Hilda Jean Cornelius
February 27, 2020
On Tuesday, February 25, 2020, Hilda quietly passed away to awake in Heaven to see her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. She first loved Jesus and the Bible from which she lived her life. She loved to tell others of the joy of salvation which she had found in Jesus. Hilda’s favorite passage was Psalm 23. She loved her family and church, Bible Baptist Church, of Pace, FL.
She is preceded in death by her father, Walter Watford.
Hilda is survived by husband of 42 years, Larry Cornelius; daughters, Tammie and Christine (Derring); step-sons, Larry (Amanda) and Robert; mother, Allie Mae; brother, Buck (Pam); and sisters, Wanda (John), Diane (John), and Tine (Gerald).
Hilda’s visitation will be held on Tuesday, March 3, 2020, from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. at Faith Chapel Funeral Home North.
Funeral services will be held at the funeral home on Wednesday, March 4, 2020, at 10 a.m. with Pastor Danny Brock officiating.
Burial will follow in Barrancas National Cemetery at 2 p.m.
Pallbearers will be Rondol Dixon, Robbie Burris, Richard Ward, Mike Thompson, Martin Taylor, Rodney Lewis, and Charles Stephens.
In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the ALS Association or Muscular Dystrophy Association.
Faith Chapel Funeral Home North is entrusted with arrangements.
Another Fatal Shooting Reported In Escambia County
February 26, 2020
Another deadly shooting was reported in Escambia County Wednesday afternoon, the ninth since the first of the year.
It happened on Baylen Street near Scott Street about 4:15 p.m. As deputies were on the way to the shooting scene, the gunshot victim showed up at a local hospital where he died.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office has talked to a witness, but they say she is not cooperating.
Names and other details have not been released as the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office continues their investigation.
Sheriff Confirms Bounties, Contract Killings; Plea Issued For Public’s Help
February 26, 2020
As law enforcement, commissioners and community members made a strong plea to the public to cooperate in investigations, Sheriff David Morgan confirmed Tuesday that several of the recent shootings in Escambia County involved a bounty on the victims.
There have been 20 shooting incidents this year, eight of which were fatal and about a dozen injuries.
“Is it really worth all the pain you are inflicting? At the end of the day, I would say, young man you are going to get caught. You are in a battle that you cannot win,” Lonnie Wesley, pastor of Greater Little Rock Baptist Church, said to those involved in the shootings. “This is not a game. Get to someone you can trust. Stop this. Let’s get yourself over here; turn yourself in. Stop hurting your family.”
“They are contract killings,” Morgan said of some of the shootings. “This is a particularly stressing thing.”
Morgan stated the ECSO often gets little or no cooperation from victims, family members and witnesses as he urged the public to come forward with information.
“We can’t place a deputy on every street corner. We can’t place a deputy in everyone’s home. Therefore, without the community’s support, we will fail,” Morgan said. “We are dealing with a level of inactivity now in our community that is the most distressing part of this.”
He people with security system videos are refusing to turn them over, and even families of victims are refusing to talk.
“It’s just unbelievable what we are dealing with right now,” the sheriff said.
“We get zero assistance from neighbors we know have cameras,” Chief Deputy Chip Simmons said. “We go to the parents of these victims….what we get is zero. We get nothing. We get a door slammed in our face and they say ‘go investigate it on your own’. We go down the street a little farther to people that were standing right there when it took place, and we get nothing. We get zero.”
Despite that, he said the ECSO is still aggressively working to solve the cases.
During an hour-long press conference, officials said perpetrators are becoming younger and younger, something State Attorney Bill Eddins said is happening throughout America.
“We’re praying that it’s not what will become the new norm in Escambia County with our young people,” Morgan said, adding that most of the people involved in recent criminal activity are age 15-19.
“Violent crime is being committed by younger and younger people,” Eddins said. “One of the primary reasons is America is awash in drugs.”
