Three Indicted On Murder, Battery Charges In Century Shooting; Charges Dropped Against Fourth Suspect
February 12, 2021
Three people have been indicted by an Escambia County grand jury on murder and battery charges for a November shooting that left one man dead and two others injured. Meanwhile, charges against a fourth person have been dropped.
Jaran Britt Myles, Tacorius Cordale Stallworth and Emonee Demontae Long were each indicted on one count of first degree murder for the death of Joseph Christopher Smith and two counts of aggravated battery for two others that were shot and survived. All remain in the Escambia County Jail without bond.
A fourth suspect, Kiauna Shane Grice of Century, was arrested in connection with shooting, but the State Attorney’s Office has dropped all charges against her.
“The initial evidence showed that she may have been involved,” Assistant State Attorney Greg Marcille told NorthEscambia.com Thursday afternoon. “Once the facts of the matter were further reviewed, it was determined that there was insufficient evidence beyond a reasonable doubt against her.”
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to the shooting about 11:35 p.m. Monday, November 30 in the 8200 block of Alger Road, just off North Century Boulevard.
Arrest reports obtained by NorthEscambia.com offer insight into the fatal triple shooting:
The victim, Joseph Christopher Smith, was found shot to death outside a shed near the mobile home. Multiple shell casings were found near the body, in the shed and leading away from the body. The inside of the shed had a couch, several chairs, tables and lamp. The items were in a state of disarray with the lamp glass shattered.
Two other adult males, Xavier Demarquese Walker and Lavor Chante Johnson, were sitting near the mobile home when deputies arrived; both had been shot. They were transported by Escambia County EMS and Flomaton MedStar ambulance to a Pensacola hospital for treatment.
Walker stated he was seated in his vehicle when three people approached him, pointed guns at him and told him to get out of the vehicle. He said they “slapped him down” and put in a gun in face, saying “Don’t say nuthin, don’t make a noise,” according to the arrest report. Walker told investigators that he told them that he did not have “nuthin.” He told investigators that he recognized “Run-Run,” the street name used by Myles, and Stallworth, but did not recognize the third person.
Walker said the gunmen walked him over to the shed and told him to knock on the door and say “It’s Xa.” Walker stated that when the door opened, the three suspects pushed past him and went inside. Walker said he “freaked out,” the report states, and jumped on the ground where he was shot in the leg by Stallworth.
The suspects took Smith outside the shed before shooting him multiple time because of money, Walker stated.
Johnson told investigators that he was walking back from the store when he was picked up in a vehicle driven by Smith. He said he went inside the shed with Smith when someone knocked on the door and said “it’s Xa.” Smith opened the door, and the three male suspects entered the shed.
The report states Johnson said one of the men pointed a gun directly at his head and then shot him in the leg. They then started shooting in all directions inside the shed, striking Walker in the leg.
One of the suspect said “Where’s the money” to Smith, who replied “Ain’t no money.” Johnson stated that the suspects took Smith outside, and he heard numerous gunshots.
Johnson told deputies that after the suspects shot Smith, they began celebrating by firing their guns and yelling, “Yeah, we caught that [expletives] slackin” before fleeing the scene.
After receiving a tip, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office caught up with Myles as he walked out of the Liquor Cabinet on Highway 29 at Old Chemstrand Road in Gonzalez. Deputies gave him loud verbal commands, but he turned and walked back inside the store. The deputies drew their service weapons, entered the store and continued to give loud verbal commands. Myles entered one of the aisles and made movements near products on the shelf before placing his hands and surrendering, an arrest report states.
After and ECSO K-9 alerted on the vehicle, a search produced 24 MDMA pills, crack cocaine, methamphetamine, Alprazolam pills and suspected fentanyl.
A firearm was located inside the Liquor Cabinet.
Pictured: Deputies look for evidence at the scene of a of a triple shooting on Alger Road Century. NorthEscambia.com exclusive photos, click to enlarge.
Molino Man Gets 30 Years In Prison For Shooting Mother, Daughter
February 12, 2021
A Molino man has been sentenced to 30 years in state prison for the shooting that seriously injured a mother and her daughter on New Year’s Day 2020.
Justin Demartre Young, 23, was sentenced to 30 years in state prison by Circuit Judge W. Joel Boles. Young was convicted in October 2020 of two counts of attempted first degree premeditated murder with a firearm.
On January 1, 2020, Young shot and seriously injured a mother and daughter in their home on Barth Road in Molino. The women lived in the home with on of Young’s relatives, and Young had been living in the home for several weeks before the shooting.
Young arrived home and sat in the living room with the women for several minutes before complaining and challenging them about someone having been in his car.
The women claimed no one had been in his car; but shortly thereafter Young shot the eldest in the back as she crossed the room to get to the bathroom. Her daughter was shot in the head during her struggle to protect her mother and gain control of the gun. Young then shot the mother again in the abdomen. Both women were seriously injured but able to run to the neighbor’s house for assistance after Young fled
As part of Young’s 30 year sentence, he must serve 25 years as a mandatory minimum requirement under Florida’s 10-20-Life law, meaning those years must be served day-for-day, without any gain-time credit.
County Seeking Applications for Affordable Housing Advisory Committee
February 12, 2021
Escambia County is accepting applications for an open position on the Escambia-Pensacola Affordable Housing Advisory Committee to fill a member’s unexpired term through September 30, 2021.
The committee was established for the purpose of reviewing affordable housing incentives available within the county and to make recommendations concerning those incentives to the Escambia County Board of County Commissioners and Pensacola City Council.
The board is seeking to fill one slot from one of the following specializations:
- One citizen who is a representative of those areas of labor actively engaged in home building in connection with affordable housing;
- One citizen who is a representative of a not for profit provider of affordable housing;
- One citizen who is actively engaged as a real estate professional in connection with affordable housing; OR
- One citizen who represents essential services personnel, as defined in the local housing assistance plan
The committee meets quarterly with more frequent meetings while reviewing the Local Housing Assistance Plan and affordable housing incentives. Positions will be recommended to the board for approval in February.
Citizens interested in serving should complete an application available online here, or request a form via email at NED@myescambia.com. Completed applications should be forwarded to Neighborhood Enterprise Division/AHAC, 221 Palafox Place, Suite 200, Pensacola, FL,32502. All applications must be received no later than February 19 for consideration.
Army Vet And Purple Heart Recipient, Age 104, Receives COVID-19 Vaccination
February 12, 2021
World War II veteran Duane Brewton, age 104, received the COVID-19 vaccine Thursday at Olive Baptist Church.
While serving in the Army infantry, Brewton was awarded the Purple Heart after an artillery shell exploded near him and caused critical injuries from multiple shrapnel wounds.
State Sen. Doug Broxson praised Brewton for serving again in a different kind of war — to stop the sickness and death caused by the coronavirus.
“Let’s get this thing knocked out altogether,” Brewton said after getting his vaccine shot. He said he hopes to inspire other seniors to receive the vaccine.
He was vaccinated during a clinic organized by Ascension Medical Group Sacred Heart and Olive Baptist.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Grand Jury Indicts Two On Murder Charges In Cantonment Shooting Death
February 11, 2021
A man and woman have been indicted on murder charges by an Escambia County grand jury for a February 1 shooting on Lawson Lane in Cantonment.
Jonathan Taylor Hobbs was indicted on one count of first degree premeditated murder with a firearm, and Dawn Lucille Sluder was indicted on one count of first degree premeditated murder. Both remain in jail without bond and are set for arraignment later this month.
Danny Blackmon, Jr., 35, was shot and killed as his 19-year old girlfriend watched in horror, according to Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons.
“We had a crazy and deadly series of events that unfolded in North Escambia,” Simmons told NorthEscambia.com.
Sluder is the mother of Blackmon’s 19-year old girlfriend.
On the Saturday before the shooting, Sluder reported her 19-year daughter as either a runaway or as being held against her will.
“We made contact with the daughter, and she told us, ‘I am happy where I am at and with my boyfriend’,” Simmons said.
Investigators found Blackmon deceased with numerous gunshot wounds, including two on his upper torso, one in his neck and at least two in his head. After Blackmon fell to the ground, Hobbs reportedly leaned over his body and fired at least two more rounds before running away. Blackmon’s girlfriend witnessed the entire incident and attempted to perform CPR until she beaten and pulled away by her hair by Dawn Sluder, an arrest report states.
“You read about this kind of craziness in other places or see it on television, but unfortunately this time it happened here,” Simmons said. “It’s just crazy. We have a lady whose boyfriend is dead, and her mother and grandmother are in jail. It was a wild weekend.”
Sluder was apprehended at a convenience store on Muscogee Road near Jacks Branch Road. There was extensive damage to her SUV (pictured below) consistent with having collided with the Ford F-150 as stated by the witness. Hobbs walked up to a resident on Country Hills Road and asked to use the phone. The resident called 911, and deputies responded to take Hobbs into custody without further incident.
Hobbs and Sluder requested attorneys and refused to make any statement in the hours after their arrests.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office also responded to a call of an armed home invasion at Blackmon’s residence in the days before his death. The girlfriend’s grandmother, 57-year old Holly Marie Sluder, and the grandmother’s boyfriend, 63-year old Charles Burnell Parker, were both charged with first degree armed burglary . Parker allegedly pointed a gun at Blackmon while Holly Marie Sluder kept her hand on a holstered weapon as they took two cellphones. Blackmon tracked the phones to an area near their residence, and he phones were located when a search warrant was executed on Greymont Lane.
Pictured; A female suspect was taken into custody on Muscogee Road following a shooting Monday afternoon in Cantonment. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Century To Attempt Charter Review Again, Seeking Volunteers For Committee
February 11, 2021
Century will try again to rewrite the town’s charter and is seeking volunteers to help.
The previously appointed 11-member Century Charter Review Committee is now down to just six people.
The Century Town Council appointed the committee in August 2019 to explore the town charter — the document that establishes the town, outlines its powers and spells out how it should operate. The charter has not been updated in almost 40 years, and that often creates problems in the operation of the town.
The committee held their first meeting in October 2019, two months after it was established. The early meetings were spent learning about the Sunshine Law, orderly meetings and background information. Most of the discussion at the committee’s sporadic meetings then centered around one central topic — the form of government and the possible addition of a permanent city manager.
The COVID-19 pandemic slowed regular meetings for the charter committee and any chance of moving forward in 2020, preventing any charter change from making the ballot.
The Century Town Council is accepting applications for volunteers for their Charter Review Committee until March 4, 2021. All applicants must reside with the town limits.
To download an applications, click or tap here. Applications are also available at the Century Town Hall. The deadline to apply is March 4.
Pictured top: Century Charter Review Committee Chairperson Mary Hudson Bourgeois (right) and member Evelyn Hammond at a 2019 meeting. NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Northview High School Names Students Of The Month
February 11, 2021
Northview High School has named their January Students of the Month. They are Elianna Morales and Dallon Rackard. They are pictured with Northview Principal Michael Sherrill. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
UWF Graduate To Pitch His Business On Next ‘Shark Tank’ Episode
February 11, 2021
University of West Florida graduate Wenceslaus “Wen” Muenyi will showcase his company’s odor-resistant fabrics on the reality TV series “Shark Tank” Friday night..
Muenyi, who graduated from UWF in 2016 with a BSBA in Marketing, will try persuading the panel of investors to invest in his company, HercLéon, a line of products, including bed sheets and clothing items, that uses manufactured sustainable and odor-resistant materials.
“I was lucky enough to discover the fantastic world of materials many years back after a trip to Iceland, where my clothes started to smell horrible, and I didn’t know where to find a laundry machine,” Muenyi said. “After that experience, I decided to find a way to develop products that would allow me to travel the world without any luggage and still be clean and comfortable. I did a lot of research and discovered HercFiber, a material that can be worn for days, weeks and months without having to be washed.”
Muenyi applied to be on “Shark Tank” early last year and received a call from producers over the summer. He flew to Las Vegas in September to make his pitch to investors. Not all tapings are aired so he was excited to learn last month that his presentation on the show would be broadcast. While he’s not able to disclose what happened on the show or if the Sharks invested in HercLéon, he said he most of all had fun.
“No matter what happens, you have to think ‘I’m doing this for the fun of it,’” Muenyi said. “You need to go in with a positive attitude and get excited about it. It’s an opportunity to do something that interests your curiosity, something that you get excited telling people what you’ve learned while doing it and that will take you far in life.”
Muenyi chose the name for his company because of his interest in Greek mythology and African history. Hercules is a symbol of faith, hope and service. He is from Cameroon, so he chose the word lion in French to represent persistence and determination. Fellow colleague and UWF graduate, Daniel Robar, is the main actor in HercLéon’s Jax Sheets commercials and assists with the developing and fulfillment of the company’s products. Muenyi credits his professors for preparing him for the pressure of the real world.
“Professor C. Scott Satterwhite is probably the single most important teacher I had at UWF, his
class’s focus on the Beat Generation characters like Alan Watts is the reason I live such a peaceful life, and in business it’s critical to find internal peace because you’ll always be putting out external fires,” Muenyi said. “If you can’t handle constant stress, then you’re going to hate being an entrepreneur.”
Whatever the outcome on the show, Muenyi is ready for the extra business that may come from his appearance on national TV.
“My fulfillment company had another client on the show, and they said they had over six thousand orders by the next day,” Muenyi said.
Muenyi’s episode will air locally at 7 p.m. Friday on WEAR ABC 3.
Federal Mask Mandate Includes ECAT Buses
February 11, 2021
Escambia County Area Transit (ECAT) is reminding residents that face masks are required to ride public transportation.
Face masks have been required to ride ECAT since December 21, 2020.
On January 21, 2021, President Joe Biden issued an executive order requiring mask wearing on all modes of public transportation including intercity buses and trains. In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued an order which requires people to wear masks while on all public transportation and conveyances (trains, airplanes, ferries, etc.) and at transportation hubs.
ECAT has provided free face masks since June 1, 2020, and will continue to do so.
“Although ECAT will have face masks available, riders are urged to plan ahead and bring their own face coverings before boarding any public transit,” said ECAT Mass Transit Director Tonya Ellis. “We would like to thank our ridership for following these federal orders, making the ride enjoyable and safe for our customers and operators.”
ECAT operators will also continue to wear masks. All ECAT employees are subject to temperature checks when they arrive to work as a precaution.
According to these orders, operators must use best efforts to ensure that any person on the conveyance wears a mask when boarding, disembarking, and for the duration of travel or while entering or on the premises of the transportation hub. Depending on the circumstances, operators must take the following actions:
- Board/allow entry only people who wear masks;
- instruct people that wearing a mask on the conveyance/premises is a requirement of federal law and that not complying with the requirement is a violation of federal law;
- monitor the conveyance/premises for any person who is not wearing a mask and seek compliance from such a person;
- at the earliest safe opportunity, disembark/remove from premises any person who refuses to comply; and
- notify people of the requirement to make sure they aware of and comply with the requirement to wear a mask. Examples of such notifications are messaging in apps, on websites or through email; posters in multiple languages with illustrations; and printing the information on tickets.
Riders also are required to properly wear the face covering according to CDC guidelines for their entire trip, including covering the face and nose.
People are not required to wear a mask under the following circumstances:
- while eating, drinking, or taking medication for brief periods of time;
- while communicating, for brief periods of time, with a person who is hearing impaired when the ability to see the mouth is essential for communication;
- if unconscious (for reasons other than sleeping), incapacitated, unable to be awakened, or otherwise unable to remove the mask without assistance; or
- when necessary to temporarily remove the mask to verify one’s identity such as during Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screening or when asked to do so by the ticket or gate agent or any law enforcement official.
The following categories of people are exempt from the requirement to wear a mask:
- A child under the age of 2 years;
- A person with a disability who cannot wear a mask, or cannot safely wear a mask, for reasons related to the disability;
- A person for whom wearing a mask would create a risk to workplace health, safety, or job duty as determined by the relevant workplace safety guidelines or federal regulations.
Winners Announced In 67th Youth Art Focus (With Photos, Virtual Tour)
February 11, 2021
Winners have been announced from the 67th Youth Art Focus for the Escambia County School District with the Pensacola Museum of Art is now available.
Since 1954, Youth Art Focus has created an opportunity to expose students to the fine art world in a professional museum environment while giving the public a chance to experience and appreciate the accomplishments of Escambia County’s fine art education programs.
(Tip: To skip ahead to the student art in the virtual video tour, go to 27:55 in the video on the page linked above.)
