Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: In The Background For A Bit
July 16, 2016
When it came to news, it was hard for Florida to get a word in edgewise this week.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump selected Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his running mate. There was a brutal terror attack in the French city of Nice. And on Friday, an attempted coup in Turkey threw into grave doubt the future of one of America’s NATO allies.
By comparison, things in Florida seemed rather tame. There were some polls about whether Trump or former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, his Democratic opponent, had the upper edge in Florida with the national political conventions looming. The fight over kosher food at state prisons drew closer to a conclusion. And algae continued to muck things up in southern parts of the state.
None of which will diminish Florida’s reputation as odd news capital of the world, of course. But it did keep the spotlight off the Sunshine State for a few days.
OPPOSITE CONCLUSIONS
Who’s leading the presidential race in Florida, a state that is once again shaping up as one of the most important in the nation? It depends on whom you ask.
Quinnipiac University, one of the highest-profile independent polls, showed Trump taking a narrow lead over Clinton in Florida, with 42 percent of voters favoring the real estate mogul and 39 percent backing the first female major-party nominee. The margin grew to five points when pollsters added a pair of third-party candidates — Libertarian Gary Johnson and the Green Party’s Jill Stein.
The results of the head-to-head match-up between Clinton and Trump marked an 11-point swing in about three weeks. Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the poll, said Clinton’s numbers might have been dragged down by FBI Director James Comey, who publicly criticized the nominee for being “extremely careless” with email during her time as secretary of state, though Clinton was not charged with a crime.
“While there is no definite link between Clinton’s drop in Florida and the U.S. Justice Department decision not to prosecute her for her handling of e-mails, she has lost ground to Trump on questions which measure moral standards and honesty,” Brown said in comments accompanying the poll results.
But some Democrats were skeptical of the poll released Wednesday by the Connecticut-based university. In a blog post, Democratic strategist Steve Schale said he had no doubt Florida will be tight in November — but that the trend in Quinnipiac’s numbers lacked a ring of accuracy.
“For as much of a mess as Florida can be, it is a remarkably consistent state,” he said. “There just isn’t 10-12 points of movement here.”
And by Friday, another survey gave Clinton the lead. The NBC News/Wall Street Journal/Marist Poll showed the former secretary of state up 44 percent to 37 percent, and by five points when the third-party candidates were factored in.
Lee M. Miringoff, director of The Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, said in comments released with the poll numbers that Trump is “playing catchup” against Clinton in Florida, Colorado, North Carolina and Virginia. The institute, part of New York-based Marist College, also released results Friday showing Clinton ahead in those three other battleground states.
“The driving force behind voters’ choices is the negative impressions they have of both Trump and Clinton,” Miringoff said. “Clinton’s single-digit lead in each of these states is due to her slight advantage in how voters perceive the two candidates.”
Get ready for another nail-biter in the Sunshine State.
COURT MAKES NO BONES ABOUT PRISON FOOD
Complaints about meals in jail are probably about as old as jails themselves. But an appeals court on Thursday upheld a lower court’s decision to require Florida corrections officials to provide kosher meals to inmates.
U.S. District Judge Patricia Seitz last year ordered the Department of Corrections to offer kosher meals and barred it from removing inmates from the religious dietary plan if prisoners buy non-kosher food from canteens or don’t pick up the meals more than 10 percent of the time.
Corrections Secretary Julie Jones has maintained she has no plans to stop offering kosher meals. But her agency has argued that a federal law — the “Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act” of 2000 — allows prison officials to stop offering the meal plan if it gets too expensive.
A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday that Jones and the agency failed to prove their case. The state has spent nearly $500,000 on legal fees and costs in the prolonged dispute.
Jones “fail(ed) to explain why the department cannot offer kosher meals when the Federal Bureau of Prisons and other states do so,” or why she can’t provide the kosher meals although the department offers other special diets “at similar marginal costs,” wrote appeals court Judge William Pryor.