He said there are organized groups of juveniles that “routinely and constantly” burglarize vehicles looking for guns. The State Attorney’s Office is currently prosecuting 17 co-defendants, most between the ages of 15-19, in 168 cases where they were looking for guns, including the theft of one gun used in an armed carjacking.
Eddins said he has an aggressive approach to transfer violent or repeat youth offenders out of the juvenile justice system into adult court.
“My heart bleeds. Too many times, the lives that are lost are people that I know,” Escambia County Commissioner Lumon May said. “That’s why this is very emotional and very serious to me.”
“There is not one government official, one elected official that will ever be able to come in and solve the ills of a community without the community participating. These are our children; they are our responsibility. It’s our community. And together, we really can stand and make a difference,” May said.
Images for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Home Invasion, Shooting Took Place At Home Used For Drug Distribution, ECSO Says
February 26, 2020
The reported home invasion that ended with a shooting Monday off Nine Mile Road was at a residence being used for drug activity, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shots fired call on Sunnehanna Boulevard shortly after 2 p.m. Monday. They discovered it was possibly a home invasion, and the suspect had been driven to a local hospital and dropped off.
The ECSO obtained a search warrant, and what they found inside the home added another angle to the investigation.
“We did a search warrant that uncovered evidence of narcotics distribution inside,” ECSO Major Andrew Hobbs said. “But the homeowner is not being forthcoming and stories don’t match. At this point we are not sure if it was a home invasion or a drug deal gone bad.”
The alleged suspect was dropped off at West Florida Hospital with gunshot wounds by someone driving a pickup truck. A deputy spotted the pickup in the parking lot and gave chase. After the pickup collided with several vehicles, the chase was called off.
At last report, there had been no arrests in the case as deputies work through their investigation.
“The person sitting in the hospital with gunshot wounds is not being cooperative and neither is the homeowner,” Hobbs said.
Photos courtesy Renee Beninate/WEAR 3 for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Century Man Charged With Breaking Into Home, Maybe Even Swinging On The Porch
February 26, 2020
A Century man has been charged after allegedly breaking into an unoccupied home, perhaps even swinging on the front porch while he was there.
Christopher George Pace, 37, was booked into the Escambia County Jail on charges of burglary and criminal mischief with property damage.
A Cantonment man reported that someone burglarized a house he owns in the 300 block of Front Street in Century. When he arrived at the home, he was unable to open the front door, crawled through a window and discovered the front door had been secured from the inside using a 2×4. He said the windows inside his house had been covered by items left inside to make repairs, such as tar paper, plywood and insulation boards, making it impossible for anyone to see inside of the home. The owner also reported that the backdoor was unlocked and that a window with a broken pane was slightly opened at the bottom.
He placed a camera in order to identify who had been entering his home and later captured a man he recognized as Pace at the window and door, according to an Escambia County Sheriff’s Office report. A neighbor also reported seeing a white male matching Pace’s general description sitting in the home’s front porch swing.
When deputies made contact with Pace, he told them he owned that house, not the victim, the report states. The victim denied the claim, stating that he has owned the property for the past 10 years and Pace has not right of any kind to the home.
Escambia River Gun Club’s Foundation Presents Law Enforcement Student Scholarships
February 26, 2020
Representatives from the ERML Sportsman Foundation visited the George Stone Technical College’s Criminal Justice Training Center on Feb. 25 to present two students attending the GSTC Law Enforcement Academy with scholarship checks for $1000 each to help the students cover the cost of tuition and lab fees
The ERML Sportsman Foundation presented scholarships Tuesday to two students at the George Stone Technical College’s Criminal Justice Training Center.
Pierce Cotton and J.T. McDaniel received $1,000 each to help cover the cost of tuition and lab fees.
