Tennessee Team Tops Northview (With Photo Gallery)
March 30, 2016
The Northview Chiefs fall to the Siegel Stars of Murfreesboro, TN, 11-0 in 6 innings in Bratt.
Tori Herrington took the loss in a valiant effort pitching six innings, allowing 11 runs, 15 hits, striking out one and walking two. The Chiefs managed only one hit on a single from Aubree Love in the bottom of the fifth.
The Chiefs Varsity team will travel to Jay Wednesday evening to face the Royals in the last district game of the regular season at 5:00.
Tuesday was Senior Night for the Chiefs as they honor seniors Hanna Ging and Laurie Purdy.
For a photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Above: Senior Hanna Ging and family.
Above: Senior Laurie Purdy and family.
Former Navy NCO Sentenced For Accepting Bribes While Serving In Afghanistan
March 30, 2016
A former Navy noncommissioned officer was sentenced today to 24 months in prison for accepting approximately $25,000 in cash bribes from vendors while he served in Afghanistan.
Donald P. Bunch, 46, of Pace was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson of the Northern District of Florida, who also ordered Bunch to pay a $5,000 fine and to forfeit $25,000. Bunch previously pleaded guilty to accepting bribes.
Bunch was responsible for replenishing food and supplies at the HA Yard and for selecting vendors from a pre-determined list to provide the necessary items, according to his plea. In connection with his guilty plea, Bunch admitted that his predecessor had instructed him to rotate among the vendors.
According to admissions made in connection with his plea agreement, certain Afghan vendors offered money for the purpose of influencing their contracts. Bunch admitted that he accepted a total of approximately $25,000 in bribes from the vendors and as a result, he secured on their behalf more frequent and lucrative contracts. Bunch sent greeting cards stuffed with proceeds of the bribes to his wife and used the money to pay for the construction of a new home.
State, Gun-Rights Groups Back ‘Docs V. Glocks’ Law
March 30, 2016
Readying for oral arguments in June, attorneys for the state and Second Amendment groups are urging a full federal appeals court to uphold a 2011 Florida law that would restrict doctors from asking questions and recording information about patients’ gun ownership.
Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office and the National Rifle Association filed documents Monday in the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals backing the law, which has become widely known as the “docs v. glocks” law. Other Second Amendment groups, including the Unified Sportsmen of Florida, also made filings last week in support of the law.
A three-judge panel of the federal appeals court issued three rulings during the past two years that upheld the constitutionality of the law. But the full appeals court in February agreed to take up the dispute, with opponents arguing that the law violates doctors’ free-speech rights. Oral arguments are scheduled for June 21 in Atlanta.
In the brief filed Monday by four attorneys from Bondi’s office, the state contends that doctors who are plaintiffs in the case do not have legal “standing” to challenge the law. But even if the doctors have standing, Bondi’s office argued the law “passes muster under any level of First Amendment review.”
“By shielding gun-owning patients and families from discrimination, unnecessary harassment, and bad-faith, irrelevant inquiries and record-keeping, the act narrowly advances the state’s compelling interests in protecting the fundamental right to keep and bear arms from private encumbrances, safeguarding patient privacy, eliminating barriers to health care, and preventing discrimination and harassment in the provision of health care services,” the brief said. “The act represents the most modest of all professional regulations — a requirement that doctors stick to practicing medicine — and it accomplishes its compelling goals without interfering with doctors’ professional judgment or otherwise burdening more speech than necessary.”
NRA attorneys requested approval to file a friend-of-the-court brief, which was attached to the request. The brief said the law “furthers several compelling state interests intimately connected with the medical profession and public health.”
“First, the act facilitates the exercise of Second Amendment rights by protecting citizens who choose to exercise those rights from discrimination and harassment in the provision of medical care,” the NRA brief said. “Second, the act serves the state’s interest in protecting the privacy of patients’ exercise of Second Amendment rights. Third, the act serves the state’s compelling interest in reducing the likelihood that individuals will suffer discrimination and harassment in the provision of medical care. And fourth, the act serves the state’s important interest in regulating the medical profession.”
The plaintiffs in the challenge, including individual doctors and physician groups, are not required to file a brief until April 27. But in a January petition seeking the hearing before the full appeals court, the plaintiffs’ attorneys argued that the majority of the three-judge panel erred on free-speech issues. Also, the petition said the panel’s opinion posed a “a grave threat to public health and safety in Florida.”
“That some patients find inquiries about gun ownership ‘intrusive’ or believe that gun ownership is a ’sensitive’ topic does not give the state license to shut down entirely those inquiries, which are at the very heart of many doctors’ everyday conversations with patients,” the January petition said. “Indeed, the majority’s rationale could apply equally to other standard features of doctor-patient counseling and inquiry: the risks associated with smoking, certain sexual activity, drugs and alcohol. Banning this frank conversation between doctors and their patients will have devastating consequences, particularly during a public health epidemic of firearms-related injuries and deaths. Under the majority’s opinion, Florida residents will receive less information about gun safety, resulting in avoidable injuries and even deaths.”
