Pensacola Police Officer Steven Grogan Passes Away After Battle With Brain Cancer
February 25, 2020
Pensacola Police Officer Stephen Grogan has passed away after battling a rare form of brain cancer.
Officer Grogan passed peacefully just before 7:00 am today at his home with his family by his side.
After being diagnosed at age 31 with glioblastoma in 2017, he underwent multiple rounds of a chemotherapy and radiation treatments. He was able to successfully recover and return to work, but in early 2019 a new tumor was found.
He was a U.S. Marine combat veteran when he joined the Pensacola Police Department in 2016. Grogan is survived by his wife Christina and two little boys.
“I’m proud of the community we live in. They showed a huge amount of concern and support to us and Officer Grogan’s family, and it is appreciated more than they can ever know,” Police Chief Tommi Lyter said.
Mayor Grover Robinson said “I was deeply saddened to learn of Officer Grogan’s passing this morning. It was truly an honor to know him, and to witness his dedication to his family and service to the City of Pensacola. Our hearts are grieving this tremendous loss along with Officer Grogan’s family, the Pensacola Police Department, and the entire community.”
Funeral services and other arrangements have not yet been announced.
To help his family, you can donate here.
Longtime Retired Alabama State Trooper Jimmy Dean Passes Away
February 25, 2020
The Atmore community is mourning the loss of longtime retired state trooper James (Jimmy) Dean.
Dean passed away Saturday at the age of 53 with 25 years of service in law enforcement. He graduated from the Alabama State Trooper Academy in 1995 and retired after 22 years. Shortly after his retirement, he continued to serve his community as a Poarch Creek Indian Tribal police officer.
He was a 1984 graduate of Escambia County High School in Atmore, where he was a member of the 1983 state championship football team. He pursued a collegiate baseball career that began at Patrick Henry Junior College, where he led the team in hitting his freshman year. He then transferred to the University of Montevallo for a short time before finishing his career at Auburn University at Montgomery (AUM) where he was named Offensive Player of the Year while at AUM.
Visitation will be held Wednesday at Petty Eastside Chapel from 6-9 p.m. Funeral services will be held Thursday at 10 a.m. at the McCullough Christian Center with burial to follow at Serenity Garden Cemetery.
For the complete obituary, click here.
FWC Law Enforcement Report: Resident Shoots Deer In Golf Course Community
February 25, 2020
The Florida FWC Division of Law Enforcement reported the following activity during the period ending February 6 in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.
ESCAMBIA COUNTY
Officer Specialist Clark received information of deer being shot in a residential golf course community. The complainant found two separate deer shot in her driveway four days apart.
Officer Specialist Clark and Officer Long went to the residence and talked to the homeowner. As they looked around the property, they noticed a fresh blood trail from the complainant’s residence extending across the road to one of the neighbor’s backyard. There they found a hole with fresh corn and a salt block commonly used to attract deer. There was also evidence of fresh blood trails in the property owner’s driveway.
Officers Clark and Long contacted the owner who admitted to shooting the deer and possibly another one that ran off. The subject had deer meat in a cooler outside his front door and a fresh head of a six-point buck buried by his sidewalk. The subject was cited accordingly.
SANTA ROSA COUNTY
No report received for Santa Rosa county.
This report represents some events the FWC handled during the time period; however, it does not include all actions taken by the Division of Law Enforcement. Information provided by FWC.
NorthEscambia.com photo.
Downtown Atmore Buildings Coming Down, Being Replaced By Green Space
February 25, 2020
An Atmore bank is working to bring new life to a large portion of a downtown block.
Work is underway on the former Western Auto property and adjacent buildings at 121 South Main Street, next to the First National Bank & Trust’s main office. New green space, lights and sidewalks will be added following demolition, and remaining buildings will feature murals depicting Atmore.
“We’re bringing life and opportunities back into community spaces that have been left empty for some time,” said Greg Davis, project lead for the bank. “Transforming this historic vacant property into beautiful, open green space not only fosters growth and stronger communities but also contributes to a cleaner and healthier Atmore.”
