Attempted Robbery, Abduction In West Florida ER Parking Lot Under Investigation (With Video)
September 12, 2015
Deputies are investigating an attempted robbery and abduction in the parking lot of the emergency room at West Florida Hospital.
The incident occurred about 11 p.m. on Tuesday, September 8 as a hospital employee was leaving work. An unknown suspect reached inside her vehicle, covering her eyes with his hand.
The victim stated she could see through the man’s fingers and felt a knife to her throat.
The man had her exit her vehicle, placed her inside an unknown vehicle and left the hospital parking lot. A second unknown male was in the backseat of the vehicle and put a handkerchief over the victim’s eyes. It appears they intended to steal from the victim but she had no wallet or bank card with her. The suspects drove her back to the hospital, leaving her unharmed.
Late Friday afternoon, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office released a video they shows the suspect vehicle pulling up in the hospital emergency room parking lot and one of the suspects exiting the vehicle.
If you have any information on the crime or the vehicle, call Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
If you do not see the video below, it is because your home, work or school firewall is blocking videos from YouTube.
Wahoos Drop Second Playoff Game
September 12, 2015
Adrian Houser who threw a perfect game through six innings as 3,168 witnessed his first complete-game gem in a 6-0 victory at MGM Park. Biloxi now leads the best-of-five game series, 2-0. The series heads to Pensacola for a 6:35 p.m. Saturday game that’s a must win for the Blue Wahoos to stay alive.
Pensacola center fielder Phillip Ervin made sure the perfect game ended with a solid line drive single to center to start the seventh inning and extended the Blue Wahoos no-hit streak to 556 games. Despite the hit, the Shuckers fans recognized Houser with loud cheers.
Pensacola manager Pat Kelly admitted Biloxi pitching has totally dominated the Blue Wahoos lineup. The team has managed just six hits in two games against Biloxi, who’s starting rotation sports a 2.38 ERA over 63 starts.
Pensacola’s top hitter Jesse Winker, Ray Chang, Alex Blandino and Ervin are all 1-7. The rest of the Pensacola hitters remain hitless. Pensacola has been out hit 22-6 by the Shuckers after two games.
“We have to tip our cap to their pitchers,” Kelly said. “We’re seeing a great staff. Houser was pinpoint tonight. He took advantage of the strike zone.”
Houser threw his first ever complete game, shutting out Pensacola on three hits and striking out 10.
Both Houser and Josh Hader, the Brewers No. 15 prospect, both came from a midseason trade with the Houston Astros.
“That’s really strengthened their staff again,” Kelly said.
Biloxi started with a pregame ceremony honoring the Americans lost in the 9/11 terrorist act with a 21-gun salute and the playing of “Taps” by a single horn player from the Keesler Air Force Base Honor Guard led by Master Sgt. Jim Davidson.
Cody Reed loaded the bases his first two innings on the mound but only trailed Biloxi, 1-0. Both times he struck out the final two batters of the inning. However, he threw more than 50 pitches to do it.
“Those first two innings took a lot out of him,” Kelly said.
Reed, the Cincinnati Reds No. 9 prospect who joined the Blue Wahoos pitching staff as part of a midseason trade with the Kansas City Royals for ace Johnny Cueto, allowed Biloxi second baseman Yadiel Rivera to score in the first inning on a ground out to first base.
Biloxi then hung four runs on Reed in the fifth inning with a two-run homer over the left field scoreboard by shortstop Orlando Arcia the main hit to go up, 5-0.
Thursday night, Biloxi pitcher Jorge Lopez threw a season-high 115 pitches, broke two bats, allowed three balls out of the infield, gave up one unearned run and allowed two hits in 6.2 innings. The Biloxi pitcher improved to 4-1 with a 1.82 ERA against Pensacola and has fanned 29 Blue Wahoos in 29.2 innings.
The winner of the South Division will play either the Twins Double-A affiliate Chattanooga Lookouts or the Tampa Bay Devil Rays affiliate the Montgomery Biscuits. The Lookouts won the first game, 4-3, Thursday and Friday’s game was rained out.
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos play the third game of the best-of-five Southern League South Division playoff series against the Milwaukee Brewers Double-A affiliate the Biloxi Shuckers at 6:05 p.m. Saturday at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium.
Friday High School Football Final Scores
September 12, 2015
Here final high school scores from around the area Friday night:
FLORIDA
- Gulf Breeze 56, Northview 24 [Read more, photos...]
- Wewahitchka 41, Jay 14
- West Florida 34, Cairo, GA 14
- Pine Forest 33, Pace 14
- Milton 38, Fort Walton Beach 7
- PHS 40, Washington 3
- Escambia 35, Catholic 10
- Baker 24, West Gadsden 13
- Freeport 14, Holmes Co 6
- OPEN — Navarre, Tate
ALABAMA
- Flomaton 35, Leroy 12
- Rain 24, Escambia County (Atmore) 0
- W.S. 10, East Gadsden (FL) 6
- T.R. Miller 48, Cottage Hill Christian 0
- Escambia Academy 34, Fort Dale (Greenville) 7
9/11 Remembered At NAS Pensacola
September 11, 2015
Naval Air Station Pensacola held a 9/11 commemoration event Friday morning at the National Naval Aviation Museum aboard the base.
