County Approves Firefighter’s Idea For Perdido River Boat Ramp For First Responders, Small Personal Craft
April 9, 2021
A volunteer firefighter’s idea to improve response time to victims along the Perdido River was unanimously approved Thursday night by the Escambia County Commission.
The commission approved a gated boat launch at the Otto Hill Recreation Area to allow first responders access to the Perdido River, and provide the public with a place to launch small craft.
Commissioner Steven Barry said the launch was the idea of Mark Butler, who is employed by the county as a road corrections officer and is also a volunteer firefighter in Molino.
“He is intimately familiar with some of the challenges and some of the issues they’ve had trying to get to people that are in dire situations on Perdido River in that area,” Barry told his fellow commissioners. “I want to thank Mark Butler for bringing it to me…It is going to be a very good thing for my constituency…not an expensive thing.
“I consider this to be just as important for water safety in your district as lifeguards out on Pensacola Beach,” Commissioner Doug Underhill told Barry. “And this certainly costs a whole lot less, so outstanding work on this one.”
Escambia County will enter into an interlocal agreement with the Northwest Florida Water Management District, design and build a 10-foot wide boat launch with a gate at the Otto Hill. It will be constructed at the site of a former primitive boat launch. The gate across the launch will prohibit nonessential vehicle access by the public. Gate keys will be provided only to county staff and emergency personnel, water management staff, Escambia Search and Rescue, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
While the public will not have vehicle access to the launch, there will be walk-around space to allow the public to hand launch and retrieve canoes, kayaks and small boats.
The Otto Hill Recreation Area is located at 2401 Jacks Branch Road, just south of Fillingim Landing. It has a pavilion, portable toilet and reservation only campsite in addition to river access.
There are several short hiking trails — one of which leads to a picturesque sandbar approximately 100 yards from the main camp site. Under normal conditions, the river is shallow enough in this area to provide a fantastic swimming spot for children, according to the water district.
A short swim or paddle across the river leads visitors to another sandbar and more sunbathing opportunities.
Pictured: The Otto Hill Recreation Area on the Perdido River off Jacks Branch Road. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Northview Gets District Walk-off Win Over Paxton In Extra Innings (With Gallery)
April 9, 2021
The Northview Chiefs had a walk-off district win over the Paxton Lady Cats 3-2 in extra innings Thursday night in Bratt.
The game was tied at two in the bottom of the eighth when Kailyn Watson singled on a 3-2 count to score one run. Payton Gilchrist went 3-4 for the night, and Gilmore was 2-3.
Emma Gilmore gave up five hits in eight innings while striking out 11.
For a photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
You Can Browse The Shelves At West Florida Libraries Beginning April 15
April 9, 2021
For the first time since the start of the pandemic, patrons will once again be able to browse the shelves at West Florida Public Libraries beginning Thursday, April 15.
Online order pickup is still available. Requests for library materials placed prior to arrival will be retrieved and ready for pickup at your vehicle. Designated online order pickup spaces will be marked. Drive-thru services are closed.
West Florida Public Libraries also increased eBook, eAudiobook and eMagazine titles for electronic access during COVID-19.
Pictured: The Century Branch Library. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Driver Crashes Into Tree In Front Yard Of Highway 29 Home
April 9, 2021
One person was transported to the hospital after crashing into a tree in the front yard of a home on Highway 29 Thursday afternoon.
The crash happened about 3:35 p.m. just south of Duxbury Avenue in Molino. The driver’s injuries were not considered life threatening.
Further details have not been released by the Florida Highway Patrol.
The Molino and Cantonment stations of Escambia Fire Rescue and Escambia County EMS responded.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Northview Earns 3-1 District Win Over Jay (With Photo Gallery)
April 9, 2021
The Northview Chiefs topped Jay 3-1 for a district win Thursday night in Bratt.
Northview’s Josh Landis tossed a complete game, allowing one run on two hits while striking out four and walking one. Andrew Diamond took the loss for Jay, going six innings allowing three hits, three runs and striking out five.
Cody Thomas led Northview at the plate, going 2-3 with one RBI. Luke Bridges was 1-3, with an RBI.
Carson Walters was 1-3 with a run for Jay, and Diamond also went 1-3.
The Chiefs are 11-3 on the season, 7-0 in district play. Northview will travel Jay Friday night; a Chiefs’ win would secure the top seed in the district tourney.
For a photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Tate Baseball Beats Niceville 5-1; Pace Tops Tate Softball 3-1 (With Gallery)
April 9, 2021
Tate 5, Niceville 1
The Tate Aggies defeated Niceville 5-1 Thursday night.
Josiah Glodfelter pitched a complete game for the Aggies, allowing one run on four hits and striking out 12.
The Aggies took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on a solo homerun from Drew Reaves. Reaves was 2-2 at the plate with two runs and two RBIs. Jadon Fryman, Zak Licastro and Jordan Jarman also had two hits each for Tate, while Dalton Bowen, Frankie Randall and Bray Touchstone had one each.
For a photo gallery, click here.
SOFTBALL
Pace 3, Tate 1
The Pace Patriots defeated the Tate Aggies 3-1 Thursday night in Pace.
Abbie Burks pitched six innings for Tate, allowing three runs on five hits and striking out three.
Christina Mason and Michayla Kents had one hit each for the Aggies.
