FWC Law Enforcement Report
July 5, 2016
The Florida FWC Division of Law Enforcement reported the following activity during the weekly period ending June 30 in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.
ESCAMBIA COUNTY
Lieutenant Hahr was patrolling the Perdido River Wildlife Management Area (WMA) when a girl came running up to tell him about a man assaulting a woman in the parking lot. After running back to the parking lot, Lieutenant Hahr was directed to a truck where the man was about to leave with his family. After a short investigation, he determined that the man had been drinking and was upset with his son and daughter for getting ahead of him and his wife on their float trip. He had thrown his 14‑year‑old daughter around by her hair and violently grabbed his 17‑year‑old son by his throat and hair. The man was arrested for two counts of domestic violence battery.
Officer Clark was on patrol in Opal Beach Federal Park and observed a vehicle exceeding the speed limit. He initiated a traffic stop, approached the driver and asked for his driver license. The driver stated he left it at the office. Officer Clark could smell an odor of cannabis emanating from the vehicle. He asked the driver if he had anything illegal in the vehicle. The driver stated he had a pipe in his backpack. Officer Clark informed the driver he was going to search the bag and the driver stated that there was also cannabis in the bag. On the passenger seat, a metal grinder was in plain view. All items were seized and the driver was identified through FWC Dispatch with no valid license and as a habitual traffic offender with five previous suspensions. Officer Clark placed the driver into custody and charged him with felony driving with license suspended, possession of cannabis under 20 grams and possession of paraphernalia.
Officers Hutchinson and Clark were patrolling at Whiting Park on Blackwater River. The officers were inside the office when an anonymous complainant informed them that an extremely intoxicated person just returned from operating a vessel. He advised that the individual almost fell down when exiting the vessel. While they were standing in the office, the complainant pointed at a white male in a blue truck and advised that he was the person he was talking about. Officers Hutchinson and Clark left the office and while getting in their patrol vehicle, the truck had already started to drive off. The officers followed for a short distance observing the vehicle swerving out of the lane several times. They stopped the vehicle and approached the driver. The driver spontaneously stated that he was going to let someone else drive. He said he had been drinking and that he was not safe to drive. While talking with the driver, Officer Clark could smell a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage. Officer Clark requested the driver to participate in some field alcohol tests and he agreed. The driver performed poorly on all tests and was arrested and transported to Santa Rosa County Jail for DUI. The driver provided a breath sample of .125.
Officer McHenry was on vessel patrol in Big Lagoon State Park and stopped a vessel that did not have a registration decal displayed. While speaking with the vessel’s operator, he noticed several signs of impairment. The operator agreed to perform several field alcohol tests, performed poorly and was arrested and transported to the Escambia County Jail for BUI. The breath sample provided resulted in a blood alcohol content of .224.
Officer McHenry was patrolling the area in the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) in front of Big Lagoon State Park. He stopped a vessel displaying Alabama registration numbers but no registration decal. Because of the time and the amount of boat traffic in the area, Officer McHenry had the suspect operate the vessel at idle speed to the state park in calmer waters with less boat traffic. While conducting the boating safety inspection, he noticed a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from the suspect’s breath. The suspect also had red, glassy blood-shot eyes and slurred speech. The suspect voluntarily performed field alcohol tests, performed poorly and was charged with BUI and failure to register his vessel.
SANTA ROSA COUNTY — No information submitted.
This report represents some events the FWC handled over the past week; however, it does not include all actions taken by the Division of Law Enforcement. Information provided by FWC.
Results: Jay’s Celebrate Freedom 5K Run/Walk
July 5, 2016
Almost 100 runners took part in the 17th Annual Celebrate Freedom 5K Run/Walk Monday morning in Jay. Proceeds from the event benefit the Jay Volunteer Fire Department and other local charities.
Results were as follows:
Proposed 2016-17 Escambia County Budget Now Available Online
July 5, 2016
The Escambia County Board of County Commissioners’ proposed budget for fiscal year 2016-2017 is now available online by clicking here (242 page pdf).
Budget workshops will take place this month in the Board Chambers, located on the first floor of the Escambia County Central Office Complex at 221 Palafox Place. Workshops are scheduled as follows:
- Tuesday, July 12 at 9 a.m.
