Deputies Seek Cop Impersonators That Targeted Elderly Lady
April 20, 2011
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the report of a man and woman impersonating police officers on Wednesday and defrauding an elderly Pensacola woman.
The couple approached the victim between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. at her residence in the 7000 block of Aaron Dr. and told her they were investigating her grandson for stealing money from her checking account.
After allowing the suspects to enter and search her home, the victim was told that she needed to accompany the two to her bank and transfer funds out of her account.
“The suspects in this case identified themselves as police officers and threatened the victim with arrest if she didn’t cooperate with them,” said sheriff’s office spokesman Deputy Chris Welborn. “They convinced the victim that this was standard investigative procedures and she trusted them.”
The victim told deputies that she allowed the female suspect to drive her vehicle to her bank while the male suspect followed in a white sport utility vehicle.
While at the bank, deputies say that the female suspect told the victim to fill out a withdrawal slip for $5,000 and sign it. The suspect obtained the victim’s identification card and the withdrawal slip and took the money from the account.
The victim was driven back to her residence and told by both suspects to keep this matter confidential, and if she didn’t she could be subject to arrest. The male suspect then handed over her checkbook but it is believed he kept some of her unwritten checks.
Shortly after this incident a second check was cashed for an additional $5000.
The male suspect was described by his victim as black, between 30 to 40 years of age and well-dressed and groomed. He was said to be wearing a white shirt with unknown type pants. The female suspect was also black but the victim was unable to give a detailed description. They were last seen traveling in a white sport utility vehicle.
“These two preyed upon a vulnerable member of our society and they should be incarcerated as quickly as possible,” Welborn said. “We do not need people like this roaming free.”
Deputies are reminding people that they should always ask to see the badge and commission card of anyone not wearing a uniform that claims to be a law enforcement officer.
“Our investigators and plainclothes officers are required to carry these forms of identification on them while conducting business,” said Welborn. “Also, we will never ask you to provide us with money or ask you to transfer funds from one of your accounts.”
Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620 or Gulf Coast Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP
Escambia Elementary Teacher Charged With Molesting Student
April 20, 2011
EDITOR’S NOTE: All charges were dropped against the man in this story on May 10, 2011, after the accuser recanted her story. Click here for an update.
An Escambia County teacher has been charged with molesting a student at school.
Kenneth Wayne Campbell was released from the Escambia County Jail on $100,000 bond. The 46-year old music teacher at Spencer Bibbs Elementary School allegedly reached under the shirt of a 10-year old student and fondled her.
Pensacola Police Department Detective Lisa Cutler said the girl told her mother the incidents began a few weeks ago when Campbell began rubbing her shoulders in class. The girl said Campbell fondled her breasts twice and told her if she told anyone he would hurt her and kill her family. Cutler said the child’s mother notified police Tuesday after her daughter told her what happened.
The incidents reportedly happened in the school’s music room.
The Pensacola Police Department is asking for anyone that may information about the suspect contact Detective Lisa Cutler at (850) 435-1971 or the Pensacola Police Department at (850) 435-1900.
Hacker Or Virus? Century Suffers Computer Data Loss, $9K Expense
April 20, 2011
The Town of Century suffered a major computer server failure last year that was blamed on either a hacker or virus and recovering from the incident cost the town over $9,000.
The incident happened last November, but Century Mayor Freddie McCall just made the incident and costs public this week.
According to McCall, he delayed telling the town council because the incident “was under investigation”. He said the town’s main computer server failed in late November as the result of a virus — leaving the town without computer for about a week. He said a “major investigation” was launched to determine if the virus infected the server as a result of employee action within the building or as the result of an outside hacker attack.
McCall said he notified the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office of the incident, but the Sheriff’s Office did not investigate any criminal actions, according to a spokesperson. The town’s computer consultant, Leonard Hursh of Southern Computer Services in Atmore, and another outside firm were unsuccessful in determining exactly what brought down the server and destroyed data, the mayor said.
About 95 percent of the data on the server was recovered, Hursh said. The five percent of the town’s data that was lost was deemed “non-critical”, he said. The total cost for data recovery efforts and server upgrades was $9,049.49.
McCall said that there was no indication that the server data was compromised and obtained by any outside party — including the names and addresses of every water and gas customer in the town. There were no social security numbers, credit card numbers or other sensitive data on the server, he said.
