Molino Man Dies In Baldwin County Crash
February 1, 2019
A Baldwin County crash claimed the life of a Molino man Thursday evening.
Terry Lynn Skinner, 51, was westbound about 5:30 p.m. in a 1998 Chevrolet 2500 truck when for unknown reasons the vehicle left the roadway and struck a tree on Highway 112 near Thunder Road, according to Alabama State Troopers. The crash in the Clear Springs community was about three miles from the Alabama-Florida state line where Muscogee Road becomes Highway 112 in Alabama.
Skinner was wearing his seat belt. He was pronounced deceased at the scene of the crash. Alabama State Troopers are continuing their investigation.
The Gateswood Volunteer Fire Department and the Cantonment Station of Escambia Fire Rescue were among the other responding agencies.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
ECSO: Century Man Busted With Nearly 1.5 Pounds Of Meth And Marijuana
February 1, 2019
A Century man was arrested on multiple drug charges after he was found with nearly 1.5 pounds of marijuana and methamphetamine, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
Tajah Derriontaé Calhoun, 20, was charged with trafficking in methamphetamine, possession of a controlled substance, possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute, possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, resisting an officer and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was later released from the Escambia County Jail on a $127,000 bond.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office was conducting a “High Intensity Patrol” in the area of Kemp Road and Fields Lane, which they described as a known drug area. As deputies approached in marked patrol units, Calhoun ran. He jumped into a gated front yard on Fields Lane and threw a backpack and cellphone. A deputy caught up with Calhoun in a vacant field and placed him under arrest.
A search of Calhoun’s person reveled 8.5 Oxycodone pills, other unidentifiable pills, two phones and $1,320 in currency, according to an arrest report. A search of his backpack resulted in the discovery of 211 grams (7.44 ounces) of methamphetamine, almost 451 grams (about one pound) of marijuana, two rounds of ammunition, a box of clear baggies, and two digital scales.
The cellphones and cash were seized.
The report states that in-car video form deputies showed Calhoun throwing the backpack.
Argument Over Cooking Supper Ends With Woman Jailed For Pushing Deputy
February 1, 2019
A Cantonment woman was arrested after she allegedly argued with her adult son over cooking supper and later pushed a deputy.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to a disturbance in the 1400 block of Lake Drive. Someone had called 911, and dispatchers could hear a male and female screaming, and a female yelling and crying in the background.
Jamillah Monique Sheffield, 36, stood in a doorway and obstructed deputies from entering the kitchen of the home, according to her arrest report. Deputies removed her from the doorway after she refused multiple commands to move. As a deputy placed her in handcuffs, she pushed the deputy in the chest.
Sheffield told deputies that she had gotten into a verbal argument with her son because she did not feel like cooking for the second night in a row. She was charged with felony resisting an officer with violence and obstruction of justice.
FWC Law Enforcement Report
February 1, 2019
The Florida FWC Division of Law Enforcement reported the following activity during the period ending January 17 in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.
ESCAMBIA COUNTY
Officer Cushing was on patrol in the Perdido Wildlife Management Area. He entered a gated area and smelled a strong odor of marijuana. Officer Cushing located a vehicle nearby and contacted two subjects who admitted to smoking marijuana and later discovered more marijuana in a plastic bag. Officer Cushing issued a citation for possession of marijuana less than 20 grams.
Officer Cushing was on patrol in the Perdido Wildlife Management Area. He saw an unoccupied truck parked in an obscure place after dark. He saw hunting equipment in the front seat and a few kernels of corn in the bed of the truck. Officer Cushing waited for the operator to return to the vehicle. He contacted the owner walking down the road toward the truck. The individual denied hunting but admitted to placing corn in the management area. He took Officer Cushing back to the baited site and to a location where he hid the bag of corn. He admitted to baiting the area multiple times over the past weeks anticipating hunting deer there. The appropriate citation was issued.