- Wednesday, July 13 at 9 a.m.
- Thursday, July 14 at 9:02 a.m. (as needed)
Escambia County’s fiscal year begins October 1 and ends September 30. The Board of County Commissioners approves the annual budget in September each year, following a public hearing process.
Century Council Schedules Workshops, Moves July 4 Meeting
July 5, 2016
The Century Town Council has scheduled several public workshops and has rescheduled their July 4 meeting.
The regular first Monday of the month July 4 Century Town Council meeting was rescheduled for July 11 at 7 p.m.
And the town council has scheduled budget workshops at 4 p.m. on every Thursday in July and the first Thursday in August.
All meetings are open to the public and will be held in the council chamber at the Century Town Hall.
FDOT: Weekly Traffic Alerts
July 5, 2016
Drivers will encounter traffic disruptions on the following state roads in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties as crews perform construction and maintenance activities.
Escambia County:
- I-10 Widening – Intermittent and alternating lane closures on I-10, between Davis Highway (Exit 13) and U.S. 90 (Scenic Highway/Exit 17), from 7 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. the week of Tuesday, July 5 as crews perform striping work.
Santa Rosa County:
- S.R. 87 and S.R. 89 from S.R. 4 to the Alabama line – Intermittent and alternating lane closures and slow moving operations from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. continuing through Sunday, July 31 as crews perform striping operations.
- I-10 Widening – Alternating lane closures, between the Escambia Bay Bridge and State Road (S.R.) 281 (Avalon Boulevard/Exit 22), Tuesday, July 5 through Thursday, July 7 from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. as crews continue widening work. In addition, alternating lane closures on Avalon Boulevard near the I-10 interchange for bridge work.
- S.R. 281 (Avalon Boulevard)- Intermittent lane closures and slow moving operations from U.S. 98 to the toll bridge from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. continuing through Thursday, July 28 as crews perform striping operations.
- U.S. 98 – Crews will perform striping operations and install raised pavement markers (RPMs) from the Pensacola Bay Bridge to Central Parkway (approximately nine miles) Sunday through Thursday nights through Sunday, July 31. Motorists may encounter minor traffic delays from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m.
All activities are weather dependent and may be delayed or re-scheduled in the event of inclement weather. Drivers are reminded to use caution, especially at night, when traveling in a work zone and to watch for construction workers and equipment entering and exiting the roadway.
Wahoos Lose Third Straight
July 5, 2016
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos lost its third straight game to the Mobile BayBears, 7-3, on Independence Day at Hank Aaron Stadium.
Mobile gave veteran minor league pitcher Ryan Kussmaul his first start for the BayBears and the 42nd round draft pick by the Florida Marlins in 2006 delivered.
The 6-foot-4 righty, who has played for independent and Mexican League teams gave up one run in 5.1 innings on five hits and two walks, while striking out six. He is now 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA.
Meanwhile, Tyler Mahle earned his first loss in three starts to drop to 2-1 with a 4.91 earned-run average. The Cincinnati Reds No. 11 prospect according to MLB.com pitched 4.2 innings, giving up five runs to Mobile on six hits and two walks, while striking out three.
Mahle entered the game 2-0 with a 2.70 ERA with 16 strikeouts in two five inning starts.
Mobile scored first in the second inning when its third baseman Travis Denker walked to start the inning and moved to third on a single to right field by second baseman Jamie Westbrook. He put the BayBears ahead, 1-0, when right fielder Stewart Ijames grounded out into a force play.
Denker, who was 0-1, walked three times and scored each time for Mobile.
Mobile added two more runs in the third inning, with the rally starting when shortstop Ildemaro Vargas singled on a bunt back to the mound. Then with two outs, Mobile first baseman Kevin Cron smacked a two-run homer to left field, his 12th homer of the season, to put the BayBears up, 3-0.
Vargas finished the game 4-5 scored once and drove in one run.
Mobile pitcher Kussmaul then helped himself by hitting a double to right field that drove in Ijames to give Mobile a 4-0 lead.
That lead increased to 5-0 in the fifth inning when Mobile’s Iljames singled to right field to score Denker a second time.
In the sixth inning, Pensacola got a run back to make the score, 5-1, when first baseman Eric Jagielo singled in center fielder Brandon Dixon. Jagielo went 3-4 and now has 18 RBIs for Pensacola.
