Cora Lee Cartwright
May 14, 2015
Mrs. Cora Lee Cartwright, 92, passed away on Wednesday, May 13, 2015, in Milton.
Mrs. Cartwright was a native of Bratt and a resident of Bluff Springs for most of her life. Mrs. Cartwright was Queen of McDavid TOPS Club, am avid gardner, loved children, and was Granny to them all. She was of the holiness faith.
She wa preceded in death by her husband, Milton Cartwright; parents, Wilburn David and Sarah Simmons Ard; daughter, Judy Macks; brother, Lavon Cartwright; two grandsons, Joshua Cartwright and Jarrod Johnston; and a great grandson, Steven Lee Morris.
She is survived by her three sons, Eugene (Cheryl) Cartwright of Willington, CA, Jerry Cartwright of Milton, and Rufus (Deborah) Cartwright of Saraland, AL; four daughters, Wyvonne Pantermuehl of New Braunfels, TX, Eloise (Don) Rushing of Pensacola, Helen Morris of Flomaton, and Mavis (Wilson) Johnson of Flomaton; 79 grand, great and great-great grandchildren and numerous community grandchildren.
Funeral services will be Saturday, May 16, 2015, at 10:00 a.m. at the Beulah Chapel Assembly of God Church with the Rev. Eric Bryan officiating.
Burial will follow at the Beulah Chapel Cemetery.
Visitation will be Friday, May 15, 2015 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Beulah Chapel Assembly of God Church.
Pallbearers will be Nathaniel Cartwright, Jerry Wayne Cartwright, Cliff Gainus, Joey Cartwright, Adam Gainus and Robert Macks. Honorary [pallbearers will be her grandsons, great grandsons and great-great grandsons.
Conviction In ‘Stand Your Ground’ Case Overturned
May 13, 2015
An appeals court on Tuesday overturned the conviction of a Santa Rosa County man because of conflicting jury instructions about a duty to retreat during altercations.
The 1st District Court of Appeal overturned the conviction of Timothy Donald Helton, who was convicted of aggravated battery in Santa Rosa County. He will receive a new trial.
Helton was sentenced in May 2013 to life in state prison as a habitual felony offender and prison releasee reoffender. On May 31, 2011, Helton was arrested by the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office after he got into an argument with another man at a home in Navarre.
Helton struck the first victim with a homemade weapon. He then left the residence but returned with a friend about 10 minutes later. Helton got out of the truck with a metal pipe and threw the pipe at a second victim, striking him in the head and crushing his skull. Doctors testified that a titanium plate had to be inserted in the victim’s skull and that he will have permanent injury from the attack.
Helton’s only defense at trial was the acted in self defense, as permitted by the “Stand Your Ground” law.
The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.
Slight Chance Of Showers
May 13, 2015
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Wednesday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 67. Calm wind becoming northeast around 5 mph.
Thursday
A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 88. East wind around 5 mph becoming south in the afternoon.
Thursday Night
A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 68. South wind around 5 mph.
Friday
Showers and thunderstorms likely. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 84. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
Friday Night
A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 68. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
Saturday
A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 84. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
Saturday Night
A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 68. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
Sunday
A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 86.
Sunday Night
A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 69.
Monday
A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 87.
Monday Night
A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 68.
Tuesday
A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 88.
Cantonment Insurance Agent Gets Prison For Racketeering, Money Laundering
May 13, 2015
A Cantonment insurance agent was sentenced to state prison Tuesday for racketeering and money laundering.
Randall Petersen, 49, received eight years in state prison to be followed by seven years probation. He was ordered to pay over a half million dollars in restitution, with the exact amount to still be determined by the court. In April, Petersen was convicted of conducting a fraudulent insurance scheme that involved the theft of several hundred thousand dollars of commissions and bonuses from American National Insurance Company and Liberty National Insurance Company.
In the scheme, Petersen advertised job opportunities on the internet for College Consultants of the Gulf Coast, and induced hundreds of applicants to provide information for life insurance that he and his associates described as free job benefits.
The prosecutor, Assistant State Attorney Russ Edgar, showed that College Consultants was not a real company and Petersen merely used the information from the job applicants to complete life insurance applications that he submitted to the insurance companies. The companies paid Petersen advance commissions, which were as much as 130% of the first year premiums, and bonuses.
Before the companies realized the insureds were not employees, Petersen had obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars of commissions and bonuses and let the policies lapse for nonpayment.
50 Named To Tate High Showband Colorguard
May 13, 2015
Fifty members have been selected for the Tate High School Showband of the South Colorguard for 2015-16.
The program has grown dramatically in the past few years. There were 18 that auditioned in 2000, while 62 auditioned this year.
