Pensacola Fitness Shooting Suspect Indicted For First Degree Premeditated Murder
June 23, 2022
An Escambia County grand jury has indicted the man accused of shooting and killing his ex-girlfriend last month at Pensacola Fitness.
Kennon Nicholas Farrow, 39, was indicted on charges of first degree premeditated murder with a firearm, violation of an injunction against domestic violence and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon for the fatal shooting May 24 at Pensacola Fitness on North 9th Avenue at Creighton Road.
At 4:25 a.m., Farrow allegedly entered the gym armed with a handgun and fired several shots at 48-year Carla Elaine Williams. She was hit multiple times and pronounced deceased at the scene.
Farrow fled the scene and was later arrested during a traffic stop at Nine Mile Road at Beulah Road.
Williams (pictured below) was a beloved associate math professor and former basketball star at Pensacola State College. She worked at PSC for over 24 years in athletics, collegiate high, and the math and computer science departments.
Joan DiMatteo Hackman
June 23, 2022
Joan DiMatteo Hackman of Atmore, AL passed away on Monday, June 13, 2022, with her
family by her side. Mrs. Hackman was born in Wilmington, Delaware on November 23,
1934 to the late Vincent F. DiMatteo and Bertha G. DiMatteo. She was preceded in death
by her parents and by her brother, Robert V. DiMatteo.
She is succeeded by Herbert V. Hackman, Jr., husband; her son Jeff (Rhoda) Hackman of
Spanish Fort, AL; her daughters Sara (Mike) Brown of Atmore, AL, and Margie (Gene)
Pandolfi of Brandon, MS; and her sister Carole J. Lattomus of Wilmington, DE. She has
five grandchildren and three great grandchildren.
Mrs. Hackman was very active in the Atmore community and was very proud of her
service to the community through the Red Cross, and especially her role in the
establishment of the Welcome Center in Heritage Park. She loved the beaches of both the
Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf Coast.
A celebration of life will be held in the coming weeks at Johnson-Quimby Chapel in
Atmore, AL at a date to be announced later, followed by a memorial service the next day at
Saint Anna’s in Poarch, AL.
ECSO Seizes Drugs, Guns, Money, Jewelry, Cars And More In Big Raid
June 23, 2022
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office seized several pounds of methamphetamine, 32 grams of fentanyl, guns, vehicles, and thousands of dollars of cash and jewelry in a major narcotics raid.
The ECSO Narcotics Unit and SWAT team served search warrants at five different homes in the county. Three of the homes were in the 3800-block of West Jordan Street, one in the 2400-block of West Belmont Street and one in the 8000-block of Cayenne Way.
At the five addresses, narcotics investigators located 3.5 pounds of methamphetamine, a pound of marijuana, 32 grams of fentanyl, 8.1 grams of cocaine, 8.5 grams of marijuana edibles, 13.4 grams of MDMA, 4.2 grams of heroin, 5.6 grams of oxycodone, a quantity of promethazine, two pints of promethazine with codeine mixed, $17,947 in cash, and 10 guns.
Investigators also seized five vehicles all believed to be used in drug trade: a 2019 Toyota Camry, 2019 Nissan SUV, 2021 Mitsubishi SUV, 2019 Honda, and a 2021 Maserati utility vehicle. Nearly $100,000 in jewelry and other assets were also seized.
This operation was conducted with the assistance of the United States Postal Inspectors Service, Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Pensacola Police Department, and the United States Army – National Guard.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office named seven suspects:
- Andrea Howard, 33
- Larry Hartley, 34
- Cubie Ball, 32
- Anthony Moore, 31
- Kellie Langle, 40
- Marcus Faggard, 51
- Kewauntez Matthews, 29
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP or the ECSO at (850) 436-9620.
Donna Marie Bell
June 23, 2022
Mrs. Donna Marie Bell, age 64, passed away Saturday, June 18, 2022 at her Flomaton, AL residence.
Mrs. Bell was born in Middletown, PA and had been a long-time resident of Flomaton, AL. She was an avid hunter and fisherwoman; a computer whiz, seamstress, and thoroughly enjoyed a good book. Dawn Lee McKenna was a favorite author of hers. Donna was a member of Ridge Road Baptist Church. She especially enjoyed encouraging and ministering to young adults. She worked with Liberty National Insurance Company for several years. She worked as IT Director for the City of Brewton while serving as Interim Director of the Brewton Public Library between 1993 – 2002. Donna and her husband owned and operated W.J. Hall Logging Co. until 2011, where she kept the books.