NAS Pensacola Commanding Officer Captain Keith Hoskins provided opening remarks for the event, which included a “Where Were You” tribute, the traditional “Two-Bell Ceremony” and the playing of “Taps” performed by the NASP Honor Guard.
Courtesy photos by NASP for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Chance Of Rain Tonight, Saturday
September 11, 2015
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Tonight: Showers and thunderstorms likely during the evening. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 68. Southwest wind around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
Saturday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 83. West wind around 5 mph.
Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 58. North wind around 5 mph.
Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 80. North wind 5 to 10 mph.
Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 54. Northeast wind around 5 mph.
Monday: Sunny, with a high near 85. Northeast wind around 5 mph.
Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 63. Southeast wind around 5 mph.
Tuesday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 86. East wind 5 to 10 mph.
Tuesday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 69.
Wednesday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 87.
Wednesday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 70.
Thursday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 88.
Thursday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 69.
Friday: A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 90.
Cantonment Man Sentenced In $17K Tool Burglary Case
September 11, 2015
A Cantonment man has been sentenced in case where he was accused of burglarizing his former employer the day after he was fired.
Judge E.P. Nickinson withheld adjudication in sentencing Wesley Shane Wallis to 48 months probation and ordered restitution. He was originally charged with two counts burglary of an unoccupied structure, grand theft and criminal mischief with property damage.
The owner of a cabinet company on Interstate Circle in Escambia County reported that tools worth $17,697.25 were stolen from his business overnight on April 26, 2014, which was the night after Wallis was terminated. Deputies attempted to contact Wallis to question him, but they were unsuccessful until November 13, 2014, at which time Wallis denied any connection to the burglary.
During December 8, 2014, two large plastic bins filled with tools engraved with the cabinet company’s name were found on undeveloped property in Santa Rosa County. Deputies discovered the property belonged to Wallis, and they later found fingerprints belonging to Wallis on tape inside the bins. A warrant for his arrest was issued in February 2015.
Santa Rosa Increases Gas Tax
September 11, 2015
Filling up your tank in Santa Rosa County will cost more in taxes next year.
The Santa Rosa County Commiss2.ion voted Thursday to increase the gas tax levied by the county from 6 to 12 cents, effective January 1. The increase is expected to earn the county almost $3.6 million per year that will be used for road and transportation projects.
The current gas tax is 11 cents per gallon in Escambia County.
Our View: Where Were You That September Morning?
September 11, 2015
We publish this piece on an annual basis, and we encourage you to comment below, answering the question ‘Where Were You That September Morning?
September 11, 2001. It’s been 14 years.
Life, at least when that morning began, seemed good. I’ve always been a work at home dad, so I was home with my two girls. The youngest was almost four months old, and the oldest was approaching her fourth birthday. It was a normal morning. The little one was asleep, “fat and happy” as we used to say, after a morning bottle. The oldest was in the living room just a few feet from my office watching PBS Kids on the TV as I worked on a project for a client.
Then this arrived in my inbox:
Subject: CNN Breaking News
From: BreakingNews@CNN.COM
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2001 08:52am– World trade center damaged; unconfirmed reports say a plane has
crashed into tower. Details to come.
I got up, walked to the living room and flipped the TV to CNN. They were talking about how a pilot could make such an error, hitting such a large building. They were speculating that it was just a small plane. But then as the TV news helicopters zoomed their cameras in closer, the anchors were beginning to notice what I had already thought….those holes the tower were to big to have been a small plane.
(continues below photo)
I called my wife at work in Atmore. She had seen the breaking news email, and had tried to visit the CNN website to see the story. If you remember trying to use the internet that morning, it was near impossible to get a news website to load; they were all overloaded. She was unable to see the pictures. I was describing what I saw on the TV to her.
I managed to grab a picture from CNN via my web server and then download and email it to her. We were speculating about how it could happen when the second one hit.
I remember saying “wait, hold on, wait…”. I told her what I just watched on the TV. The second plane had hit the other tower. We quickly decided that we were at war as the anchors on TV speculated again that perhaps there was a problem with some navigational system, causing jetliners on a beautiful, clear morning in New York to fly into some of the tallest structures in the world.
Another breaking news email arrived:
Subject: CNN Breaking News
From: BreakingNews@CNN.COM
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2001 09:21am– Second plane crashes into World Trade Center.
She and I began to speculate ourselves that we were at war. What would we do? What should we do? What about the kids? It was not panic, understand, but just that protective momma and daddy instinct, I suppose. Prayer. That was a good idea. Maybe go to the bank and get out a little cash. That seemed like a good idea. How would you prep for a war on American soil? We were not sure.