The Blue Wahoos scored two more runs in the seventh inning. Blue Wahoos left fielder Phillip Ervin singled to center field, right fielder Sebastian Elizalde singled to right field, then third baseman Taylor Sparks singled to center field to score Ervin that pulled Pensacola within, 5-2. Pensacola second baseman Alex
Blandino then lifted a sacrifice fly to center field to score Elizalde and make the score, 5-3.
Mobile, though, added another run in the bottom of the seventh inning when pinch hitter Rudy Flories tripled with two outs to drive in Denker for a third time in the game, putting the BayBears up, 6-3.
Vargas singled in right fielder Tom Belza for the BayBears final run in the eighth inning, 7-3.
Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: The Fireworks Before The Fourth
July 5, 2016
As the Independence Day holiday approached, many of the fireworks surrounding Florida politics were in the courtroom, where a sweeping state law on abortion came under a judge’s harsh scrutiny.
Aside from that and the usual handful of statements about American freedom and the like, most of state government was relatively quiet. Gov. Rick Scott and Enterprise Florida hacked away at that state agency, blaming job reductions and other trims on the Legislature’s refusal to set aside $250 million for economic development incentives. And legislative Democrats forced a poll on whether to hold a special session on gun legislation following the deadly massacre at Pulse nightclub in Orlando. (Spoiler alert: It won’t happen.)
Otherwise, the news void that often descends in the days before barbecues and sparklers remained in place, a final calm before the conventions in July and the sprint to the fall elections that follow. The literal fireworks will be set off on Monday, but the metaphorical ones will continue to light up the state long after that.
‘OWN TIME AND DIME’
At the beginning of the week, the clearest thing about the Florida impact of a U.S. Supreme Court decision limiting how far states could go in restricting abortion was that it was unclear. And while that was still being debated as the week closed, a federal judge put the most controversial elements in the state’s new law about abortion on hold.
Hours before the law was set to take effect, U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle issued a preliminary injunction barring the state from refusing to provide funding to abortion providers for other medical services or from dramatically increasing its inspections of abortion records.
The decision, issued late Thursday, was largely a victory for Planned Parenthood affiliates who had fought the law, approved by the Republican-controlled Legislature and signed by Gov. Rick Scott earlier this year.
“As a result of today’s decision, thousands of people across Florida have the peace of mind that comes with knowing they can access essential reproductive health care, such as cancer screenings, birth control, and well-woman exams. This ruling also sends an unmistakable message to politicians to quit playing politics with women’s health,” said Lillian A. Tamayo, president of Planned Parenthood of South, East and North Florida.
In his 25-page ruling, Hinkle noted that there has been a long-held prohibition against using public funds to pay for abortions.
But the Florida law goes further and “refuses to fund services that are wholly unrelated to abortions,” Hinkle wrote of the part of the law that would block public funds from going to abortion providers.
“The provision does this based not on any objection to how the funds are being spent — on things like testing for sexually transmitted disease or dropout prevention — and not based on any objection to the quality of the services being provided, but solely because the recipients of the funds choose to provide abortions separate and apart from any public funding — as the Supreme Court has put it, on their ‘own time and dime,’” he wrote.
Hinkle didn’t grant the affiliates’ request to keep the state from using a revised definition of the first trimester of a pregnancy, but he warned the state to “take note” that his decision was based on its attorneys’ representation that the new definition of first trimester was no different than that which has been used for decades.
Supporters of the bill were outraged. State Sen. Kelli Stargel, a Lakeland Republican who sponsored the 2016 law, blasted Hinkle’s ruling as “a clear infringement on both the Legislature’s constitutional authority to appropriate taxpayer dollars, and our responsibility to properly regulate medical facilities.”
“Under our constitution, it is the people’s elected representatives, not appointed federal judges, who are tasked with making decisions about what entities should be receiving limited taxpayer dollars,” Stargel said in a statement. “The people of Florida have consistently elected legislative and executive leaders who oppose the use of taxpayer dollars to fund abortion and today’s ruling is yet another example of the pro-abortion movement utilizing the courtroom to fight battles it cannot win at the ballot box.”