Hursh said the server has been upgraded with a new firewall and other security measures to prevent future problems. In addition, the town is upgrading the security system on the city hall building. Building security upgrades will cost $398 with a $45.95 per month monitoring agreement.
“We are going to make sure this does not happen again,” McCall said. “We are securing everything.”
$1 Million Project To Improve Rocky Branch Road
April 20, 2011
A $1,099,855.50 project will improve Rocky Branch Road and construct a new concrete bridge to allow residents access to their homes without worries about flooding.
The project will include paving about 6,400 feet of existing dirt road, adding a 100 foot concrete bridge and culvert upgrades. The road will be raised about seven feet across about 600 feet of wetlands.
Since the roadway is the only access for the residents of Rocky Branch Road, a temporary roadway will be constructed through the wetlands during the construction process.
The low bidder on the project was Aero Training & Rental, Inc. $1,099,855.50. Other bids ranged from Roads, Inc. of NWF at $1,118,951 to The Green-Simmons Co at $1,573,727.05.
Rocky Branch Road runs north off East Quintette Road, near the Escambia River.
Billings Murder Suspect Stallworth Wants His Trial Moved
April 20, 2011
The Brewton man charged in the death of Byrd and Melanie Billings wants his trial moved out of Escambia County.
Donnie Stallworth is facing two counts of first degree murder in connection with the shooting deaths of the Beulah couple last July — one of seven people charged in the double murder. The former Air Force staff sergeant went on trail last month, but a judge declared a mistrial after a jury could not decide his fate during nine hours of deliberations.
His second trial is set to begin Monday, and now his attorney has filed for a change of venue to move the case out of Escambia County. The judge is expected to rule on the request in the next few days.
Stallworth was accused of being in the home at time of the murders, armed with a gun. The accusations came from two co-defendants, 16-year old Rakeem Florence and 21-year old Fredrick Thorton. Both pleaded not contest to a lessor second degree murder charge in exchange for their testimony.
District Softball: Northview Beats Baker; Jay Over Ponce DL
April 20, 2011
The Northview Chiefs and the Jay Royals both advanced in the District 1-2A softball tournament Tuesday in Freeport. Northview will visit Jay Thursday at 6 p.m. for the district championship.
Northview 10 Baker 0
The Lady Chiefs game with the Baker Gators was called after five innings under the 10-run mercy rule. In the 10-0 win, sophomore pitcher Misty Doran allowed just three hits while striking out five for the Chiefs (14-9).
Shawna Montgomery had a third inning solo home run for the Chiefs and a two-run double in the fourth. Miranda Burkett added a two-run single in third and two-run doubles in the fourth. Doran was 2-3 with a double and RBI, and Sarah Killam was 2-2 with a double and RBI.
Jay 9 Ponce de Leon 3
The Jay Royals (14-7) beat Ponce de Leon Tuesday in Freeport to advance in the District 1-2A softball tournament. Becca Calloway went 2-2 with a solo homer in the third and a three-run homer in the fourth for the Lady Royals. Tessa Hendricks was 2-4 with two runs, two RBI and a double. Camille Driver was 3-4 with a run and RBI, Alicia Ashworth was 2-3 with a run and RBI, Ashley Stokes was 2-4 with a double and Olivia Wright was 2-3 with two runs and a double.
Ernest Ward High Grad Inks 3-Book Deal With Publisher
April 20, 2011
An Ernest Ward High School graduate has inked a multi-book deal with a New York publisher.
Jean Webb Therkelsen, a 1974 EWHS grad, has signed the three-book deal with Kensington Books. She writes under the pen name Lexi George.
The first book in the series, Demon Hunting in Dixie, is a paranormal romance that goes on sale next Tuesday, April 26. It will be followed by her novella The Bride Wore Demon Dust as part of a Kensington Halloween anthology that includes bestselling paranormal romance writers Angie Fox and Kathy Love.
Click to order the paperback Demon Hunting In Dixie directly from Amazon.com or click here to order the Kindle version.
Jean Webb, Therkelsen’s mother and a former teacher and administrator at Ernest Ward High, released her book “Feet of Clay” in 1999. Click here for more about her book.
Probation In Escambia DUI Death Case
April 20, 2011
An Escambia County man has been sentenced to 12 months probation in a 2010 fatal accident.
