Scott Signs Death Penalty Fix Into Law
March 8, 2016
Gov. Rick Scott on Monday signed into law a measure designed to fix the state’s death-penalty sentencing process after it was found unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court, but the new law will almost certainly be challenged.
The Jan. 12 Supreme Court ruling — handed down on the opening day of the legislative session — found that Florida’s system of giving judges, and not juries, the power to impose death sentences was an unconstitutional violation of defendants’ Sixth Amendment right to trial by jury.
“It is my solemn duty to uphold the laws of Florida and my foremost concern is always for the victims and their loved ones. I hope this legislation will allow families of these horrific crimes to get the closure they deserve,” Scott said in a statement.
With the death penalty effectively on hold in Florida, lawmakers hurried to come up with a solution before the legislative session ends Friday. Scott signed the bill (HB 7101) into law just days after the Senate approved it.
While the new law establishes a revamped system for defendants charged with capital crimes who have not yet been sentenced, it is unlikely to have any impact on the cases of Florida’s 390 Death Row inmates. The Florida Supreme Court is sorting through some of the cases now, after lawyers for the inmates filed a flurry of appeals in the wake of the ruling.
The 8-1 U.S. Supreme Court decision, in an Escambia County case known as Hurst v. Florida, dealt with the sentencing phase of death-penalty cases after defendants are found guilty, and it focused on what are known as aggravating circumstances that must be determined before defendants can be sentenced to death. A 2002 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, in a case known as Ring v. Arizona, requires that determinations of such aggravating circumstances must be made by juries, not judges.
While the Supreme Court ruling focused on aggravating circumstances, nearly all of the legislative debate centered on whether Florida should require unanimous jury recommendations about whether defendants should be put to death.
The new law, which went into effect immediately, would require at least 10 jurors to recommend death for the penalty to be imposed — a compromise between the House and the Senate, which had originally favored unanimous jury recommendations. Prosecutors, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, pushed for the 10-2 recommendation, arguing that unanimity would allow a single juror to hijack the process.
Of the 31 states with the death penalty, Florida is one of only three that do not require unanimous jury recommendations for death to be imposed. The others — Alabama and Delaware — require at least 10 jurors to recommend death. Until Monday, Florida law had allowed majorities of juries to recommend death.
The Hurst ruling did not specifically address unanimous jury recommendations to judges, a process that happens after jurors determine whether sufficient aggravating factors exist. Death penalty experts advised lawmakers that failing to require unanimous jury recommendations could make the state’s death penalty law vulnerable to future court decisions.
Although both chambers overwhelmingly approved the measure, a key component is expected to prompt a legal challenge.
The new law would require juries to unanimously determine “the existence of at least one aggravating factor” before defendants could be eligible for death sentences. Florida law lists 16 aggravating circumstances — such as whether a crime was committed for pecuniary gain or if a victim was under 12 years of age — that juries could consider.
Defense lawyers argue that the list is so broad that virtually any murder could be considered a capital crime.
Allowing a single aggravating circumstance — even with a unanimous jury finding, as the proposed law would require — to determine whether a defendant is death-penalty eligible could run afoul of the Supreme Court’s consistent view that capital punishment should be reserved for a narrow class of offenders who commit the worst crimes, the lawyers contend.
Because of that, the proposed law could violate Eighth Amendment protections against cruel or unusual punishment, Rex Dimmig, public defender in the 10th Judicial Circuit, told The News Service of Florida last week.
But lawmakers remained confident that the law would pass muster.
“I would have felt more comfortable if it (jury recommendations) had been unanimous, but the way it is right now, I feel like we’ve got a good death penalty bill. I feel like it will hold up in court,” Senate Criminal Justice chairman Greg Evers, R-Baker, said.
