Cold Weather Doesn’t Deter Runners In First Century Cross Country Classic
January 27, 2019
The temperature was just below freezing Saturday morning for the start of the Century Cross Country Classic 5K, but that did not stop runners in the inaugural event.
Runners and walkers took to a 5K course that wound through a mixture of grass, gravel, dirt and pavement across both Anthony Pleasant Park and Showalter Park. There was a also a half mile fun run/walk.
Top overall and male runner was Brandon Korinchak, and top female runner was Jillan Thorton.
“It’s the perfect setting for a community cross country race and it’s safer because it’s not being conducted on a city street. Anthony Pleasant and Buck Showalter are two Century sports icons. They have given notoriety to Century in professional sports. How fitting that we exercise through the parks named after them,” race director Matt Dobson said.
Results were as follows:
Brandon Korinchak – 20:16
Chance Thornton – 20:46
David Dobson – 21:02
Jillian Thornton – 23:26
Hannah Whitlock – 23:41
Roger Dobson – 26:23
Jeff Word – 28:02
Luke Broom – 31:30
Wanda Roberson – 32:02
Natalie Nall – 32:57
Michelle McClellan – 35:20
Kim Carroll – 35:22
Daphne Clark – 37:35
Carl Emmons – 38:55
Caroline McClellan – 39:47
Michele Criswell – 40:56
Gerald Mckenzie – 44:35
Liz Miller – 44:36
John Kleiner – 45:24
Marlene Brown – 45:25
Terri Emmons – 47:58
Kristina Broom – 50:32
Cheryl Boutwell – 54:11
For a NorthEscambia.com photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
ECSO Investigates Attempted Kidnapping Of 14-Year Old Girl
January 27, 2019
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the attempted kidnapping of a 14-year old girl Saturday in a neighborhood just off Davis Highway north of I-10.
The victim told deputies that a white male about 30-40 years old with green eyes and gray hair got out of a white van in the 1800 block of Atwood Drive. She said the male attempted to grab her while walking, but she was able to break free, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
The victim told deputies that she had seen the van in the area two days before the incident but did not report it.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is asking for citizens to report any suspicious two-door white vans in the area of Blackwell Lane and Davis Highway to (850) 436-9620 or Crime Stoppers (850) 433-STOP.
Vehicle Found Wrecked In Molino, No Driver Around
January 27, 2019
Emergency personnel responded to a vehicle wreck on Highway 196 near Highway 95A early Sunday morning, but no one was around when they arrived.
A white Nissan Versa with front end damage and deployed airbags was discovered off the roadway about 2 a.m.
The crash is under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol. The Molino Station of Escambia Fire Rescue and Escambia County EMS also responded.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: Quickly Moving On
January 27, 2019
“One of the hallmarks of our republic is the electorate’s trust in our elections.”
Those were the words written by Mike Ertel in a memo to his boss, Gov. Ron DeSantis, just a week before he was forced to quit his job as secretary of state after a newspaper published photos of Ertel wearing blackface while dressed up for Halloween in 2005 as a female Hurricane Katrina victim.
Ertel sported the costume eight months after he was appointed to serve as the Seminole County elections chief, a post he held until DeSantis a month ago tapped him to oversee elections in the third-largest state in the nation.
Confronted by the photos, obtained by the Tallahassee Democrat, Ertel told the capital city newspaper: “There’s nothing I can say.”
Florida already has an ugly history dating back to the Jim Crow era of disenfranchising African-American and other minority voters, and the embarrassing photos once again focused an unwelcome national spotlight on the state’s elections.
Ertel’s replacement will be under intense scrutiny, not only because of Ertel’s speedy exit. The country is watching how the state handles a constitutional amendment that automatically restored the right to vote to most felons who have completed the terms of their sentences. Proponents of the measure say as many as 1.4 million Floridians could now be eligible to register to vote.
Lawmakers are grappling with how to carry out the amendment, which excluded murderers and people convicted of felony sexual offenses from having their rights restored. Questions remain about the definitions of “murder” and whether full repayment of fines, fees and restitution should be an eligibility requirement.
TIME TO ‘MOVE ON’ AFTER 16 DAYS
The photos published online Thursday by the Tallahassee Democrat showed Ertel wearing blackface and red lipstick and clad in a New Orleans Saints bandanna and a purple T-shirt emblazoned with the words “Katrina Victim,” under which he wore falsies.
According to the Democrat, the photos were taken in 2005, two months after Hurricane Katrina’s widespread destruction in New Orleans — 60 percent of whose residents are black — and along the Gulf Coast. The Democrat shared the photos with Ertel last week and with the governor’s office Thursday morning, the story said.
Shortly before 2 p.m. Thursday, Ertel, who confirmed to the Democrat that he was the man in the photos, submitted a 25-word email to Diane Moulton, director of the governor’s executive staff.
“I am submitting my resignation as Florida Secretary of State effective immediately. It has been an honor to serve you and the voters of Florida,” wrote the 49-year-old Ertel, who had appeared at a House subcommittee meeting earlier Thursday.