The property is almost across the street from the historic Strand Theatre and the Atmore Hardware building that are currently undergoing renovations and restoration. (Click here for an earlier story.)
Pictured top: A drawing of plans for part of the 100 block of South Main Street in Atmore. Pictured below: The buildings that are being demolished. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Northview Softball Takes Two From Laurel Hill
February 25, 2020
The Northview Lady Chiefs defeated Laurel Hill Monday.
Varsity
Northview 16, Laurel Hill 1
Junior Varsity
Northview 5, Laurel Hill 2
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
81-Year Old Cantonment Man Charged With Indecent Exposure
February 25, 2020
An 81-year old Cantonment man has been charged after allegedly exposing himself to two of his neighbors.
Harvey Edward Brewton, 81, was booked Sunday on two counts of indecent exposure for the incident last July. He was released on a $5,000 bond.
The victim told the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office that she had just moved in about a week prior to the incident, and Brewton was always out in his backyard “creeping” around and trying to lure her to the fence. On the day of the incident, he called her to the fence about a limb was down, and while she was speaking with him he bent over crouched in such a way to cause his genitals to be exposed, according to an arrest report.
Brewton told deputies it was an accident.
Another neighbor told deputies that Brewton had exposed himself to her multiple times. Her age is not listed in the reported, but it does sa she told her parents about it.
According to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, Brewton has been listed as a suspect in four similar incidents between November 2002 and May 2019.
Additional Charges Filed Against Walnut Hill Man Accused Of Sexual Battery Of Teen Girl
February 25, 2020
Additional charges have been filed against a Walnut Hill man accused the sexual battery of a teenage girl over a four year period of time.
In January, 40-year old William Isaiah Dunsford was charged with first degree felony sexual battery on a victim over 12 but under 18 by a custodial person. Dunsford has now been charged with two additional counts of first degree felony sexual battery on a victim over 12 but under 18 by a custodial person, lewd and lascivious molestation, and one count of battery by expelling fluids.
According to the State Attorney’s Office, the additional charges were filed against Dunsford after interviewing the victim. He was released from the Escambia County Jail after posting a $212,000 bond. He is due back in court in mid-April.
The investigation began in June 2019 after the victim went to her work supervisor and asked for more hours and a later shift. When the supervisor asked why, she admitted Dunsford had been sexually assaulting her since she was 13, according to an arrest report. The employer contacted law enforcement.
The victim told investigators that Dunsford had sex with her one to two times a week. She said Dunsford tells her that he will take care of her, and when she turns 18 they will be together, according to an arrest report. The victim said multiple times that she does not want anything bad to happen to Dunsford “because she feels as though they are in a loving relationship” and she allows him to have sex with her, the report states.
“He says that he loves me and I tell it to him back,” the victim stated, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office report.
The victim was confirmed to be pregnant at the time of the report last June by the Department of Children and Families, but the report does state who is the biological father of the child.
Dunsford also allegedly took multiple nude photos of the underage victim and instructed her to take photographs of herself and send them to him.
West Florida Hospital Breaks Ground On Nine Mile Road ER
February 25, 2020
West Florida Hospital broke ground Monday on a new $12.4 million standalone emergency department on Nine Mile Road at I-10.
The new freestanding 24/7 emergency room will include 11 private exam rooms, laboratory and diagnostic imaging services .The 10,820 square foot building will also include an ambulance entrance and parking area.
It is expected to open late this year.
Suspect Shot During Apparent Home Invasion Near Nine Mile Road
February 24, 2020
Gunfire was exchanged and a suspect was shot during an apparent attempted home invasion just north of Nine Mile Road Monday afternoon.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shots fired call on Sunnehanna Boulevard shortly after 2 p.m.
It appeared one of the suspects was shot during the gunfire, according Major Andrew Hobbs of the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. That suspect was driven by someone to a local hospital and dropped off.
