Photo Gallery: Northview Homecoming Parade
October 10, 2015
The Northview High School Homecoming parade rolled through Bratt Friday afternoon with hundreds of people in attendance.
For a photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Jay Royals Hold Homecoming Parade
October 10, 2015
The Jay High School Royals held their annual homecoming parade this afternoon. Photos by Michele Edwards for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Century Man Charged With Attempted Homicide For Shooting Into Vehicle
October 9, 2015
A Century man is behind bars on attempted homicide charges for allegedly opening fire into a vehicle Wednesday night in Century.
Akino Jama Jackson, 23, was charged with two counts of attempted homicide, shooting into an occupied vehicle and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He remains in the Escambia County Jail without bond.
A female driver, identified as Amanda Conner pulled into the Whataburger parking lot on North Century Boulevard with multiple bullet holes in her Dodge Charger. A male passenger who been shot, later identified as Roosevelt Dixon, fled the from the scene before authorities arrived. Dixon eventually made his way to West Florida Hospital for treatment; the female driver was not injured.
Deputies said the shooting occurred on Pond Street and stemmed from an argument between Dixon and Jackson over Conner.
The vehicle in the restaurant parking lot had numerous bullet holes visible in the trunk and in the rear passenger door area.
The back driver’s side passenger window and the rear window of the vehicle were blown mostly out of the vehicle. Trajectory rods place by a crime scene investigator seemed to indicate that the shots were fired from behind the Dodge Charger.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the multi-agency Gun Response Team in the investigation.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Century Man Sentenced For Fatal Backwoods Road Shooting
October 9, 2015
A Century man is headed to state prison for a January 31 shooting death on Backwoods Road in Century.
Jaran Britt Myles, 21, pleaded no contest and was sentenced Thursday to six years in prison to be followed by six years probation on a charge of manslaughter with a firearm in the death of a 20-year old Jonathan Ray Wilson.
One witness told deputies that “Run Run”, later identified as Myles, pulled out a gun and asked him if he was scared of it before taking the magazine out of the weapon and pointing it him. Myles then pulled the trigger of the gun, without the magazine, but it “dry fired”, he said.
The witness said Myles then pointed the gun to Wilson’s head after loading the magazine back into the gun. Wilson then adjusted the height of the gun to his head, “correcting the placement of the gun pointed at him,” an arrest report states. The witness said when Wilson let go of the gun, Myles pulled the trigger and shot Wilson in the head.
NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
No Honor: Thieves Caught On Camera Stealing From Local Farmer
October 9, 2015
Two thieves apparently had no honor when it came to stealing deer corn being sold on the honor system by a Walnut Hill farmer.
About 6:30 Tuesday morning, the two men stopped at the farmer’s roadside bin on South Highway 99. They can be seen on surveillance video checking an honor box for cash and then loading up two bags of deer corn without making payment.
Both suspects are described as white males. One walked with a slight limp and appeared to be wearing some type of identification around his neck, similar to an employee badge. They were in an extended cab pickup with a camper shell. Both the camper shell and truck appeared to be red or maroon in color. The passenger rear-view mirror on the truck showed obvious damage.
Anyone with information on the theft is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620.
The complete surveillance video is at the bottom of this page.
Images for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
If you do not see the video above, it is because your home, work or school firewall is blocking YouTube videos.
Panel Backs Removing Confederate Flag From Senate Seal
October 9, 2015
Lawmakers took a step toward removing the Confederate battle flag from the Senate’s official seal Thursday, as a committee unanimously voted to establish a new seal without the Civil War banner.
The Senate Rules Committee’s recommendation, which follows a request by Senate President Andy Gardiner and Senate Minority Leader Arthenia Joyner to re-examine the flag’s place on the seal, is another sign of a backlash against the symbols of the South’s rebellion in the 1860s. The backlash has come after a white supremacist massacred nine black churchgoers in South Carolina this summer.
The new seal is likely to go to the full Senate in January, in the opening days of the annual legislative session. It would take effect if approved by a two-thirds vote of senators.
Under the proposal approved by the committee, the Senate’s official insignia would still include other non-American flags that flew over Florida, including the 1513 Spanish flag, the 1564 French flag and the 1763 flag of Great Britain. The United States flag and the Florida state flag would also appear on the marker.
