UF/IFAS Extension Offering Pesticide Licensing Training Course In Walnut Hill
January 13, 2019
The UF/IFAS Extension Office will offer a public training session for individuals interested in obtaining a private pesticide applicators license or continuing education units. The training session will take place on Thursday, January 17 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Walnut Hill Community Center at 7850 Highway 97 in Walnut Hill.
Class attendees will learn the basics of applying pesticides correctly and will be able to take the private applicator and core exam necessary to become a certified private applicator by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The cost is $20 and lunch will be provided. Continuing Education Units will be offered to those who are already licensed.
Attendees must register to ensure the correct number of exams will be available. To register for the class, contact Libbie Johnson at 850475-5230 or libbiej@ufl.edu. Participants can also register in person at 7:30 a.m. the morning of the class.
Arbor Day Art Contest Entries Accepted Now
January 13, 2019
Celebrate Arbor Day by participating in the UF/IFAS Extension Arbor Day mail art contest. Make your own drawing, collage, painting or photo — or decorate a postcard or envelope — related to the theme, “Plant Trees Today for Shade Tomorrow.” Be creative and have fun!
The contest age groups are children 12 and under, teens ages 13-18, and adults 18 and older. One winner will be selected from each age group, and winners will receive either a tree, a shovel or a book about trees.
Mail entries to: Arbor Day Mail Art Contest, Escambia County Extension, 3740 Stefani Road, Cantonment, FL 32533. Entries can also be dropped off at the Extension office. Include your name, age and phone number or email address on the back of your art. Entries must be postmarked by Tuesday, Jan. 15.
Entries will be displayed at the Escambia County Extension office through the month of January. Artwork may be used in Extension programs, such as blogs, flyers and workshops. No received work will be for sale, and we reserve the right to omit offensive work. A panel will judge the works and choose one winner from each age group prior to Friday, Jan. 18.
Winners will be awarded Saturday, Jan. 19 during the mail art display and tree giveaway event at the Escambia County Extension office. If winners cannot attend, they may pick up their prizes at the Escambia Extension office by appointment.
For more information, contact Carrie Stevenson at 850-475-5230 or ctsteven@ufl.edu.
Gruters Tapped To Lead Florida Republicans
January 13, 2019
Entering an election cycle in which Florida will again be a key battleground in the race for the White House, state Sen. Joe Gruters of Sarasota was chosen Saturday to lead the Republican Party of Florida.
Gruters, who defeated Charlotte County State Committeeman Bob Starr in a 192-25 vote at the party’s annual meeting in Orlando, will replace Blaise Ingoglia, a House member from Spring Hill who has served as chairman of the state party since 2015.
In a statement released after the vote, Gruters said he will work with county party officials and local elected officials heading into the 2020 elections, as President Donald Trump is expected to run for a second term. He also pointed to helping Gov. Ron DeSantis, who took office Tuesday.
“Our party is in a battle for the soul of America, and Florida will be critical heading into the next election cycle,” Gruters said. “I anticipate working with Governor DeSantis to push his bold agenda forward for our great state, securing another term for our President Donald J. Trump and making Florida red again.”
Gruters, a certified public accountant and longtime leader of the Sarasota County Republican Party, was elected to the Senate in November after serving two years in the House. Because he technically won a special election to replace former Sen. Greg Steube, who ran for Congress in November, Gruters will be on the ballot in 2020 for another term in the Senate.
But the 2020 elections will be dominated by the presidential race, as swing-state Florida will be a focus for Republicans and Democrats. Gruters served as a co-chairman of the Trump campaign in Florida in 2016.
The 2020 ballot is not expected to include other statewide races, as the next campaigns for governor, Cabinet offices and a U.S. Senate seat are not slated to occur until 2020.
But Gruters will preside over the party during an election cycle that will be important for the state Legislature, in part because the winners in 2020 will direct the once-a-decade redistricting process. The GOP, which has totally controlled the Legislature since 1996, is almost a sure bet to retain control of the Republican-dominated House in 2020, but it holds a narrower 23-17 edge in the Senate.
While Democrats made some gains in legislative and congressional races in the 2018 elections, Republicans took home the biggest prizes. DeSantis defeated Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum, and former Gov. Rick Scott toppled veteran Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson.