Corrections officials were reviewing the court’s decision and “will determine next steps,” agency spokeswoman Michelle Glady said in an email Thursday evening.
“We will continue to serve the more than 9,000 inmates enrolled in the religious dietary program meals that comply with the tenets of their faith,” she said.
The fight over kosher meals in Florida prisons has dragged on for more than a decade.
The department started offering kosher meals in 2004 to Jewish prisoners at 13 facilities and transferred inmates who were eligible for the meals to those institutions. The agency expanded the program to inmates of all faiths in 2006 but halted it the following year before reinstating it as a pilot project at a single prison in 2010, serving fewer than 20 prisoners.
A year after the Justice Department filed the lawsuit in 2012, the state again began serving kosher meals and promised to have the meals available to all inmates by last July.
About 9,000 of the state’s 100,000 prisoners are receiving kosher meals, according to Glady. As of Monday, the state was spending $3.32 per inmate per day on kosher meals, compared to about $1.97 for the regular diet.
POLITICAL MUCKRAKING
Amid a blossoming problem with toxic algae linked to water releases from Lake Okeechobee, the state this week opened its bridge-loan program to businesses in Southeast and Southwest Florida that have been hurt by the crisis.
By Thursday, 59 businesses — mostly in Martin, St. Lucie and Lee counties — had reported some form of financial impacts from the toxic blooms.
Florida Department of Economic Opportunity Executive Director Cissy Proctor said the impacts include such things as a decrease in tourists to the counties, fewer people going to restaurants and fewer people using recreational facilities on or near the water.
“We’ve seen the reports of these blooms not only on our local news, but on the national news,” Proctor said. “And we’re also seeing that even if (people) are going down to visit, they’re not going out on their boats. They’re not going out to see the manatees. They’re not going out to do the things that you normally do, especially in these areas on the water that are recreationally or are part of these folks’ livelihood.”
The loans are available only to businesses in four counties in which Gov. Rick Scott has declared an emergency: Martin, St. Lucie, Lee and Palm Beach.
But assistance for businesspeople affected by the problems also caused a political storm this week after Scott’s office posted on the state’s Sunburst email system a chain of emails in which Democratic Congressman Patrick Murphy’s office on Monday requested a delay in announcing the opening of a Small Business Administration recovery center. The potential delay could have led to an announcement during a press conference Murphy was holding Thursday about the algae issue.
Opponents on both sides pounced on Murphy’s request. Congressman Alan Grayson, who is running against Murphy in the Aug. 30 Democratic primary for a U.S. Senate seat, called Murphy’s action an abuse of power.
“Putting his own political fortunes in front of the needs of legitimate small business owners is stunningly shameless,” Grayson campaign manager Michael Ceraso said in a release.
Meanwhile, Carlos Beruff, a developer from Bradenton seeking to become the Republican Senate nominee, went further, demanding Murphy “resign his office immediately” and be investigated by the House Committee on Ethics.
But Murphy’s campaign fired back, saying it was Scott’s office “looking to score partisan points” that took out of context a “standard request to coordinate a media strategy with a federal agency.”
“Of course our office did not request for this program to be delayed,” Murphy campaign spokesman Anthony Kusich said in a statement. “Anyone who reads the original email can see that we did not. The official emails that Republicans are distributing to press intentionally leave out the Small Business Administration’s email to our office on Monday morning, which suggests no impending announcement.”
STORY OF THE WEEK: Polls showed both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton in the lead in Florida’s presidential race, pointing to the likelihood of another close campaign for the state’s 29 electoral votes.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “The United States Supreme Court has recognized that there is a guerilla war currently occurring against the death penalty in the United States. Anti-death penalty groups have been on a crusade against those legally involved with executions, harassing and threatening them until they feel pressured to withdraw their participation. … In Florida, the plight has not been any different.”— Florida Chief Assistant Attorney General James Lee Marsh, in a filing asking a federal judge in Tallahassee to quash a subpoena from a case involving seven Arizona Death Row inmates.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
Not So Fast: Molino Road Bridge Replacement To Take Longer Than First Anticipated
July 16, 2016
Molino Road will be closed longer than originally anticipated for a bridge replacement later this year.
