Alice Welch
May 24, 2013
Alice Welch, 81, of Cantonment, peacefully passed away Tuesday, May 7, 2013. Born in McKinley, ME, to Raymond and Mary (Norwood) Carter, both preceded her in death. Also preceding her in death were two brothers, Harry Davis and Raymond Carter, Jr. and two sisters, Rebecca Torrey and Beatrice Carter.
After graduating from Pemetic HS, Southwest Harbor, ME, she enlisted into the Women’s Army Corps and served from 1950-1953, where she met and married (in 1953) the late Charles Welch, the love of her life. Soon after, she requested to leave the Army, and received an honorable discharge. She was an Army wife for over 24 years. She worked at Homestead AFB BX and then as a filing clerk at the DMV in Tallahassee. She took several college courses in art and horticulture and loved gardening and ladybugs (we think of her when we see one). She loved to travel and visit family. She leaves behind five daughters: Nora Atkinson & husband Larry (KY), Bonnie Conlon & husband Patrick (FL), Cheryl Call (NC), Mary Wiggins & husband Robert (NC), and Jill Willis & husband Christopher (GA); 14 grandchildren; 24 great-grandchildren; and sister Linnie Loring, (ME).
Funeral service will be 10:00 a.m. Tuesday, May 28, 2013, at Faith Chapel Funeral Home South, 100 Beverly Parkway. Interment with military honors will follow in Barrancas National Cemetery. The family will receive friends at Faith Chapel 30 minutes prior to the service.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The American Diabetes Association , or the charity of your choice .
Faith Chapel Funeral Home South is in charge of arrangement.
Robert Leon Driver Jr.
May 24, 2013
Robert Leon Driver Jr., 85 of Cantonment was called home to Glory on May 22, 2013. Mr. Driver was a member of Farm Hill Holiness Church and was a World War II veteran.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Bonnie Driver and his daughter, Rita Goodwin.
He is survived by his daughters, Susan (Danny) Slay, Molino, Karen (Guy) Driver, Pensacola, and Teresa (Dale) Hunter, Pace; grandchildren, Robert (Beth) Slay, Molino, Melony (Eddie) Barnard, Pace, Shena (Scott) Enfinger, Pensacola, Donald (Natalie) Goodwin Cantonment, Chip (Nicole) Hughes, Pace, April Hughes, Seattle, WA, and Ashley (KC) Ditmore, Pace; 14 great-grandchildren; one great-great-grandson, Liam Parker, due in June and many nieces and nephews.
Pallbearers will be KC Ditmore, Chip Hughes, James Thornton, Cody Enfinger, Danny Hunter Slay and Donnie Goodwin.
Visitation was held Thursday, May 23, 2013 at Faith Chapel Funeral Home North.
Funeral Service will be held at 11:30 a.m., Friday, May 24, 2013, at the funeral home with Pastors Clyde Hughes and Rodger Emmons officiating. Interment will follow at Pensacola Memorial Gardens.
Faith Chapel Funeral Home North, 1000 Hwy 29 South, Cantonment, is in charge of arrangements.
Curtis Kennedy, Jr.
May 24, 2013
Mr. Curtis Kennedy, Jr., age 65 of Flomaton passed away on Tuesday, May 21, 2013, at his home.
Mr. Kennedy was a native and lifetime resident of Flomaton where he was a self-employed carpenter. He was of the Holiness faith and attended the First Apostolic Church. Mr. Kennedy is preceded in death by his parents, Curtis and Lucille Driskell Kennedy and sister, Nancy Darby.
He is survived by his sons, Timothy (Jennifer) Wilson of Flomaton, Casey (Paula) Kennedy of Brewton, Brian (Lena) Kennedy of Spanish Fort, AL, Curtis (Tina) Kennedy of Pensacola, Alex Kennedy of Flomaton, and his daughter, Myrtis ‘Dee’ Kennedy of Jay; 11 grandchildren and a special friend, Mavis Kisner of Flomaton.
A memorial service will be held for Mr. Kennedy at a later date.
Clayton Trent Adams
May 24, 2013
Mr. Clayton Trent Adams, 25, of Wolflog Road died Monday, May 20, 2013, from injuries sustained in a automobile accident. He was a native of Milton and a longtime resident of Flomaton. He attended the Flomaton school system and was employed by Parker and Sons Construction Company.
He is survived by his father, Wendall (Rita) Adams of Flomaton; his mother, Ruby (Zeke) Cutts of Flomaton; his grandmothers, Kay (Curtis) Johnson of Flomaton, and Bertie Adams of Pollard; two brothers, Brent (Becky) Adams and Caleb (Meagan) Adams, both of Flomaton; two step-brothers, Thomas Turk and Caleb Turk, both of Flomaton; three stepsisters, Miranda Cutts, Makayla Cutts and Miriah Turk, all of Flomaton; four nephews, Hayden Lopez, Holdyn Adams, Harper Adams and Brody Turk; two nieces, Analia Payne and Brooklyn Turk; and a special uncle, James “Wildman” Adams.
Funeral services were held Thursday, May 23, at 11 a.m. at Williams Memorial Chapel Funeral Home with the Rev. Reo Pugh officiating. Burial followed in Pollard Cemetery with Williams Memorial Chapel Funeral Home directing.
DOJ Report: Escambia Jail Unsafe, Understaffed
May 23, 2013
A report released by the U.S. Justice Department has found that conditions inside the Escambia County Jail routinely violate the constitutional rights of prisoners.