“Not everyone at the residence is being completely forthcoming at this time,” Hobb said as the ECSO continued their investigation into exactly what happened. A second suspect was believed to have fled, but no description was provided by the resident.
The condition of the person who was shot was not available. Additional details will be posted as they are released.
Photos courtesy Renee Beninate/WEAR 3 for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Cheat On Your Homestead Exemption In Escambia County? Here’s How The Property Appraiser Is Looking For You.
February 24, 2020
Cheating on your homestead exemption in Escambia County? Forgot to remove a homestead exemption that’s no longer valid? Escambia County Property Appraiser Chris Jones is looking to track you down and collect taxes reaching back up to a decade.
Jones has hired Louisiana-based Assessure Systems to comb through the tax rolls in Escambia County, using high-tech tools to track down invalid exemptions and collect what is rightfully due…plus penalties and interest. The program will begin with an audit of properties worth $100,000 or more.
“I have alway aggressively gone after homestead fraud,” he said. “It’s stealing from taxpayers, taking money out of our schools, projects and local coffers.”
Using two investigators and a floater, Escambia County’s local efforts currently uncover up to about a half million dollars per year revenue from fraudulent homestead exemptions, Jones said. With Assessure Systems, he expects that amount to easily double. Currently, about 40 percent of taxpayers identified with an invalid exemption come in and pay, while 60 percent move on to the lien process.
Once it is determined a homestead exemption is not valid, the tax appraiser can collect unpaid taxes from up to 10 years ago, plus a penalty of 50% of the unpaid taxes for each year, plus 15% annual interest. Assessure Systems will receive 28% of the collected tax amount. They receive the 28% at the time of the lien satisfaction and will have mp claim on future revenues. The taxing authority will receive the remaining taxes, along with the penalties and interest.
Once a homestead exemption is identified by Assessure as a potential violation, the process moves to the Property Appraiser’s Office. The owner will receive a 30 days notice by certified mail to explain why exemption is valid. If not, the clock starts ticking on 30 days to pay before a lien is filed. All correspondence will be signed and mailed locally by Jones’ office. The property appraiser has 100% control of the final determination of an invalid exemption.
“It’s not just Assessure making determinations,” Jones said. “Think of it as leads that we are still going to go through and vet.”
There are 163,696 real estate parcels in Escambia County. Of those, there are 70,708 homesteaded properties and 1,559 homesteaded condo units.
The property appraiser believes a higher rate of homestead exemption fraud may exist with condominiums on Escambia County’s beaches where individuals from out of town establish a Florida residence to avoid income taxes in other states.
“I’m going to go after the taxes locally on that doctor or lawyer or whoever is intentionally defrauding, and I’m going to turn them in to Ohio or wherever they are from,” Jones said. “I might deny it for a year, but I’m probably not to prosecute in a case where grandma died and it’s still in her name. I might just deny it for a year while they get everything right.”
Assessure Systems has already completed a sample audit as a test on 1,000 account submitted by the Escambia County Tax Collector. There were 44, or 4.4%, returned as suspect and 12, or 1.2%, were found to be in violation.
Escambia County, the Escambia County School Board and the Town of Century have signed memorandums of understanding with the Property Appraiser’s Office agreeing to give up the 28% fee. The City of Pensacola will likely consider their MOU this week, and the Northwest Florida Water Management District will soon vote. The program will begin when all of the taxing authorities have signed on.
In the state of Florida, a $25,000 exemption is applied to the first $50,000 of your property’s assessed value if your property is your permanent residence and you owned the property on January 1 of the tax year. This exemption applies to all taxes, including school district taxes. An additional exemption of up to $25,000 will be applied if your property’s assessed value is between at least $50,000 and $75,000. This exemption is not applied to school district taxes.
Assessure was founded 10 years ago, has a documented successful track record and is being used by nine other Florida counties. The company has several ad valorem tax related patents pending for scoring algorithms, artificial intelligence and machine learning to audit and entire tax roll in the fraction of time compared to local staff, with a substantial increase in accuracy and returns.