The most-notable win for Democrats was Nikki Fried’s victory in the race for agriculture commissioner. That victory put a Democrat on the state Cabinet for the first time in eight years.
by Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida
Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: DeSantis Flexing Some Executive Muscle
January 13, 2019
There’s a new sheriff in town, both literally and figuratively.
Gov. Ron DeSantis came in as Florida’s chief executive with both guns blazing during a week of pomp, pageantry and policy-making.
After being sworn in Tuesday, DeSantis appointed the state’s first Cuban-American female Supreme Court justice, handed pink slips to a water-management board (or at least tried to), and suspended two elected county officials, including beleaguered Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel, who was replaced by veteran cop Gregory Tony.
DeSantis, a former congressman, also issued a sweeping executive order targeting the state’s water woes. The order created an “Office of Environmental Accountability and Transparency,” an “Office of Resilience and Coastal Protection,” and the post of “Chief Science Officer” to deal with toxic algae blooms and other issues that have plagued Florida rivers and coastlines.
The newly minted governor was asked before his first Cabinet meeting Friday about “climate change” — a phrase that purportedly was verboten during the reign of his predecessor, now-U.S. Sen. Rick Scott.
When asked whether he believes in climate change, DeSantis avoided a direct answer.
“We put in that executive order that, as climate changes and our environment changes, water rises in places in South Florida and there’s increased flooding, we want to make sure that we’re taking steps that we can to combat that. We’re going to create an Office of Resiliency to try to combat effects,” DeSantis said. “Look, to me, I’m not even concerned about, is it this sole cause, that sole cause, when you have water in the streets you have to find a way to combat that.”
The governor said his office intends to coordinate “a thoughtful response” to the issue but didn’t bite when asked if he agrees with scientists that humans contribute to climate change.
“Next, next question,” DeSantis said.
DeSantis also flexed his executive muscle in other ways, including targeting appointments that Scott made in his final days in office. The new governor said he intends to yank some of the “effectively lame-duck appointments,” or those that have not been confirmed by the Senate.
“Now, some of the people in that batch were people that I know and respect. You may see me reappoint some of them back. But we’re pulling all of them back. We’re going to take a fresh look at it, and we’ll move forward from there,” DeSantis said.
‘ESSENCE OF WHAT A JUDGE SHOULD BE’
Hitting the ground running Wednesday morning, DeSantis appointed appellate judge Barbara Lagoa to the Florida Supreme Court.
The governor’s selection of Lagoa, the daughter of Cuban émigrés, was the first of three Supreme Court appointments DeSantis will make, following the mandatory retirement of three justices who comprised what had been the court’s more liberal-leaning bloc.
Lagoa’s addition will cement a conservative majority that will include Chief Justice Charles Canady and justices Alan Lawson and Ricky Polston, all of whom Lagoa cited as references in her application for the post. It also will keep DeSantis’ pledge to purge the Supreme Court of “activist” jurists.
DeSantis, a Harvard Law School graduate who served as a judge advocate in the Navy, hailed Lagoa as “the essence of what a judge should be.”
Lagoa, 51, grew up in Miami and attended New York’s Columbia Law School, where she edited the prestigious law review. A onetime federal prosecutor in Florida’s Southern District, Lagoa had experience in criminal and civil litigation before former Gov. Jeb Bush appointed her to the 3rd District Court of Appeal in 2006, where she has served for more than 12 years.
In her remarks, Lagoa, accompanied by her parents, husband and three daughters, left little doubt that she will fulfill DeSantis’ expectations.
The Florida Supreme Court is “tasked with the protections of the people’s liberties under law,” Lagoa said.
“And in that regard, I am particularly mindful of the fact that, under our constitutional system, it is for the Legislature and not the courts to make the law. It is the role of judges to apply, not to alter, the work of the people’s representatives. And it is the role of judges to interpret our Constitution and statutes as they are written,” she said.
WIPING UP WATER WOES
The following day, DeSantis laid out an aggressive agenda to expand efforts to improve Florida’s troubled waters.
Appearing in areas hit hard by outbreaks of toxic algae and red tide, DeSantis said he was fulfilling a campaign pledge to “take action” to address the issue.
DeSantis’ executive order calls for $2.5 billion over the next four years for Everglades restoration and water resource protection, a $1 billion increase over what was spent the prior four years.