Timothy Lee Hurst, now 36, was convicted in the 1998 murder of Cynthia Lee Harrison, who was an assistant manager at a Popeye’s Fried Chicken restaurant on Nine Mile Road where Hurst worked. Harrison’s body was discovered bound in a freezer, and money was missing from a safe, according to a brief in the case.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
FHP Seeks Highway 97 Hit And Run Driver
March 8, 2016
The Florida Highway Patrol is looking for a driver involved in a hit and run crash that occurred sometime early Monday morning on Highway 97 just south of the Alabama state line.
Troopers said someone driving a 2007-2009 white Lincoln MKZ was traveling southbound on Highway 97 at Greenland Road. The vehicle left the roadway onto the east shoulder of Highway 97 and struck a fence. The vehicle continued southeast and struck small trees and a fence in the 7200 block of Greenland Road. The vehicle then traveled back through the fence where it entered the property and fled the scene.
Parts from the vehicle were collected at the scene and submitted as evidence Troopers said the time of the crash was not known.
Anyone with information about the vehicle, driver or accident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP or Trooper Tucker at (850) 484-5000 ext. 330.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Smillie Prefiles For District 5 Commission Seat
March 8, 2016
Political newcomer Dan J. Smillie Jr. pre-filed as a Republican Monday for Escambia County Commissioner, District 5.
Smillie, a resident of the 4500 block of West Highway 4 in Bratt, recently retired with 30 years of service as a field supervisor with the Escambia County Public Works Department, Roads Division.
Pictured top: Danny Smillie, Jr., pictured in the blue-checkered shirt, after being recognized on his retirement from Escambia County. File photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Marijuana Expansion Proposal Headed To Scott
March 8, 2016
Terminally ill patients would have access to marijuana under a measure that would legalize full-strength pot for the first time in Florida if signed into law by Gov. Rick Scott.
The proposal, approved Monday by the Senate, would add cannabis to a list of experimental drugs available to patients diagnosed with illnesses that could result in death within a year without life-saving interventions.
The measure also addresses the state’s existing low-THC law, intended to aid patients — including children with severe epilepsy — who suffer from chronic seizures or cancer. Implementation of the 2014 law is more than a year behind schedule because of legal challenges, and this year’s legislation is aimed at preventing further delays.
The Republican-dominated Legislature approved the medical cannabis for dying patients months before voters will have the opportunity to decide on a much broader marijuana initiative. A proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot would allow patients with a wide variety of illnesses to use the marijuana treatment if their doctors order it. A similar measure narrowly failed to pass in 2014.
During debate Monday on the Legislature’s measure (HB 307), critics of the plan said it does little to aid sick Floridians but instead benefits a handful of nurseries selected by health officials as the state’s five dispensing organizations.
“The system is designed for profit, not to help patients,” said Sen. Jeff Clemens, a Lake Worth Democrat who has for years tried to legalize medical marijuana for a swath of ailing Floridians. “A vote for this bill is a vote for the same old, same old. A vote for this bill isn’t a vote for fixing the problem. It’s a vote for continuing the problem.”
But Sen. Rob Bradley, a Fleming Island Republican who sponsored this year’s measure and who was instrumental in passage of the low-THC law, said his aim was to get the cannabis products to children whose parents urged lawmakers in 2014 to approve the substances, which they believe can dramatically reduce or end life-threatening seizures.
“Now two years later, not one child in the state of Florida has received help … not one. And that makes me angry. And it makes me embarrassed. And it’s time to end it,” Bradley said.
The Senate voted 28-11 to approve the proposal, which also was passed by the House last week. Under it, the five nurseries — and their affiliates — chosen to grow, process and distribute marijuana low in euphoria-inducing THC will also be responsible for growing the full-strength medical marijuana. The expectation is that the same dispensing organizations would also be allowed to provide the pot products to a vastly expanded patient base if the constitutional amendment passes.
The 2014 law authorized nurseries that have been in business for 30 years and grow at least 400,000 plants to apply for one of five highly sought-after licenses to grow, process and distribute cannabis products that are low in euphoria-inducing tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, and high in cannabadiol, or CBD.
Doctors were supposed to be able to order the low-THC cannabis products for patients more than a year ago, but legal challenges delayed implementation of the law, spurring frustrated lawmakers to propose the changes in this year’s legislation.