The DOJ concluded that known systemic deficiencies at the jail, mainly due to staffing shortages, continue to subject prisoners to excessive risk of assault by other prisoners and to “clearly inadequate” mental health care.
The five-year investigation also found that until recently, the jail had an informal policy and practice of designating some of its housing units as only for African-American prisoners. By segregating some of its prisoners on the basis of race, the jail not only stigmatized and discriminated against many of its African-American prisoners, it also fanned combustible racial tensions within the jail.
Escambia County Sheriff’ David Morgan has warned the Escambia County Commission about the woeful conditions in the facility, which houses roughly 1,300 prisoners. His recently submitted 2013-2014 budget request to the commission includes a request for an $18.8 million increase. A portion of the increase was specifically requested to hire 83 additional detention deputies along with 12 detention assistants for $6.3 million.
The beginning of the DOJ investigation coincided with Morgan taking office, and the report praised his efforts to improve conditions.
“We commend Sheriff Morgan for his willingness to work aggressively to remedy many of the problems brought to his attention during the course of our investigation,” said Roy L. Austin Jr., Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division.
Some of Morgan’s improvements included the implementation of a formal prisoner classification system, improvements in monitoring the use of force, development of a prisoner grievance process, increase use of surveillance cameras, retrofitting cells to decrease suicide risk, improvements to female housing, addressing the needs of prisoners with physical disabilities and improved medical procedures.
But the DOJ’s report still found numerous issues, many related to inadequate staffing.
The report found:
- Prisoner on prisoner assaults are a common occurrence at the jail, making the facility unsafe for prisoners.
- A March 2011 study gave county officials insight to the severe staffing problems at the facility.
- Jail leadership fails to appropriately monitor and track prisoner on prisoner violence and the use of force by staff on prisoners.
- The decades-long practice of housing some prisoners in black-only pods was discriminatory, fanned racial tensions and contributed to prisoner perceptions that the jail favors white prisoners over black prisoners. The practice ended in 2012.
- The jail does not provide adequate and timely access to appropriately skilled mental health professionals, routinely fails to provide appropriate mental health medications, and provides inadequate housing and observation for prisoners with serious mental illness. The report found about one prisoner per month is sent to the hospital after self-injury as a result of a clearly inadequate mental health program.
“Without an adequate complement of security personnel, (the) Escambia County Jail cannot possibly keep its prisoners safe,” the report found.”Until the Jail addresses staffing shortages, the Jail will remain unsafe.”
Additionally, staffing shortages have crippled the jail’s ability to conduct a sufficient number of cell searches to protect both prisoners and staff from serious harm due to contraband and potentially dangerous items. According to the DOJ, only 41 cell searches were conducted across the entire facility during a one year period.
The sheriff and county have 49 days to reach an agreement with the Department of Justice on how they plan to correct the staffing and additional issues at the jail. If no agreement is reached by the deadline, the Attorney General may file a federal lawsuit.
Escambia County Names New Lake Stone Caretaker
May 23, 2013
The Escambia County Commission has named a new caretaker for the Lake Stone Campground near Century.
Since the inception of the Lake Stone Campground, the county has entered into an agreement for on-site caretaker and management services at the facility. Mervyn Simmons, who has served as the caretaker since February 2009, has submitted his resignation.
He will be replaced by Dennis Keith Cole under the same contract terms. Cole will be compensated at $850 per month with housing and utilities provided.
Northview Chiefs Announce 2013 Football Schedule
May 23, 2013
The state champion Northview High School Chiefs have released their 2013 football schedule.
The schedule begins with a Preseason Classic game on August 23 against 5-A Panama City Bay. The Chiefs will also face 4-A Marianna, 6-A Choctawhatchee and 4-A Defuniak Springs Walton.
District games (in bold below) will be against Jay, Freeport and Baker. Homecoming is October 18 against Freeport.
Local Home Sales Sluggish Compared To Statewide Rate
May 23, 2013
Statewide single-family home sales are up 17.4 percent from a year ago, Florida Realtors reported Wednesday, while single-family home sales saw more sluggish growth in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.
Statewide closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 20,662 in April, with 477 closed sales in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties, up just 4.8 percent over a year ago. The average sales price locally was $144,950, almost steady from last year. The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes last month was $165,000, up 14.2 percent from the previous year.
Townhouse and condo sales outpaced the state average, up 30 percent in April over a year ago. The state average was up 13.6 percent.
Florida Realtors chief economist John Tuccillo credited the sales increases to a stabilization of the distressed property market with the number of short sales dropping, while foreclosures and real estate owned property sales remaining steady. “Because the government is selling foreclosed properties in bulk and also using online auctions, our sales numbers actually understate the vigor of the market,” Tuccillo said in a Realtors’ news release.
Highway 164 Signs: You’re Awesome Sandra
May 23, 2013
Handmade signs lined Highway 164 just off Highway 29 Wednesday, and balloons were flying from many mailboxes — prompting several readers to contact us and ask why.
The signs were lining the route home for Sandra Morris of McDavid, diagnosed with cancer on October 4, 2012. On Wednesday, she completed her final round of chemo. Friends and relatives, part of “Team Sandra” planned the special welcome home.
Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Escambia Man Indicted On Federal Firearm Charges
May 23, 2013
An Escambia County man was indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury for six sales of firearms to convicted felons and for dealing in firearms without a license.
Buddy Lamar Redden, 65, was charged in a seven-count indictment announced by United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida Pamela C. Marsh.
If convicted of dealing in firearms without a license, Redden faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. For each count of conviction for sale of a firearm to a convicted
felon, Redden faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The indictment was the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Edwin Knight.