The governor also instructed the South Florida Water Management District to “immediately” start the next phase of a reservoir project south of Lake Okeechobee and to work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to keep the project on schedule.
He didn’t stop there.
DeSantis also demanded the resignations of each of the eight members — one seat is vacant — of the water district’s governing board, all of whom were appointed by Scott.
The board has been under fire since voting in late November to grant sugar behemoth Florida Crystals a lease extension for land eyed for a reservoir.
‘VILIFIED’ AND TRAMPLED ON
Pointing to a denial of due process, U.S. District Judge Mark Walker ordered DeSantis to give former Broward County elections chief Brenda Snipes the opportunity to tell her side of the story after Scott stripped her of the job.
Snipes, a Democrat appointed by former Gov. Jeb Bush and subsequently re-elected four times, announced Nov. 18 she would step down as supervisor, effective Jan. 4, after a turbulent election.
But on Nov. 30, Scott issued an executive order suspending Snipes and replacing her with his longtime ally, Pete Antonacci. The order cited widespread problems during the 2018 elections and accused Snipes of demonstrating “misfeasance, incompetence and neglect of duty.”
The day after the executive order, Snipes held a news conference and rescinded her resignation. Seeking to regain her job, Snipes later filed a federal lawsuit against Scott and Senate President Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton.
Writing in a 12-page ruling Wednesday, Walker, who heard arguments in the case Monday, found that Snipes could not withdraw her resignation after her replacement had been appointed and sworn in because it was “an unconditional resignation.”
“But rather than accept the resignation quietly and avoid trampling on Snipes’ due process rights, Scott suspended Snipes and vilified her without giving her a meaningful opportunity to be heard,” Walker scolded.
Walker gave DeSantis until Jan. 31 to provide Snipes notice, and until March 31 to give Snipes “meaningful opportunity to be heard,” either in writing or orally.
The federal judge delivered a stinging rebuke to Scott, whose administration he frequently excoriated in rulings in other cases. DeSantis became a party in the case after Scott left office.
“The law can be unclear at times. Statutes can be ambiguous; case law can meander, diverge or swerve from common sense. Judges face murky legal issues every day. Today is not one of those days. Procedural due process is not ambiguous. Flagrantly disregarding plaintiff’s constitutional rights fits into an unfortunate rhythm for Scott. But the ease and comfort Scott has in overlooking plaintiff’s due process rights does (not) make it legally permissible,” Walker wrote.
STORY OF THE WEEK: Gov. Ron DeSantis, sworn into office Tuesday, appointed a new Florida Supreme Court justice, released an aggressive plan to address the state’s troubled waters and suspended two elected officials.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “I believe the rule of law is society’s sacred bond. When it is trampled, we all suffer. For the Groveland Four, the truth was buried. The perpetrators celebrated. But justice has cried out from that day until this.” — Gov. Ron DeSantis, after pardoning Ernest Thomas, Samuel Shepherd, Walter Irvin and Charles Greenlee, who were known as the Groveland Four.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Tate High Aggie Family Mourns Loss Of Student Sean Banks
January 12, 2019
The Tate High School Aggie family is mourning the loss of sophomore Sean Banks and his older sister Antoinette Marie McCoy in a tragic car crash early Saturday morning. Their vehicle was hit by an alleged DUI driver.
Banks, 15, was a varsity basketball player and also played baseball and varsity football for the Aggies.
He was a member of the Academic Team and had a 3.91 GPA. He was named the October Student of the Month at Tate High School.
“Sean was a very gentle and kindhearted young man, who enjoyed helping others,” the Tate Aggies Basketball program said in a statement. “Antoinette McCoy was Sean’s older sister and one of his biggest supporters. Antoinette was a very kind and generous young woman with a great love for her family. She spent many nights in the stands along with her mother cheering on her brother and our Aggies.”
“The Tate Aggie Basketball Family loved them both and they will truly be missed.”
For more on the wreck, click here.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Two Killed In East Kingsfield Crash; Cantonment Man Charged With DUI Manslaughter
January 12, 2019
Two people were killed in a crash early Saturday morning on East Kingsfield Road, and a Cantonment man has been charged with two counts of DUI manslaughter.