“You guys are the next generation of law enforcement officers. You are the people that protect us. The Escambia River Gun Club has always been supportive of law enforcement and, we give scholarships. So,two of you guys are going to get scholarships today,” said Mike Roberts, member of the Escambia River Gun Club and president of the ERML Foundation. “A lot of times you guys might feel that you are not appreciated. You really are. The people who do appreciate you are the good guys. The ones that don’t appreciate you, they are the bad guys and they are the ones that you are going to be putting in jail.”
The GSTC Criminal Justice Training Center requires 770 hours of training
Pictured: (L-R) ERML Foundation President Mile Roberts; GSTC Criminal Justice Training Center students Pierce Cotton at J.T. McDaniel, Foundation Treasurer Richard Holsher and Foundation member Bob Drandridge during a scholarship presentation Tuesday. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Breezy Wednesday, Colder Nights Ahead
February 26, 2020
Here is your official North Escambia are forecast:
This Afternoon: Partly sunny, with a high near 60. A slight chance of a shower. Northwest wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.
Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 35. Northwest wind 5 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 54. North wind 5 to 10 mph.
Thursday Night: Clear, with a low around 32. Northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Friday: Sunny, with a high near 61. Light west wind increasing to 5 to 10 mph in the morning.
Friday Night: Clear, with a low around 38. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 64. Northwest wind around 5 mph.
Saturday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 40. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm after midnight.
Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 66. Light south wind increasing to 5 to 10 mph in the morning.
Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 49.
Monday: Partly sunny, with a high near 70.
Monday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 58.
Tuesday: A 30 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 74.
Junkyard Training: Firefighters Practice Extrication Skills
February 26, 2020
Escambia Fire Rescue firefighters hit the junkyard Tuesday to practice their vehicle extrication skills.
Crews focused on speciality equipment carried by Squad 3 — the county’s special operations team. They used battery-powered “Jaws of Life” and a strutting system, which much like an Erector set that can be used to stabilize a vehicle.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Tate Softball Takes Two From Escambia; Flomaton Baseball Beats Northview
February 26, 2020
SOFTBALL
Tate 5, Escambia 1 (varsity)
The Tate Lady Aggies beat Escambia 5-1 Tuesday night.
Avery Beauchaine earned the win for the Aggies, pitching a complete game allowing four hits and one run while striking out eight.
At the plate for the Aggies: Hannah Halfacre 2-4, R, RBI; Avery Beauchaine 1-4, RBI, 2B; Lilly Locke 1-2, R; Christina Mason 2-2; Ryleigh Cawby 1-4, R; Cam Wolfenden 1-1, R; Madison Holland RBI; Sophia Jones 1-3, RBI; Courtney Lundquist 2-3, R, RBI, 2B.
Tate 14, Escambia 7 (JV)
BASEBALL
Flomaton 6, Northview 3
The Flomaton Hurricanes defeated the Northview Chiefs 6-3 Tuesday night after falling behind in the bottom of the second.
Alex Cash went six innings for the Hurricanes, striking out five while allow three runs on one hit. Jackson Steele tossed on inning in relief.
Cash went 1-4 with one run at the plate. Also for Flomaton: Sam Smith 2-4, 2RBI, 3B; Jackson Steele 2-3, 2R; Jerry Carnley 1-3, R, RBI; Dalton Kent 1-1 , R; Will Rolin 1-2, R; Will Smith RBI.
Northview’s Adam Aliff went for two innings, allow three runs on one hit while striking out four. Bradley Freeman threw four innings, allowing two runs on four hits and striking out two.
For Northview: Jamarkus Jefferson, 1-4, R; Bryce Korinchak R; Dalton Burke R; Adam Alif RBI.
Tate Girls Tennis At 2-0 After Win Over Washington
February 26, 2020
The Tate High Aggies girls tennis team is off to a 2-0 start to their season after 3-2 win over Washington Tuesday.
The Aggies had big wins with Emily Grover (8-8, 10-8), Kasidy Butler (8-5), and Taji Williams, who was down 3-1 but charged back to an 8-5 win.
Tate’s next match is at Navarre on Thursday.
Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlargge.