Parole Denied For Local Cop Killer, Release Date Extended
March 23, 2018
At a parole hearing this week, a convicted cop killer will stay in prison
The Florida Commission on Offender Review voted to extend Cliff Jackson’s presumptive release date by three years to June 8, 2085. His eligibility for parole will not be reviewed by the commission again for seven years.
Jackson and co-defendant, Clarence Hill, held up the Freedom Savings and Loan in downtown Pensacola on October 19, 1982. As law enforcement attempted to apprehend Jackson and Hill, Pensacola Police officers, Stephen Taylor and Larry Bailey were shot. Taylor, 26 years old, died after being shot in the head and abdomen.
Bailey recovered from a gunshot wound to the neck.
Jackson and Hill were arrested following a shootout with law enforcement near Freedom Savings and Loan.
Jackson entered a plea to charges of murder, attempted murder and armed robbery and was sentenced to life in prison with no parole for 25 years. Although defendants who receive life sentences in Florida today must serve life without the possibility of parole, Jackson’s crimes occurred before the law changed. As a result, he is entitled to be considered for parole.
Hill was convicted of the murder of Stephen Taylor and was sentenced to death. Hill was executed in September 2006.
At Jackson’s parole hearing ths week, a prosecutor from the State Attorney’s Office, argued that Jackson’s presumptive release date should be extended based upon his unsatisfactory institutional conduct and failure to participate in any of Florida Department of Corrections programs.
State Attorney Bill Eddins stated that an assistant State Attorney attends almost all parole hearings that involve murder. It is the policy of the State Attorney’s Office for the First Judicial Circuit that the office opposes parole for any defendant convicted of killing a law enforcement officer.
Early Morning Fire Destroys Molino Mobile Home
March 23, 2018
Fire destroyed a mobile home early Friday morning in Molino.
Firefighters were called to a reported outside fire about 2 a.m. but arrived to find the 1969 model 12 x 16 mobile home on Brickyard Road already burned to the ground.
It was not immediately known if anyone was at home at the time of the fire.
The mobile home was next door to a shack or other structure that burned to the ground late on the night of March 8.
The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Florida State Fire Marshal’s Office. Further details have not been released.
The Molino, Cantonment and McDavid stations of Escambia Fire Rescue and Escambia County EMS responded to the blaze.
Pictured top and below: Firefighters battle a mobile home fire in Molino early Friday morning. Pictured bottom: The fire (on right) was next door to a structure that burned on March 8 (seen to the left of the tree). NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Jay Man Facing Weapons, Burglary, Theft Charges
March 23, 2018
A Jay man is facing property crime charges in Alabama and a weapons charge in Florida.
Matthew Craig Bauldree, 48, was allegedly in possession of a sawed-off shotgun when he was arrested by the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office He is in the Santa Rosa County Jail on charges of possession of a short barreled gun and possessing an altered firearm.
Santa Rosa County deputies were arresting Bauldree on charges out of Escambia County, AL, where he allegedly burglarized a building and stole a 2003 Yamaha ATV from a hunting camp on Bethel Road, just north of the state line east of Brewton.
Despite no vehicle identification number on the ATV, investigators with the Escambia County (AL) Sheriff’s Office were able to track the ATV to Santa Rosa County. Further investigation and witness interviews led to Alabama authorities issuing a warrant for Bauldree’s arrest.
Bauldree will be extradited back to Escambia County, AL, to face burglary and theft charges.
Dental Job Fair Next Week In Century
March 23, 2018
A “Dental Job Fair” will be held next Wednesday in Century.
Open positions include dentist, dental assistant and dental receptionist. Interviews are by appointment only and will take place on March 28 at 501 Church Street in Century.
Email a resume to drichardson@healthcarewithinreach.org to be considered for one of the positions.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Tate Takes Third In Aggie Classic, Union Redskins Win Tourney
March 23, 2018
That Tate Aggies took third place in 25th Annual Aggie Classic, while the Union Redskins of Oklahoma beat Mustang for first place.
The Aggies beat Casica Hall 8-5 after taking a late lead in the sixth inning.
Tate is 7-3 on the season and went 3-0 in the tournament, but due to a tiebreaker based on runs during the tournament was not in the running for first place. The Tate Aggies won the Aggie Classic for the past two years.
Blue Jacket Jamboree And Livestock Show Are Saturday
March 23, 2018
The Northview High School FFA Blue Jacket Jamboree is Saturday in Molino, along with the Gulf Coast Agriculture & Natural Resources Youth Organization Annual Spring Livestock Show.
The Blue Jacket Jamboree is a free festival from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. that will feature over 30 vendors — including clothing, essential oils, Scentsy, baked goods, peanuts, birdhouses, cedar furniture, Mary Kay, Thirty-One, honey, Tupperware, pork rinds, kettle corn, funnel cakes, lemonade and much more.
