FHP Releases Name Of Motorcycle Fatality
October 4, 2011
Monday, the Florida Highway Patrol released the name of a 55-year old woman that died September 27 when she was thrown from her motorcycle off an interstate ramp to the highway 30 feet below.
Roberta Lee Williams of Pensacola was northbound on I-110 headed for eastbound I-10 at 5:27 p.m. when she failed to negotiate the curve for the ramp and struck a barrier wall. She was ejected over the concrete wall, falling 30 feet to the emergency lane of eastbound I-10.
Williams was transported to Sacred Heart Hospital where she was pronounced dead.
The FHP delayed releasing Williams’ name while they worked to locate her next of kin.
Century Approves Business Tax Rate, Bills In The Mail
October 4, 2011
The Town of Century has given final approval to the same business tax rate charged by Escambia County, backing down on plans to effectively double rate.
Century failed to update their business license regulations and fees as required by the state by 2008, forcing the town to backtrack and fix the error. Under state law, Century could adopt the fee schedule of another Florida government. The town had settled on the Fellsmere, Fla., fee schedule, which would have increased average business tax receipt — the permit required to conduct business in the town — from the current $25 to $55 or more. Under the Fellsmere plan, some businesses such pharmacies, entertainment establishments and factories would have paid $100 or more per year.
Monday night, the Century Town Council gave final approval to the business tax receipt rate of $26.25 per year charged by Escambia County. The tax bills were to be printed and mailed Tuesday. The tax is normally due on October 1.
In 1971, the responsibility of issuing building licenses in Florida shifted from the state to local governments. Century adopted a business license schedule in 1981. But following the 2005 to 2006 Florida hurricanes, Florida mandated that the business licenses should no longer be called a “license”, but rather a “tax”, such as the “business tax receipt” in Escambia County.
At last report, there were 56 companies and individuals that held a businesses license in Century, generating only about $1,400 per year in revenue.
Pictured: The Century Town Council in session Monday night. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Registration Continues For Chief Challenge 5k Run/Walk; Students Handcraft Awards
October 4, 2011
The Second Annual Chief Challenge 5K Run/Walk is coming up Saturday morning at Northview High School.
This week, Northview’s Materials and Processes Class students are making the awards for first through third place in each category. The students designed the award tomahawks in the class that has a focus on mass production techniques and use of materials.
The event will be held Saturday, October 8 at 8:30 a.m. at the school campus in Bratt.
Awards will be broken down to each grade level for males and females, as well as awards for adult, master and grand master. For a registration form and more details, click here.
Over 140 runners and walkers took part in last year’s Chief Challenge.
The Chief Challenge 5K Run/Walk is sponsored in part by NorthEscambia.com, Pepsi and Atmore Family Medicine.
Pictured: Instructor Bill Welch and Northview’s Materials and Processes Class students Wayne Bolton (left) and Trevis Redmond (right) worth to create awards for Saturday’s Chief Challenge 5K Run/Walk. Courtesy photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Woman That Tossed Her Dead Toddler In Trash Can Gets 15 Years
October 4, 2011
An Escambia County woman that tossed her dead toddler into a trash can and left her other two children home alone while she reported them missing has been sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Christian Rochelle Woods, 23, received the 15-year prison sentence and 30 years probation Monday afternoon on an aggravated manslaughter charged.
Woods left her two children, ages 18-months and two years, home alone for two days in a home with no power or water. The children were left with only a few cups of Jello to eat.
Authorities said that the little girl who was found dead in a trashcan, Myleahya Woods (pictured left), weighed just 11 pounds. Prosecutors say she starved to death. The other two children found in the home, Myleahya ’s twin sister, Mykayhala (pictured right) and Jaterius Woods, 2, were also severely malnourished. When deputies found Mykayhala under a bed in the filthy Escambia County home, she was in a coma. Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan said deputies first thought Mykayhala was dead until her eyes fluttered.