Tate High Colorguard members for 2015-16 are:
Kiera Armour
Katie Dupre
Celina Dyess
Navi Hawkins
Breanna Langley
Megan Leonard
Katie Luebke
JoJo O’Steen
Madison Philley
Kera Randall
Savannah VonStein
Imani Allen
Madison Bowers
Audrey Bush
Caroline Bruns
Elizabeth Durazo
Tara Elder
Kaylee Everett
Tatiana Floyd
Libby Guy
Cody Istre
Michaela Overbey
Brinnan Repine
Jessie Stanfill
Kelsey Strength
Makayla Tainter
Virginia Vaughan
Kirsten Carter
Taylor Downing
Rebekah Dwyer
Haley Goodman
Skylar Hawkins
Nishea Hendricks
Julia Jimenez
Abby Lane
Carly Lawrence
Alysha Lollie
Kendall Lombardo
Jyanna McCants
Chloe Montgomery
Jasmine Quarells
Lauren Rawls
Kenzie Ricardy
Cordia Shaw
Skylar Smith
Julie Stanton
Olivia Starnes
Sarah Stephens
Raegan Tainter
Chiefs Work Out At Baltimore Orioles Park; Play In Final Four Today
May 13, 2015
Tuesday was a big day for the Northview High baseball team, and today will be an even bigger day, a school history-making day, for the Chiefs.
The Northview Chiefs worked out Tuesday at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota, the spring training home of the Baltimore Orioles — compliments of former Century resident and Baltimore Orioles coach Buck Showalter. They also caught a minor league game between the Orioles and the Red Sox.
This afternoon, they will take on Blountstown in the Chiefs first-ever appearance in the FHSAA baseball final four. Blountstown (21-8) and Northview (19-2) did not meet during the regular season. Blountstown is coming off a 3-1 win over Central in their regional final, while Northview has scored an impressive 26 runs in their last three games.
Today’s game is at 3 p.m. (local North Escambia time) in Jet Blue Park in Fort Myers. The winner heads to the state championship game on at 7:35 p.m Thursday against the winner of Wednesday night’s Hamilton County versus Williston game.
Live video from Wednesday’s game (and the following 1A semi-final game between Hamilton County and Williston) will air on the NFHS Network. For a FHSAA.org special access rate of $9.95 for one month, click here.
Also, for periodic live score updates and bonus photos, like NorthEscambia.com on Facebook or follow us on Twitter @northescambia.
NorthEscambia.com photo by Ramona Preston, click to enlarge.
Florida Forest Service Accepting Applications For Southern Pine Beetle Assistance And Prevention
May 13, 2015
The Florida Forest Service is now accepting applications for the Southern Pine Beetle Assistance and Prevention Program. The application period runs from today through June 30. The program is available to non-industrial private forest landowners.
“The southern pine beetle is one of the most environmentally devastating forest pests in the southeast. We encourage forest owners to take proactive measures now to prevent timber loss during future outbreaks,” said Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam.
Periodic outbreaks can rapidly kill millions of pine trees and deplete tens of thousands of acres of timber resources. The most recent series of major southern pine beetle outbreaks resulted in an estimated $59 million in timber loss between 1999 and 2002.
The Southern Pine Beetle Assistance Program is offered for non-industrial private lands in 44 northern Florida counties and provides financial assistance for the following:
· Conducting a first pulpwood thinning.
· Conducting prescribed burning operations.
· Conducting mechanical underbrush treatments.
· Planting longleaf or slash pine.
“The Southern Pine Beetle Assistance Program now offers greater flexibility to landowners, enhancing their ability to help reduce the risk of southern pine beetle outbreaks in Florida,” said Jim Karels, Florida State Forester.
To learn more about this program and to obtain an application form, visit the Southern Pine Beetle Prevention website or contact the Escambia County Forester in Molino at (850) 587-5237. Qualified landowners may apply for up to two approved preventative practices per year. Funding requests may not exceed $10,000 annually. All qualifying applications will be evaluated and ranked for approval. This program is supported through a grant from the U.S. Forest Service.
Scott: Budget Impasse Could Delay Tax Cuts
May 13, 2015
A massive tax-cut package and the governor’s push for a “historic” increase in education funding could be in jeopardy as the health care-fueled budget impasse continues in the Legislature.
The Senate remains firm that a tax-cut package isn’t going to move while the impasse is in place.
Gov. Rick Scott said on FOX News that he expects lawmakers will simply approve a base budget — which he calls a “continuation” budget — during an upcoming special legislative session. Such action, Scott said, could require a $690 million tax-cut package that the House has proposed and his requested increase in funding for schools to wait until the 2016 regular session.
“We’ll just do what we’ve done this last year,” Scott said during an interview with Greta Van Susteren. “We won’t put more money into schools, which I wanted to do. We won’t cut taxes, which I wanted to do. We’ll just leave the money there and deal with it in our next session, which starts in January.”
Scott was in Washington, D.C., on Monday and Tuesday meeting with the media and Republican members of Congress to discuss health-care funding.
Jackie Schutz, a Scott spokeswoman, said Tuesday the governor isn’t giving up on his requested $673 million in cuts to taxes and fees or on his proposal to increase funding for public schools to $7,176 per student. But, Schutz said, the budget is the priority.
