Results Announced In Log A Load Bass Tournament
June 3, 2011
The recent 15th annual charity Log A Load For Kids Bass Tournament raised $15,000 for Sacred Heart Hospital.
The tournament at the Swamp House Marina and Landing offered $10,000 guaranteed prize money, including $3,000 for first place.
Top ten tournament winners were:
- Eddie Milstead and Tony Clements
- Leon Jernigan and Bobby Jernigan
- Kenneth Morris and Chazz Morris
- Larry Bullock and Rodger Caldwell
- JerryManning and Reggie Carper
- Jamie Franklin and Jeff McNiel
- Cole Griffith and David Foshee
- James Purvis and Shane Garrett
- Daniel C. Griffith and Danny R. Griffith
- Josh Halford and Jason Terry
Mystery Weight Fish
- Doug Tipton and Larry Tipton
Appeal Rejected: W.D. Childers Conviction Reinstated
June 3, 2011
A federal appeals court Thursday ruled against former Senate President W.D. Childers in his quest to overturn a 2003 bribery conviction related to a Pensacola land deal.
The full 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta rejected Childers’ argument that his constitutional rights were violated because he was prevented from fully cross-examining a crucial witness.
The 88-page ruling includes a dissenting opinion that said Childers did not receive a fair trial.
Childers was convicted of bribery and accepting unlawful compensation for official acts in connection with a Highway 29 soccer complex scandal in 2002 while he served as an Escambia County Commissioner.
The soccer complex scandal eventually landed four Escambia Commissioners in jail on charges that included Childers, Willie Junior, Terry Smith and Mike Bass. Junior was later found dead under a house, committing suicide the day before he was to be sentenced.
Childers, once known as “The Banty Rooster” for bringing home the bacon for Northwest Florida, was released from state prison on June 17, 2009, having served almost three years of a 42-month sentence on the charges related to the $3.9 million soccer complex purchase. Junior testified that he received a collard green pot full of cash in exchange for his vote to purchase the soccer complex.
Childers was also the first man in Florida jailed for violating the open-meeting portion of the Sunshine Law for a phone call he and Smith made to then Supervisor of Elections Bonnie Jones. Childers served about a month in jail before being released.
Scott Signs Off On Medicaid Rewrite, Other Health Bills
June 3, 2011
Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday signed a landmark Medicaid overhaul that calls for shifting hundreds of thousands of low-income and elderly Floridians into managed-care plans.
Scott’s signature on a two-bill package (HB 7107 and HB 7109) was not a surprise — he has long pushed for transforming the Medicaid system.
Now, it will be up to the state to convince the federal government to go along. The state Agency for Health Care Administration is required to submit a proposal to federal Medicaid officials by Aug. 1 and is scheduled to start a flurry of public hearings June 10.
If the overhaul is approved, AHCA in July 2012 would start moving forward with a mandatory managed-care program for seniors who need long-term care. That phase would be finished by October 2013.
AHCA would then start putting in place the managed-care requirement for a broader Medicaid population — such as low-income women and children — in January 2013 and finish by October 2014.
The plan, however, has faced opposition from Democratic lawmakers and some patient advocates. They argue, in part, that relying on HMOs and other types of managed-care plans could squeeze needed services for Medicaid beneficiaries.
Lawmakers spent more than a year considering changes to the $20 billion Medicaid program and passed the two bills on the final day of the 2011 legislative session.
Also late Thursday, Scott signed one in a series of controversial bills dealing with abortion.
The bill (HB 97) would ban abortion coverage from policies sold through a health-insurance exchange — a type of insurance marketplace that is scheduled to start operating in 2014 as part of last year’s federal health law.
Scott also approved another measure (HB 1193) that takes aim at the hotly debated federal law. That bill says people cannot be compelled to buy health insurance, except in limited circumstances.
The Republican-controlled Legislature passed the bill in response to what has become known as the “individual mandate” in the federal law. That mandate will require almost all Americans to have health insurance starting in 2014.