Woods called deputies to report that her children were missing. But deputies became suspicious. They found Jaterius and arrested Woods on child neglect charges because he showed what they said was obvious signs of abuse. About 12 hours after her arrest, Woods admitted that Myleahya was dead in a trashcan on the back porch of her home.
Prosecutors said Woods’ family members had no idea what was going on with the children, and that she never asked for help.
Some Law Enforcement Against Caylee’s Law Proposals
October 4, 2011
Proposals to strengthen penalties against parents for not reporting a missing child right away could have disastrous consequences, according to several law enforcement officials who testified Monday at a Senate panel charged with examining “Caylee’s Law” bills.
The Select Committee on Protecting Florida’s Children was convened in the aftermath of the much-publicized Casey Anthony murder trial this summer. The Orlando woman was charged with murdering her two-year-old daughter but was found not guilty by a jury, sparking outrage and a cry for legislative reform.
In reaction to the acquittal, several Florida lawmakers filed bills that would make it a felony to not report a child missing within a certain time frame, with proposals ranging from 12 hours to 48 hours. The committee is trying to determine if there is a need for a Caylee’s Law bill. There is no similar committee in the House.
But law enforcement officials invited to testify before the Senate committee said instilling a strict time limit to report a child missing could actually have the opposite of the intended effect.
One Senate proposal that requires parents to report a child missing within 48 hours could be confusing, said Connie Shingledecker, a major with the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office who oversees child abuse and death cases.
“It could have the unintended consequence of confusing parents and having them feel they have to wait 48 hours to report,” Shingledecker said. “Any time you put a time frame on situations like this it can be confusing.”
Already, law enforcement officials say many parents delay reporting their children missing because they are under the mistaken assumption they have to wait 24 hours to do so. Adding another requirement into law would only confuse parents further, said representatives from several sheriffs’ offices.
And just because a parent calls 911, that doesn’t mean a law enforcement officer has been notified, adding another wrinkle to the proposed law that could unintentionally cause some parents to violate the law.
Instead, law enforcement officers pressed the committee to consider strengthening penalties for lying to law enforcement officers during an investigation of a missing, endangered, or murdered child.
“We’d like another tool in our toolbox,” said Sheriff Jeffrey Dawsy with Citrus County.
Anthony was found guilty of providing false information to a law enforcement officer, a misdemeanor. Law enforcement officials say they would like to see the penalty increased from a misdemeanor to a second-degree felony, which carries with it the potential for more prison time than a misdemeanor would.
Sen. Joe Negron, R-Stuart, the chairman of the committee, pressed law enforcement officials for details on how common it is for a parent to not report a child missing for an extensive period of time. One criticism of Caylee’s Law proposals is that the bills may address a non-existent problem based on the rare example of Casey Anthony.
“We do have parents who fail to report their children as missing and usually it is because they have some culpability,” Shingledecker said. “They are impaired and have left kids with folks they don’t even know.”
But she acknowledged that instances like the Casey Anthony case, where two-year-old Caylee Anthony was not reported missing for a month and a body wasn’t found until nearly six months later, are “very rare.”
Negron said the committee will likely meet one more time before developing recommendations on whether a Caylee’s Law was needed and if so, what it should contain.
By Lilly Rockwell
The News Service of Florida
Scott Addresses Gulf Power Symposium, Announces Economic Grants
October 4, 2011
Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s message was clear Monday during Gulf Power’s Annual Economic Symposium in Miramar Beach – Florida is open for business.
The first term governor said there is no reason for companies to locate in Alabama or Georgia instead of Northwest Florida.
Scott also announced nearly $2.5 million in defense grants to local communities and organizations which support Florida military installations — including $300,000 to the Pensacola Bay Area Chamber of Commerce and $257,726 to TEAM Santa Rosa.
“I am proud that Florida continues to support our military bases, military service members and their families, and the defense industry through the defense grant programs,” said Scott. “Additionally, these programs work to protect a $65 billion economic impact, and the over 686,181 direct and indirect jobs, which the defense industry annually infuses into Florida.”
Frontier Experiences Internet Outage
October 3, 2011
Frontier Communications internet customers across the area were without service for about six hours Monday.