In February, the Florida Department of Transportation and Escambia County signed off on the project to replace the bridge over Penasula Creek, west of Highway 29 on Molino Road between 4 Star Farm Road and Sunshine Hill Road. Original plans called for the bridge to be closed 180 days, but now FDOT says the closure will be closer to 270 days.
Construction, and the road closure, are expected to begin in October. A detour of approximately seven miles will be available at Sunshine Hill Road, Crabtree Church Road, and Highway 29.
The bridge has reached a level of deterioration to warrant replacement and is next on the list of the FDOT’s Five-Year Work Plan. During construction, Molino Rod will be closed for about six to nine months to minimize costs and construction time. The project will be funded and the construction work will be performed under contract for the Florida Department of Transportation. After completion of the structure, Escambia County will be responsible for the maintenance of the bridge.
The wood piling supported Molino Road Bridge over Penasula Creek was constructed in 1958.
Pictured top: The Molino Road bridge over Penasula Creek. Pictured: The deteriorating wood pilings that support the bridge. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Two Starving Horses Seized From Property Near Molino
July 15, 2016
Escambia County Animal Control seized two emaciated horses Thursday from a property near Molino.
The horses were seized from a property on Parkers Lane off Highway 97, just north of Hendricks Lane in Molino. The seizure was the result of an ongoing investigation. Charges were not immediately filed, but the investigation remains open.
The horses, named Bo and Trigger, are now in the care of Panhandle Equine Rescue in Cantonment.
“Trigger was extremely emaciated,” PER President Diane Lowery said late Thursday afternoon. “Bo is doing slightly better, but needs dental work.”
With the two seized horses, PER is now housing 11 horses on three acres. That has put the non-profit in extreme need of a pole barn, Lowery said, to have room for the overflow. And one of the horses seized Thursdays had an allergy to bug bites and needs a stall.
“We need donations,” Lowery said. “Bo and Trigger are counting on all of us to help them.”
To donate, tax deductible contributions can be mailed to PER, P.O. Box 777, Cantonment, FL 32533, or visit www.panhandleequinerescue.org.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Appeals Court Says Kosher Meals A Must In Florida Prisons
July 15, 2016
Two days after hearing arguments, an appeals court Thursday sided with the U.S. Department of Justice and refused to block a federal judge’s order requiring Florida corrections officials to provide kosher meals to inmates.
U.S. District Judge Patricia Seitz last year ordered the Department of Corrections to offer kosher meals and barred it from removing inmates from the religious dietary plan if prisoners buy non-kosher food from canteens or don’t pick up the meals more than 10 percent of the time.
While Corrections Secretary Julie Jones has maintained she has no plans to stop offering kosher meals, the agency argued that a federal law — the “Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act” of 2000 — allows prison officials to stop offering the meal plan if it gets too expensive.
But a three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday that Jones and the agency failed to prove their case. The state has spent nearly $500,000 on legal fees and costs in the prolonged dispute.
The federal act provides that “no government shall impose a substantial burden on the religious exercise” of an institutionalized person “unless the government demonstrates that imposition of the burden on that person” is both “in furtherance of a compelling governmental interest” and “the least restrictive means of furthering that compelling governmental interest.”
Lawyers for the state argued that denying the meals is the least restrictive means of furthering the government’s interest in containing costs.
“But the secretary’s argument lacks any support in the record,” appeals-court Judge William Pryor wrote in the 15-page opinion.
Corrections officials had estimated that kosher meals could cost taxpayers more than $12 million a year, an amount disputed by the Justice Department, which sued the state over the kosher meals in 2012. Instead, federal officials estimated that the religious meals would cost less than $390,000 annually.
Thirty-five other states and the Federal Bureau of Prisons provide kosher diets to inmates.