During a presentation to members of the panel, Rules Chairman David Simmons, R-Altamonte Springs, highlighted post-Civil War rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court that held the decision by 11 Southern states to secede from nation was illegal.
Simmons said the Senate’s seal should include the flags of “those sovereignties that were legitimate sovereignties of this state.”
But it was impossible to escape the shadow that the Confederate flag has long cast over the politics of Florida and other Southern states. For many white Southerners, the battle flag is a commemoration of the military service and sacrifice of ancestors who fought against the Union.
For African-Americans, though, the banner is often a painful reminder of the brutal, slave-driven economy that was a central issue in the 1860 to 1865 war. Increasingly, white politicians have also joined in asking for the flag to be taken down in public spaces and otherwise set aside as a symbol of regional pride.
Joyner, a black Democrat from Tampa, said after the meeting that the effort to remove the flag from the seal is not an effort to wipe out the memory of what happened during the Civil War.
“I can remember it without seeing it on my lapel every day,” she told reporters after the meeting. “I mean, it’s reminiscent of a painful period. It’s time for healing, and I felt it was necessary to remove it.”
Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, had an even blunter way of putting it.
“Well, it is part of history, but the Nazi flag is part of history and shouldn’t be forgotten, but it also shouldn’t be lifted up,” he said.
Sen. Darren Soto, R-Orlando, pointed out several steps the Legislature has taken in recent years to promote racial reconciliation and bridge other gaps.
“It’s time for us to have the seal be consistent with our values,” Soto said. “We can’t revise history and choose which moments in our history to forget. But we can choose what we highlight in our seal that’s just and right.”
But the action is unlikely to halt all discussion of how the state memorializes the Civil War. Joyner voiced hope that lawmakers would also consider legislation (SB 154 and HB 243) seeking to ban government buildings or properties from displaying any flag used by the Confederacy.
The House and Senate could also consider legislation to replace a statue of Confederate Gen. Edmund Kirby Smith, whose likeness is one of two sculptures that represent the state in the National Statuary Hall Collection at the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center in Washington, D.C.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
Blackburn Running For Sheriff
October 9, 2015
Thursday, Rex Blackburn of Cantonment became the fifth candidate to prefile for Escambia County Sheriff in the 2016 general election.
Blackburn is running with no party affiliation. Incumbent David Morgan, Doug Baldwin, John Johnson and Ron McNesby have prefiled as Republicans.
Blackburn ran unsuccessfully for Escambia County School Board District 5 in 2000. He also prefiled for the Sheriff’s race in 2012, withdrawing his name during qualification week.
Ernest Ward Rolls To 42-22 Win Over W.S. Neal
October 9, 2015
The Ernest Ward Middle School Eagles defeated W.S. Neal Middle Thursday night 42-22. With win, Ernest Ward improves to a perfect 7-0 on the season.
EWMS will look to make it a perfect season next Thursday at 6 p.m. as they take on Escambia County Middle School of Atmore at the Escambia County High School stadium.
For a photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Escambia Man Charged With Bank Robbery
October 9, 2015
An Escambia County man has been arrested for a Pensacola bank robbery.
Mario Antwan Likely, 39, turned himself in to the police after surveillance photos of him were released to local media. He has been charged with armed robbery and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon.
The incident occurred just after 9:30 a.m. Saturday at Wells Fargo on Bayou Boulevard after the suspect handed a teller a note demanding cash. She complied and he left the area on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash. Police said the money has not been recovered.
Santa Rosa Makes Largest Ever Heroin Bust
October 8, 2015
The Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office has made the largest heroin bust in the history of the county.
Detectives and the SRSO SWAT team executed a search warrant about 6 a.m. Thursday following a two month investigation.
Monica Nicole-Gonzalez Jones was arrested at 6583 Arlingwood Drive in Milton. Inside the home, deputies found 50 grams of heroin, cocaine and 50 grams of meth. Along with the drugs, detectives seized a vehicle and a handgun.
Jones was booked into the Santa Rosa County Jail with bond set at $115,500. Deputies said additional arrests are expected in the case.