Frank Ard Road Home Damaged By Late Night Fire
November 16, 2009
Fire damaged a Frank Ard Road home late Sunday night.
Escambia Fire Rescue was dispatched to the 2900 block of Frank Ard Road at 11:15 Sunday night. When firefighters arrived minutes later, they reported smoke and flames visible from the brick home. The fire was brought under control by 11:31 p.m. and reported to be out by 11:38.
There were no injuries reported in the fire. The exact cause of the blaze is under investigation by the state Fire Marshal.
The Cantonment, Molino, Ensley and Beulah stations of Esambia Fire Rescue responded to the call.
Frank Ard Road runs north of Quintette Road in the Quintette area of North Escambia.
Sentencing Delayed Again For Corrections Sgt. In Child Porn Case
November 16, 2009
Sentencing has one again been delayed for the former Century Correctional Institution sergeant that pleaded guilty to federal child pornography charges, and he has been accused of violating the terms of his pretrial release.
Paul Edward Black, 42, of Century, entered the guilty plea in federal court back in July. He now faces a term of up to ten years in prison, a $250,000 fine and a lifetime of supervised release.
Black appeared in U.S. District Court Friday in Pensacola for just two minutes for a schedule sentencing hearing. U.S. District Judge Casey Rogers ordered that Black’s sentencing hearing and a hearing on an alleged bond violation would be held at a later date. That date was not set.
According to federal court documents filed by Black’s probation officer, Black ordered a new cellular telephone that was used to access the internet, and billing statements show that internet service was still available through cable television service at his home. According to the term’s of Black’s pretrial release agreement, “possession, access or use of computer or any devices which provide access to internet services is prohibited, including cellular telephone and computer games devices. All computers, laptops and any devices which provide internet access are to be removed from the home.”
Black was originally scheduled to be sentenced in early October by U.S. District Judge Casey Rogers, but the sentencing was continued until November 13 after a motion was filed by Black’s attorney, Thomas S. Keith. Keith told the court in a motion to continue sentencing that Black was undergoing counseling at Cordova Counseling as a condition of his release.Black’s motion asked that sentencing be continued to allow the doctor time to complete the evaluation report.
Deputies seized a laptop computer, desktop computer and 56 CD’s from Black’s residence while he was at work at the Century Correctional facility. When sheriff’s investigators later interviewed Black at CCI, he admitted to searching the Internet for child pornography, according to federal court documents, and admitted to specific search terms that he used such as “teen”, “lolita”, “PTHC” and “Bambina”.
“A forensic review of his electronic media located images and videos of child pornography on his laptop and desktop,” federal court documents signed by Black state. “A review of the compact disks (CD’s) revealed the same.”
Black remains free on bond.
Sheriff’s Office To Present Safety Information Saturday In Molino
November 16, 2009
The Escambia County Farm Bureau Women’s Committee is hosting a series of home and personal safety programs for North Escambia.
The first program will be this Saturday, November 21 at 9 a.m. at Aldersgate United Methodist Church on Highway 29 just south of Highway 97.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office will present ““Safety In the Home, Shopping Safety” and information on other basic safety issues. At the first meeting, Sgt. Kevin Vickrey, who works in the Molino area, and Lt. Pat Spears will provide information specific to living in a rural area, as well as tips to stay safe when starting holiday shopping.
Future talks and workshops are planned around self defense and age-specific issues. For more information, contact the Molino Farm Bureau office at (850) 587-2135.
Tate’s Zach McCulley Signs With William And Mary
November 16, 2009
Tate High School senior Zach McCulley has signed a National Letter of Intent to play baseball at The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.
McCulley gained national exposure this summer at the National Academic Perfect Game Showcase in New Hampshire. He was selected to the Top Prospect List after pitching three shutout innings, giving up just one hit while striking out six and featuring a fast ball clocked in the upper 80’s. Each player who attends this showcase must have at least a 3.0 GPA.
With a six-foot-five, 200 pound frame, this left handed pitcher and first baseman posted a 2-0 record last year for the Aggies including a win over rival Pace. He had a 7-0 record this summer for the Florida Longhorns, including a 2-0 record at the 18U World Wood Bat Championship Tournament in Marrietta, Georgia.
He maintains a 4.5 GPA and entertained offers from Brown, Davidson, Georgetown, Columbia, and all three service academies before settling on William and Mary. McCulley visited the campus earlier this year.
“The offer was the right place and the right time and I am relieved to have made my decision,” McCulley said.
William and Mary will play their most difficult schedule ever in 2010 with nine games against four teams that made the NCAA tournament, including defending national champion LSU.