By Jim Saunders
The News Service of Florida
500 To Keep Their Jobs At Clearwire
June 2, 2011
About 500 employees at Clearwire in Milton will keep their jobs, although many of them will now work for a new company, according to the company.
Clearwire notified employees Thursday of an agreement that will transition parts of their customer care operates to TeleTech, a company with which Clearwire currently holds a partnership agreement.
About 700 employees, including 380 in Milton, will transition to to TeleTech, the company said, with TeleTech managing day-to-day customer care services for Clearwire customers.
Clearwire will retain approximately 180 personnel, including nearly 120 in Milton. Those employees remaining with Clearwire are responsible for a variety of back office activities,
including operations, workforce management, process management and vendor management.
“The agreement will help Clearwire increase efficiencies and reduce costs in the company’s customer care organization by leveraging the global resources of a leader in care center support,” Clearwire said in a news release.
Clearwire also began steps Thursday to return $2 million in incentive payments from the state. The money was received from the state in advance of an expansion that will no longer occur.
Deputies: Man Opened Fire Because Business Was Out Of Crawfish
June 2, 2011
Investigators say the man that opened fire with an AK-47 along busy Highway 29 in Ensley Sunday evening did so because a seafood market had sold out of crawfish.
Larry Wayne Kelly, 42, is being held on numerous felony weapons charges in the Escambia County Jail. His bond is set at $575,000.
About 7 p.m., multiple 911 calls of a tan Ford Ranger driving erratically at a high rate of speed and shots fire in the area of the Ensley Walmart. Deputies were unable to immediately determine where the gunshots had originated.
Escambia County Sheriff’s deputies were able to later determine that the gunfire came from a Ford Ranger driven by Kelly and gave chase. The short pursuit came to an end when Kelly crashed into another pickup and a deputy’s vehicle at Palafox and Ensley streets.
Kelly called the L&T Seafood Market, located south of Walmart on Highway 29, about a dozen times during a 30 minute period that began just before 5 p.m. During the first call, Kelly reportedly told the business owner that his business was a “joke” and became “incredibly irate” that the store was out of crawfish, according to a Sheriff’s Office report. Many of the calls went unanswered because the business closed at 5:00.
At about 7 p.m., witnesses saw Kelly fire numerous times at the seafood market from his truck. Investigators later found 11 bullet holes in the building where round entered the building through the walls, roof awning, windows and doors. The seafood business was closed at the time, but adjacent businesses were open, but the shots came within 1,000 feet of persons and employees entering or leaving.
Inside Kelly’s Ford Ranger, deputies found a 12 gauge shotgun, a 38 Special, a Luger TEC-9 and an AK-47 — all loaded. In the backseat of the truck, deputies found the book “The Sociopath Next Door”.
According to deputies, Kelly said that he is a “sovereign citizen”, not subject to the law or the orders of law enforcement officers.
According to court records, Kelly is facing 27 separate felony charges in connection with incident, including multiple counts of discharging a firearm from a vehicle, firing into a building, eluding law enforcement, assault of an officer and aggravated assault.
$32.3 Million For Road Projects In North Escambia, North Santa Rosa
June 2, 2011
The new Florida budget signed by Gov. Rick Scott last week includes $32.2 million for five major transportation projects in and around northern Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.
In Escambia County:
- $7,709,279 to resurface Highway 29 in North Escambia from about Pine Barren Road through Century to the Alabama state line. (Read more…)
- $17,703,796 for resurfacing and construction engineering on the entire length of Nine Mile Road from the Perdido River Bridge to the Escambia River Bridge.
In Santa Rosa County:
- $1,609,325 for preliminary engineering on State Road 4 from Market Road (about four miles east of Jay) to the Okaloosa county line.
- $3,924,041 for resurfacing Highway 89 from Chumuckla Highway to the Jay city limits
- $1,362,582 for preliminary engineering on Highway 87 from two miles south of the Yellow River to County Road 184
Pictured above: The new Florida budget signed last week by Gov. Rick Scott includes $7.7 million to resurface a portion of Highway 29 in North Escambia. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Area Graduations Scheduled; Warning Issued For Parking At Civic Center
June 2, 2011
Graduations for high schools in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties will continue through Tuesday.
