Man Charged With Shooting Girlfriend In Her Face
February 28, 2013
Multiple charges have been filed against a Pensacola man who shot his girlfriend in the face this morning during an argument.
Henry Blackmon, 21, of 4823 Sierra Drive, Pensacola, was charged with attempted murder, assault, possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, vehicle theft, fleeing/eluding police, and driving with a suspended license.
The incident occurred around 2:30 a.m. at Blount Street and Watson Drive. The 23-year-old victim was driving a vehicle when she and Blackmon got into an argument. Blackmon then shot her in the face, pushed her out of the car and fled the scene, Pensacola Police said. The victim used her cell phone to call 911.
As police were responding to the area, Officer David Rogers saw the vehicle westbound on Cervantes Street. Officers Rogers and Coy McKenna followed the vehicle with emergency lights and sirens activated to “X” and Cervantes streets where Rogers intentionally collided with the suspect’s vehicle in an effort to stop it.
No one was injured during the collision but a chain link fence was damaged during the impact.
The female victim was taken to a local hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries. Her name has not been released .
Local Singer Releases First Songs, Bluff Springs Music Video Premieres
February 28, 2013
Molino native and Tate High grad Dusty Sanderson’s first four songs and his first music video — filmed in Escambia County — have been released.
Sanderson, 20, signed with Lamon Records and recorded his four-song EP at Quad Studios in Nashville with Grammy nominated producer Dave Moody. His first music video for the title track “Chuggin’ Along” was shot January 24 in Bluff Springs, including a bonfire scene that featured a lot of his friends around a bonfire enjoying the song. Additional scenes were filmed earlier in the day at Chan’s on Nine Mile Road.
The first single “Chuggin’ Along” has just shipped to country radio stations across the nation. The four-song album highlights Dusty’s songwriting abilities, and in addition to the title cut, it includes “Dang Good Country Song,” “Country to the Stone,” and the ballad “This Old Guitar”.
“I’m still overwhelmed. It’s just crazy how fast a childhood dream can turn into a reality if you work hard enough for it,” Sanderson told NorthEscambia.com.
Sandrson has been playing guitar since he was 10 years old and singing since he turned 14. “It all started around a bonfire on the river,” he said, “with just me and my guitar, which eventually led to me getting my first real gig in my hometown at a little place called the Fugly Worm.”
Asked about his songwriting, Sanderson said, “I’ve been interested in writing songs all my life, but I didn’t get serious about it until I was 17. I had a girlfriend that I spent all day, every day with, so when she took a trip to LA for a week I had no clue what to do with my time, so I sat down in my room and started writing.” And he’s not stopped since.
“Chuggin’ Along” and Dusty Sanderson’s complete four song EP release are available from iTunes and Amazon.com. To watch the “World Premiere” of Sanderson’s video “Chuggin’ Along” on NorthEscambia.com, click here.
The Dusty Sanderson band will open for the Kentucky Headhunters on Saturday, March 16 at Beulahfest.
Pictured: Scenes from Dusty Sanderson’s video “Chuggin’ Along” that was filmed partially in Bluff Springs, just off Highway 29 in North Escambia. Courtesy images for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Woman Gets 300 Days For Duct-Taping Dog’s Injured Eye
February 28, 2013
An Escambia County woman has been convicted of animal cruelty for duct-taping her dog’s injured eye, State Attorney Bill Eddins said Wednesday.
Mechele Renea Potter, 46, was convicted Tuesday by an Escambia County jury and sentenced by Judge Thomas E. Johnson to 300 days in the Escambia County Jail along with all fines and costs.
On September 18, 2012, Potter called Escambia County Animal Control to report a stray dog in her yard with duct tape on its head, according to the State Attorney’s Office. The dog was not a stray but instead was actually owned by Potter.
Prosecutors said Potter had put the duct tape around the dog’s head and over its eye to act as an eye patch. When animal control picked up the dog, they removed the tape from the dog’s head. Animal control found the dog’s eye injury had been left untreated and found the dog’s eye was protruding from its eye socket and was also red and extremely swollen. As
a result, the dog’s eye had to be removed.