Ertel’s email “signature” included a quote from Abraham Lincoln: “These men ask for just the same thing, fairness, and fairness only. This, so far as in my power, they, and all others, shall have.”
Ertel’s hasty exit from the Department of State is the first stain on DeSantis’ administration and came just 16 days after the Republican governor took office.
Speaking to reporters Thursday afternoon, DeSantis called Ertel’s resignation “unfortunate.”
The governor said he felt it was best to accept Ertel’s resignation and “move on.”
“I think it’s unfortunate. I think he’s done a lot of good work, but at the same time I have got to have an administration that is going to be focused on what matters to Floridians. I don’t want to get mired into side controversies,” he said.
NOT A GOOD MONTH FOR GILLUM?
State ethics officials on Friday found probable cause that former Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, who narrowly lost the governor’s race to DeSantis last year, violated Florida ethics laws by allegedly accepting gifts from lobbyists and failing to report them.
After a closed-door hearing at the 1st District Court of Appeal, Gillum’s attorney, Barry Richard, and Erwin Jackson, a Tallahassee businessman who filed the complaint, told reporters the Florida Commission on Ethics was unanimous in its support of staff findings regarding the alleged violations. The case is now headed to a hearing before an administrative law judge.
“The month of January is not going to be good for Andrew Gillum,” said Jackson, who hopes the commission’s findings will be followed by criminal charges against the former Democratic mayor.
The alleged ethics violations include a pricey ticket to the hit Broadway musical “Hamilton,” a New York City boat ride and a Costa Rica vacation. Public officials in Florida are prohibited from accepting gifts of $100 or more from lobbyists and others that work with the government.
The ethics complaint and questions about an FBI investigation into Tallahassee City Hall dogged Gillum in the days leading up to the November election.
But Richard said the findings were based on Gillum receiving gifts and that the former mayor never solicited anything.
“But there is no evidence in this case, and there is no allegations that he ever did anything for anybody, as a quid pro quo for receiving a gift. There is no suggestion he took a payment he wasn’t entitled to, that he voted for somebody for something,” Richard said.
MUNIZ MAKES THREE
In the final step in reshaping the Florida Supreme Court, DeSantis on Tuesday named Carlos Muniz, general counsel at the U.S. Department of Education, as his third selection to the state’s highest court.
The appointment of the 49-year-old Muniz, who served as chief of staff to former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi and deputy general counsel to former Gov. Jeb Bush, solidifies a conservative majority on the court after years of justices regularly thwarting the Republican-led Legislature and the GOP governor.
“The court is going to apply the law as written,” DeSantis said while announcing his selection outside the governor’s mansion.
“You may not agree with every decision, but they are not going to go off on a major tangent. I think that is very good for us. I think that the separation of powers will be strengthened with the newly constituted court.”
Muniz said in his new role he has a “solemn duty to set aside my own policy preferences.”
“The role of a judge is to preserve the Constitution, not to add to it or subtract from it,” Muniz said. “I believe strongly in judicial independence, but judges have to earn that independence through their fidelity to the Constitution.”
STORY OF THE WEEK: Former Florida Secretary of State Mike Ertel was forced to resign after less than three weeks on the job, following the publication of Halloween photos from 2005 in which he was wearing blackface while dressed as a Hurricane Katrina victim.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “I think he regrets that whole thing 14 to 15 years ago, but at the same time I want people to be able to lead and not having any of these things swirling around them.” — Gov. Ron DeSantis, referring to Ertel.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Deputy Shoots And Kills Armed Suspect Inside Highway 97 Home
January 26, 2019
A man was shot and killed in an officer-involved shooting Friday night in Davisville.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to a welfare check about 8:35 p.m. at a home in the 10000 block of Highway 97, about one mile south of the Alabama state line. A relative not at the residence told dispatchers that an armed family member was threatening to kill another family member.
Deputies arrived on scene, and the armed suspect refused commands, Escambia County Chief Deputy Chip Simmons told NorthEscambia.com on the scene Friday night. The man then raised his firearm in the direction of the deputy, forcing the deputy to fire his weapon. The man was struck three times from the weapon fired by a single deputy. He was pronounced deceased on the scene.
The shooting occurred inside the man’s home.
There were no law enforcement injuries, and the other family member on scene was not injured.
Per ECSO policy, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the officer involved shooting. The officer will be placed on administrative leave, as is standard procedure, according to Simmons.
The adult male’s identity has not been released.
The Walnut Hill Station of Escambia Fire Rescue, Escambia County EMS and LifeFlight were also dispatched to the scene. EMS and LifeFlight were canceled prior to arrival.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Bond Increased To $1 Million For Man Charged With DUI Deaths Of Siblings
January 26, 2019
Bond has been increased to $1 million in the traffic homicide case of a 24-year old man accused of the DUI death of two siblings earlier this month
Circuit Court Judge Jenny Kinsey granted the state’s motion to increase the bond for Hunter Black in light of new evidence that revealed Black attended a concert and went to a bar before the fatal crash, according to the State Attorney’s Office. They also said he may have crashed into a neighbor’s mailbox.
