‘Stand Your Ground’ Motion Denied For Molino Mom Accused Of Killing Husband
September 22, 2014
An Escambia County judge has rejected a Molino mom’s “stand your ground” defense in the murder of her husband.
Judge Linda Nobles refused to dismiss the second degree murder case against 44-year old Rebecca A. Rogers for allegedly shooting her husband, 42-year old Jason Lee Rogers in August 2013. Her attorneys made a motion to dismiss the case, saying Rogers acted within the parameters of Florida’s self-defense “stand your ground” law. Nobles denied that motion.
“She can still raise the stand your ground defense before the jury,” State Attorney Bill Eddins said. “We will continue to prosecute the case and move forward.”
Rebecca Rogers allegedly shot her husband twice in the back and once in the head inside the couple’s home in the 3400 block of Highway 29 in Molino. She told a 911 dispatcher that her husband choked her and then she shot him.
Deputies arrived to find Rebecca Rogers standing outside the home. They found Jason Rogers lying unconscious in the back bedroom of the home on his stomach with what appeared to be a gunshot to his head. According to the report, he also suffered two other gunshot wounds to the back. He died at a local hospital about two days later.
The couple had four daughters, one of which testified last year at a preliminary hearing that her father had several guns in the home. “As far as I know, he was going to get them and he was…my mom believed he was going to kill her. So, she was protecting herself,” she said.
Rogers remains free on a $300,000 bond.
Jay Woman Killed In Highway 4 Crash
September 22, 2014
A Jay woman was killed Sunday in an accident on Highway 4 in Santa Rosa County.
The accident happened about 11:10 a.m. near Hidden Trail Circle, just east of the Highway 4 bridge over the Escambia River from Century. According to the Florida Highway Patrol, 32-year old Caitlan Irene Bonds was traveling west on Highway 4 when she over-steered coming out of a downhill curve. She crossed the oncoming lane, and the vehicle was spinning as she ran onto the shoulder of the road. The vehicle struck a group of trees.
Bonds was pronounced deceased on the scene by a Lifeguard paramedic. She was wearing her seat belt, and alcohol was not factor in the crash, according to the FHP.
The crash remains under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol.
RV Fire Shuts Down Highway 29
September 22, 2014
Fire destroyed a RV on Highway 29 north of Champion Drive in McDavid Sunday afternoon. The occupants reported that the fire began in the engine compartment about 5 p.m., but they were unable to contain the blaze.
The fire blocked southbound Highway 29 for about a half hour. There were no injuries reported.
The McDavid, Century and Molino stations of Escambia Fire Rescue were dispatched to the blaze.
Reader submitted photos by Lisa Brooks and others for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
All West Florida Libraries Closed Tuesday
September 22, 2014
All West Florida Public Library System locations will be closed to the public Tuesday. During this time the libraries will undergo a new software migration featuring expanded services to better serve the community. All library staff will receive training on these days.
While the libraries will be closed, patrons will be able to view the library system’s website, MyWFPL.com and online databases accessible through the library system.
Citizens: There May Be An Early End To Storm Tax On Propery Insurance
September 22, 2014
A 1 percent charge imposed on most homeowners’ policies to help the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp. cover losses from the last of the 2005 hurricanes may come off the books two years early.
Citizens’ Board of Governors will be asked Wednesday to put an end date of July 1, 2015, on the storm assessment, which has been slated to continue until June 30, 2017, according a proposal on the board’s agenda.
Citizens Chief Financial Officer Jennifer Montero is recommending the change, noting that the state-backed insurer is on track to have collected enough money to meet its remaining debt obligations by the middle of 2015, according to the agenda item.
Citizens imposed the storm assessment in 2007 on insurance policyholders throughout the state —- whether they were Citizens customers or not — to recoup $887 million of the roughly $1.7 billion deficit created by Hurricane Wilma, which hit South Florida in October 2005. The state picked up $623 million of the costs from Wilma, while the remainder was covered by additional assessments on Citizens policyholders.
The storm assessment, initially set at 1.4 percent and reduced to 1 percent in 2011, is imposed on a variety of types of property-insurance policies.
The potential early end of what critics have labeled a storm “tax” comes two months after the Office of Insurance Regulation issued orders for insurance companies to end on Jan. 1 a 1.3 percent “emergency assessment” for the state-run Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, which provides backup coverage to insurers.
The so-called “Cat Fund” charge, imposed on most home and auto policies, had previously been set to end July 1, 2016.
That assessment has hit policyholders for $2.9 billion, which has gone to reimburse insurance companies for claims from the eight hurricanes that hit Florida in 2004 and 2005, the last time any hurricane made landfall in Florida.
Citizens officials have moved more than a half-million policies the past couple of years into the private market, in part to lessen the potential assessments that could be needed after future storms.
Citizens, which will reduce rates next year for most customers, had 933,807 overall policies in place as of July 31. The company has an eye on bringing the number to around 850,000 later this year and to about 650,000 by the end of 2017.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
FWC: Floridians Hunting Deer Out Of State Need To Know CWD Laws
September 22, 2014
Florida hunters planning to hunt deer, moose or elk out of state this year need to be aware of certain laws and regulations aimed at preventing chronic wasting disease (CWD) from entering the state, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
CWD is a contagious neurological disease that has been found in captive and wild cervids (white-tailed deer, mule deer, moose and elk) within 22 states, two Canadian provinces and in South Korea. The disease causes degeneration of the brains of infected animals, resulting in emaciation, abnormal behavior, loss of bodily functions and death. There is no known evidence that CWD can be transmitted to livestock or humans.