SANTA ROSA COUNTY
K-9 Officer Hutchinson and Officer Schmitt were on land patrol conducting resource protection in the Blackwater Wildlife Management Area. The officers saw a truck being operated with the driver and passenger not wearing their seat belts. The truck’s right passenger side taillight was inoperative. During the vehicle stop, the officers saw two 12-gauge shotguns in the truck, one next to the driver and the other next to the passenger. FWC Tallahassee Regional Communication Center confirmed that the passenger was a convicted felon. The passenger was arrested for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The passenger was transported to the Santa Rosa County Jail where the intake process was completed. K-9 Officer Hutchinson recognized the driver as the individual he was currently investigating for violating the antlerless deer possession limit. After his Miranda Rights were read, the driver admitted to killing two does and led the officers to the location of the deer carcasses. K-9 Officer Hutchinson later secured an arrest warrant.
Officer Ramos received multiple complaints regarding Jeeps and four-wheel-drive vehicles off-roading in Blackwater River State Forest. The complainants alleged that the vehicles were intentionally damaging state lands, driving carelessly and disrupting legal hunting. Over the course of a couple hours, Officer Ramos tracked and located three vehicles in two separate locations and issued the appropriate citations and warnings for the violations.
K-9 Officer Hutchinson along with K-9 Zara and Officer Schmitt were patrolling the Blackwater State Forest when they saw a vehicle parked on a closed forest road. Officer Hutchinson recognized the vehicle as belonging to a suspect of an illegal bait site in the Blackwater State Forest. He deployed K-9 Zara who tracked the suspect to his hunting blind. While interviewing the subject, Officer Schmitt discovered the subject was hunting without a valid hunting license, deer permit and management area permit. The subject also admitted to placing bait in the management area and hunting over it. The subject was issued the appropriate citations for the hunting violations.
Officer Hutchinson received a call from a property owner who informed him that he saw a truck with a subject standing in the bed of it shoot into his property. Officer Hutchinson obtained a description of the vehicle from the property owner. He recognized the vehicle description as belonging to several subjects that he contacted earlier while enroute to the complaint. K-9 Zara was deployed and conducted an area search for more evidence. During the search, they located several trees that were struck by bullets along with other evidence. After collecting all the evidence, Officer Hutchinson drove to the suspect’s residence and interviewed them. All three subjects admitted to shooting at deer from the right of way and onto the private property. The following day, the property owner located a dead deer with buckshot in it on his property. The driver was cited for road hunting. The passenger who had recently gotten off probation for night hunting was charged for using an illegal method to take deer, discharging a firearm from a right of way and a felony charge for trespass by projectile.
Officer Hutchinson and K-9 Zara responded to a complaint of road hunting and trespassing. Upon arrival, Officer Hutchinson saw fresh boot tracks leading into the private property. He deployed K-9 Zara to conduct a search of the area. During the search, K-9 Zara located where the suspect shot into the private property, several pools of fresh blood and a wounded deer. Officer Hutchinson interviewed the suspect who admitted to shooting an antlerless deer from the right of way. Warrants were issued for the violation.
Officer Ramos was in south Santa Rosa County checking local landings when he saw two men fishing. He conducted a fisheries inspection of the two men and found them in possession of several mullet and two red drum. One of the red drum measured 30 inches, three inches over size. One citation was issued to the individual who caught the fish for possession of oversize red drum.
This report represents some events the FWC handled over the past week; however, it does not include all actions taken by the Division of Law Enforcement. Information provided by FWC.
NorthEscambia.com photo.
Beulah Road Work Finished Early, Weekend Closure Avoided
February 1, 2019
A planned weekend closure of Beulah Road south of Nine Mile Road won’t happen because work was completed ahead of schedule, according to the Florida Department of Transportation.
During a previous detour last weekend, crews removed a section of Beulah Road in order to build up and widen the travel lanes, FDOT said. Crews continue to work in the area with few, if any traffic impacts.
FDOT had previously planned to close Beulah Road from February 1-4.
Pictured: Beulah Road just south of Nine Mile Road. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Camp Fire Century Kids Celebrate 100th Day Of School
February 1, 2019
Students at the Camp Fire Youth Learning Center in Century this week celebrated the 100th day of school. Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Deputies Seek Nine Mile Road Retail Theft Suspects
February 1, 2019
Escambia County Sheriff’s Office investigators are asking for help to identify two retail theft suspects. The town men pictured allegedly stole multiple items from Kohl’s on January 12 and January 18. Anyone with information on their identities is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620 or Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
DeSantis Eliminating Common Core
February 1, 2019
Pointing to feedback he received on the campaign trail, Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday said Florida will revamp education standards and eliminate “vestiges” of the politically unpopular Common Core standards.