Hinkle’s opinion didn’t lean heavily on the earlier decision by the Supreme Court, which voted 5-3 to void a Texas law that justices said went too far in limiting access to the procedure. But advocates for legalized abortion said they hoped the high court’s ruling would give them a way to fight continuing efforts from social conservatives to restrict abortion.
“We’ve seen an increase every year in the number of bills filed, but also in the extremist content of their nature,” said Laura Goodhue, executive director of the Florida Alliance of Planned Parenthood Affiliates. “So we’ve seen these attacks escalate, and we fully anticipate that we’ll have to continue this fight.”
A SMALLER ENTERPRISE
The lingering fallout of a battle between Scott and the Legislature over funding for economic development incentives will be felt by nearly a dozen employees at Enterprise Florida, as the board of directors voted this week to ax 26 positions at the agency — which will translate to 11 people losing their jobs.
The Enterprise Florida Board of Directors voted Friday to accept a committee recommendation, made earlier in the week, to eliminate the positions and also tighten up on its office space. The jobs cuts will be minimized by not filling 15 positions that will open up because of retirements and resignations.
The main driver behind the decision was the Legislature’s refusal to back Scott’s call for $250 million that EFI could have used to lure economic development projects to Florida. Instead, the $82 billion state budget that went into effect Friday contains $23.7 million for the agency.
Following that rejection — one of the biggest defeats Scott suffered in the 2016 legislative session — the governor called for a review of the agency.
“All of us would have loved the Legislature to fully fund Enterprise Florida, but they didn’t,” he said this week.
The job cuts aren’t the only changes the board decided to make. Enterprise Florida will reduce office-space leases in Miami, Tallahassee and Orlando while closing outposts in China and South Africa. Operations in Canada will be trimmed, and the contract with the state’s office in Japan will be renegotiated.
Some initiatives that used to fall under Enterprise Florida, meanwhile, will be shifted to the control of the Department of Economic Opportunity.
POLL POSITION
The likelihood of any crackdown on gun sales in Florida following the June 12 mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando was never very high, but Florida Democrats will make Republicans vote on firearm restrictions in another way, by taking a poll on whether to hold a special session on the topic.
The minority party had little trouble rounding up enough members to force the poll — that only requires a fifth of the Legislature — but faces an almost impossible task in getting enough GOP lawmakers to vote over the next week to travel back to Tallahassee for a special meeting, especially in an election year.
In all, 46 House and Senate members requested the poll, representing a vast majority of the Democrats in the Legislature. But a similar effort to revise the state’s self-defense laws following the shooting death of Trayvon Martin in 2013 fell flat. It will take another 50 signatures, including dozens of Republicans, to call the session.
“The key is we’ve requested at the very least (that) we review reforms we all support, such as banning people … who are on the terrorist FBI watch list” from buying guns, said state Sen. Darren Soto, an Orlando Democrat who is running for a Central Florida congressional seat.
The push for the special session comes in the wake of the massacre at Pulse, a gay nightclub, during which a gunman killed 49 people and wounded more than 50 others before he was killed by police. The attack is the worst mass shooting in the nation’s history.
Republican leaders left little doubt about where they stood. House Speaker Steve Crisafulli issued a statement Tuesday encouraging each member to “follow their conscience,” while quickly saying he won’t vote for a session “motivated by partisan politics.”
“I know I speak for representatives of both parties when I say that if there was a meaningful, constitutional, and implementable state law to prevent future terrorist attacks, we would certainly pass it,” said Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island. “I strongly support a ban on terrorists’ ability to purchase firearms. Since the list is maintained at the federal level, the state cannot pass an effective or constitutional law implementing such a ban.”
STORY OF THE WEEK: A federal judge blocked a sweeping new Florida law on abortion just hours before it was set to take effect. The decision came days after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a key ruling on how far states can go in restricting the procedure.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “That last drought we had — if we get just half of that, this bay may never be able to rebuild itself.” —Shannon Hartsfield, president of the Franklin County Seafood Workers’ Association, on conditions at Apalachicola Bay. Florida blames water consumption in Georgia for lowering flows to the bay, which has impacted the region’s seafood industry.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
Area Fireworks Display Schedule
July 4, 2016
Here’s a guide to public, non-profit Fourth of July Fireworks shows across the North Escambia area:
Monday, July 4
Sertoma — Downtown Pensacola
For the 27th year, area Sertoma organizations are once again coordinating and hosting the largest fireworks display on the Gulf Coast over Pensacola Bay on Monday, July 4th at 9:00 pm.