Many of the graduations will take place at the Pensacola Civic Center where school district officials are warning of potential problems due to parking restrictions. These parking restrictions are due to the recently constructed Commerce Park in downtown Pensacola. Graduates and guests attending area high school graduation ceremonies are encouraged to car pool to the civic center, allowing extra time in order to find parking. Parking in the immediate area of the Civic Center will be limited; those participating in and those attending graduations should be prepared to walk from where they park, according to school district officials.
Here is the schedule of graduations for Escambia and Santa Rosa counties:
FRIDAY
- Central High School: 6 p.m., Central High gym
SATURDAY
- Gulf Breeze High: 11 a.m., Pensacola Civic Center
- Pace High School: 2 p.m., Pensacola Civic Center
- Northview High School: 4 p.m., Northview High gym
- Navarre High School: 5 p.m., Pensacola Civic Center
MONDAY
- Escambia High School: 1 p.m., Pensacola Civic Center
- Pensacola High School: 4 p.m., Pensacola Civic Center
- Jay High School: 6 p.m., Jay High auditorium
- Washington High School: 7 p.m., Pensacola Civic Center
- Milton High School: 8 p.m., Milton High stadium/gym
TUESDAY
- Pine Forest High School: 1 p.m., Pensacola Civic Center
- West Florida High School: 4 p.m., Pensacola Civic Center
- Tate High School: 7 p.m., Pensacola Civic Center
For The Kids: Free ‘Water Camp’ To Be Held At Lake Stone
June 2, 2011
Escambia County Extension will offer two free water camps this summer, including one at Lake Stone in Century.
The water camps are for children 8-12 on June 29 and 30. Water Camp has fun, hands-on activities designed to get kids excited about water resources and healthy lifestyles. Although registration runs through June 22, there is a limit of 20 children per session, so early registration is encouraged.
The June 29 camp will be held at Lake Stone, 801 West Highway 4, Century and the June 30 camp will be held at the Langley Bell 4-H camp, 4810 West Nine Mile Road. Both camps start at 9 a.m. and end at 1 p.m.
There will be sprinklers and a slip-and-slide, so a swimsuit and sunscreen are needed. Lunch will be provided for all attendees. Parents are not required to stay during the session.
Call ahead if assistance is needed with transportation to the Century site.
For more information or to register, contact Carrie Stevenson, ctsteven@ufl.edu or Libbie Johnson, libbiej@ufl.edu or call (850) 475-5230.
Accused Piggly Wiggly Shooter Pleads Not Guilty
June 2, 2011
The Atmore man accused of shooting another man outside the Davisville Piggly Wiggly on mothers day has pleaded not guilty.
Gary Winston Smith, 57, entered the plea in Escambia County Circuit Court 0n a felony charge of aggravated battery with a firearm. He’s accused of the of the May 8 shooting of Garland Rodney Johnson, 45, of Century.
Smith is due to appear in court again before Judge Jan Shackelford in late July.
The whole incident, authorities said, was over a woman allegedly seeing both men. For for information about the shooting and a photo gallery from the scene, click here.
Pictured top: A North Escambia man was shot just outside the Piggly Wiggly on Highway 97 in Davisville on May 8. Pictured inset: This NorthEscambia.com exclusive photo shows Gary Winston Smith of Atmore being arrested in connection with the shooting. Pictured below: The victim, Garland Rodney Johnson of Century, was transported by LifeFlight to Baptist Hospital in Pensacola. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Records Highs Set
June 2, 2011
Temperatures topped the 100 degree mark in many locations across the North Escambia area on Wednesday. A record high of 101 degrees was set at Pensacola today, breaking the old record of 100 set in 1953. Mobile’s old record of 98 set in 1998 was broken with an afternoon high also at 101.
The unofficial, old fashioned but almost-accurate mercury thermometer at NorthEscambia.com reached 103 in the shade Wednesday afternoon. (Pictured above.)
NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.