State Line Manhunt Ends With Suspects In Custody
June 28, 2017
An early Wednesday morning manhunt involving officers from two states ended with two car burglary suspects headed to jail.
The Escambia County (AL) Sheriff’s Office became involved in a vehicle chase along Highway 31 in Nokomis during the 3 o’clock hour. The suspect, identified as 19-year old Eric John Williams, ran his car into a ditch alongside Highway 31 at James Road, about a mile north of the Alabama/Florida state line. Williams ran from the scene on foot, prompting the manhunt. Another passenger in the vehicle, Bryson Williams, 18, was taken into custody.
Law enforcement officers from Alabama and Florida surrounded the area, including James Road, Deere Creek Road and Pineville Road in Alabama and Jones Road, North Pineville Road and Jakes Road in Florida.
Williams was taken into custody just after 6 a.m. Both Williams subjects were wanted in connection with car burglaries and thefts. Eric Williams is expected to face additional charges for fleeing from deputies Wednesday morning.
Further details have not yet been released.
Showers Return To Forecast
June 28, 2017
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Wednesday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 86. East wind 5 to 10 mph.
Wednesday Night: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 72. Southeast wind around 5 mph. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Thursday: Showers and thunderstorms likely. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 82. Southeast wind around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Thursday Night: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 72. Southeast wind around 5 mph.
Friday: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 86. South wind around 5 mph.
Friday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 73. South wind around 5 mph.
Saturday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 88. Southwest wind around 5 mph.
Saturday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 73. Southwest wind around 5 mph.
Sunday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 88.
Sunday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 74.
Monday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 89.
Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 73.
Independence Day: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 88.
Century Man Charged With Attacking Pregnant Girlfriend
June 28, 2017
A Century man is facing multiple felony charges after allegedly attacking his pregnant girlfriend.
Escambia County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to Hatties Boulevard in Century where they were advised that McCants had attacked his pregnant girlfriend before fleeing in a vehicle. The victim told deputies that McCants began to hit her with an open hand before punching her in the face. She picked up her cellphone in order to call 911, but he grabbed it and broke it by throwing it to the ground. She said McCants continued to slap and punch her before placing his hand over her month and nose, making it difficult to breathe.
Deputies located McCants at a residence on Old Flomaton Raod. As soon they made contact with him, McCants began to physically resist arrest, an ECSO report states.
The victim told deputies that she has been living with McCants for a year and a half, and McCants was with her at the hospital in June when she learned that she was a pregnant with his child.
McCants was charged with aggravated battery offender should have known the victim was pregnant, domestic battery by strangulation, tampering with a victim (preventing a 911 call), resisting a law enforcement officer with violence, petit theif and criminal mischief.
McCants remained in the Escambia County Jail Wednesday with bond set at $27,866.
FWC Law Enforcement Report
June 28, 2017
The Florida FWC Division of Law Enforcement reported the following activity during the weekly period ending June 22 in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.
ESCAMBIA COUNTY
(No report received from Escambia County.)
SANTA ROSA COUNTY
Officer Ramos was on vessel patrol in the Santa Rosa Sound and conducted a boating safety and resource inspection on a vessel he saw returning from offshore fishing. The officer discovered that the individuals had harvested regulated fish species that included six red snapper, three of which appeared to be under the legal 16‑inch size limit. Officer Ramos asked the boat operator how they measured their fish. The operator showed the officer a homemade ruler he constructed using tape. Officer Ramos showed the individual that his homemade tape ruler was an inch short compared to a certified metal ruler. The three, undersized snapper measured 15 inches each. The operator was cited accordingly.
Officer Ramos received information from a resident that an individual on a boat was harvesting oysters in a closed area in Blackwater Bay. After gathering details from the complainant, Officer Ramos saw the individual in an area closed for the harvesting of oysters. A boating safety and resource inspection was conducted and the individual admitted he was intentionally smashing oysters and their attached mollusks to attract fish that he could catch with fishing poles. The man received one boating safety warning and was charged for harvesting oysters in a prohibited area.
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.
NorthEscambia.com photo.
Ancient Forest Uncovered In The Gulf Of Mexico
June 28, 2017
The Underwater Forest, a new documentary by journalist Ben Raines and produced by This is Alabama, details the discovery and exploration of an ancient cypress forest found 60 feet underwater in the Gulf of Mexico, due south of Gulf Shores.
The forest dates to an ice age more than 60,000 years ago, when sea levels were about 400 feet lower than they are today. Scientist believe the forest was uncovered by Hurricane Ivan.
Watch the video (28 mins) below, or click here for YouTube.