Pictured top: Tate High senior Zach McCulley signs a National Letter of Intent with William & Mary. At Friday’s signing at Tate, McCulley was surrounded by his mother Susan (left), sister Kaitlin and father Kit. Submitted photo by Deeann Lee for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Online Audio: Listen To Northview Vs. West Florida
November 16, 2009
Northview Chiefs fans can listen to Northview football games here on NorthEscambia.com — the official voice of the Northview High School Chiefs.
You can listen to each game online or even download the game to your MP3 player and take it with you.
The audio from Friday night’s game against West Florida should play automatically on this page. If it does not, click the play icon below.
To download the entire game (MP3 format) for your iPod or other MP3 player, click here..
In order to listen online, do not close this page or window. You can continue surfing the net while you listen by opening a new browser window. You can pause the audio or change the volume using the controls below the photo.
[mp3 autostart="true" repeat="true"]http://www.northescambia.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/westfla.mp3[/mp3]
This audio file is for personal use only. Any commercial use is strictly prohibited.
© 2009 NorthEscambia.com
Veterans Day Programs This Week At Area Schools
November 16, 2009
Veterans Day programs at Molino Park Elementary and Northview High School, rescheduled from earlier this week due to Tropical Storm Ida, will be held next week.
Molino Park Veterans Day Program
Molino Park Elementary students will honor military veterans on Tuesday, November 17,, at 1:00 pm with a patriotic program and donation drive for April Emerald Coast Honor Flight. Each grade level will sing two songs. Special guests will be the Northview High School NJROTC Color Guard, guest speaker Mr. Gary Cooper, and Mrs. Sheila Allen and Mrs. Ginny Cruz, singer/songwriters, singing “Stand Up America”. For further information please contact Alice Woodward, principal, at (850) 587-5265.
Northview Veterans Day Program
The Northview High School Veterans Day Program will be held Wednesday, November 18 at 10:45 a.m.
Old Molino Jail: There’s A Lesson In There Somewhere (With Photo Galleries)
November 16, 2009
Molino was once a bustling little town complete with a mayor, a car dealership, a dentist, a bank, three doctors, a canning factory, a couple of mills, a railroad station — and criminals, mostly men with a little too much booze in them following a good payday.
The time was 1913, and Molino was incorporated as a town. A town hall and jail were constructed. But less than two dozen years later, a devastating fire and the Great Depression put an end to Molino’s roaring times. The town was dissolved in April, 1933, and the town hall and jail were given to Escambia County. Escambia County was charged by the Florida Legislature to maintain the fair grounds as a public park and the jail and city hall were to be maintained by the county “for use of peace officers of the said county”.
The town hall is long since gone; it was believed to have stood in front of the jail. But the jail still stands with one iron cell inside a small brick building. For years, it was hidden away yards from Brickyard Road, near Molino Road. Schoolchildren had an opportunity to visit the jail about 10 or 15 years ago. Since that time, it was almost forgotten behind thick brush.
For early 2008 photos from the inside and outside of the jail. click here.
Almost forgotten, but not by Lil King, Tom Helms and other members of the Molino Historical Society. King spent hours in Tallahassee looking for evidence that the jail belonged to Escambia County. It was a dollars and cents move. The historical society did not have the funds to restore the jail, but Escambia County would.
King uncovered the document she was hoping to find, known as House Bill 322. The jail did in fact belong to Escambia County.
The ownership revelation allowed the county to use county crews and prisoners from the Escambia County Road prison to clean the property. When NorthEscambia.com first visited the jail in February, 2008, reaching it was a trip down a little path through very thick brush. The kind of brush that only a machete and manpower would allow a human to pass. The trip was a near crawl. The photographer that was there from the city was nervously uncomfortable.
Over the course of that February day, road prison crews chomped away at the woods and the vines. clearing the lot for the first time in at least over a decade. The jail, once held prisoner by the growth of time, was once again free.
The small brick building was in remarkably good shape after all these years. The tongue and groove wood ceiling looked virtually undamaged. The roof needed some minor repair; and there was some water damage to wood around the bar-covered windows. The front door was missing.
There is just a single room in the old jail. It contains a single cell in the room, with a small area to walk around three sides of the cell. The door of old cell still swings freely, and does not even squeak. There is no obvious sign that the building was ever heated in winter and no bathroom. A February night in the Molino jail would bring cruel and unusual to mind.
The faint outline of the 1927 date written in the concrete doorway (pictured left) at the time of the repair is still visible today. The jail was repaired after an explosion took off the door, possibly in an escape attempt, King said.
