larry Kruger made the discovery in his front yard after one of Eiland’s children knocked on his door. The little girl’s body was under a small bridge the crosses the pond, which is less than two feet deep.
Investigators found “unsanitary living conditions” in the Betmark Road home where Eiland and her children were living at the time of the drowning, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
The child’s father, a Merchant Marine, returned home from being at sea following the incident.
Eiland has had prior abuse allegations in Alabama. According to investigators, the children,whose ages range from three to eight,had been placed in foster care and were only returned to the care of their mother in the recent months before the drowning.
Two of Eiland’s surviving children are living with a friend of the father, and two are in foster care.
Pictured top and bottom: Larry Kruger (bottom photo) discovered the lifeless body of a nieghbor’s 14-month old girl in his landscaping pondin August 2013. Photo by Joe Douglass WEAR 3 for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
DUI: ‘Choose Your Ride’ Vehicle Unveiled
March 27, 2014
The Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office has a new taxi cruiser to bring attention to driving under the influence.
In 2013, the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office had over 200 DUI related arrests. This was in addition to arrests made by other agencies in the county.
The “Choose Your Ride” vehicle highlights the choice individuals make to drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or call a taxi or make other arrangements.
The front of the old Ford cruiser is painted as a taxi while the rear retains the Sheriff’s Office markings. The side windows read: “Ride in the front seat $24″, ““Ride in the back seat $10,000.”
“Our intention is to showcase this vehicle to reduce the amount of DUI related accidents. As we all know, if just one DUI is prevented by this project, it is well worth the effort,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
The project was completed with the help of sponsors and was done at no cost to taxpayers.
Courtesy photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Man Convicted On 43 Child Porn Charges
March 27, 2014
An Escambia County man has been convicted of 43 child pornography counts.
Jairo Scott Domanski, 31, was charged after a search warrant was served in June 2013 and several electronic items were seized and later determined to contain videos and images of children involved in sexual activity.
Circuit Judge Michael Jones scheduled sentencing for June 17. Domanski faces a minimum guideline sentence of 34 years state prison.
ECAT Rolls Out New Website
March 27, 2014
Escambia County Area Transit (ECAT) announced the launch of the new www.goecat.com website Wednesday. The site was redesigned and streamlined for easier navigation and faster access to the tools people need to plan their travel on ECAT.
The site has user-friendly navigation that allows the site to be a more comprehensive resource to the community, providing information about how to ride, news, online ticket ordering, visitor information, transit connections, advertising information and more.
The star of the new website is the trip planner application, which is an interactive transit map that locates routes and bus stops. Users can zoom in on transit stops and see the routes that serve it as well as view any related bus routes or stops within 1000 feet. With another click, customers can plan a trip to or from that stop by inputting their beginning start and final destination addresses.
House Budget Moves Forward On Bipartisan Vote
March 27, 2014
The House’s top budget-writing committee advanced a $75.3 billion spending plan Wednesday in a lopsided vote that showed Democrats already divided about whether to support the Legislature’s main responsibility.
Four of the 10 Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee, including the ranking member, joined the 21-6 vote to move the spending bill forward. It marked the first time since 2007 that any Democrat on the committee has voted for the budget.
“We don’t have chairmanships to hold over people’s heads to make them do things,” said House Minority Leader Perry Thurston, D-Fort Lauderdale. “We let our members express themselves. And we’re not that party that says that you have to vote this way or that way.”
The votes give Republicans an opportunity to tout the budget as a bipartisan document as they move through the process — much as they did last year, when Democratic opposition eventually broke down in the final votes on the spending plan. The full House still needs to vote on the proposed 2014-15 budget before negotiations begin with the Senate.
Helping out is the state’s revenue surplus, which allowed budget writers to shower money on education and other politically popular items in an election year. Public school spending would increase by almost 3.1 percent per student, and the total amount of education funding would mark the highest on record.
The budget (PCB APC 14-09) would also provide services to about 1,260 Floridians seeking services from the Agency for Persons with Disabilities, clearing a waiting list of the patients with the most serious needs.
Democrats who voted against the budget bill tried to highlight the shortcomings in the proposal. They pointed out that the $6,988 in pre-student funding was still less than it was before the recession wrecked the state budget — with a healthy portion of the increase coming from local taxes. And they got Republicans to concede that the spending plan knocks out just 6 percent of the total Agency for Persons with Disabilities waiting list.
“Education is not at historic levels,” said Rep. Mark Pafford, D-West Palm Beach. “It’s not keeping pace with growth. And, frankly, it’s relying more on property tax. That should be an issue. … We still are keeping so many wait lists, with so many people that are vulnerable out there on these wait lists.”
They also blasted the proposal for continuing to leave out an expansion of Medicaid, which House Republicans have ruled out.
But other Democrats said they believed the issues they had with the budget could be resolved later in the process.
“I’m hoping that we will be able to address those also,” said Rep. Hazelle Rogers, D-Lauderdale Lakes. “So I’m keeping hope alive this afternoon.”
While stopping short of issuing a clear-cut threat, at least one Republican suggested that other Democrats should take a similar tack. Rep. Dennis Baxley, R-Ocala, suggested that the chairmen of the House’s budget subcommittees might have less motivation to work with lawmakers who vote against the plan.
“It’s hard to work with people and negotiate with them about adding or fixing or changing things when they’re already locked down in opposition,” Baxley said. “What is the reason they would even work with you? Thankfully, most of them are fair-minded people, and I think will continue to try to.”
Perhaps more significant than the squabbling between the parties, though, were the negotiations between the House and Senate set to begin after both chambers finish their versions of the spending plan. The Senate Appropriations Committee is set to vote Thursday on a plan totaling $74.9 billion.
House Appropriations Chairman Seth McKeel, R-Lakeland, said the differences between the two budgets are small.
“I feel very confident that we’ll get to a comfortable place relatively quickly,” he said. “It doesn’t seem insurmountable from my perspective.”
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida