Tate Aggie Family Honors Lives Of Student Athlete And His Sister
January 16, 2019
The Tate Aggie family paid an emotional tribute to three-sport athlete and honor student Sean Banks and his sister — his biggest fan — before their basketball win over Gulf Breeze Tuesday night.
Banks, a 15-year old sophomore, and sister Antoinette McCoy were killed in a tragic car crash early Saturday morning when their vehicle was hit by an alleged DUI driver on East Kingsfield Road. It was just hours after Banks’ last basketball game for Tate, and only about a month since McCoy graduated from college.
Players, cheerleaders and fans formed a circle around the Banks family as they sat behind the Tate bench wearing shirts that said “Rest In Heaven” with a picture of Sean Banks kissing Antoinette McCoy on the cheek. An empty seat was placed next to the siblings’ mother, Davisa Banks. That’s where Antoinette would usually be found, cheering on her younger brother. Flowers and a “Rest In Heaven” shirt were place on the seat, and the family was presented with personal notes from the Aggie family.
For a photo gallery, click here.
To honor Sean, coaches placed red roses on a seat on the Tate bench. Head coach Clyde Abney placed Sean’s #40 jersey on the chair, along with a signed basketball. Abney wiped away tears afterwards before covering his face with his hands.
Players and cheerleaders were emotional, wiping away the tears as they stood arm-in-arm.
A moment of silence was held. A peaceful quiet fell over the gym, followed by sobbing.
Most of the standing room only crowd wore white to honor Banks, and students held signs like “Long Live Banks”, and “be like Sean #aggiestrong”. “Play for Sean” was one of the signs on the gym wall. Varsity players wore Banks’ #40 on a black band on their shoulders and a “4″ and “0″ on their socks.
And they did it for Sean, beating rival Gulf Breeze 86-79. For game details and photos, click here.
For a photo gallery from the memorial, click here.
RELATED STORIES:
- Bond Revoked For DUI Manslaughter Suspect
- GoFundMe Established For DUI Crash Family; Tate ‘Numbers’ Memorial Honors Banks
- Tate Aggies Football Banquet Honors Student Athlete Killed In Crash; Mom Addresses Attendees
- Tate High Aggie Family Mourns Loss Of Student Sean Banks
- Two Killed In East Kingsfield Crash; Cantonment Man Charged With DUI Manslaughter
Pictured top: A memorial to Tate High Aggie basketball player Sean Banks #40. Pictured inset: Tate head coach Clyde Abney places the jersey Sean would have wore Tuesday night on the seat. Pictured below: A seat for Antoinette McCoy next to the siblings’ mother, Davisa Banks. Pictured second below: Standing arm in arm, players and cheerleaders sobbed during the ceremony. Pictured third below: An emotional Abney buries his head in his hands. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Bond Revoked For DUI Manslaughter Suspect
January 16, 2019
The man accused of the DUI crash that took the lives of a brother and sister early Saturday morning appeared before a judge Tuesday.
Judge Kerra Smith revoked bond for 24-year old Hunter Russell Black in an unrelated battery case from October 2018. Black was in a pre-trail diversion program on that charge, and a condition of his release was that he would not get arrested.
The Florida Highway said Black was traveling west on Kingsfield Road near Kingslake Drive about 12:30 Saturday morning 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 charged with two counts of DUI manslaughter and two counts of reckless driving causing serious bodily injury by the Florida Highway Patrol. He was released from jail about 1 a.m. Sunday on a $25,000 bond. He was returned to jail Monday after a motion was filed to revoke his bond on the 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.
Black is scheduled to appear in court for an arraignment hearing in the DUI manslaughter case on February 1.
The State Attorney’s Office has filed a motion to have the charges against Black upgraded to two counts of vehicular homicide. Each count can carry up to 15 years in prison.
RELATED STORIES
- Tate Aggie Family Honor Lives Of Student Athlete And His Sister
- Tate Aggies Beat Gulf Breeze In Important District Game
- GoFundMe Established For DUI Crash Family; Tate ‘Numbers’ Memorial Honors Banks
- Tate Aggies Football Banquet Honors Student Athlete Killed In Crash; Mom Addresses Attendees
- Tate High Aggie Family Mourns Loss Of Student Sean Banks
- Two Killed In East Kingsfield Crash; Cantonment Man Charged With DUI Manslaughter
Pictured top: Hunter Black appeared in video court Tuesday in a battery case. Image courtesy WEAR 3 for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
New Convenience Store Planned For Hwy 29, Hwy 97 In Molino
January 16, 2019
Plans are once again in the works for a new convenience store at the intersection of Highway 29 and Highway 97 in Molino.
Escambia County Development Services records shows Insite Engineering of Birmingham, AL, has submitted initial planning documents for the convenience store on 8.22 acres at the northwest corner of the intersection, across Highway 97 and north of the current Tom Thumb store
The property is currently woodlands and has had no previous development. The area to be disturbed is about 4.5 acres.
Documents show the estimated size of the building to be 6,000 square feet.
The property is owned by DGS Holdings of Atmore. In late 2017, plans were submitted to Escambia County by s Diamond Gasoline of Atmore for a convenience store on the property, but that project was not completed.