Photos by Laura Glodfelter for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Jay Royals JV Tops Northview 10-0 (With Gallery)
April 9, 2021
The junior varsity Jay Royals defeated the Northview Chiefs 10-0 Thursday afternoon in Bratt.
Daniel Riggs started on the mound for Northview, allowing 15 hits and 10 runs and striking out three in five and a third innings. Rylan Minor completed the final two-thirds of an inning allowing one hit and striking out one.
K. Strength was on the mound for Jay, surrendering no runs and no hits over six innings, striking out 10.
For a photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Woman Accused In Tate High Homecoming Vote Scandal Enters Not Guilty Plea
April 8, 2021
The mom and former assistant principal accused along with her daughter of improperly using school district computers to cast Tate High homecoming queen votes entered a plea of not guilty in court Thursday morning.
Laura Carroll, former assistant principal at Bellview Elementary School, and her 17-year old daughter, Emily Rose Grover, were charged by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement with one count each of offenses against users of computers, computer systems, computer networks, and electronic devices (a third degree felony), unlawful use of a two-way communications device (a third degree felony), criminal use of personally identifiable information (a third degree felony) and conspiracy to commit these offenses (a first degree misdemeanor).
Carrol, who is free a $6,000 bond, waived her right to appearance and was not in court Thursday morning. Her case is next set for a docket hearing on July 21.
Grover, who was named Tate High School’s 2020 homecoming queen, will be tried as a juvenile in the case that has received international media coverage.
The investigation began in November 2020 when the Escambia County School District contacted FDLE to report unauthorized access into hundreds of student accounts. The investigation found that Carroll, an assistant principal at Bellview Elementary School, and Grover, a student at Tate High School, had accessed student FOCUS accounts. Carroll had district level access of the school board’s FOCUS program which is the school district’s student information system. FOCUS users are required to change their password every 45 days and Carroll’s annual training for the “Staff Responsible Use of Guidelines for Technology” was up to date.
In October 2020, hundreds of votes for Tate High School’s Homecoming Court voting were flagged as fraudulent, with 117 votes originating from the same IP address within a short period of time. Agents uncovered evidence of unauthorized access to FOCUS linked to Carroll’s cellphone as well as computers associated with their residence, with a total of 246 votes cast for the homecoming court. Multiple students reported that the Grover described using her mother’s FOCUS account to cast votes. The investigation also found that beginning August 2019, Carroll’s FOCUS account accessed 372 high school records and 339 of those were of Tate High School students.
Arrest affidavits obtained by NorthEscambia.com provide more details into the allegations.
When two FDLE special agents responded to Carroll and Grover’s residence in Cantonment to interview them, Carroll immediately stated that she would defer any questions to her attorney, FDLE said.
FDLE received nine statements from students and a teacher that all stated Grover spoke about accessing Carroll’s FOCUS account or they have seen her access it for almost four years.
“I have known that Emily Grover logs into her moms school account in order to access grades and test scores since freshman year when we became friends,” one student said in a statement to FDLE. “She has looked up [redacted] student ID before to [redacted]. She also knows that if she logs into her moms account at Tate it will ping that Laura Grover signed in at Tate High School. She looks up all of our group of friends grades and makes comments about how she can find out our test scores all of the time.”
“When Emily Grover was a sophomore [redacted] class, I recall times that she logged onto her moms focus account and openly shared information, grades, schedules, etc. with others. She did not seem like logging in was a big deal and was very comfortable with doing so,” another statement written by a witness said.
According to FDLE, the Escambia County School District FOCUS program contains grades, medical history, test scores, attendance, disciplinary actions, personnel information, emergency contacts, schedules, exceptional student education (ESE) information, student picture and student identification number. Teachers and staff members are able to view student profiles or more depending on access level.
The school district uses an application called Election Runner to perform activities such as homecoming court voting. FDLE was notified that Election Runner contacted the school district regarding over 100 flagged votes and an ethics complaint involving the Tate High School homecoming voting.
Carroll contested Grover’s expulsion from Tate High School that stemmed from the incident. An administrative hearing was held, and Grover’s expulsion was upheld.
Pictured above and below: Laura Rose Carroll, Bellview Elementary Facebook and Escambia County Jail; Emily Rose Grover, Tate High School’s 2020 homecoming queen, NorthEscambia.com photos.
Woman Not Yet Charged After Shooting And Killing Boyfriend In Atmore Domestic Violence Incident
April 8, 2021
A woman shot and killed her boyfriend in Atmore Wednesday, but so far police say she has not been charged.
The woman called 911 to report that she had shot her boyfriend during a domestic violence incident in the 3300 block of Woods Road.
The Atmore Police Department, Escambia County (AL) Sheriff’s Office and ASAP Ambulance responded. Officers entered the home and found a male on the floor suffering from a single gunshot wound, according to Atmore Police Chief Chuck Brooks.
James Dennis Stanley II of Prichard, Alabama, was pronounced deceased on the scene.
“Evidence collected at the home by investigators suggest a violent confrontation occurred shortly before the shooting occurred,” Brooks said. “At this time, no arrest has been made, but the case is still under investigation by APD Investigations.”
Fire Destroys Log Truck In Cantonment
April 8, 2021
Fire destroyed a log truck in Cantonment Thursday morning.
The blaze was reported shortly before 11 a.m. on Robinson Street, just off Muscogee Road. Firefighters from the Cantonment and Ensley stations of Escambia Fire Rescue used foam to extinguish the flames.
There were no injuries reported and no word on the cause of the fire.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.