The law, which sparked heavy debate before getting approved by the Legislature, includes a series of restrictions on doctors and other health providers. As an example, it seeks to prevent physicians from entering information about gun ownership into medical records if the physicians know the information is not “relevant” to patients’ medical care or safety or to the safety of other people.
As another example, the law says a health-care provider “shall respect a patient’s legal right to own or possess a firearm and should refrain from unnecessarily harassing a patient about firearm ownership during an examination.”
by Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida
Poarch Creek Indians Purchase Mississippi Casino Site
March 30, 2016
The Poarch Creek Indians have purchased a site previously approved for a casino in D’Iberville, MS.
The land near I-110 is known as the Royal D’Iberville casino site is one of four sites in the city approved for a casino. A previously planned development with a 60,000 square foot casino and a 400-room hotel on the 7.6 acres never came to fruition, and the property was released from bankruptcy just days before the PCI purchase.
In the event the Poarch Creek Indians should build a casino on the property, it will not be considered part of their reservation and will subject to the same application process and taxes as any other casino, the director of the Mississippi Game Commission, Allen Godfrey, told the Sun Herald newspaper in Gulfport.
“PCI Gaming Authority monitors events throughout the Southeast that represent opportunities for our investment consideration. This particular property was brought to our attention and after evaluation we felt it represented an excellent investment opportunity that, regardless whether we pursue development now, in the future or never, that land will hold its value,” the Poarch Creek Indian Gaming Authority said in released statement. “We continue to evaluate development opportunities and the Mississippi Gulf Coast gaming market is one we may seek to enter at some future time.”
Lady Aggies Claim Top Spot In District; Tate Baseball Beats Escambia
March 30, 2016
Lady Aggies Claim Top Spot In District
Tate 10, Escambia 3
The Tate High School Aggies locked the top spot in the 1-7A tournament that beings April 111 with a 10-3 win Tuesday night over the Escambia Gators. The Aggies (16-22, 8-0) will host Siegel of Murfreesboro, TN, on Wednesday at 6:30.
WP: Savannah Rowell (9-0) (7IP, 9H, 3R, ER, BB, 8K);
Tate hitters – Hadley Starratt 2-2,3R, 2 RBIs; Sydni Solliday 1-2, R, RBI; Madison Nelson 2B; Megan Jones 2-3, 2R.
Tate Baseball Beats Escambia
Tate 8, Escambia 1
The Tate High School Aggies beat Escambia Tuesday 8-1.
Tate scored three runs in the sixth on an RBI double from Josh Kean and an RBI singe from Branden Fryman. Cole Halfacre had two RBIs on two hits for Tate; he tripled in the first inning and had a single in the fifth inning.
Madison Lockman pitched the win for the Tate Aggies with seven innings on the mound, allowing just one run, one walk and four hits while striking out five.
Northview Chiefs Beat Pensacola Christian
March 30, 2016
The Northview Chiefs beat Pensacola Christian Tuesday afternoon, 16-1 in a run-rule shortened five innings.
The Chiefs jumped out to an early 5-0 lead in the third.
Zach Payne allowed two hits, no earned run, walked two and struck out five during four innings on the mound. Jacob Dunsford pitched an inning for Northview, allowing one hit, no earned runs, walked one, and struck out one.
Thomas Moore hammered a two-run home run in the third.
Northview hitters included: Seth Killam 2-4, 2R, Thomas Moore 1-2, 2 R, HR; Zach Payne 1-2; Luke Ward 1-2, R; Josh Neeese 1-2, 2R; Jared Aliff 1-1, R: Roman Manning 2-2, 2R, 3RBI; Zach Holland 2-2, R., 2RBI; Devon Stabler 2-2, R; Chandler Lowery 3-4; R, 3RBI.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Man Walking On Railroad Tracks Killed By Train
March 29, 2016
A man died this morning after being struck by a train while walking on railroad tracks.
Shawn Rhineburger, 21, of 1200 Scenic Highway Pensacola died at the scene of the incident, which occurred just before 8 a.m. on railroad tracks just south of the intersection of Scenic Highway and Bayview Way.
Lt. Kevin Christman said Rhineburger was wearing headphones while walking northbound on the tracks. The CSX train also was northbound. Christman said the conductor sounded the train’s horn and tried unsuccessfully to stop before striking Rhineburger.
Century Logo, Website Still Under Development; Marketing Plan Future Unsure After Tornado
March 29, 2016
The Century Town Council and various stakeholders held a workshop meeting Monday night to discuss the status of their marketing plan, including a new logo and website. The meeting ended with perhaps more questions than answers.
In 2013, the town was awarded a technical assistance grant from the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity to develop an economic development strategic plan. After hearing proposals from four contenders, the town contracted with the Haas Center (the research and consulting arm of the University of West Florida) to develop the plan at no cost to the town.
The Haas Center’s detailed plan and recommendations included a new website for the town.