There will be an Easter Egg drop at 11 a.m. with the Easter Bunny and Kazoo from the Blue Wahoos and over 2,500 eggs including a special section for preschoolers. There event will also have bounce houses, a blood drive, cow train, car show and LifeFlight is scheduled to be there.
Live entertainment will include Molino’s very own Southern Revival band.
This year’s livestock show begins at 8 a.m. with over 100 4-H and FFA youth exhibiting hogs, beef cattle, sheep, goats, poultry, and rabbits from Escambia and neighboring counties. The day will conclude with youth exhibitors auctioning off their market animals beginning at 5 p.m.
Admission and parking are free for both the Blue Jacket Jamboree and livestock show at the Escambia 4-H Livestock Facility located at 5701 Highway 99 in Molino.
The Blue Jacket Jamboree is sponsored in part by NorthEscambia.com
Pictured top and bottom: Last year’s Blue Jacket Jamboree .NorthEscambia.com file photos.
Tate Tennis Teams Earn District Wins
March 23, 2018
The Tate High School tennis teams defeated Escambia High School and Pine Forest last week, and Thursday they defeated Washington High School. The Tate tennis boys are now 8-2, and the girls are 9-1 in district play. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Jeff Sessions, Speaking In Florida, Talks Opioid Fight
March 23, 2018
TALLAHASSEE — Two days after instructing federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty in drug-related cases, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions came to Tallahassee on Thursday to promote President Donald Trump’s plan to combat the deadly opioid epidemic.
Sessions, addressing dozens of law enforcement officials, defended Trump’s controversial death-penalty position, which has sparked pushback from Democrats and others who accuse the president of targeting minorities in a newly resurrected war on drugs.
“We will not hesitate to pursue maximum sentences allowed by law, and if appropriate, the death penalty. Our message should be clear. Business as usual is over,” Sessions, a former U.S. senator from Alabama, said during Thursday’s 30-minute speech inside the federal courthouse. “Plain and simple, drug traffickers show no respect for human dignity. They put their greed ahead of the safety and even the lives of others, knowing people will be dying as a result of their products.”
The president’s “Initiative to Stop Opioid Abuse,” released Monday, addresses issues such as over-prescription, illegal drug supplies, and access to recovery and support services, such as medication-assisted treatment.
Sessions announced Thursday that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is sending 250 task force officers, and dozens of analysts, to places in the nation “where the opioid crisis is at its worst.”
The task forces will focus on drug traffickers and medical professionals who “are fueling the opioid crisis,” Sessions said.
“Drug trafficking leads directly to addiction. Addiction leads to death around our country. It’s also an inherently violent and deadly business,” he said.
The president’s plan also includes a national campaign to raise awareness about the dangers of prescription and street drugs, as well as support for research to develop a vaccine to prevent opioid addiction.
The same day Trump announced his proposal, Gov, Rick Scott signed into law a sweeping measure aimed at keeping patients from getting hooked on powerful prescription drugs and then turning to even deadlier street drugs like heroin and fentanyl. The $65 million package, nearly half of which comes from federal funds, includes a controversial provision that places limits on prescriptions that doctors can write for treatment of acute pain.
Doctors in many cases would be limited to writing prescriptions for three-day supplies, though they could prescribe up to seven-day supplies of controlled substances if “medically necessary.” Cancer patients, people who are terminally ill, palliative care patients and those who suffer from major trauma would be exempt from the limits.
Neither Scott nor Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, who has led efforts to combat opioid addiction, were present for Sessions’ speech, the second recent opioid-focused talk the U.S. attorney general has delivered in Florida.
Speaking in Tampa last month, Session created headlines when he said patients in pain “need to take aspirin sometimes” rather than addictive opioids.
Sessions’ Tallahassee appearance came on the same day Kellyanne Conway, a Trump administration official who oversees the White House’s efforts to combat the opioid crisis, advised a group of college students to “eat the ice cream, have the French fry, don’t buy the street drug,” according to a report in The Hill.
In Tallahassee, Sessions — who recently created a task force to look into bringing lawsuits against opioid manufacturers and distributors — avoided the mention of aspirin, but he reiterated that doctors are over-prescribing pain medications.
Sessions also said he has assigned a dozen federal prosecutors to “opioid hot-spots” — including the Middle District of Florida — to focus on investigating and prosecuting opioid-related health care fraud.
But Democrats blasted the Trump administration’s approach to the opioid epidemic, accusing the president of targeting minorities in a revamped war on drugs.
“Trump’s plan to deal with the opioid crisis is more of the same — a lot of talk and no action — furthermore he is proposing outrageous, dictatorship-style sentences like capital punishment for drug offenders,” state Rep. Shevrin Jones, D-West Park, said in a statement. “Jeff Sessions continues to carry Trump’s policies and message — which target communities of color and offers no meaningful action and too few funding sources for prevention.”