Jones “fail(ed) to explain why the department cannot offer kosher meals when the Federal Bureau of Prisons and other states do so,” or why she can’t provide the kosher meals although the department offers other special diets “at similar marginal costs,” Pryor wrote.
Justice Department officials provided evidence that corrections officials are not screening out “insincere applicants” or enforcing rules of participation in the program, something Jones did not dispute, the judge noted.
“She instead responds that enforcing the rules would be too time-intensive. But she fails to cite any evidence or explain why it would be too time-intensive, so she has not created a genuine dispute of material fact,” he wrote.
Jones also argued that the agency has a budget deficit and that she might have to eliminate 246 positions to pay for kosher meals.
But she offered “no concrete evidence concerning how other prison operations would be affected by the costs of the kosher meals … and we do not have enough information about the deficit or the vacancies to conclude that they might make the asserted interest compelling,” wrote Pryor, who was joined in the opinion by judges Jill Pryor and Richard Story.
Jones also tried to “avoid her evidentiary burden by shifting the blame to limited appropriations from the Florida Legislature,” but the federal law does not distinguish between parts of the government, the three-judge panel found.
“If the secretary must provide kosher meals, then the Legislature must appropriate enough funds to honor the obligation,” the order upholding the permanent injunction said.
Corrections officials are reviewing the court’s decision and “will determine next steps,” agency spokeswoman Michelle Glady said in an email Thursday evening.
“We will continue to serve the more than 9,000 inmates enrolled in the religious dietary program meals that comply with the tenets of their faith,” she said.
The fight over kosher meals in Florida prisons has dragged on for more than a decade.
The department started offering kosher meals in 2004 to Jewish prisoners at 13 facilities and transferred inmates who were eligible for the meals to those institutions. The agency expanded the program to inmates of all faiths in 2006 but halted it the following year before reinstating it as a pilot project at a single prison in 2010, serving fewer than 20 prisoners.
A year after the Justice Department filed the lawsuit in 2012, the state again began serving kosher meals and promised to have the meals available to all inmates by last July.
Two years ago, prison officials switched to all-cold meals, consisting largely of peanut butter and sardines, served twice a day, prompting some inmates to complain that the unappetizing diet was aimed at discouraging prisoners from signing up for the kosher plan.
About 9,000 of the state’s 100,000 prisoners are receiving kosher meals, according to Glady. As of Monday, the state was spending $3.32 per inmate per day on kosher meals, compared to about $1.97 for the regular diet.
Lawyers who represented a Jewish inmate who sued the state after being denied a kosher diet hailed Thursday’s ruling.
“This is a huge win, and it perfectly shows how protecting religious liberty for any Americans ultimately protects it for all Americans,” said Daniel Blomberg, a lawyer with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, said in a press release.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Escambia County Offers Safety Tips For Blue Angels Weekend
July 15, 2016
With the Blue Angels ready to take to the skies for the Pensacola Beach Air Show, Escambia County offers the following tips for a safe, fun weekend in the sun:
- Leave early. Traffic will be heavy, and parking is limited on Pensacola Beach.
- Don’t forget to get in the fast lane to the beach with SunPass, now accepted at the Bob Sikes Bridge Toll Plaza. With a SunPass transponder, the $1 toll will be deducted from your account each time you pass through the toll. No need to stop and pay $1 in cash – which means less time in the car and more time on the beach. For more information, click here.
- If parking is full in the core areas, take advantage of the free Pensacola Beach trolleys offered by the Santa Rosa Island Authority. East and west parking lots will be serviced by trolleys and will take beach goers to and from Casino Beach. For a map of trolley stops and a live trolley tracker, click here.
- Stay safe and hydrated. Bring plenty of water for everyone in your party, and remember that alcohol, sun and swimming do not mix.
- Swim in lifeguarded areas, and be sure to follow all lifeguard instructions. Swimmers will not be allowed in the Gulf during the airshow. For information about beach conditions, visit www.pensacolabeachlifeguards.com.