I continued to relay information about what I was seeing on TV to my wife at work, who, in turn, would relay the information to her coworkers. They had a TV, but no cable service or antenna. They ended up fashioning a homemade antenna to see a fuzzy picture.
Meanwhile, the breaking news emails kept arriving…
Subject: CNN Breaking News
From: BreakingNews@CNN.COM
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2001 09:32am– Sources tell CNN one of two planes that crashed into World Trade
Center was an American Airlines 767.
Subject: CNN Breaking News
From: BreakingNews@CNN.COM
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2001 09:42am– President Bush calls plane crashes at World Trade Center a
terrorist act.
Subject: CNN Breaking News
From: BreakingNews@CNN.COM
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2001 09:45am– Significant fire at the Pentagon. Details to come.
Subject: CNN Breaking News
From: BreakingNews@CNN.COM
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2001 09:46am– White House evactuated. Details to come.
The Pentagon on fire? The White House evacuated? Notice that in CNN’s email they were in such a hurry that they misspelled “evacuated”. One sentence at a time, the situation became more grave.
Subject: CNN Breaking News
From: BreakingNews@CNN.COM
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2001 09:55am– CNN confirms a plane hit the Pentagon
Subject: CNN Breaking News
From: BreakingNews@CNN.COM
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2001 10:03am– One of World Trade Center towers collapses; fire forces
evacuation of State Department
Subject: CNN Breaking News
From: BreakingNews@CNN.COM
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2001 10:30am– Second World Trade Center tower collapses in Manhattan
Over and over, we watched those towers collapse on TV, and we watched our Pentagon burn.
Our almost four year old asked a lot of questions. “Were people hurt? Did they need a Band-aid?” The magnitude of the event was lost on a four year old. Looking back at those first few hours, I think the magnitude of the event was lost on all of us.
Like many Americans, I sat glued to the TV that day, continuing to watch the video of the towers falling. Our almost four year old asked if another building fell down or if it was the same one. It was time to change the channel on the TV.
You might remember that many of the entertainment TV stations ran network news feeds. Others just simply ran screens about the day’s events. There was no USA network, no ESPN, no MTV. But on PBS, we found children’s programming at a time it was not normally on. For a little while, sitting in the living room floor holding my kids, the world stopped turning that September day, as we watched Big Bird and the Cookie Monster.
Country artist Alan Jackson later wrote a song “Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning?”.
Some of those lyrics:
Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day
Out in the yard with your wife and children
Working on some stage in LA
Did you stand there in shock at the site of
That black smoke rising against that blue sky
Did you shout out in anger
In fear for your neighbor
Or did you just sit down and cryDid you weep for the children
Who lost their dear loved ones
And pray for the ones who don’t know
Did you rejoice for the people who walked from the rubble
And sob for the ones left belowBut I know Jesus and I talk to God
And I remember this from when I was young
Faith hope and love are some good things He gave us
And the greatest is love
Where where you when the world stopped turning that September day? Your comments are welcome below.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Bethany Reynolds, click to enlarge.
Man Gets 330 Years For Abusing Girl
September 11, 2015
A Santa Rosa County man has been sentenced to over three hundred years in state prison for abusing a young girl.
Circuit Judge John F. Miller sentenced David Craig Colville, 36, to 330 years in prison.
On July 16, 2015, a Santa Rosa County jury found Colville guilty of 10 counts of sexual battery upon a child by a person in familial or custodial authority, one count of lewd or lascivious molestation, and one count of lewd or lascivious conduct.
Colville committed the crimes between April 1, 2011, and December 31, 2013. Colville began to engage in sexual acts with the victim when she was in the 8th grade. The child reported the sexual abuse in September 2014 and the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office conducted an investigation which led to Colville’s arrest on October 11, 2014.
Tonight’s High School Football Schedules; 9/11 Event Pre-Game At Northview
September 11, 2015
Here’s a schedule of high school football games in the North Escambia area tonight.
At 6:35 p.m., Northview High School will present a pre-game Patriot Day Event scheduled to last for about 10 minutes.
FLORIDA
- Gulf Breeze at Northview, 7 p.m. (9/11 event 6:35 p.m.)
- Wewahitchka at Jay, 7 p.m.
- West Florida at Cairo, Ga., 6:30 p.m.
- Pace at Pine Forest, 7:30 p.m.
- Milton at Fort Walton Beach, 7 p.m.
- Pensacola at Washington, 7:30 p.m.
- Escambia at Catholic, 7:30 p.m.
- OPEN — Navarre, Tate
ALABAMA
- Leroy at Flomaton, 7 p.m.
- Escambia County at B.C. Rain, 7 p.m.
- W.S. Neal at East Havana (FL), 7:30 p.m.
- T.R. Miller at Cottage Hill Christian, 7 p.m.
- Escambia Academy at Fort Dale (Greenville) 7 p.m.