Sessions, meanwhile praised Trump for making it a priority to “defeat the scourge of drugs.”
In a lighter moment Thursday, Sessions, part of an administration where several high-ranking officials have recently been shown the door, alluded to the vagaries of life in the nation’s Capitol.
“It’s great to be here. A little better climate — I’m talking about weather and politics — than Washington, D.C.,” Sessions joked. “It’s a rough bunch up there. I don’t even have a dog. At least you should have a dog in that forsaken place.”
Sessions’ visit came less than a day after Congress approved a $1.3 trillion spending package that includes $3.3 billion for mental-health and substance-abuse treatment and services.
The attorney general said Trump is seeking an additional $6 billion next year, and another $6 billion the following year, to combat what he characterized as the nation’s “deadliest drug crisis ever.”
Drug overdoses are now the leading cause of death for Americans under age 50, Sessions said. In 2016, 64,000 Americans died from drug-related causes, an increase from 52,000 the prior year and the equivalent of the city of Daytona Beach, according to Sessions. And deaths in 2017 are expected to climb even higher, he predicted.
“We need to reverse that trend,” Sessions said.
The data is Florida is just as grim. A report from Florida’s medical examiners released in November showed dramatic increases in all types of drug-related deaths, including a 97 percent increase in deaths caused by the synthetic opioid fentanyl.
The number of opioid-related deaths — 5,725 in 2016 — grew by 35 percent. Opioids were either the cause of death or were present in the people who died, according to the report.
Even more troubling, medical examiners reported that deaths related to all kinds of drugs — prescription drugs, such as oxycodone, and street drugs, like heroin and cocaine — and alcohol were on the rise.
And, doctors and experts say, the numbers of drug-related deaths are more dire than the data in the report reflects.
“These are not just numbers. They are moms and dads, brothers and sisters, daughters, spouses, friends and neighbors. It’s just a very sad thing. More and more people are being touched by this disaster,” Sessions said.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Fire Damages Chiropractic Office
March 23, 2018
Fire damaged a business in Pensacola Thursday. The started about 5:15 p.m. at Chiropractic Solutions of Pensacola on East Burgess Road. The fire was quickly brought under control. There were no injuries reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Wanted Cantonment Man Arrested Day After High Speed Pursuit; Speeds Topped 100 MPH
March 22, 2018
Deputies have arrested a man they say led them on a high speed chase through North Escambia Monday night, reaching speeds of up to 110 mph.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office received a tip that Marcelo Adrian Reyes was on his way to his girlfriend’s house in the 1500 block of Lake Drive in Cantonment. They responded to serve five felony burglary related warrants.
About 10:19 p.m., deputies spotted Reyes arriving in a gold Toyota Camry, but he saw them, making a u-turn and fleeing. On the way, he allegedly hit a deputy’s vehicle “in what appeared to be an intentional attempt to incapacitate ” it, according to an arrest report. The deputy reported that Reyes intentionally aimed for his patrol vehicle. Damage to the vehicle was minor, and the deputy was not injured.
Another deputy initiated a vehicle pursuit with lights and sirens activated, but Reyes “made no attempt to slow down or stop,” the report states. “Reyes drove at speeds between 90-110 mph and drove in such a way that demonstrated a wanton disregard to a person or property.”
Local residents told NorthEscambia.com that the pursuit continued into Molino, traveling along Highway 95A. The Sheriff’s Office said the pursuit was canceled with the vehicle last seen traveling north on Highway 29. But the arrest report does not specify where the pursuit was called off.
The following day, Reyes called the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and said he would be on his knees in the parking lot of the Hardee’s at 2500 Wilde Lake Boulevard. He was placed under arrest without incident.
Reyes was arrested on two counts of criminal mischief property damage, burglary of an unoccupied dwelling, burglary of an unoccupied conveyance and grand theft — all felony charges. The warrant stemmed from an early March incident on Thoroughbred Road in Beulah.
Reyes was headed to his boss’s house in order to pickup up his check, but his gold Camry overheated and parked in the parking lot of the Tom Thumb at the corner of Nine Mile Road and Beulah Road before walking to the house, a witness said.
He then allegedly broke into his boss’s home in an unsuccessful attempt to find a five gallon bucket of quarters While there allegedly entered a garage, rummaged through a 1963 Volkswagon camper van, causing $4,000 in damage to the custom interior and stole items from a saddlebag attached to a Harley motorcycle. He also allegedly entered the home by breaking the lock on an exterior door and damaged newly refinished kitchen cabinets.
Reyes remained in the Escambia County Jail Thursday morning with bond set at $155,000.