In October, the council decided to pay their consultant to create a request for proposals in order to receive bids to implement the marketing plan, including website maintenance, newsletter production, a recreational guide and formation of a young professional’s group. The town was set to pay for the services using economic development funds.
Advertisements were published in late December seeking a company to implement the plan. Only one proposal was received. That proposal was from the individual that UWF hired using grant funds to develop the logo and website — Johnathan “Jet” Tisdale of White Paper Marketing. The town has yet to evaluate and accept or deny the proposal.
But the logo and website contracted by UWF are not yet complete, Tisdale said, despite his best efforts. He said several meetings with the town’s “design committee” had resulting in dozens and dozens of logo revisions and “50 to 100 hours” of extra, unpaid work in attempt to tweak a logo to satisfy the committee. Without the logo and design element choices, Tisdale said, the website design can’t be completed.
He said numerous emails from his firm to design committee members have gone unanswered and meetings have been canceled. “There has been zero progress (on the logo or website) since December,” Tisdale said Monday night, due to lack of response from the town.
“Is this suppose to be a secret,” council member Ann Brooks asked about the logo design. “Can you show us anything tonight?”
Tisdale said he came unprepared to share the logo with the entire council; instead he wanted to meeting individually with design committee members for logo input so that their ideas would not be influenced by other committee members. A computer was located, and Tisdale presented the logo designs to date, asking the council to avoid public discussion instead asking again for individual meetings outside the council workshop.
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“I ask that we keep ideas and opinions about what we see tonight to ourselves,” the marketer said, adding that the design committee will return a favorite logo candidate back to the council for a vote.
“You mean we just get to vote yes or no on one?” Brooks said. “We are we here?”
Tisdale said he attended the meeting because he thought the council was prepared to announce their decision on the proposals that were solicited back in December, not to attend a meeting about logo design.
Town Clerk Leslie Gonzalez said Tisdale had been told that the design committee did not like any of the logo designs and perhaps he should start over with a fresh design.
Century Mayor Freddie McCall, who attended only a short portion of the meeting by telephone, said, “The “logos don’t make sense to me. I’ll just go with whatever the council likes.”
“So much has been going trying to help our citizens; so many got slammed,” council President Ben Boutwell said, referring to the EF-3 tornado that hit Century hard on February 15. That recovery, Boutwell said, will likely take precedence over the marketing plan and the acceptance or denial of the December request for proposals.
The council took no formal action during their Monday night workshop, agreeing that Tisdale will hold individual logo design meetings with design committee members. Since grant money has already paid for the completion of the logo and website, those items are expected to return to the council for a vote and formal completion. It is not yet known what action, if any, the council will take on accepting or rejecting Tisdale’s lone proposal for website maintenance and any further marketing work.
Pictured top: Jet Tisdale of White Paper Marketing presents logo ideas at a Century Council workshop Monday night. Pictured middle and below: Additional logo ideas. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Rain Moves In Wednesday
March 29, 2016
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 55. East wind around 5 mph.
Wednesday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 1pm. Cloudy, with a high near 74. Southeast wind 5 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.
Wednesday Night: Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm. Cloudy, with a low around 66. Southeast wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
Thursday: Showers and thunderstorms. Some of the storms could produce heavy rainfall. High near 78. South wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%.
Thursday Night: Showers and thunderstorms. Low around 63. South wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%.
Friday: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 74. Southwest wind around 5 mph becoming northwest in the afternoon.
Friday Night: A 40 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 53. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph.
Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 69. North wind around 10 mph.
Saturday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 46.
Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 69.
Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 49.
Monday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 72.
Leaky Tornado Damaged Roof Forces Century Healthy Start Move
March 29, 2016
A leaky roof has forced Century Healthy Start to pack up and move next door.
The roof of the Healthy Start building at 511 Church Street was damaged during the EF-3 tornado that tore through Century on February 15. The county-owned building was cleaned, dried out and temporary tarps were put in place. The tarps were no match for Easter weekend winds and rain, with water once again pouring into the building.
Effective today, Healthy Start will operate from the county-owned building next door at 501 Church Street, a building that Healthy Start had already leased but had not yet been renovated. The building is former location of the Health and Hope Clinic.
Century site manager Laura Nelson said all Healthy Start services, including WIC and patient visits by Jay pediatrician Marian Stewart, will continue at the new location.
Tornado Victim Supplies
Tornado victims can still receive free in-kind goods donated by the community from the United Way in Century.
Items available include baby food, diapers, baby formula, $25 restaurant gift cards, shampoo, lotion, deodorant, toothpaste, drinking water and more from Healthy Start in Century. Their office at 511 Church Street is open Monday-Thursday from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. or while supplies last.
The items are available for free with those with verified damage from the February 15 Century tornado, or the February 23 Pensacola tornado.
Pictured top: Century Healthy Start Manager Laura Nelson discusses Century tornado damage with Gov. Rick Scott. Pictured below: County crews were hard at work less than 48 hours after the February 15 tornado, installing temporary traps and working to dry the interior of the building. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