Robinson: Pensacola Should Find Way To Keep Cross
June 28, 2017
by Escambia County Commissioner Grover Robinson
Do we practice what we preach? We hold ourselves as Americans out to acknowledge that we are open and tolerant and founded on principals of freedom. We drape ourselves in the Bill of Rights to protect the things we want but do we truly protect those things we don’t like.
Recently, Pensacola has found itself at the center of a national debate related to a cross which has stood for more than 60 years in Bayview Park. While the arguments have focused on who is right, they should have been focused what kind of community do we want to create?
The very beginning of European settlements in what is now known as the United States is centered on religious freedom and tolerance, just look at the Pilgrims, Rhode Island, Maryland and Pennsylvania. However, in each of those settlements, it would have totally been expected that symbols could and would have been displayed.
While I firmly and steadfastly support the religious freedom and the prohibition of a national religion in our Bill of Rights, a cross is not the establishment of a religion. It is a symbol related to a religion. There are symbols to religion and other principals throughout our public buildings and parks in Pensacola, much less than places like Washington DC that is totally created on symbols.
Supposedly we now have to remove a symbol because one person was offended. This is a misapplication of the law. No symbol is universally liked. Let’s take the most popular symbol in NW Florida, the Blue Angels on the Escambia County seal. While I know the Blues are love here, I know in less than 3 hours, I could find 4 people who are offended by that symbol, the same number who filed suit against the cross.
This brings us to the real question, how tolerant are we and what is the community we want to create?
While Christianity is a majority now, its history has not always been that way. At times, Christian symbols have had to vary to prevent its believers from persecution. Yes, the US judiciary now has joined some of the best autocratic Caesars, like Nero, Caligula and Diocletian, who have disallowed Christian symbols.
My point is no symbol, religious, national, ethnic or cultural, is universally liked, but they are all important to the people that are represented by them. No one says anyone has to like a symbol. The only thing that should be embraced for us to create the unique and great country our founders
envisioned is that we should tolerate the symbols of others. We are a better community when we do that and we are more likely to find unity in respect than in division.
We have real problems in Pensacola and the United States. Removing symbols that mean something to people in our community does nothing to help us find solutions or unity. Instead it creates division and distrust that makes solutions harder to find. Whether business or politics, I have never had a problem working with anyone who is represented by a different symbol than me. However, if someone can not respect the symbols that represent me, then that severs our ability to move forward together in relationship.
I don’t need you to think the way I do or to come from the same background or believe the same things as me for us to be friends and work together. All I need is for you to respect me and tolerate my symbols as I will do for you. That is what lies at the heart of the Bill of Rights, respect, and that is what has been lost in Washington DC and in our judicial rulings.
If we truly believe in tolerance and diversity, then the cross should stay. Otherwise, are we really as open and tolerant and supportive of freedom as we say? I support the cross staying and I hope Pensacola will find a way to ensure it does for we are better when we respect than when we remove.
Florida Democrats On Offensive Over Health Care Fight
June 28, 2017
Even as the U.S. Senate delayed a planned procedural vote Tuesday on a controversial Republican plan to overhaul the Affordable Care Act, the proposal was roiling Florida’s political landscape ahead of the 2018 elections.
Democrats running for the Senate and in the state’s governor’s race hammered away at the GOP, suggesting that they saw a chance to go on the offensive over an issue that has dogged them for years. Republicans running in the marquee contests, meanwhile, seemed to be doing everything they could to take a definitive stand on the legislation.
At the heart of the controversy is a bill that, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, would lead to 22 million fewer Americans having health insurance in 2026 than would be the case under current law.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., unveiled the bill last week as part of the GOP’s longstanding promise to “repeal and replace” the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare. McConnell and other GOP leaders had hoped to advance the bill with a key vote Wednesday, but pulled the plug after it became clear the move would fail.
By then, Democrats were already blasting away at Republican candidates in Florida over the measure, underscoring changes in Medicaid spending and the reductions in tax credits for some low-income workers. The attacks suggested Democrats now see Obamacare, which had generally hurt the party since 2010 but has recently increased in popularity, as a net positive.
Former Congresswoman Gwen Graham, a Democrat who’s running for governor, labeled the Republican bill “heartless” as she delivered more than 4,000 petitions against “Trumpcare,” named for President Donald Trump, to the Florida Capitol office of U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio.
Graham also blasted term-limited Republican Gov. Rick Scott for not agreeing to Medicaid expansion under Obamacare, and expressed hope that the GOP bill wouldn’t pass.
“But if that does happen, then we’re going to need an even better governor here in Florida,” she said. “The one we’ve had … should not be able to sleep at night.”
Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, one of Graham’s opponents for the Democratic nomination, called for an amendment to the Florida Constitution that would recognize health care as “a fundamental right of all Floridians.”
