Century Man Accused Of Attempting To Rob Woman Before Fleeing On A Girl’s Bicycle
October 8, 2020
A Century man is accused of attempted to rob a woman before fleeing on a girl’s bicycle.
Alfreco Lett, 48, was charged with felony attempted robbery. He remained in the Escambia County Jail Thursday with bond set at $30,000.
Lett allegedly approached a woman outside of her residence on Archie Road and demanded money. As she tried to retreat inside her home, Lett jumped on her porch, began yelling and cursing while standing close enough to her face to spit on her, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies said when she told Lett that she did not have any money, Lett hit HER in the mouth, causing her lip to bleed.
Lett then jumped on a girl’s bicycle and rode away toward Salter’s Lake Road, an arrest report states.
The victim told deputies that she knows lett, and he currently lives in a tent on on Pond Street in Century.
Witnesses corroborate the victim’s statements.
Escambia Man Arrested On 15 Child Pornography Charges
October 8, 2020
Agents with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, with assistance from the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office, arrested 44-year old Shawn Eric Caron of 231 Tallow Tree Drive, Pensacola on 15 counts of possession of obscene material depicting child sexual conduct.
The investigation began after an agent identified images of child pornography being downloaded and shared from a computer at Caron’s residence, according to FDLE. The images depicted female and male children under the age of 10.
Caron was arrested in Baldwin County and is awaiting extradition to Escambia County, Florida.
High Speed Chase From Gonzalez To Nine Mile Road Ends With Arrest Of Molino Man
October 7, 2020
A high speed chase that started in the Gonzalez area Tuesday night ended with the capture of a Molino man behind a Nine Mile Road business.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office said they were attempting to serve an arrest warrant for a gun charge on Trey Edward Hudson when he fled in a vehicle from Batson Lane. Deputies gave chase, with Hudson making his way to I-10.
He exited I-10 onto West Nine Mile Road and ran from his vehicle. He was taken into custody behind Beard Equipment Company at 3195 West Nine Mile Road and booked into the Escambia County Jail.
Hudson is charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, failure to appear, possession of drug paraphernalia, resisting arrest, aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, and fleeing and eluding at a high speed.
He is being held without bond.
Cantonment Woman Charged With Child Cruelty For Allegedly Spanking Girl With Extension Cord
October 7, 2020
A Cantonment woman has been charged after allegedly hitting a child multiple times with an extension coard.
Baretha Kendra Grandison, 35, was charged with felony child cruelty. She remained in the Escambia County Jail Wednesday with bond set at $50,000.
The victim told the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office that Grandison had spanked her with an extension cord. That left “bruises, marks and welts”, according to an arrest report.
The report states Grandison said she had spanked the victim on the buttocks with a black leather belt but never used an extension cord. Grandison said the underage victim had been caught sending photos to teenage boys on her phone.
The age of the victim, and the relationship between the victim and grandison were redacted from the arrest report.
Century Still Finalizing Plan To Begin Hurricane Sally Debris Pick Up
October 7, 2020
The Town of Century is still finalizing their Hurricane Sally Debris pick up plan, three weeks after landfall.
An interlocal agreement between the town and Escambia County is in its final stages. Under the agreement, Escambia County’s north end debris contractor, Roads, Inc., will pick up debris in the town, and Century will foot the bill for the portion not reimbursed by FEMA and the state. Interim Town Manager Vernon Prather said that would amount to a 12.5% share for Century.
In an email to Prather, Century town attorney Matt Dannheisser cautioned that the agreement should specify that the town will only be responsible for removal cost for debris collected within the town limits, not in nearby unincorporated areas.
Lawyers for the town and county will finalize the agreement, with the caveat that Century wants t to be notified if and when the total cost hits $100,000 for a town cost of $12,500. That’s because, according to Prather, Century’s general fund has limited funds.
He said the town was financially ill prepared for a disaster.
Atmore Runoff Election: Incumbent Harrison Defeats Gideons For Council Seat
October 7, 2020
Incumbent Chris Harrison was reelected to a third term on the Atmore City Council during a Tuesday runoff election.
With 121 votes, Harrison defeated challenger Bub Gideons with 100 votes for the District 5 seat.
“There are no words to express my gratitude for your support,” Harrison wrote on social media Tuesday night. “I’m incredibly thankful for the opportunity to continue to serve as your councilman. I will strive to do my best in the efforts to make this city even better. Serving you is priority.”
In August, Gideons was on top with 124 votes in a three-way race that included Harrison with 106 votes and Sandra Gray with 98. A runoff was forced since no candidate received a majority of votes cast.
There will be two new council members –Eunice Johnson in District 3 and Shawn Lassiter in District 4 — when the Atmore council is sworn in next month. In addition to Harrison, incumbents Web Nall in District 1 and Jerome Webster in District 2 were also reelected for another term.
Atmore Mayor Jim Staff was also reelected in August for a third term.
Pictured: Atmore council member Chris Harrison listens to a speaker during a council meeting. NorthEscamba.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Here’s The Deal With The Pensacola Bay Bridge, Those Barges And Hurricane Delta
October 7, 2020
The Florida Department of Transportation says they are actively monitoring Hurricane Delta, and they are preparing for possible impacts including heavy rain, flooding and storm surge in Northwest Florida. And those Skanska barges.