The Florida Highway said Black had been involved in another crash before the fatal wreck when he ran off East Kingsfield Road and struck a tree near Berrydale Road. He then made a U-turn and traveled back west on Kingsfield Road a short distance before the fatal crash occurred.
The FHP said Black was traveling west on Kingsfield Road near Kingslake Drive about 12:30 a.m. January 12 when he crossed the centerline into the path of a 2001 Mitsubishi driven by 22-year old Antoinette Marie McCoy of Pensacola. McCoy attempted to avoid the collision but was hit head-on.
McCoy and her brother, 15-year old Tate High School student Sean Banks, died at local hospitals shortly after the crash.
Black was released from the Escambia County on a $25,000 bond about 24 hours later, but he was returned to jail without bond after his bond was revoked on an unrelated battery charge.
According to State Attorney Bill Eddins, Black’s release from jail was the result of a misunderstanding with the Florida Highway Patrol, which led to the $25,000 bond amount being set.
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Private Investigator Murder Suspect Convicted Of Racketeering; Held Without Bond
January 26, 2019
The woman accused of murdering a local private investigator and burying her body on family property in Cantonment has been convicted on unrelated charges.
Friday, an Escambia County Jury convicted Ashley Britt McArthur, 41, of racketeering and organized fraud. Judge Jan Shackleford immediately remanded her into custody where she will be held without bond.
While employed by Pensacola Automatic Amusement, from 2015 to 2017, McArthur embezzled thousands of dollars from two clients, the Azalea Cocktail Lounge and Seville Quarter.
Pensacola Automatic Amusement serviced entertainment machines and jukeboxes for various clients in the Pensacola area for 40 years. McArthur falsified collection reports for jukeboxes at the Azalea Lounge and Seville Quarter while keeping the unreported proceeds.
A sentencing date has not yet been set. The state intends to seek the maximum sentence of 35 years.
McArthur is facing a first-degree murder charge for the death of 33-year old Taylor Wright, a private investigator and former police officer. Wright’s body was found in September 2017 off Britt Road, just west of County Road 97 near Muscogee Road in Cantonment. She allegedly stole $34,000 from Wright.
McArthur was free on a $400,000 bond on the murder charge until being remanded into custody Friday. She will face trial on the murder charge later this year.
Friends Of The Library Big Winter Book Sale Is This Weekend
January 26, 2019
The Friends of the West Florida Library Big Winter Book Sale is this weekend at the downtown library at 239 Spring Street.
Doors are open 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Saturday. Paperbacks are two for $1; everything else is $1.
The popular $5 Bag Sale is 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. Sunday. It’s just $5 for as many books as you can fit into a provided brown paper bag.
Cash, checks and credit cards will be accepted.
NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Cool Weekend, Turning Much Colder Next Week
January 26, 2019
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 36. Calm wind.
Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 60. Calm wind becoming northwest around 5 mph in the morning.
Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 35. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Monday: Sunny, with a high near 64. Light southwest wind increasing to 5 to 10 mph in the morning.
Monday Night: A 20 percent chance of rain after midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 38. South wind 5 to 10 mph.
Tuesday: Rain likely, possibly mixing with snow after noon, then gradually ending. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 48. Southwest wind 10 to 15 mph becoming north in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Tuesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 22. North wind 5 to 10 mph becoming light northeast after midnight.
Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 50. Calm wind becoming south around 5 mph.
Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 30.
Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 53.
Thursday Night: A 20 percent chance of rain. Partly cloudy, with a low around 39.
Friday: A 30 percent chance of rain. Partly sunny, with a high near 56.
Governor Appoints Clay Ingram As CEO Of Volunteer Florida
January 26, 2019
Governor Ron DeSantis announced the appointment of Clay Ingram as CEO of Volunteer Florida.
“I am happy to announce the appointment of Clay Ingram to lead our state’s volunteer efforts as CEO of Volunteer Florida,” said DeSantis. “Between his leadership in the Florida Legislature and his advocacy for the Pensacola community, this was an easy choice. I know Clay will make Floridians proud and lead the agency with the utmost integrity.”
Ingram is a Pensacola native who served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2010 to 2018. In addition to his legislative duties, he has also served as president and CEO of the Greater Pensacola Chamber of Commerce since 2015.
Very active in his community, Ingram is a member of Gonzalez United Methodist Church and serves as a board member for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwest Florida, United Methodist Children’s Home of Northwest Florida, Achieve Escambia and the Florida State University Alumni Association.
He graduated from Tate High School, and from FSU with a bachelor’s degree in general communication in 2000.
Volunteer Florida, the lead agency for volunteerism and national service in Florida, administers $31.7 million in federal, state, and local funding for national service and volunteer programs across the state.