Business and residential customers in the Walnut Hill, Bratt, Molino and Atmore areas report that their internet service failed about 9:10 Monday morning. Service returned about 3:15, according to the company.
Karen Miller, spokesperson for Frontier, said early Monday afternoon that the outage was the result of an AT&T cable that was cut west of Atmore.
Frontier high speed internet customers have been plagued with numerous outages — some many hours in length — over the past several months. The company has said that most of those outages were caused by problems with AT&T, the provider for Frontier’s connection to the internet.
Escambia Residents Can ‘Go Green’, Take Advantage Of Free Recycling
October 3, 2011
North Escambia residents can “go green” and recycle.
The Escambia County Division of Solid Waste Management has drop-off recycling locations in or near each of the larger communities in North Escambia. North of Nine Mile Road, recycling bins are located at:
- Ashton Brosnaham Park, 10370 Ashton Brosnaham Drive
- Billy G. Ward Courthouse, 7500 North Century Blvd., Century
- Escambia County Extension Service, 3740 Stefani Road, Cantonment
- John R. Jones Athletic Park, 555 E. Nine Mile Road
- Molino Fire Department, 1459 Molino Road (behind fire station)
- Oak Grove Citizen’s Convenience Center, 745 North Highway 99
- Perdido Landfill, 13009 Beulah Road, Cantonment
- UWF, John Martin Hall, 11000 University
- UWF, ParkwayParking Lot #10, Campus Dr.
Items eligible for recycling at the drop-off locations are aluminum cans, steel cans, glass food and beverage containers, plastic containers (#1-#7), cardboard, junk mail, paper, magazines, and newspapers.
For more information on drop-off recycling in North Escambia, visit EscambiaRecycles.com.
ECUA offers free curbside recycling with their regular sanitation service. For complete information on the ECUA recycling program, click here or call (850) 476-0480.
Pictured top: The Escambia County drop-off recycling bin located at the Billy G. Ward Courthouse in Century. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Teen, 17, Enters Plea On Felony Drug Trafficking Charges
October 3, 2011
A 17-year old Century teen has entered a plea of not guilty on a first degree felony drug trafficking charge for allegedly selling hydrocodone near a local store.
Ladarrious Tamiraye Lett entered the plea in Escambia County Circuit Court before Nickolas Geeker. Lett is scheduled to go on trial in early December.
He was caught in the act of selling 25 Lortabs by undercover officers near the Dollar General store on North Century Boulevard on April 21, according to an Escambia County Sheriff’s Office report. He was arrested on an outstanding warrant on September 7.
Lett was previous adjudicated as an adult in a weapons case and sentenced to nine months in the county jail. In October 2010, he was convicted of possession of a firearm by a convicted delinquent under 24 years of age, tampering with evidence and culpable negligence. Lett, who was a 16-year old middle school student at the time, traded $40 in marijuana for .22 caliber pistol that was dumped on North Century Boulevard following a traffic stop. A deputy ran over the gun, shooting out his own tire.
Lett remains in the Escambia County Jail with bond set at $50,000.
Football: Leaders Emerge In 1-6A and 1-5A, Not Yet In 1-1A
October 3, 2011
Five weeks into the high school football season, leaders are beginning to emerge in District 1-5A and 1-6A, while the 1-1A schools will play their very first district games this upcoming Friday night.
In District 1-6A, Pace (4-1, 2-0) and Pensacola (3-1,1-0) sit undefeated atop the standings heading into week six, while Tate (0-5, 0-2) sits at the bottom of the pack.
In District 1-5A, West Florida (5-0, 1-0) and Gulf Breeze (3-1, 1-0) are at the top of of District 1-5A.
This Friday night will see winners and losers begin to emerge in District 1-1A with the first district matchups of the season — Northview at Jay and Baker at Freeport.
Complete district standings are in the graphic below.
Pictured: Brandon Sheets (#8) passes to Roderick Woods (#25) for Northview Friday night in Bratt during a non-district loss to Gulf Breeze. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