“There is a public trust for the government to care for its citizens, and our state can no longer be ambiguous about that moral obligation,” Gillum said in a statement issued by his campaign. “When healthcare is under attack in Washington, we’re going to lean into the challenge of healthcare in the Sunshine State and live our values.”
Highlighting the potential differences that exist even within the party, Graham was equivocal Tuesday when asked whether she would support such an amendment, stressing her support for a public option in the state.
“I think health care is a right,” she said. “But I want to make sure the way we go about it is doable.”
Winter Park businessman Chris King, the third declared Democratic candidate for governor, didn’t comment publicly on the bill Tuesday, but has in the past criticized a previous version passed by the House and attacked Scott and Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam for not taking a stance on the bill.
Putnam is the only major, declared Republican candidate for governor in 2018. A spokeswoman said Tuesday that Putnam’s campaign had no comment about his position on the bill.
American Bridge, a Democratic campaign organization, said Monday that Putnam was “complicit” in the federal legislation.
“If Adam Putnam wants to be governor, he should come out and propose a plan of his own instead of hiding behind this disaster of a bill that gives tax breaks to the wealthiest few at the expense of Floridians’ health,” said Lizzy Price, a spokeswoman for the group.
Scott spent Tuesday in Washington, D.C., lobbying federal officials on the legislation while dancing around questions about his position during television appearances.
“I think it’s very important to repeal and replace Obamacare,” Scott told business channel CNBC when asked whether he would vote for the bill. “I’m up here as a governor. I don’t have a vote. I’m up here as a governor trying to make sure the bill is good for Florida families. I know the bill is a work in progress.”
That didn’t stop U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, a Democrat likely to face a re-election challenge from Scott next year, from trying to tie his would-be opponent to the bill.
“Rick Scott is supporting and urging Republican senators to vote for a bill that makes huge cuts to Medicaid, takes coverage away from 22 million people and allows insurance companies to hike rates for older Americans,” Nelson said in a statement issued by his office. “If he really cared about the people of Florida, he’d be doing the exact opposite of what he’s doing now.”
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
Flomaton Adds New Lifesaving Equipment To Every Fire Truck
June 28, 2017
Artie Bell of Flomaton had the chance Tuesday to meet the first responders that saved his life, along with the new equipment they used.
Recently, Bell suffered a massive heart attack. He had no pulse and was not breathing on his own . The odds were very much against him, according to Flomaton Fire Chief Steve Stanton. But the Flomaton Fire Department recently placed a defibrillator on each truck, and that increases those odds.
The first responders feel the defibrillator made all the difference and will ultimately save many lives in the Flomaton area.
“I have a second chance. People don’t think about things happening to us until sometimes it’s too late,” Bell Tuesday morning after meeting the first responders at the Flomaton fire station.
I know they got equipment that helped them do what they needed to do,” he said. “I really give the glory to God.”
Pictured: Artie Bell (center, holding defibrillator bag) stopped by the Flomaton Fire Department Tuesday to thank them for saving his life. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Four Charged With Shooting Of ‘Associate’ On Rawson Lane
June 28, 2017
Four people have been charged with the shooting death of their “associate” early Sunday morning in Escambia County.
Juston Ladonte Donson, 22, died as the result of a gunshot wound to the head. He was one of the people that shot into a residence in the 6100 block of Rawson Lane early Sunday and was hit by what investigators called “friendly fire”.
Donson was found by neighbors wearing a ski mask and with an obvious gunshot wound in the front yard of a home on Rawson Lane about 6:16 a.m. The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office determined that the shooting actually occurred about 4:45 a.m.
Four people have been arrested in connection with the shooting death — Trevon Demarcus Lewis, 16; Dywane William Woodrow, 20; Tre’Shaun Rydell Ulmer, 19; Demetric Jamartia Milhouse, 23.
“Here’s the twist on this particular story,” Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan said, “While Mr. Donson was a victim of these individuals, Mr. Donson was also a party to the arrival at that address on Rawson Lane. He was actually a part of this group…Mr. Donson was the victim of friendly fire.”
“He was an unintended victim,” Morgan added.
The shooting was retaliatory and drug-related, Escambia County Sheriff’s Office Investigator Amber Bernard said. There had been a previous altercation between an individual that was inside the house and one of the suspects.
Each of the four people involved in the shooting have been charged with principal to murder since the Donson’s death came during the commission of a felony.
Tate Aggies Attend Southeastern Line Camp
June 28, 2017
The Tate High School linemen took part in the Southeastern Line Camp this week to develop their offensive and defensive skills. The Tate Aggies will open play on August 18 at Pine Forest and August 25 at home against Pensacola High School. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.