- Remember to “leave no trace” and keep Pensacola Beach sea turtle-friendly. Properly dispose of trash, fill in any holes in the sand and remove belongings from the beach at the end of the day. This includes not leaving any personal property unattended on the sandy gulf beach from sunset until sunrise like umbrellas, tents, beach toys and chairs. To view the Leave No Trace ordinance, click here.
- Follow all Pensacola Beach rules, including:
- Glass containers are not allowed on the beach.
- The west side of the Pensacola Beach Gulf Pier is an alcohol free zone.
- Open containers are not allowed off the boardwalk or outside any establishment.
- No alcohol can be consumed in any parking lot on Santa Rosa Island.
- Dogs other than service animals are not permitted on the any of the beaches except in designated dog parks. To view complete rules and boundaries for Pensacola Beach dog parks, click here.
Escambia Shares More Gas Tax With Century, Less With Pensacola
July 15, 2016
The Escambia County Commission voted to decrease the amount of local option gas tax funds shared with the City of Pensacola, while increasing the percentage shared with Century.
After two and a half hours of deliberation, the county agreed to a distribution formula that would guarantee the city of Pensacola a 6.9 percent share of the local option gas tax passed in 2015 for a period of 10 years. That represented a decrease from the 18.22 percent currently in effect.
The commission also voted to submit an interlocal agreement to the city that would allocate an additional 8.63 percent, or approximately $730,000, of the local option gas tax specifically for resurfacing projects in city council Districts 5, 6 and 7. This will allow the city of Pensacola to meet its infrastructure goals while addressing concerns in economically-challenged areas of the city.
The commission also voted to increase the percentage paid to Century from 0.63 percent to 0.81 percent, or about $20,000 per year.
Under the formula approved by the Escambia County Commission on Thursday, Pensacola will receive about $590,000 plus about $1.3 million through the interlocal agreement. Century will receive about $68,000, while Escambia County will retain about $7.1 million.
The Pensacola City Council voted Thursday night to accept the plan….with one change. The city changed language that would let either side opt out of the agreement to say that both the city and the county would have to agree to terminate.
The funds are use by the municipalities and the county to maintain roads and sidewalks.
Escambia Picks Site For New Jail
July 15, 2016
The Escambia County Commission has voted to purchase property for an expanded jail complex.
The commission will purchase 14.65 acres located on the southeast corner of Fairfield Drive and Pace Boulevard, commonly known as the McDonald Shopping Center, to be developed as the site of the expanded county jail complex for the purchase price of $4.5 million. The motion also included:
- The county will retain a consultant to develop a master plan for economic development and neighborhood revitalization within a 12-block diameter of the intersection of Pace Boulevard and Fairfield Drive.
- The development of a youth center in the vicinity of the property that is similar in size, design and facilities as the Wedgewood Community Center.
- Reserving approximately 300 feet of road frontage for economic development, with an emphasis on small businesses and businesses owned by minorities and women.
- The design of the expanded jail complex will be “street-friendly” and not institutional.
Thursday’s decision helps move the construction of a new jail facility forward significantly, and the commission vowed to work with current tenants and leaseholders in their transition as the project progresses. Property owners will not be expected to vacate until six to 12 months from now.
The Central Booking and Detention was damaged beyond repair during a natural gas explosion following flooding on April 30, 2014, forcing the county to find temporary housing for about 600 inmates.
Tate Football’s Raymond Freeman Named Top Long Snapper
July 15, 2016
Tate High School long snapper Raymond Freeman was declared Camp Champion at the Rubio Long Snapping Camp in Kennesaw, GA this week. The class of 2017 snapper was picked as the best overall at the camp.
Freeman beat out approximately 70 participants from 11 states as Snappers gathered to learn from the best and get the most exposure possible to college coaches.
“Freeman caught fire early in the day and never stopped. Came close in the accuracy contest, did well through the agility section and was outstanding in the speed competition. He left no doubt in the end that he was one of the top Long Snappers in the country!” said Chris Rubio, instructor.