There will be activities throughout the day, from 11:00 am until 6:00 pm, in Seville Square to include a free Children’s Area with inflatables, pony rides, rock climbing wall, “meet and greet” with characters, face painting, and much more. There will also be a variety of arts and crafts vendors, food vendors, and live entertainment on the Bayfront stage in the afternoon. There will also bee a Hot Dog Eating Contest at noon. New this year is the free Pensacola Symphony Orchestra concert at Hunter Amphitheater in Community Maritime Park at 7:30 p.m. This live orchestra concert will be broadcast to speakers along Bayfront Parkway and to Wahoos Stadium.
The festivities will culminate with the fireworks show over Pensacola Bay at about 9 p.m. synchronized with music broadcast on Cat Country 98.7.
Jay 5K & 1 Mile Fun Run
Annual Celebrate Freedom 5K and 1 Mile Run Run at 8 a.m. Monday at Jay City Park. 5K entry fee is $25; One mile fun run is $10. Awards to be presented. (Fireworks are Saturday night.)
Pensacola Beach
Red, White and Blues week begins with the Pensacola Beach Fourth of July firework show and celebration at 8:30 pm Monday over Santa Rosa Sound near Quietwater Beach. .
Riverfest, Milton
Riverfest will be held Monday, July 4 in Milton. Festivities include the annual Firecracker Bike Show at 9 a.m., a Freedom Car Show at 9 a.m., a Children’s Activity Area, annual Great Mill Town Duck Race at 5 p.m., live entertainment at 5:30 p.m., a Veteran’s Salute at 6:30 p.m. and karaoke at 7 p.m. The day will end with a fireworks display over the Blackwater River at dark.
East Brewton
East Brewton will celebrate Monday, July 4, with a fun-filled day beginning at 9 a.m. at Fort Crawford Park and ending with a fireworks show at 9:30 p.m. Plastic duck race at 6 p.m.
Bay Minette
The Rotary Club of Bay Minette will host a fireworks show on Monday, July 4, beginning at dusk behind Simmons Field.
Pictured: Last year’s Flomaton-Century Fireworks Show. NorthEscambia.com file photo by Ditto Gorme, click to enlarge.
Century, Flomaton Celebrate The Fourth With A Bang (With Photo Gallery)
July 4, 2016
Fireworks lit up the night Sunday with an early celebration at Century’s Showalter Park.
The fireworks show was a joint effort of both the Town of Flomaton and the Town of Century. The towns alternate hosting the festivities each year; next year’s show will be back at Hurricane Park in Flomaton.
For a photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Residents Report Large ‘Explosion’, Broken Windows
July 4, 2016
Escambia County 911 operators received numerous calls reporting an explosion in the Cottage Hill area Sunday night. An exact cause was never found.
The calls came in just before 8:30 p.m. Several units from Escambia Fire Rescue and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded, but nothing was found except a trash fire on Shoemo Estate Lane. First responders did not believe the trash fire was the cause of the reported explosion.
The majority of the reports received were in the Stacey Road, Quintette Road, Coweta Road and Highway 95A area, including an unconfirmed report that windows were broken in one home.
On Facebook, NorthEscambia.com readers also reported hearing a feeling the explosion.
“Heard a very loud, deep sounding boom that shook our house real hard. neighbors said some had windows blown out,” one reader on Stacey Road wrote. “On Highway 196. We thought a plane might have crashed it shook our house,” another said.
Other comments included:
- “We heard it and our dog did too!! We are near the Winn Dixie on Hwy 29.”
- “It was loud sounded like a bomb going off on Newcastle off of Ashland.”
- “Heard it an felt it at the end of Williams Ditch.”
- “The windows and house shook a mile down McKenzie Road.”
- “Yes we felt it off Barrineau Park road. Shook our whole house…I thought a plane might of crashed it was so loud and shook so hard. It was crazy!!!!”
Residents reported that they did not believe the explosion to be fireworks; most reported something stronger and louder.