Health officials selected the five “dispensing organizations” in November, prompting another round of challenges. Hearings in the cases are slated to run from March through the end of July. Meanwhile, the dispensing organizations are in the process of beginning to cultivate the non-euphoric marijuana.
The bill awaiting Scott’s action includes provisions that would allow each of the five applicants selected by health officials in November to keep their licenses and also would allow applicants whose challenges are successful to get licenses.
The measure would also allow for three new dispensing organizations, once doctors have ordered medical marijuana treatments for at least 250,000 patients. It also includes an accommodation for black farmers, who complained they were shut out from applying for the licenses because none of the state’s black farmers met the criteria for the licenses. The three new dispensing organizations would not have to meet the criteria required of nurseries in the low-THC law.
Of the 23 states where medical marijuana is legal, none of reached the 250,000 patient threshold, according to Clemens.
“So that provision of the bill simply is useless,” he said.
Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, said the measure does nothing to fix the state’s broken system but instead perpetuates a “state-sanctioned drug cartel.”
But Bradley said he is not focused on how the bill would benefit the state’s marijuana businesses.
“What I’m trying to focus on is making sure we get these substances in the hands of these suffering families as quickly as possible, and I’ll let the market work it out,” he said.
The bill — and the current law — restricts the proliferation of “pot shops” experienced by other states where marijuana is legal, argued Sen. Aaron Bean, R-Fernandina Beach.
“If we just turn loose the free market, every strip center won’t have just one pot shop, every strip center will have three pot shops,” Bean said.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Warm, Rain Later This Week
March 8, 2016
Here is your official NorthEscambia area forecast:
Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 58. Southeast wind 10 to 15 mph.
Wednesday: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 74. Southeast wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.
Wednesday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 63. Southeast wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Thursday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before noon. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 76. Breezy, with a southeast wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.
Thursday Night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after midnight. Cloudy, with a low around 64. Southeast wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
Friday: Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm. Cloudy, with a high near 74. Southeast wind 10 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
Friday Night: Showers and thunderstorms likely. Cloudy, with a low around 61. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
Saturday: Showers and thunderstorms likely. Cloudy, with a high near 72. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Saturday Night: A 40 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 57. South wind 5 to 10 mph.
Sunday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 75.
Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 58.
Monday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 77.
Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 58.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 76..
Pictured: A Walnut Hill sunset. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Tate Aggie Wrestlers Place At State
March 8, 2016
Three Tate High School Aggie wrestling team members placed recently at state. From the left, Alex Porter placed sixth; Gaven McAnally placed fifth, and Jacob Cochran placed sixth. Overall, the Aggies team placed 14th in the state. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Northview Softball Beats Catholic; Central Baseball Tops NHS
March 8, 2016
BASEBALL
Central 6, Northview 1
The Northview Chiefs fell to Central 6-1 Monday night in Bratt.
The lone score for the Chiefs came on an error in the first inning.
Hitting for Northview: Quentin Sampson 1-2, 1R; Thomas Moore 1-3; Zach Payne 1-3; Jacob Dunford 1-3.
Northview’s varsity will back in action on Friday at 6:00 at South Walton, following a 4:00 JV game.
SOFTBALL
Northview 15, Catholic 5 (5 innings)
The Northview Chiefs beat Catholic in Bratt Monday evening by a run-rule score of 15-5 in five innings.
Hitting for the Chiefs: Kendall Enfinger: 3-4 with 2 singles, a triple, 2 runs and 2 RBI’s. Tori Herrington: 2-3 with a single, double, 2 runs, 3 RBI’s and a walk. Lydia Smith: 2-3 with 2 singles, 3 runs and 2 RBI’s. Hannah Ging: 2-4 with 2 singles and 2 runs. Laurie Purdy: 1-3 with a single and 3 RBI’s. Aubree Love: 1-4 with a single, a run and 2 RBI’s. Daphne Young: 1-3 with a double, 2 runs and 2 RBI’s. Brittany McLemore: 1-2 with a single, a run and a walk. Alana Brown: with a single and a run. Catie Clayton: 0-1 with a run.