“FDOT has made clear it expects the contractors on the Pensacola Bay Bridge to properly secure all equipment ahead of the storm,” according to a statement Tuesday.
A statement released by Skanska USA said, “We continue to closely monitor Hurricane Delta’s path and remain in communication with key partners. Due to the impending hurricane, we are actively securing the project site and all floating equipment. Our main priority remains the safety of the surrounding community and our workers.”
Bridge inspection teams are at the ready to monitor the possibility of bridge closures in the region and crews stand prepared to respond to damage resulting from the storm.
FDOT and its partners have made the reopening of the Pensacola Bay Bridge a top priority with numerous efforts underway. Additional dive teams have been deployed, bringing the total to eight, to assist with the final inspection.
Demolition is focused on three of the spans with the purpose of removing the damaged portions while preventing any further damage to the structure. In the interest of safety, crews are also utilizing remote controlled jack hammers on portions of the structure.
The contractor has ordered three additional cranes to replace existing cranes that were damaged or lost to assist in the process. Two additional subcontractors are also on site with additional equipment and 40 additional personnel to expedite demolition.
Recommended repairs to the damaged areas of the Pensacola Bay Bridge will take approximately six months to complete.
“FDOT recognizes that businesses impacted by the closure of the bridge are concerned about the extended time this critical connection will be out of use,” the agency said in a statement Tuesday.
Pictured: A remote controlled jack hammer being used to demolish a collapsed portion of the Pensacola Bay Bridge.
Four Injured In Highway 29 Wreck
October 6, 2020
Four people were injured in a two vehicle wreck Tuesday afternoon on Highway 29 in front of the paper mill in Cantonment.
One person was taken to the hospital as a trauma alert, and three others suffered injuries that were not considered life threatening in the crash involving a Dodge Ram 2500 and a Hyundai Genesis about 12:45 p.m.
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating and has not released additional details.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Escambia County Issues State Of Emergency, Preparing For Hurricane Delta
October 6, 2020
Escambia County has declared a local state of emergency due to the threat of Hurricane Delta.
During a morning news conference, Escambia Emergency Manager Eric Gilmore said the county is preparing as if Hurricane Delta is headed directly for the county, just in case.
“We are taking this as if we are going to get impacted, that were are going to have a landfall here in Escambia County,” Gilmore said. “We want to scale up as much as we can to be prepared ahead of the storm, and we’ll scale back as needed.”
“Take this time right now to prepare,” he said speaking to the Escambia County citizens. “It’s always best for you to scale up as well, and then we can scale back as needed if we don’t get impacted.”
The Escambia County Emergency Operations Center was already activated at a level 2 due to Hurricane Sally recovery and will continue to be activated due to Hurricane Delta.
Escambia County is urging residents are encouraged to prepare their disaster kits now, which should include seven days of food and water supplies for after the storm arrives. Residents are also encouraged to fuel all vehicles and generators, and prepare all medications needed by family and pets. Individuals should also consider having at least two emergency supply kits, one full kit at home and smaller portable kits in their workplace, vehicle or other places they spend time.
There are currently no evacuations orders issued for Escambia County residents. However, conditions can change rapidly. It is vital that residents monitor local media, including NorthEscambia.com, for the most up-to-date forecasts several times a day and follow any safety directives from Escambia County Emergency Management officials.
Residents should also know their evacuation zone in advance of any possible orders to leave, and know their evacuation plan and route.
Century Grants Late Approval To Budget, Increases Property Taxes And Gives Employee Raises
October 6, 2020
The Century Town Council granted late approval to their annual budget, increased property taxes and handed out employee raises during a Monday night meeting.
The town was required to approve their budget prior to its implementation on October 1, but they were unable to do so at a September 28 special meeting due to the absence of two council members.
With all council members present Monday night, the council approved a property tax increase with a millage rate of .9204, about 5% greater than the rolled-back rate of .8759.T he rolled-back rate is the tax rate that would generate the same amount of property tax revenue as approved for the prior year. A millage rate higher than the rolled-back rate is defined by Florida law as a tax increase.
They also signed off on a $4.14 million budget for fiscal year 2020-2021, up from $3.63 million during the previous fiscal year that ended September 30.
The town council also voted Monday night to grant raises to town employees, in additional to their 3% annual cost of living increase.
Employees received a raise between 1% and 3% based upon the results of a performance review. Eight employees with an “outstanding” review received a 3% increase, four employees with a “very good” review received 2%, and one employee that had a “good” review received 1%.
Two other employs with an “outstanding” review received higher raises.
Kevin Merchant received a 6% raise due to exemplary performance, extra duties due to COVID-19 and fixing water leaks, and Kristina Wood received a 4% raise due to to exemplary performance along with extra duties due to leave taken by another employee and COVID-19.
The cost of living increase went into effect with the passage of the budget, and the performance raises were approved retroactive to the beginning of the current pay period last Friday, October 2. The town had budgeted up to 3% for the performance raises; their approvals Monday night averaged 2.87%.