Wahoos Washed Out
June 12, 2012
Inclement weather and the resulting field conditions forced the fifth and final game of the series between the Pensacola Blue Wahoos and the Birmingham Barons to be cancelled in the bottom of the fourth inning with the Wahoos up 2-1 on Monday night at Regions Park in Hoover, AL. The game is not expected to be made up, and all events that took place in the game will be erased from stats.
The Blue Wahoos took each of the first four contests of the series over the Barons and will now return home to Pensacola for a five-game series with the Mobile BayBears, the Double-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks, with the first game slated for a 7:00 start on Wednesday evening. Fans attending Wednesday’s game are encouraged to show their support for their state’s school with a Florida vs. Alabama theme that night for the Bay-to-Bay Series with Mobile.
Feds, Florida In Dueling Lawsuits Over Voter Purge
June 12, 2012
The U.S. Department of Justice said Monday it will go to federal court to block Florida’s controversial effort to purge ineligible voters, ratcheting up a feud between the Obama administration and Gov. Rick Scott.
Word of the Department of Justice’s planned lawsuit came on the same day that Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner sued the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to gain access to a federal database in the ongoing effort to remove ineligible voters from statewide registration rolls.
In a five-page letter, however, Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez said Florida is not complying with federal laws aimed at “ensuring that state efforts to find and purge ineligible persons from voter registration lists do not endanger the ability of eligible U.S. citizens to register to vote and maintain their voter registration status.”
“The federal statutes that the department has called to Florida’s attention here are longstanding requirements of which the state is certainly aware,” Perez wrote in the letter addressed to Detzner. “Because the state has indicated its unwillingness to comply with these requirements, I have authorized the initiation of an enforcement action against Florida in federal court.”
The controversy stems from the state Division of Elections earlier this year sending a list of about 2,600 names of potentially illegal voters to local supervisors of elections. The division used what it has acknowledged was an imperfect list put together from a state Highway Safety database of people who had a certain degree of likelihood to be in the country illegally.
Detzner said the agency would have liked to have sent a more reliable list but couldn’t get access to the federal Department of Homeland Security database. Local officials, he stressed, would ultimately be the ones to purge those voters who didn’t respond to a letter questioning their status.
But in the last few days, the Division of Elections released a list of the names of 86 voters it says have been removed by local supervisors because they were non-citizens between April 11 and June 8. About half of them are listed as having voted.
Detzner filed a lawsuit Monday in federal court in the District of Columbia to seek to force the federal agency to share citizenship information. Detzner said the state has been trying for nearly a year to gain access to DHS’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements Program (SAVE) database, which tracks citizenship and alien status.
“We can’t let the federal government delay our efforts to uphold the integrity of Florida elections any longer,” Detzner said in a statement. “We’ve filed a lawsuit to ensure the law is carried out and we are able to meet our obligation to keep the voter rolls accurate and current.”
But in the letter Monday, Perez said the state had not provided needed information to be able to use the SAVE database. The letter said that information involves what are known as alien registration numbers or certificate numbers found on immigration documents.
“In short, your claim that the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security have worked in concert to deny Florida access to the SAVE program is simply wrong,” Perez wrote. “By your own admission, Florida has been on notice for at least eight months that the SAVE program can verify naturalized and derived United States citizens only if Florida provided the appropriate numeric identifiers, and where necessary, the underlying documentation.”
The Department of Justice lawsuit likely will center on two federal voting laws, the National Voter Registration Act and the Voting Rights Act.
Department officials argue that the National Voter Registration Act prevents states from systematically purging voters within 90 days of an election. With Florida hold primary elections Aug. 14, that 90-day period would have started May 16.
The Voting Rights Act, meanwhile, requires Florida to get approval from the U.S. attorney general or a federal court before making election changes in five counties that have a history of discrimination. Florida has not received such approval for the purge effort.
Despite the Department of Justice arguments, Scott has continued to push the effort — and has received hundreds of e-mails in support from across the country.
“My job is to enforce the laws of Florida,” Scott said on Fox News on Monday. “I’m the governor of Florida. That is what I got elected to do. I expect every other elected official to do their job and I expect they will.”
Opponents of the purge have criticized it as too broad-brushed, and note that the 86 voters identified as ineligible would only be about one-third of one percent of all those on the list sent to supervisors.
It’s also not clear how many of the 86 voters were among the 2,600 names that have been sent to local supervisors of elections for possible removal.
