Wanted Felony Suspect Captured In McDavid
May 10, 2018
A wanted felony suspect was captured after going into a McDavid convenience store to use the restroom.
Wesley Dale Owens is wanted for possession of a controlled substance and first degree possession of marijuana on warrants from Tuscaloosa County. Authorities had been searching for Owens for three days, including at least three manhunts.
Owens was spotted inside Kynette’s Place, a convenience sore at Highway 29 and Highway 164, across from the McDavid Fire Department. The store called dispatchers to report that Owens had been spotted inside. He was arrested without incident.
He will be held in Escambia County to await extraction back to Tuscaloosa County. There was not immediate word if he will face any additional charges in Escambia County.
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A wanted felony suspect was spotted in a yard in McDavid Thursday morning, leading to another manhunt for a suspect that has been on the run in the area for three days.
A resident was able to take photos (above and below) of a man believed to be Owens in a yard on South Century Boulevard near Mystic Springs Road. The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, Century Correctional Institution, the Escambia County Road Prison and others used K-9’s to search the area again. At last report he was still on the run.
One photograph (above) appears to show Owens with a cellphone, wearing a t-shirt, jeans and a ball cap.
Wednesday, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and K-9 units from Century Correctional Institution and the Escambia County Road Prison searched for Owens in a wooded area along Highway 29 just north of Champion Drive.
According to reports, the man made contact with a resident in the area of Highway 29 and Bogia Road Monday afternoon asking for water. The resident called the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office to report a suspicious person, later identified as Owens. That led to the first manhunt.
Pictured below: Photos of a man believed to be suspect Wesley Dale Owens in a McDavid yard Thursday morning. Also pictured: The arrest in McDavid, and a manhunt Thursday morning in McDavid. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Beulah Man Arrested On 30 Child Porn Charges
May 10, 2018
A Beulah man was arrested on 30 child pornography charges Wednesday after the Florida Department of Law Enforcement executed a search warrant at his home.
Matthew George Andrew Roesgen was charged with 23 counts of possession of child pornography and seven counts of transmission of child pornography. He remained in the Escambia County Jail Thursday with bond set at $300,000.
An investigator with the Pensacola Police Department discovered numerous child porn videos on a file sharing application and traced them to Roesgen’s home computer network, according to an arrest report. The videos depicted both male and female children as young as one to three-years old, according to FDLE.
FDLE reported that Roesgen’s computer contained 126 child sexual abuse images.
FDLE and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at Roesgen’s residence at 8435 Ferlon Avenue Wednesday morning and reported finding multiple child porn videos on a computer in his office.
During an interview at his home, FDLE said Roesgen requested a lawyer.
Pictured: The Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office execute a search warrant on 8435 Ferlon Avenue Wednesday morning. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Atmore Man Charged With Highway 97 Convenience Store Burglary
May 10, 2018
An Atmore man was arrested this week for the 2017 burglary of a convenience store in Davisville.
Desmond Deshawn Grubbs, 23, was charged burglary of an unoccupied business, criminal mischief and grand theft. He remained in the Escambia County Jail with bond set at $10,000.
On September 11, 2017, at about 3 a.m., Grubbs broke the glass out of the front door of the convenience store at the corner of Highway 97 and Nokomis Road, entered the business and stole cigarettes and beer valued at $800, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. The damage to the door was estimated at $500.
Grubbs and a second suspect were identified by fingerprints. The second suspect, a female, is incarcerated at the Escambia County (AL) Detention Center in Brewton on unrelated charges. She is expected to be extradited to Florida to face charges related to the burglary. Her name has not been released.
Tate Alumni Group Presents $500 Donation To The Tate High FFA
May 10, 2018
The Tate High School Alumni Group presented $500 to the Tate High School FFA Wednesday. The group previosly donated $500 to the Tate High Showband of the South for their trip to Hawaii and $500 to the Tate High cheerleaders to travel to competition.
The Tate High Alumni Group meets at 11:30 a.m. on the second Wednesday of each month at King’s Buffet on Nine Mile Road.
Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Century Lakeview Center Set For Remodel, Building Expansion
May 10, 2018
Improvements are planned for Lakeview Center in Century, including a building additional for Community Health of Northwest Florida, formerly known as the Escambia Community Clinics
Work will include renovation of the current building on Industrial Drive and new space for additional medical exam rooms, a new dental suite and an expanded lobby. The new building will be constructed to the north of the current 4,700 square foot building, which was constructed in 1995.
The Town of Century has proposed $7,963.34 in tap fees and deposits to provide utility service to the new construction.
NorthEcambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Progress Report: New Escambia County Jail
May 10, 2018
A building permit for the a new 720-bed Escambia County jail is expected to be issued by the middle of June.
Permits have been approved by the Florida Department of Transportation, ECUA approval is in progress and the development order was issued on April 25.
Test pilings are in progress and the first concrete purchase has been made, according to county documents. Final construction documents are due by June 18, with the full building permit anticipated by June 16.
The new jail will be constructed at the site of the McDonald Shopping Center on the southeast corner of Fairfield Drive and Pace Boulevard, adjacent to the current 1980’s jail. The two facilities will be connected.
Tate’s Taylor Rouchon Signs Full Cheerleading Scholarship With Coastal Alabama
May 10, 2018
Tate High School’s Taylor Rouchon signed a full cheerleading scholarship to Coastal Alabama Community College on Wednesday. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Court: Don’t Hide The Words On Your Florida License Plate
May 10, 2018
A state appeals court Wednesday said a police officer was allowed to stop a Miami-Dade County motorist because the word “Florida” on the car’s license plate was obscured by a metal frame.
While expressing concern about its ruling, a panel of the 3rd District Court of Appeal overturned a lower-court decision that suppressed evidence obtained in a 2015 traffic stop of motorist Marcelo Pena. A search of the car led to the discovery of a bag that contained alprazolam pills and a drug charge against Pena, the ruling said.
Pena’s car had a rear license plate with a metal frame that obscured the words “MyFlorida.com” from the top part of the plate and “Sunshine State” from the bottom part. Pena was not the subject of an investigation at the time, but Officer Carl Sanabria stopped the car to issue a citation because of a violation of a state license-plate law.
The frame — described as being similar to frames provided by auto dealers — did not obscure the identification or decal numbers on the license plate. But after the officer made the stop, he arrested Pena for driving with a suspended license. Also, thinking he smelled marijuana, the officer searched the car and found the pills, the ruling said.
A Miami-Dade County circuit judge said the traffic stop was illegal and granted a motion by Pena to suppress statements and the evidence found in the car.
But the appeals court said the Legislature in 2005 changed a law to require that the word “Florida” on license plates to be unobscured. As a result, it said the evidence should not have been suppressed.
“Here, the suppression hearing evidence was undisputed that the word ‘Florida’ was obscured by the frame on Pena’s tag,” said the eight-page ruling, written by Judge Robert Luck and joined by Chief Judge Leslie Rothenberg and Judge Vance Salter. “The word ‘Florida’ on Pena’s tag was not clear and distinct and free from obscuring matter.”
Nevertheless, the court expressed apprehension about the issue. Partially quoting from another court’s ruling, it said that “license plate rims and frames are ‘a common practice of long-standing among the citizens of our state;’ ‘are frequently supplied by car dealers;’ and ‘many otherwise law-abiding citizens install them specifically to show allegiance to a club, fraternity, college or sports team or, as a means of other self-expression.’ But the Legislature gets to make the laws that govern our public roads and highways.”
In a footnote to Wednesday’s ruling, the court said the Legislature as of Jan. 1, 2016, changed the law to effectively eliminate the requirement that the word “Florida” be unobscured on license plates. But it said that was too late for Pena.
“Of course, the probable cause determination is made based on the facts and law at the time of the arrest … so we only look to the 2015 version … for purposes of determining whether Detective Sanabria’s stop of Pena’s car was lawful,” the footnote said.
by Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida
Work Progressing On Highway 97 Temporary Bridge
May 10, 2018
Construction work is underway on Highway 97 in Walnut Hill as crews replace the current bridge over Sandy Hollow Creek, about a mile south of Highway 4. Wednesday crews were working to pave the approaches to a temporary detour bridge west of the existing structure.