She was preceded in death by her husband of 40 years, James William Bell; father and mother, Dewey and Marie Morris; father-in-law and mother-in-law, Rum and Myrdice Bell; several brothers and sisters-in-law; two baby nieces, Tina Marie Morris, and Melanie Nycole Joyner; several aunts, uncles, and cousins. And one special furry friend, Mickey.
She is survived by one daughter, Jeanie Bell Smith of Flomaton; one son, John William Bell of Pueblo, CO; one sister, Debbie (Jeff) Wright of Pineview; one brother, Jerry (Margaret) Morris of Pineview; two granddaughters, Hannah (Artimus) Bell of Denver, CO, and Alyssa (Nyx) Blackwell of Milton, FL; one adopted granddaughter, Corynn Meyer of Denver, CO; two grandsons, Tristan Bell of Flomaton, Tyler Bell of Pueblo, CO; one paternal aunt, Eleanor Morris Whitacre; many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. And one special furry friend, Sue-Sue.
A memorial service will be held at a later date and will be announced by Craver’s Funeral Home.
Late Rally Sinks Wahoos In Loss To Shuckers
June 23, 2022
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos had a prime opportunity to clinch their first half division crown on Wednesday, but saw a late lead slip away in a 5-4 loss to the Biloxi Shuckers.
The Blue Wahoos still need to win only one of their four remaining first-half games against the Shuckers to claim a postseason berth.
Eury Pérez was ambushed by the Shuckers in the first, as Joey Wiemer hit a two-run home run on just the second pitch of his start to put Biloxi ahead 2-0. The young righty settled down after that, striking out six batters and completing 5.0 innings with no further damage.
Paul McIntosh got the Blue Wahoos on the board with a solo homer in the fourth, and a bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the fifth from Troy Johnston tied the game 2-2.
José Devers tripled in the seventh against Carlos Luna (W, 2-4), and Ray-Patrick Didder followed with a go-ahead two-run homer to put Pensacola ahead 4-2. That lead would not last long, however, as Eli Villalobos surrendered a two-run double to Noah Campbell in the bottom of the inning to tie the game up 4-4.
In the eighth, Jakson Reetz took Josh Simpson (L, 3-1) deep for his 15th home run of the season to put Biloxi ahead for good. Zach Vennaro (S, 7) worked a quick ninth to earn the save.
The Blue Wahoos continue their series against the Shuckers on Thursday.
by Erik Bremer, Pensacola Blue Wahoos
Brenda Gibbs Wade
June 23, 2022
Brenda Gibbs Wade, passed away at her home on June 5 th at the age of 78.
Brenda was preceded in death by her husband of 53 years, Dr. Lloyd Robert Wade, Jr. and survived by
her two children Samantha and Chip (Allison). She had three loving grandchildren: Ella, Ford, and Gibbs.
Brenda was a loving sister to her three sisters Girdielene (Shine), Sherry, Marcia, and her brother Johnny
(Julia).
Brenda was a proud spouse of a veteran with 24 years of Military service. Brenda grew up in Atmore,
Alabama and graduated from Escambia County High School in 1962 and Providence Nursing School in
1964. She started her nursing career at Abernathy Hospital in Flomaton Alabama starting in 1965. Being
married to a military officer and stationed in Charleston, South Carolina, San Francisco, California,
Yokosuka, Japan, and Pensacola Florida, she worked at various physician groups across the years. Most
notably Brenda worked side by side with her husband in building a successful OB/GYN practice over the
course of 20 years in Pensacola.
Her natural gift was always serving people which was evident throughout her life. Brenda volunteered
for anything and everything that came across her path. From serving as the Officers Wives Club
president in Yokosuka to a team mom in youth baseball, she was always involved in the community and
Chip and Samantha’s activities. She never missed a baseball game from little league to college games at
the University of Georgia. She was well respected and loved by everyone she touched from the office to
the field, from peers to her children’s friends.
What was truly unique about Brenda is she could do anything, absolutely anything. She would do home
projects at the woodworking facility on Corey Station in Pensacola, she would sharpen the blades on a
lawn mower with a hand file and change her own oil. While these seem like common tasks, she moved
on to rebuilding a 1967 Mercedes 250SE and a 1972 MG Midget in her home garage using only an auto
repair manual from PepBoys and conversations with the guys at Crazy Brothers Exxon in Pensacola.