Local press reports have said some of the voters who have been removed in recent weeks were taken off voter rolls after they voluntarily came forward or were sought out by local officials not using the list sent to them by the state. For example, the Palm Beach Post reported that the one purged voter from Palm Beach County who was removed, Anabel Gomez, had to have come to the local supervisors and asked to be removed, because the local supervisor, Democrat Susan Bucher, never sent out any letters seeking to remove voters identified by the state.
It is a felony for non-citizens to register to vote, and at least some of those removed are likely to face charges if local prosecutors pursue them.
Of the 86 registered voters the state said local supervisors had removed in the last couple months, more than half – 44 of them – were in Lee County. No other county came close – Miami-Dade was next with 15 – suggesting the Lee County Supervisor of Elections office was much more aggressive during the period in culling the voter rolls of ineligible voters.
By The News Service of Florida
Jones Road Open After Washout Repair
June 11, 2012
Jones Road in the northwestern corner of Escambia County is once again open. Heavy rains Monday morning washed out the sparsely populated dirt road in the Nokomis community, but it was repaired by Monday afternoon. Submitted photo by Kevin Winingar for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Swimming Health Alert For All Of Escambia County
June 11, 2012
Effective immediately, the Escambia County Health Department has issued health alerts for all inland swimming and water recreational areas in Escambia County, except those located on the Gulf of Mexico.
The health department advises against any water-related activities until a bacteriological survey reveals that the inland bathing areas are safe. Rainfall from this past weekend may have contaminated these waters with sewage and storm water that contains water-borne pathogens. Individuals, especially those with wounds and weakened immune systems, may be at risk of contracting a water-borne disease if they come into contact with these inland waters, according to the health department.
The Escambia County Health Department will assess the safety of swimming areas and notify the public when regularly monitored areas are safe for water-related activities. For more information contact the Escambia County Health Department at (850) 595-6786.
Flooded Jail Gets Temporary Power; Early Releases Considered
June 11, 2012
Temporary power has been restored to the Escambia County Jail after heavy rains flooded the basement of the facility on Saturday, and authorities are looking at early and pretrial release options to decrease the number incarcerated at the lockup.
The basement of the facility was completely flooded, taking out electricity to the entire jail. With the restoration of temporary power, lights and fans returned on Sunday. The basement of the building was completely destroyed with some interior walls collapsing. The basement houses the kitchen and laundry facilities for the main jail.
Food is being brought to the main jail form the nearby jail annex.
Representatives from the State Attorney’s Office and a judge are reviewing cases to see if anyone is eligible for pretrial or early release. Only those with misdemeanor non-violent charges are eligible for consideration.
Cantonment Woman Busted For Planting ‘Cute’ Pot Plants
June 11, 2012
A Cantonment woman has been charged with planting three marijuana plants because, she told deputies, they were “cute”.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office discovered three marijuana plants growing near a no-name trailer park on Tate School Road not far from Tate High School.
Tommi Marie Schneider, 34, told deputies that she found the plants already pulled from the ground along nearby railroad tracks. She admitted to deputies that she knew the plants were illegal marijuana but planted them anyway near her mobile home lot.
According to an arrest report, Schneider said she did not know why she planted the marijuana plants other than she thought they were “cute”.
The marijuana plants were seized as evidence, and Schneider was booked into the Escambia County Jail on felony charged of producing marijuana.
IP Donates Lifesaving AED’s To Health And Hope Clinic
June 11, 2012
International Paper recently donated three automated external defibrillators (AED) to the non-profit Health and Hope Clinic. One of the AED units had already been installed in the Century location of the Health and Hope Clinic.
An AED is a portable electronic device that automatically diagnoses the potentially life threatening heart rhythms and is able to treat them through defibrillation (shock), with the goal of restarting a healthy rhythm.
The Health and Hope Clinic quietly opened last October in the old Escambia County Health Department building at 501 Church Street in Century. It is the second location for the clinic, which was first established in Pensacola back in 2003 by the Pensacola Bay Baptist Association to meet the needs of uninsured and medically underserved in Escambia County. The clinic is entirely volunteer and donor supported.
Pictured top: The Health and Hope Clinic in Century. Pictured inset: A new AED installed inside the Century Health and Hope Clinic. Submitted and NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Tax Collector: Cantonment Office Closed; Warrington Office Flooded
June 11, 2012
The Escambia County Tax Collector’s Cantonment is closed starting today, as it is moved permanently to a new location in Molino. A newly constructed 7,000 square foot building for the tax collector and property appraiser will open in Molino on Monday, July 2.
The Warrington Tax Collector’s office on Navy Boulevard is now closed until further notice to due to water damage during weekend’s heavy rains. Tax collector Janet Holley said the building had about two inches of water inside.