The Escambia County Development Review Committee will hold a pre-application meeting on store plans this Thursday afternoon. Before construction could begin,the plans must go through several more steps in the county approval process. At the pre-application stage, there is no assurance that plans will ever reach the construction stage or that the facility will have the currently outlined layout.
NorthEscambia.com graphic showing plans for a new convenience store in Molino, click to enlarge.
Tate Aggies Beat Gulf Breeze In Important District Game
January 16, 2019
The Tate Aggies defeated the Gulf Breeze Dolphins 86-79 Tuesday night.
Before the game, a memorial for player Sean Banks and his sister was held. Click here for details and photos.
Junior Guard Love Bettis led the scoring for the Aggies with 43 points. With the win, the Aggies improved to 12-5, 4-0 in the district.
For a gallery from the boys and girls varsity, click here.
RELATED STORIES
- Bond Revoked For DUI Manslaughter Suspect
- GoFundMe Established For DUI Crash Family; Tate ‘Numbers’ Memorial Honors Banks
- Tate Aggies Football Banquet Honors Student Athlete Killed In Crash; Mom Addresses Attendees
- Tate High Aggie Family Mourns Loss Of Student Sean Banks
- Two Killed In East Kingsfield Crash; Cantonment Man Charged With DUI Manslaughter
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
District 5 Commissioner Schedules Town Hall Meeting In Molino
January 16, 2019
Escambia County District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry will hold a town hall meeting next month in Molino.
The meeting will take place Tuesday, February 12 at 5:30 p.m. at the Molino Community Center at 6450 Highway 95A. Residents are invited and encouraged to attend the open forum event.
Bill Would Let Students Be Excused From Jury Duty In Florida
January 16, 2019
Many full-time students in Florida could be excused from serving on juries, under a proposal filed Tuesday for the 2019 legislative session.
The measure, filed by Rep. Melony Bell, R-Fort Meade, would allow people to request being excused from jury duty if they are 21 or younger and are enrolled as full-time students in high schools, state colleges, state universities or private postsecondary institutions.
Current law allows some other groups to be excused from jury service, including law-enforcement officers who are excused unless they choose to serve. Judges, for example, also excuse women who are expectant mothers and may excuse attorneys and physicians. Also, the governor and members of the state Cabinet are disqualified from jury service,
by The News Service of Florida
Two East Brewton Residents Killed In Northern Santa Rosa County Wreck
January 16, 2019
UPDATED 4:30 p.m. — Two East Brewton residents lost their lives in a single vehicle wreck Tuesday night in northern Santa Rosa County.
Jessica M. Haveard, 19, was northbound on Highway 87 near Hopewell Road when she lost control, ran off the roadway and collided with a culvert, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. Her Jeep Patriot then overturned, ejecting the her and her passenger, Kenneth Tanner Mason Few, 21. Both were pronounced deceased on the scene.
They were not wearing their seat belts.
Century Man Seriously Injured In Highway 29 Crash With 18-Wheeler
January 15, 2019
A 28-year old Century man was seriously injured when he collided with an 18-wheeler in Molino Tuesday morning.
William Hamilton was northbound on Highway 29 northbound near Victory Assembly of God Church when he rear-ended an 18-wheeler just before 11 a.m. The Florida Forest Service truck had started to slow to make a turn, but Hamilton “failed to maintain awareness”, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
After being extricated from the pickup, Hamilton was airlifted by LifeFlight helicopter to Sacred Heart Hospital.
The driver of the Forest Service truck, 23-year old Cody Green of Molino, and his passenger, 40-year old Charles Hazlewood also of Molino, were taken by ambulance to West Florida Hospital for minor injuries.
Hamilton was cited by the FHP for careless driving.
The Molino, Cantonment, McDavid and Ensley fire stations, Escambia County EMS and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office also responded.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Fire Destroys Garage And Storage Shed In Cottage Hill
January 15, 2019
An early morning fire destroyed a large detached garage and a storage shed in Cottage Hill.
The blaze was reported about 3:30 a.m. in the 1800 block of North Highway 95A, south of Stacey Road. The 840 square-foot garage and a smaller shed were a complete loss.
There was no immediate word on the cause of the fire, and there were no injuries reported.
The Cantonment, Molino, Ensley, Bellview, Beulah and Brent stations of Escambia Fire Rescue responded, along with Escambia County EMS.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Century Six: Three Fugitives Behind Bars; Three More Added To Wanted List
January 15, 2019
Three of the first members of the “Century Six” are behind bars, and new members have been named. The “Century Six” is a new fugitive listing from the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office focusing on those that live in the North Escambia area.
William Hamilton was arrested on an outstanding battery warrant [read more]. Robert Stabler and Christopher Moye are behind bars in Escambia County, AL. Moye was one of two inmates that escaped on Friday, and he was back in custody by Saturday. [Read more about the escapes ...]
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office has added Deandria Johnson, wanted for violation of probation, Marvin Moorer, wanted for failure to appear and Amber Victor, wanted for failure to appear, to the latest “Century Six.”
Anyone with information on the whereabouts on any of the Century Six is asked to contact the ECSO at (850) 436-9620 or to remain anonymous call Gulf Coast Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
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