DeSantis’ announcement came five years after then-Gov. Rick Scott took aim at the Common Core standards, which were developed by officials in 48 states and have particularly drawn criticism from Republican voters. The State Board of Education in 2014 adopted what are known as the Florida Standards, a move that involved making changes to Common Core.
DeSantis, who took office Jan. 8, said during a news conference Thursday in Lee County that parents expressed frustration to him about Common Core and issues such as standardized testing while he campaigned last year. He said he was directing Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran to undertake a process that will lead to new standards.
“I’m here to say when you complained about Common Core, I hear you, I told you I’d do something about it, and today we are acting to bring those promises into a reality,” DeSantis said.
Though Scott touted moving away from Common Core in 2014, Corcoran on Thursday said Florida has been “stuck” with Common Core and alluded to the Florida Standards as a rebranding.
“It’s all the same, it all needs to be looked at, it all needs to be scrutinized,” said Corcoran, who was a state House appropriations chairman in 2014 and later became House speaker. “And we need to sit down with the experts, the stakeholders, the great superintendents, the great leaders in the community and figure out how do we write the best, No. 1 standards in the United States of America.”
DeSantis said Corcoran will lead an effort during the coming year to develop standards and to address other issues, such as “streamlining” testing in schools. He said he expects the results of the process to go to the Legislature during the 2020 session.
The announcement drew praise from the Florida Education Association, a statewide teachers union that has frequently clashed with Republican leaders over issues such as standardized testing.
“A deliberate look at what students must know is always appropriate, and it’s very encouraging to hear that Gov. DeSantis and Commissioner Corcoran plan to bring teachers and parents to the table as they go about reshaping Florida’s standards,” Fedrick Ingram, president of the union, said in a prepared statement. “We’re also pleased to hear that the administration will look at streamlining testing. Parents and our members cite time spent on testing — as versus on genuine teaching and learning — as one of their top concerns. If all stakeholders are heard, we have confidence that this effort can improve public education in Florida.”
Kurt Browning, superintendent of schools in Pasco County, said he supports “streamlining standardized testing” and other initiatives proposed by DeSantis, such as an increased focus on civics education. But Browning expressed caution about moving away from the current standards.
“I ask Governor DeSantis and Education Commissioner Corcoran to consider the amount of time, funding, and effort teachers, administrators, and school districts have invested in professional learning, curriculum, materials and resources that align with our current standards,” Browning said. “I understand that parents have had difficulty grasping some of the standards, and there may be a need to adjust some of them. My concern is that we not lose ground in the progress we have made toward ensuring our students are prepared for the demands of college and the workforce.”
Debates about school standards and testing have repeatedly flared in Florida during the past two decades. Republican Gov. Jeb Bush, who was elected in 1998, made controversial changes to the system that included a heavy emphasis on testing and holding schools accountable for student performance.
After being developed by leaders from across the country, the Common Core standards have been adopted by 41 states and the District of Columbia, according to the Common Core website. But the standards in recent years became toxic in Republican politics, with many grass-roots voters viewing the standards as a national overreach into schools.
by Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida
Tate High Varsity Cheerleaders Win State Championship
January 31, 2019
The Tate High School varsity cheerleaders are state champions.
The Aggie cheerleaders won the Florida High School Athletic Association Region Small Coed Championship Thursday afternoon in Gainesville.
The Tate Aggies took first with a score of 83.10, defeating Sebring High with 74.80 and Anclote High with a score of 64.50.
The squad is coach by second-year coach and Tate graduate Morgan White, who spent four years as an Aggie cheerleader.
Pictured: The Tate High School varsity cheerleaders won a state championship Thursday in Gainesville. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Fire Destroys Large Warehouse At Atmore Area Cotton Gin
January 31, 2019
Fire destroyed a large warehouse at a cotton gin north of Atmore Thursday afternoon.
The fire ripped through what we are told was a seed warehouse at the Frank Currie Gin Company in the small community of McCullough, about five miles northwest of the Highway 31 Atmore exit on I-65.
At least a portion of warehouse collapsed, according to reports from the scene. Smoke from the blaze could be seen for miles.
The McCullough and Poarch fire departments were among the responders working to contain the roaring blaze.
Photos by Glenn Kelley for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