The disease has been detected in New Mexico, Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Michigan, Virginia, Missouri, North Dakota, Maryland, Texas, Alberta and Saskatchewan Canadian provinces, and in South Korea.
Hunters need to know that it is against the law to bring into Florida whole carcasses of any deer from any of the above-listed areas. The purpose of this measure is to prevent CWD from being brought into the state. The infective agent is more likely to be concentrated within the brain, eyes, spinal cord, lymph nodes, tonsils and spleen of the animal. This infective agent, called a prion, can be accidentally deposited into the environment, where it can remain for years and can infect other deer. Many states have a prohibition in place that is similar to Florida’s.
It is not illegal to bring into Florida deboned meat and finished taxidermy mounts, tanned hides, cleaned skulls, antlers and teeth from any of these places, as long as all soft tissue has been removed.
For more information about CWD or the rule, visit MyFWC.com/CWD.
Another Group Launches Another Challenge To Florida Pot Rule
September 22, 2014
A trade association has challenged the Florida Department of Health’s plan for carrying out a new medical-marijuana law, adding to two challenges filed last week.
The Florida Medical Cannabis Association is asking an administrative law judge to reject a department rule unveiled this month. The earlier challenges were filed by nurseries Plants of Ruskin, Inc., and Costa Farms.
The cases stem from a law passed this spring that allows strains of marijuana low in euphoria-inducing tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, and high in cannabadiol, or CBD. Supporters say the substances can help children with severe forms of epilepsy and some people with other medical conditions.
Plants of Ruskin and Costa Farms meet legal requirements to apply for licenses to grow, process and distribute the substances. But the association and growers take issue with parts of the rule and contend, in part, that that department has overstepped its rulemaking authority. Similar to the challenge filed by Plants of Ruskin, the association argued Wednesday that department’s proposals “fail to establish even minimum criteria to evaluate (a license) applicant’s financial, technical and technological ability to securely cultivate and produce low-THC cannabis.”
Updated: Pensacola Man Critically Injured In Highway 29 Rollover Crash
September 21, 2014
[Updated] A Pensacola man was critically injured in a single vehicle rollover accident late Saturday night in Cantonment.
The Florida Highway Patrol said 29-year old Brian L. Whitehead was southbound on Highway 29 near Cedar Tree Lane when he lost control. The left rear tire of his 1995 Chevrolet Silverado struck a metal grate, causing the vehicle to spin and slide sideways into a concrete culvert. The vehicle slid up the culvert and became airborne and overturned several times, ejecting Whitehead. The vehicle came to rest on the driver’s side partially inside a northbound lanes.
Whitehead was airlifted by LifeFlight to Baptist Hospital as a “trauma alert”. There were no other occupants in the vehicle.
The Cantonment, Molino and Ensley stations of Escambia Fire Rescue, Escambia EMS and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to the 11:19 p.m. accident.
Charges in the crash are pending, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Price, click to enlarge.
Deadline Approaching To Register To Vote In November Election
September 21, 2014
Monday, October 6 is the last day to register to vote in the November 4 general election, according to Escambia County Supervisor of Elections David Stafford.
Florida law mandates that registration books close 29 days before an election. New registrations must be completed and received or postmarked no later than October 6 in order for them to be effective for the November 4 election. Address and party changes can be made after the books close. If you are unsure of your registration status, visit EscambiaVotes.com and click Am I Registered?.
Escambia County citizens have several ways to register or update their record:
Online/By Mail: Visit EscambiaVotes.com and complete, print, and sign the online application. Be sure to include a valid Florida Driver’s License number, a valid Florida ID number, or if you have neither, the last 4 digits of your Social Security Number in the appropriate space. Completed applications must be received or postmarked no later than July 28. Send to: Escambia County Supervisor of Elections, PO Box 12601, Pensacola, FL 32591-2601, or take the completed application to the Elections Office at 213 Palafox Place, 2nd Floor, in downtown Pensacola. Also, to have a form mailed to you, call (595-3900) or e-mail the Elections Office (soe@escambiavotes.com).
In Person: You can register at the Elections Office at 213 Palafox Place, 2nd Floor in downtown Pensacola, at any Florida Driver’s License Office, and several other governmental offices and public assistance centers. Registration forms are also available to pick up at many locations countywide. For a complete list of locations throughout Escambia County, visit EscambiaVotes.com or call or e-mail the Elections Office.
For voters who wish to cast a ballot by mail (an absentee ballot), go to EscambiaVotes.com and complete the online request form, or call or e-mail the elections office.
Winning $83K Fantasy Five Ticket Sold In North Escambia
September 21, 2014
Someone is over $83,000 richer this morning after purchasing a winning Florida Lottery Fantasy 5 ticket in Davisville.
The ticket sold at the State Line Gift Shop, 11208 Highway 97, was one of three winning tickets sold for Saturday night’s drawing worth $83,200.07. Other winning tickets matching all five numbers was sold in Sarasota and Miami.
The 392 tickets matching four numbers won $102.50 each. Another 13,058 tickets matching three numbers are worth $8.50 each, and 118,975 tickets holders won a Quick Pick ticket for picking two numbers.
Saturday’s winning numbers were 4-5-8-21-23.