Brenda could go from the garage to the kitchen table and design a flower centerpiece from scratch,
throw batting practice or play a concert piano piece in the living room. The breadth of her knowledge
and abilities where unparalleled.
A funeral will be held at the Barrancas National Cemetery at Naval Air Station Pensacola on June 29 th at
11:30am. The family will meet attendees between 10:30-11:00 at Olive Baptist Church at 103 W
Winthrop Ave to form a caravan into NAS Pensacola. In lieu of flowers, a memorial fund has been set to
support the needs of veterans pursuing their studies in the fields of Applied Sciences. You may give to
the University of Mississippi Foundation in the Dr. Lloyd R. Wade/Mrs. Brenda Gibbs Wade’s honor,
checks payable to the UM Foundation, address below. You may also
Mostly Clear Tonight; Really Hot Again Thursday
June 22, 2022
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 74. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Thursday: Isolated showers and thunderstorms after 1pm. Sunny and hot, with a high near 101. Heat index values as high as 105. North wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Thursday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 76. Northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening.
Friday: Sunny and hot, with a high near 99. Heat index values as high as 107. Calm wind becoming northwest around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Friday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 77. Calm wind.
Saturday: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1pm. Mostly sunny and hot, with a high near 98. Calm wind becoming south around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Saturday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 75. South wind around 5 mph becoming east after midnight.
Sunday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 1pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 92. East wind around 5 mph.
Sunday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 74. South wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Monday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 1pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 93.
Monday Night: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 73.
Tuesday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 92.
Tuesday Night: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 74.
Wednesday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 91.
With No Candidates, How Will Century Fill Two Council Seats?
June 22, 2022
It appears two Century town council seats will be empty come January because the incumbents are not running again, and no one else qualified as candidates for the seats.
No one qualified by the state-mandated noon deadline on June 17 to run for Seat 3, currently held by Leonard White, and Seat 4, currently held by James Smith, Jr.
Century’s attorney, Matt Dannheisser, has offered a “preliminary thought” on how the seats can be filled, according to a council agenda. He said the seats will simply become vacant at the first council meeting in January. At that meeting, incumbent Sandra McMurray Jackson will be sworn in for another term; she was the only candidate to qualify for her seat and was automatically elected.
Then, at that January meeting, the three sitting council members will appoint two people to the vacant seats, as allowed by the town charter. The charter then specifies a special election will be set for 60 to 90 days later for the two seats.
Dannheisser is expected to provide a formal written recommendation to the town in about two weeks.
Escambia County Supervisor of Elections David Stafford told NorthEscambia.com Tuesday afternoon that it will be up to the town to follow their charter to fill the seats. He said the town will be responsible for the cost of the special election.
Registration Deadline Is Thursday For Tate Cheerleaders’ Lil Aggies Summer Camp
June 22, 2022
The Tate High School Cheerleaders’ Lil Aggies Summer Camp is coming up next week, and the registration deadline is Thursday.
The registration forms and payment are due by Thursday, June 23. The camp will take place at Tate Monday, June 27 through Wednesday, June 29 from 8 a.m. until noon each day. The Tate Aggies cheerleaders will teach athletes the proper stretch techniques, sideline cheers and chants, proper jump techniques and motion placement, as well as stunting and tumbling skill building. There will also be fun games, engaging activities, snacks and drinks.
For registration information, click or tap here.
File photo.
Cantonment Man Charged With Strangling His Girlfriend
June 22, 2022
A Cantonment man has been charged with strangling his girlfriend.
Jaleal Lamar Cummings, 35, was charged with third degree felony domestic battery by strangulation and violation of a domestic violence injunction.
The girlfriend told deputies that she asked Cummings to leave a bedroom because he was drunk, and he responded by placing his hands around her neck and choking her until she could not breathe, according to an arrest report. She said she yelled for help, and a knock on the door caused Cummings to flee. Another adult in the residence heard the screams and knocked on the bedroom door.
Cummings said the girlfriend would not give him his car keys, and there was a verbal-only disagreement before he walked away.
Cummings was released from jail on a $12,000 bond.
Records indicate Cummins was served with an injunction with a no contact order in April 2022.