Pitching: Kendall Enfinger: 3IP, 2K’s, 1BB, 4H, 3R, 2ER; Tori Herrington: 2IP, 3K’s, 1BB, 3H, 2R, 1ER
The Chiefs travel next to Baker for a division matchup Thursday with JV playing at 4:00 and varsity at 5:30.
Pictured: Central at Northview. NorthEscambia.com photos by Ramona Preston click to enlarge.
Escambia County Sets Final Tornado Debris Pickup Schedule
March 8, 2016
Escambia County and Emerald Coast Utilities Authority (ECUA) crews will begin making their final passes through neighborhoods collecting storm generated debris next week. Residents in the unincorporated areas of Escambia County that have storm related debris are asked to move all debris to the right of way no later than Sunday, March 13.
When moving your debris curbside, please remember:
- All storm generated debris must be separated and be placed in the right-of-way. Residents should avoid placing debris near power poles, fire hydrants, water meters, mail boxes or other utilities. Crews are not allowed on private property so all debris must be in the right-of-way area, typically the area from a power pole to the curb.
- No demolition debris will be picked up, please consult with your insurance company and/or contractor for demolition debris removal.
- Do not place household garbage with storm debris.
- Storm generated debris must be sorted and placed curbside in the following categories:
- Construction– furniture, carpet, tile, steel, glass, brick, concrete, asphalt roofing material, pipe, gypsum wallboard, lumber or anything used in the construction, renovation, and demolition of a structure.
- Vegetative debris – Tree limbs, leaves, logs, pallets, and tree branches
- White goods – washers, dryers, refrigerators, ranges, microwaves, water heaters, freezers and small AC units.
- Electronics – T.V.s, computers, monitors, fax machines, stereos, speakers, etc.
- Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) – Cleaning supplies, batteries, lawn chemicals, oils, oil-based paints and stains and pesticides.
Commercial Customers please contact your contracted waste services provider for disposal services. Commercial waste should not be placed on the right-of-way.
To date crews have removed 8,100 cubic yards of vegetative debris and 320 tons of construction demolition debris in unincorporated Escambia County.
Residents of Century should continue to place their storm debris on the right of way for continued pickup. Vegetative debris should be separated from construction debris.
Fire Destroys Mobile Home Near Century
March 8, 2016
Fire destroyed a mobile home in the 1200 block of West Highway 4 Monday afternoon near Century.
There were no injuries reported in the afternoon blaze. The exact cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Florida State Fire Marshal’s Office.
Pictured top: Fire breaks through the roof a mobile home on West Highway 4 near Century Monday afternoon. Pictured inset and below: Heavy smoke billows from the mobile home. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Margaret Troutman Lockwood
March 8, 2016
Margaret Troutman Lockwood passed away March 6, 2016, following a brief illness.
A native of Atmore and most of her life here, she worked at McNeely and Fayard Jewelers for over 20 years.
Those left to cherish her memories are two daughters and one son, Deborah Soderlind, Shelia Ross and Clark Hill; eight grandchildren, Jeffery and Bryan Soderlind, Amy, Misty and Lacey Ross, Rob, Drew and Megan Hill; nine great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews. She is also survived by two devoted sisters, Ouida McGill and Doris Cooper.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Harold D. Lockwood; her parents, Maggie and Carl Troutman; two brothers, Fred and Leon Troutman; and sister, Mary Mayson.
Funeral services were held Tuesday, March 8, 2016, from Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Home with Rev. Arnold Hendrix, pastor of Atmore First Baptist Church officiating.
Burial followed in Oak Hill Cemetery.
Active pallbearers were her nephews and grandchildren.
The family extends a special thanks to Dr. Frances Salter, Atmore Home Care nurse Latressa Wilson and a devoted friend Patsy Alverson.
Thanks also extended to The Meadows Living Home for her short stay.
Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Homes is in charge of all arrangements.