“Obviously where we are right now is getting through a special session and making sure that we pass a budget,” Schutz said. “And if we don’t get tax cuts this year, then the governor’s focus will be getting $1 billion in tax cuts next year.”
As part of his 2014 re-election campaign, Scott pledged to cut $1 billion in taxes over the next two years.
The House voted 112-3 last month to approve its own tax-cut package (HB 7141), which topped Scott’s request. The highlight of the package was Scott’s call for a 3.6 percentage-point reduction in the communications-services tax on cell-phone and pay-TV bills, comprising about $470 million of the package.
The House proposal would have also eliminated sales taxes on college textbooks and made a series of other tax cuts, including reducing a tax on commercial-real estate leases from 6 percent to 5.8 percent and providing a three-day sales-tax holiday for back-to-school shoppers.
In the Senate, individual bills were proposed offering a variety of tax cuts and business incentives. But Senate leaders held off on introducing a single tax package and never took up the House measure before the regular session ended.
On the other hand, school funding could still see an increase through the budget process, though the amount of money might not be as large as Scott requested.
Scott called his proposal “historic,” as it would mark a roughly $261 per student increase from the current year which ends June 30 and stand $50 per student above the previous high in the 2007-08 budget year.
Spokespeople from the House and Senate agreed Tuesday with Scott that the priority is the budget, with issues such as the tax cuts viewed as secondary issues.
“The president’s position has been that the Senate would not advance a final tax-cut package through to the Senate floor while we still have billions in critical health care funding hanging in the balance,” Katie Betta, a spokeswoman for Senate President Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, said in an email Tuesday.
“The House would prefer to have a joint call with the Florida Senate to complete a budget before the July 1 deadline,” Michael Williams, a spokesman for House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island, said in an email. “The House is working hard toward that goal.”
House and Senate leaders remain engaged in a debate about how to handle health care in the state budget that must be in place by the July 1 start of the new fiscal year.
The Senate has proposed spending $2.8 billion in federal Medicaid money to help hundreds of thousands of lower-income Floridians purchase private insurance.
Senate leaders argue that could help in negotiations with the federal officials over $2.2 billion in Low Income Pool, or LIP, funding, which mostly sends money to hospitals and other health providers that care for large numbers of low-income residents. The LIP program is scheduled to expire June 30, unless federal official approve an extension.
Scott has joined the House in fiercely opposing any health-care expansion funded by the federal Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare.
The governor has sued the Obama administration in an effort to prevent federal officials from linking the LIP decision to Medicaid expansion.
“I will not stand in the way of the federal government if they want to take care of the low income families,” Scott told Van Susteren. “I said the same thing about high speed rail. If the federal government wants to run a program in my state, have at it, but don’t expect me to tax my citizens. And I still stand by that.”
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Ernest Ward Middle Names Students Of The Month
May 13, 2015
Ernest Ward Middle School has named Students of the Month for April. They are (L-R) Susannah Amerson, 8th grade; Cloe Smith, 7th grade; and Lane Wilson, 6th grade. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Pensacola Blue Wahoos Beat Jacksonville 5-0
May 13, 2015
Timothy Adleman finally celebrated his first win as a Pensacola Blue Wahoos starter after 11 starts over the past two seasons.
The visiting Blue Wahoos backed the right hander up with three runs in the first inning and Adleman (1-3) shut out the Jacksonville Suns over the next six innings in the, 5-0, win.
Adleman scattered six hits, walked one, struck out two and lowered his earned-run average to 1.70, currently the fifth lowest in the Southern League. Adleman has whiffed 22 batters in 33.2 innings and walked nine this season.
Pensacola scored three runs in the first when right fielder Kyle Waldrop tripled in center fielder Beau Amaral and left fielder Jesse Winker to put the Blue Wahoos up, 2-0. Waldrop scored on a ground out by third baseman Seth Mejias-Brean to make the score, 3-0.
The 6-foot-5 Adleman entered the game against Jacksonville 0-6 in 11 starts with a 2.21 ERA and 7.5 strikeouts per nine innings over two seasons with Pensacola.
Adleman has pitched well enough to win other games during that span. The 27-year-old left his last start against Tennessee in the fifth inning with a 1-0 lead, but Pensacola lost, 4-1. He also shut out the Smokies in his first start on April 17 over five innings.
Adleman has whiffed 22 batters in 33.2 innings and walked 10 this season.
In 2014, Adleman, who was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 24th round in 2010 out of Georgetown, made 30 appearances for Pensacola, including six starts. In those starts, he was 0-3 with a 2.38 ERA. He struck out 30 in 34 innings and walked three.
The Blue Wahoos added another run in the sixth inning when Mejias-Brean hit a sacrifice fly to right field in foul territory that scored Winker from third base. Mejias-Brean added a third RBI in the eighth when he singled in Winker, who scored for the third time in the game, to go up, 5-0.