While the cause of the injury was unknown, the injury was made worse by the defendant’s failure to seek medical attention, the State Attorney’s Office said.
Potter testified that she tried everything she could before calling animal control, which consisted of using the duct tape and calling some vets. Her husband also testified, stating that he told her to lie to animal control about owning the dog, and that he helped her put the tape on the dog’s head, prosecutors said.
The dog has since been adopted by a family.
Kindergarten Registration Begins March 11
February 28, 2013
Kindergarten registration for Escambia County students will begin Monday, March 11.
Students who will be five years old on or before September 1, 2013, are eligible to register for the 2013-2014 school year. Registration will occur at the school which serves the student’s housing area.
At the time of registration, parents/guardians should bring the following:
- Child’s birth certificate
- Child’s Social Security card
- Proof of residence, such as an electric bill or rent receipt (please note, telephone and cable bills are not acceptable)
- Immunization record (also known as the Florida Blue Card, which is provided by the health department or family physician)
- Physical form completed by family physician
To find the school your child is zoned to attend, visit www.myescambiaschools.com and click on “Find Your School.”
For additional information, contact the elementary school which serves the student’s housing area.
Sherri Stallworth Named Ernest Ward Middle Teacher Of The Year
February 28, 2013
Sherri Stallworth has been named the Teacher of the Year at Ernest Ward Middle School. Stallworth serves as the school’s media specialist, and also coordinates the production of the Ernest Ward Middle School yearbook “The Talon”. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Bill Filed To Allow Medical Marijuana In Florida
February 28, 2013
Qualified patients would be able to posses and use medical marijuana for treatment of certain conditions, as long as they have a registry ID card from state officials, under a bill filed Wednesday by a Senate Democrat.
The measure (SB 1250) also would allow for licensed medical canabis farms and dispensaries. Under the bill, filed by Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth, the maximum amount of medical pot a patient or caregiver could possess would be 4 ounces of dried medical canabis or eight pot plants, though state officials could change those amounts through the rulemaking process.
The measure, named for Cathy Jordan, who suffers from ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease, comes a day after Manatee County sheriff’s officials said they raided Jordan’s home and seized 23 marijuana plants.
A sheriff’s spokesman said the raid came after a real estate agent alleged Jordan was using a neighboring property’s electricity, and had nothing to do with the planned filing of the bill named for her.
By The News Service of Florida
Pine Forest Softball Rocks Catholic
February 28, 2013
One night after getting run-ruled, the Pine Forest softball team turned the tables.
The Lady Eagles pounded nine hits and took advantage of nine walks and three hit batters to beat Catholic, 17-2, on Thursday night at Pine Forest.
Pine Forest, which lost 16-0 at Pace on Tuesday night, improved to 4-4. The Lady Eagles won three games last season.
Against Catholic, Junior Alexis Gardner went 2-for-4 with two doubles off the fence. She also scored twice and drove in a game-high four runs.
Senior Aleecia Ybarra was 1-for-1 with two walks, two RBI, scored four runs and stole four bases. Fellow senior Kellie Payne hit a double off the fence, drove in two runs and scored twice. Tiana Acevedo and Miranda Kelley each scored twice and stole two bases.
Sophomore Brooke Lauter started for Pine Forest and pitched 3.2 innings, allowing just four hits and one walk. Junior Janessa Landas relieved with the bases loaded and two outs in the fourth inning. She struck out the batter on four pitches to end the threat and earn the victory to improve to 3-1 this season.
Escambia Man Sentenced To 25 Years For Battery, Attempted Robbery
February 28, 2013
An Escambia County man is headed to prison for battery and attempted robbery.
N’Kosi Lerone Jones , Jr., 20, was sentenced by Judge Ross Goodman to a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years for aggravated battery with a firearm causing great bodily harm and attempted robbery with a firearm.
On June 22, 2011, Duane Jackson was shot by Jones while visiting a friend at Gonzalez Court Apartments. Jones attempted to conceal his identity by wearing a handkerchief over his face. However, Jackson was still able to give a description to Pensacola Police Department who then showed him a photo lineup containing the defendant, and Jackson identified Jones as the shooter. Jones was questioned, but no arrests were made at that time.