The Molino service center on Highway 95A will process motor vehicle and vessel registrations and titles, hunting and fishing licenses, property taxes, and business tax receipts. Limited driver license and ID card services will be available by appointment only. The new office will continue to offer drive thru service and a 24-hour drop box. Office hours will remain the same — Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m
The county currently leases the Cantonment service center location in the old Winn Dixie Shopping Center for about $60,000 per year. That money, Holley said, will likely be saved and returned by her office to the county’s coffers at the end of the fiscal year.
The current employees at the Cantonment location will be transferred to the tax collector’s Marcus Pointe office during the move, and then moved to Molino on July 2.
The Escambia County Tax Collector offices remaining open are:
Marcus Pointe
6451 North W Street
Pensacola, Florida 32505
Downtown
213 Palafox Place
Pensacola, Florida 32502
All offices are open 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Pictured: The new Escambia County tax collector and property appraiser office in Molino. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Photos: Pensacola’s Wettest Weekend Ends On Bright Note
June 11, 2012
After one of the wettest weekends ever in the Pensacola area — with over 20 inches of rain in some areas, there was a bright ending in the skies early Sunday evening. At sunset, a full rainbow was visible across much of Escambia County.
Pictured top: Rainbow of Myrtle Grove, by Monica Nelson. Pictured left inset: Rainbow of Gulf Breeze Hospital, by Sheila Tucker. Pictured below: Rainbow over Pensacola Sunday evening, by Desere Downing. Reader submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Teamsters, Dept. Of Corrections Battle About Probation Visits
June 11, 2012
A state judge heard arguments last week about whether the Florida Department of Corrections acted improperly this year when it severely restricted probation officers from going to probationers’ homes to check on them.
The department placed travel restrictions on probation officers in March as a cost-cutting move. But the Teamsters union, which represents officers, contends that the department needed to go through a formal rule-making process before approving the change — and that the restrictions endanger public safety.
“I think we are putting the community at risk,” Miami probation officer Kimberly Schultz testified during a hearing before Administrative Law Judge Elizabeth McArthur.
But department officials said the change has not compromised safety. If officers suspect wrongdoing, they can seek permission from supervisors to visit probationers’ homes and also have other ways to conduct monitoring, such as drug tests, the officials said.
“Nothing has been brought to my attention that we have jeopardized public safety,” said Jenny Nimer, a department assistant secretary who helped author the changes.
The case centers on past requirements that officers make periodic visits to the homes or workplaces of probationers, with the number of visits based on the offenders’ backgrounds and potential risks. Schultz said, for example, that such visits were required at least once a month for “maximum” cases — which she said can include people who have served long prison terms and have records of violent crimes.
The department approved the restrictions because it faced a $79 million budget deficit this fiscal year, Nimer said. In February, it paid $277,000 in probation-related travel reimbursements, a total that dropped after the change to $99,000 in March and $80,000 in April.
Nimer said the department intends to lift the restrictions when the 2012-13 fiscal year starts July 1. Some visits, such as to the homes of sex offenders, have not been restricted.
McArthur listened to nearly five hours of arguments and testimony about the issue and will likely rule this summer.
Offenders are required to go to probation offices once a month and provide information about such things as where they live and work. But Schultz said it is critical for officers to visit homes to verify the information, look for signs of possible criminal activity and make sure probationers are complying with requirements such as curfews.
“When the offender just comes into the office and fills out a report, he can say whatever he wants,” said Schultz, who has a current caseload of 43 people, with the majority either sex offenders or “maximum” cases.
The challenge in the Division of Administrative Hearings, however, centers on more-arcane questions of rule-making instead of whether restricting visits is a good idea or jeopardizes safety. State law often requires agencies to go through a public process of adopting rules when changing the way policies are carried out.
The department argues that documents outlining the travel restrictions are “internal management memoranda” that are not subject to rule-making. Also, it contends that such information is not subject to the state’s public-records laws because it involves “surveillance techniques.”
“Rulemaking in this area is not feasible, practicable or advisable,” the department said in court document. “Requiring the Department of Corrections to promulgate restricted surveillance techniques and procedures would violate the confidentiality required for effective surveillance and supervision of parolees and probationers.”
But Teamsters attorney Holly Van Horsten said that the department’s actions are a rule that significantly affects the jobs of probation officers. She also said the issue deals with officers making contacts with probationers — not surveillance — and that the department was trying to “fly under the radar” by describing it as a travel matter.
By The News Service of Florida