The road prison inmates dubbed the old jail as their “Camp One”, a play on words because the road department’s north end facility in Bratt is called Camp Five.
The inmate cleanup and restoration work at the jail were supervised by Jeff Bohannon, superintendent of the Escambia Road Prison. He said he was proud to be able to help clean up the lot for the historical society. And the prisoners on the work crew were equally proud to take part.
“You are contributing to a part of history,” Bohannon told the prisoners as they prepared for a lunch break during one cleanup effort. “I know you get out and do this kind of cleanup thing everyday, but this is special. When you get out, you can come back where with your kids or grandkids and show them what you helped do.”
“I really appreciate each one of you. What you did today, and what you do everyday,” he said.
Several prisoners responded with a “thank you, sir”.
Inmates started their restoration with the front door — after all, a jail just isn’t a jail without a door. “It was built by the prisoners,” King said in March of 2008. “They are quite accomplished young men and some are already experienced carpenters and masons. I was happy to see the brick over the door put in; it gives a ‘finished’ look.”
For inmate Troy Cutts, 37, the Molino jail project has been a release from the road prison. Cutts was a carpenter before landing himself in the road prison. Part of his work on the jail included staining the new wood to look old. When gets out of jail, he wants to show his daughter the work he did on the old Molino jail.
There’s a good life lesson in there somewhere.
For early 2008 photos from the inside and outside of the jail. click here.
For photos of the jail restoration (courtesy Tom Helms) and a current day look at the jail, click here. Pitctured top: The single iron cell inside the 1913 Molino Jail. Pictured top inset: The faint outline of “1927″ in a repaired area of the door. Pictured bottom inset: The new sign at the old jail. Pictured below: The restored Molino Jail. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
H1N1 Vaccine Offered Wednesday At Bratt, Byrneville Elementaries; Print Permission Form
November 16, 2009
Voluntary H1N1 vaccination clinics will be held for students at Bratt and Byrneville elementary schools on Wednesday; permission forms must be returned by Tuesday.
Vaccination is voluntary, free and offered only to students; these are not vaccination clinics for the general public, according to Molly Payne-Hardin, spokesperson for the Escambia County Health Department.
Bratt and Byrneville will be the third and fourth North Escambia schools where the vaccine has been offered to students. Voluntary H1N1 vaccinations were given on October 28 at Jim Allen Elementary and November 12 at Molino Park Elementary.
“We will get to every school but right now are only able to forecast out one week in advance because of vaccine supply,” Payne-Hardin said.
Vaccine information sheets and permission forms were sent home with students on Thursday. Parents that did not receive a permission form can click here to print a permission form and information sheet. Alternatively, parents can call Bratt at 327-6137 or Byrneville at 256-6350 to request another form.
For more information on the priority groups that can receive the vaccine and where vaccine is offered to the general public, visit www.EscambiaHealth.com.
Download Northview Vs. West Florida
November 15, 2009
To download the MP3 audio from the November 13 Northview High School game against West Florida, click here.
Note that this is a large MP3 file. The file will take up to one hour to download on a dialup internet connection. On cable, satellite, DSL and high speed wireless connections, the file will download in just minutes. This file is for personal use only. Any commercial use is strictly prohibited. © 2009 NorthEscambia.com
Northwest Escambia Midgets Fall To A&G In Playoff Game
November 15, 2009
The Northwest Escambia Midgets are lost to the Albritton & Gant (A&G) Rattlers 25-14 in Gulf Coast Youth Football Alliance playoff action Saturday afternoon in Cantonment.
For a photo gallery from the game, click here.
The Rattlers took a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter.
NWE’s Dalton Daniels put the Eagles on the board with 25 yard touchdown run with just under four minutes in the half. A missed extra point and the Eagles narrowed the Rattlers’ lead to 7-6.
The Rattlers were in for another touchdown at the buzzer. The point after was no good, and A&G held a 13-6 lead at the half.
With less than 30 seconds to go in the third, A&G expanded their lead to 19-6.
A&G struck again with 2:32 in the game.
NWE answered with 2:02 to go with a Daulton Tullis TD. A good point after, and it was 25-14.
A&G gets a spot in the championship game next Saturday against Brent Blue.
For a photo gallery from the game, click here.
A total of 7,000 children ages 5 to 14 in 16 cities take part in youth tackle football and cheerleading in the Gulf Coast Youth Football Alliance.
Picture above and below: Action from Northwest Escambia versus A&G Saturday in Cantonment. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