On September 11, 2011, Jones was stopped for a traffic violation. Law enforcement searched the vehicle and recovered a revolver under the passenger’s seat. Pensacola Police then compared the bullet retrieved from the victim to the revolver recovered and ballistics determined they were a match. After subsequent testing, the Jones’ DNA was found on the revolver.
Study: Huge Drop In Juvenile Lock-up Rates
February 28, 2013
Declining juvenile crime rates and more emphasis on keeping teens out of the criminal justice system have resulted in a major drop in lock-up rates both in Florida and nationwide.
The Annie E. Casey Foundation on Wednesday released a new KIDS COUNT data report, “Reducing Youth Incarceration in the United States,” which shows a 32 percent drop in the number of Florida youths sent to residential juvenile-justice programs between 1997 and 2010. Locally, the rate was 31 percent in Escambia County.
Nationally, the drop was 37 percent for the same period – to the lowest rate in 35 years.
The peak nationally came in 1995, with 107,637 juveniles incarcerated on a single day, and dropped to 70,792 on a single day in 2010, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. During that time, the overall incarceration rate dropped by 41 percent.
The report shows Florida is on the right track, said Department of Juvenile Justice Secretary Wansley Walters.
“In addition to the significant decrease in youth incarceration rates documented in this snapshot, Florida has seen a drastic reduction in overall juvenile arrests, school-based delinquency and the number of youth being transferred to the adult prison system,” Walters said in a statement.
According to DJJ, the state has seen a 34 percent drop in juvenile arrests over the last five years. School-based delinquency dropped by 50 percent over the last eight years. The number of Florida youths transferred to adult court has dropped by 44 percent since 2007-08.
As examples of the drops in incarceration rates, Broward County saw a 12 percent decrease, while Lee County saw its rate go down 34 percent and Alachua County had a 53 percent drop.
Walters credits DJJ’s “Roadmap to System Excellence,” a reform proposal the agency has been developing. The plan would shift funding from residential facilities to community-based intervention, then take those savings and spend more on job training, education, family support, transitional housing and transportation. Walters has led a series of town hall meetings on the plan, seeking feedback statewide.
David Utter, the Southern Poverty Law Center’s legislative director for Florida, praised the approach.
“It’s a plan that for the first time is based on what we know works for juvenile delinquency and kids who are troubled,” he said. “It’s a very exciting development.”
The state roadmap also dovetails with the Casey Foundation’s warning that despite the rapid decline, the U.S. still leads the industrialized world in locking up young people, most for nonviolent offenses such as truancy and technical probation violations.
“Locking up young people has lifelong consequences, as incarcerated youth experience lower educational achievement, more unemployment, higher alcohol and substance abuse rates and greater chances of run-ins with the law as adults,” said Bart Lubow, director of the foundation’s Juvenile Justice Strategy Group, in a statement. “Our decreasing reliance on incarceration presents an exceptional opportunity to respond to juvenile delinquency in a more cost-effective and humane way – and to give these youth a real chance to turn themselves around.”
Utter agrees that community- and family-based interventions are much more effective than incarceration. The Southern Poverty Law Center is pursuing that strategy in Florida via lawsuits and legislation.
The KIDS COUNT data also found racial bias in the juvenile justice system. African Americans are nearly five times as likely to be locked up as their white counterparts, and Latinos and American Indians are two to three times as likely.
DJJ is trying to address racial bias as well, calling it “a critical component of the Roadmap.” The plan calls for increased use of civil citations, a training curriculum for officials who work with minority youths and more partnerships to help them find jobs, and collaborating with schools to develop teacher/youth summits on diversity issues.
By The News Service of Florida
Gas Prices Up 37¢ In February
February 28, 2013
Gas prices in the Pensacola metro are up 37 cents in February, according to the AAA fuel gauge report. Late Wednesday, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded in Escambia County was $3.72. A spot check showed several stations in Davisville and Century were at or near the $3.75 mark., and Cantonment and Molino stations were at about $3.67. Pictured: A gallon of regular unleaded was $3.75 at this Century station. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.