Off the field, Freeman also shines academically at Tate, ranked high in his class with a 4.63 GPA on a 4.0 scale.
Reading And Reptiles At The Molino Branch Library (With Photo Gallery)
July 15, 2016
Dozens of children learned about reptiles and amphibians Thursday during the Summer Reading Club at the Molino Branch Library. They learned the difference between snakes and lizards, met a large African frog that really does not like to jump, learned about the difference between a turtle and tortoise and got hands-on with a boa constrictor.
The Summer Reading club continues next week with “Quite a Catch with Ron Anglin”. Participants can learn and be amazed as Ron Anglin mixes science and skill in an unforgettable juggling performance. Presentations will be held as follows:
Tuesday, Juy 19, 2016:
- 11 a.m. at Big Lagoon State Park, 12301 Gulf Beach Highway, located across from Southwest Branch Library. Show your library card for free all day park access.
Wednesday, July 20, 2016:
- 11 a.m. at Century Branch Library, 7991 N Century Blvd
- 4 p.m. at Pensacola Library, 239 N. Spring St.
Thursday, July 21, 2016:
- 11 a.m. at Molino Branch Library, 6450-A Highway 95A
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Wahoos Beat Jacksonville 9-0
July 15, 2016
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos tied a franchise record by knocking five home runs in a 9-0 victory over the Jacksonville Suns at The Baseball Ground of Jacksonville.
The last time the Blue Wahoos hit five homers in a game was May 10, 2016. Then, as well as Thursday, Pensacola center fielder Phillip Ervin hit two of the five blasts out of the ballpark.
The Pensacola outburst came one day after the Blue Wahoos lineup was shutout by Biloxi Shuckers pitching, 1-0, and managed only four hits.
Despite the loss, Jacksonville remained in first place in the second half of the Southern League South Division at 11-10, while Pensacola moved into second at 10-11 — one game back of the Suns. Pensacola is 51-40 overall, while Jacksonville fell to 41-50.
Blue Wahoos third baseman Alex Blandino led off the homer avalanche by putting the Blue Wahoos on top, 1-0, in the third inning with a two-out solo homer to left field.
Blandino was followed with home runs by Taylor Sparks in the seventh, Phillip Ervin in the seventh, Eric Jagielo in the eighth and Ervin again in the ninth.
To go along with his two solo blasts, Ervin also doubled — his 16th of the season — to lead off the sixth inning. Pensacola second baseman Brandon Dixon then followed Ervin with a walk. Both moved up on a wild pitch to third and second base. Pensacola right fielder Sebastian Elizalde smacked a deep sacrifice fly to right field to score Ervin to put Pensacola ahead, 2-0.
Pensacola went up, 3-0, when left fielder Juan Duran grounded out to shortstop driving in Dixon.
The Blue Wahoos put the game out of reach when they scored four more runs in the seventh inning to take a 7-0 lead. Sparks hit a pinch-hit, three-run blast over the left field wall that also brought in both Jagielo and catcher Chad Wallach for a 6-0 lead.
It was Sparks first homer since he hit two dingers and drove in four runs in his Double-A debut June 23. He now has three home runs and 11 RBIs on the season.
Pensacola then scored its last three runs of the game on solo homers. Ervin smacked his solo blasts in the seventh inning and leading off the ninth inning. Ervin now has nine homers and 29 RBIs this season.
The other solo shot was smacked by Jagielo over the right field wall in the eighth inning — his third homer in eight games. The Blue Wahoos first baseman has seven homers and 22 RBIs.
Jagielo hit .160 in April, .192 in May, .269 in June and .306 in July, so far to increase his average to a season-high .219.
Not to be out done, Pensacola starting pitcher Tyler Mahle threw six scoreless innings, allowing four hits and two walks, while striking out two. He improved to 4-1 and lowered his ERA to 2.93. In his last start against Biloxi, he allowed one run in seven innings of work.