The Florida Highway Patrol said 24-year old Hunter Russell Black was traveling west on Kingsfield Road near Kingslake Drive in a 2015 Chevrolet Malibu when he crossed the centerline and into the path of a 2001 Mitsubishi driven by 22-year old Antoinette Marie McCoy of Pensacola. McCoy attempted to avoid the collision but was hit head-on.
It took firefighters about 30 minutes of extensive extrication to free McCoy and her passenger, 15-year old Sean Alexander Banks of Pensacola, from their overturned vehicle. McCoy was airlifted by LifeFlight helicopter to Baptist Hospital and Banks was transported to Baptist Hospital by Escambia County EMS. Both were later pronounced deceased from their injuries.
Black was charged with two counts of DUI manslaughter and booked into the Escambia County Jail. He was released early Sunday morning on a $25,000 bond.
Banks was a sophomore at Tate High School. Read more…
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Behind Bars: ECSO Nabs Man On The Run Since November Molino Manhunt
January 12, 2019
A man Cantonment man that was the focus of a manhunt two months ago in Molino is now behind bars.
Colby Chase Myrick, 27, was taken into custody in the area of Massachusetts Avenue Friday afternoon, less than 24 hours after he was featured in a NorthEscambia.com story about his outstanding warrants.
Myrick is charged with two counts of possession of a weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon, carrying a concealed weapon, vehicle theft, damage to property, larceny and a probation violation. He is being held in the Escambia County Jail without bond.
On November 12, an Escambia County Sheriff’s Office lieutenant got behind a white pickup truck pulling a utility trailer with no tag. Before the deputy initiated a traffic stop, the vehicle pulled into the yard of a residence on Molino Road just east of Nicholson Drive. A few minutes later, the resident called the Sheriff’s Office to report that a male had ran from the truck toward a wooded area.
Deputies responded and a female that was in the vehicle identified the male as Myrick.
Escambia County deputies and a K-9 team from the Century Correctional Institution searched the area south of Molino Road and east of Highway 95A for several hours. Their search continued well into the afternoon and progressed at least as far south as Meharg Road.
During the search, deputies located a gun in the woods that they believe Myrick left behind, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Heath Jackson Sworn In As First Republican Sheriff In Escambia County, AL
January 12, 2019
Heath Jackson was sworn in Friday afternoon as the first-ever Republican sheriff in Escambia County, AL.
Immediately after taking the oath of office, he swore in the deputies of Escambia County (AL) Sheriff’s Office.
For a photo gallery, click here.
“This is a path we chose years and years ago. When we chose that path, we knew it was something we wanted to do one day. We didn’t know if we would ever get there, but we were going to fight as hard as we could to make that happen,” Jackson told a standing room only audience in the main courtroom at the Escambia County Courthouse in Brewton as he thanked numerous supporters and mentors.
A visibly emotional Jackson spoke about his family. A family, he said, that worked “to make sure that the last name that we carried meant something. I appreciate that from them.”
“The guys and gals of the Sheriff’s Office are hard workers,” Jackson said. “And they have done more in the past 30 days to help me than they will ever know that they have done.”
Jackson also thanked outgoing Sheriff Grover Smith for his service.
Before his election, Jackson was a sergeant at the Escambia County (FL) Sheriff’s Office and served as the team leader of agency’s Hostage Negotiations Team.
The T.R. Miller High School graduate’s nearly two decades of law enforcement experience includes service with the Brewton Police Department, the 21st Judicial Circuit Drug Task Force and work with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Alabama. At the Escambia County (FL) Sheriff’s Office, he also worked in the Narcotics Division, the Robbery/Homicide Division and the Public Information Office.
He is a native of Brewton.
For a photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
No Injuries In Early Morning Mobile Home Fire
January 12, 2019
Firefighters responded to a Saturday morning kitchen fire on old Atmore Road about three miles west of Flomaton.
The fire was contained to the kitchen area of the mobile home. There were no injuries reported in the fire about 7 a.m.
The Flomaton Fire Department, Wawbeek Volunteer Fire Department, Century Station of Escambia Fire Rescue, MedStar EMS, Flomaton Police Department, Escambia County (AL) Sheriff’s Office and others responded.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
No Injuries In Nine Mile At Highway 29 Rollover Crash
January 12, 2019
There were no injuries reported in a two vehicle rollover crash Friday afternoon about 4:15 p.m. on Nine Mile Road at the southbound ramp from Highway 29. The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating. NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