The existing wooden-support bridge constructed in 1940 will be replaced with a new concrete structure with 12-foot travel lanes, eight-foot shoulders and a solid concrete barrier railing. The bridge approaches will also be milled and resurfaced.
The speed limit in the area has been reduced to 45 mph.
The bridge has an average daily traffic count of about 5,000 vehicles. The project is expected to cost $5 million.
Pictured: Lane closures and work Wednesday on a temporary bridge on Highway 97 south of Highway 4. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Corcoran Drops Bid For Governor, Tosses Support To Putnam
May 10, 2018
House Speaker Richard Corcoran on Wednesday dropped his potential bid for governor and endorsed Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam in the Republican primary.
Corcoran, a four-term House member from Land O’Lakes, said he re-evaluated his long-speculated bid to succeed outgoing Gov. Rick Scott and decided against running.
“Florida is an expensive state. It costs a lot of money to run,” Corcoran said during an appearance with Putnam in Tallahassee. “I don’t think we had the resources to move forward.”
Through the end of March, Corcoran’s Watchdog PAC political committee had raised $6.86 million and spent $4.6 million, with $3.7 million spent in the first three months of this year. Despite the spending, which included a controversial television ad on so-called “sanctuary cities,” Corcoran never gained much traction in the GOP race with Putnam and U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis of Palm Coast.
Corcoran said he would adhere to his pledge to either run for governor “or go home,” ruling out a move to another statewide race, such as the contest for attorney general. He also said he would not serve as Putnam’s lieutenant governor if asked to join the ticket.
“I’ve passionately said for the last year that I was going to run for governor or go home. And I’m proud to say that that decision is clearly that we’re going home,” Corcoran said.
Corcoran said he decided to endorse Putnam because he believes the two-term state Cabinet member will continue and extend the conservative legacy of the Scott administration, including on tax cuts and educational reforms.
“Adam is sincere. He is authentic. He is principled. He is passionate. He loves this state,” Corcoran said.
Putnam welcomed Corcoran’s backing.
“To have the endorsement, to have the support of someone who knows Florida so well and is so passionate about Florida’s future and is such a principled conservative means everything in the world to me,” Putnam said.
But signaling a contentious Aug. 28 primary, the DeSantis campaign characterized the endorsement as an “insider” deal between two long-time members of the Tallahassee establishment, noting Corcoran and Putnam have disagreed on issues, including immigration.
“Career politician, Adam Putnam, will now get the two-man race he’s been fearing for a year,” DeSantis spokesman David Vasquez said in a statement. “A conservative Iraq veteran (DeSantis) endorsed by Donald Trump versus a ‘Never Trump’ career politician who supported amnesty for illegal aliens. We like our odds.”
Corcoran and Putnam deflected the criticism, underscoring their familiarity with issues facing Florida versus DeSantis’ frequent appearances before national audiences on Fox News.
“Was it from a studio in New York?” Corcoran asked about the DeSantis statement.
“Richard and I know Florida. We have been through every corner of this state,” Putnam said. “Floridians want someone who will lead our state with passion and conviction, with high character, someone who knows our state and will always put Florida first.”
Democrats also criticized the endorsement. Christian Ulvert, a strategist for former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine’s gubernatorial campaign, said Putnam was embracing Corcoran’s “divisive politics of attacking public school teachers and his effort to drain resources from our public schools,” referring to legislation that expanded the use of charter schools and private-school scholarships.
With more than $2 million left in his political committee as of March, Corcoran said he would use the remaining funds to help Republicans maintain control of the state House and Senate in the 2018 elections.
“We’re going to make sure the House comes back with a super-majority and the Senate comes back with a majority,” said Corcoran, who will leave the House in November because of term limits.
by Lloyd Dunkelberger, The News Service of Florida