Tyler Neal Wass, 26, pleaded no contest Tuesday to a misdemeanor DUI charge. He had been charged with DUI manslaughter for the death of William E. Carlson, 30, of Pensacola.
Carlson was walking west on Wilde Lake Boulevard shortly after 3 a.m. on June 20 when he was struck and killed by a 2002 Saturn driven by Wass, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. According to the FHP., Wass saw Carlson at the last second and attempted to avoid him, but struck him with the right front of his Saturn. Wass and a passenger, 25-year old Carissa L. Snipes, 25, of Pensacola, were not injured.
Wass was taken into custody after the accident and charged with a misdemeanor count DUI. Prosecutors later upgraded the charge against Wass to manslaughter.
According to testimony during, Wass would have been unable to avoid hitting Carlson as he walked in the dark highway, despite blood alcohol test results of 0.112 and 0.115.
Wass’ vehicle was also impounded for 10 days, his license was revoked for 180 days, he was ordered to perform 50 hours of community service, undergo substance abuse treatment, and pay $956 in court costs and fines.
Fla. House To Consider State Worker Health Benefits
April 20, 2011
Looking to curb health-insurance costs, a House committee Wednesday will take up a bill that could eventually lead to reduced benefits for state employees.
The bill would require a new menu of health-care packages in 2013 and calls for a possible shift to a “defined contribution” plan in 2014 or 2015. In such a plan, the state likely would contribute a set amount of money for each employee — who then would face greater responsibility to make coverage choices and pay additional costs.
It is unclear whether state workers will see increases in their insurance costs in 2012. The House bill does not address the issue, while a Senate budget proposal would lead to $20-a-month premium increases for rank-and-file employees who have family coverage.
Also, it appears the bill leaves open the possibility that lawmakers and legislative employees could continue to receive lower-cost insurance in the future than rank-and-file workers.
The House Health & Human Services Committee will roll out the bill (PCB HHSC 11-09) as lawmakers get ready to deal with a crush of major issues during the final two weeks of the annual legislative session.
Employee health insurance is a huge cost for the state: The Senate’s 2011-12 budget proposal puts the tab at $2 billion. This year, family coverage for a rank-and-file employee costs $14,920, with the state paying $12,760 and the employee paying $2,160, according to information presented to a Senate committee in February.
As they struggle with budget problems, Republican legislative leaders and Gov. Rick Scott have called for reining in the costs and making the insurance program more like private-sector plans.
But the issue is controversial with state workers, who have long argued that good benefits are a trade-off for accepting lower pay than many could earn in private industry.
Rep. Alan Williams, a Tallahassee Democrat whose district includes tens of thousands of state workers, called the proposed changes “short-sighted” and linked them to Scott. The governor and Republican legislative leaders also have called for requiring state employees to pay into the state pension system.
“I just think to do this at this time is a continual assault on state employees,” Williams said.
House Health & Human Services Chairman Rob Schenck, R-Spring Hill, could not be reached for comment.
The House bill calls for creating four different levels of benefits in 2013, dubbed the “platinum, gold, silver and bronze” levels. The platinum level would offer the richest benefits but also would cost the most.
As an illustration, the platinum level benefits would be “actuarially equivalent” to 90 percent of the benefits covered in 2012. At the low end, the bronze level would be 60 percent of the 2012 benefits.
The bill does not spell out what benefits would be covered at each level or how much the packages would cost.
But the bill sets up a new formula for how much the state would contribute to the coverage, with the amounts varying by benefit plan. Also, with the platinum level expected to be the most-expensive coverage, workers who choose lower-cost plans could receive extra pay to make up part of the differences in state contributions.
Under the bill, the Legislature would decide in 2013 whether to move forward with a defined-contribution plan. Such a move would happen in 2014 or possibly as late as 2015.
While details are far from clear, one type of defined-contribution plan involves a combination of what are known as “health-savings accounts” and high-deductible insurance policies.
In those cases, employers and workers put money into accounts that help cover out-of-pocket medical expenses. Those accounts are coupled with high-deductible coverage to pay for catastrophic expenses.
By Jim Saunders
The News Service of Florida
Consumers Wary Of Gulf Seafood; Gov. Scott Says ‘It’s Safe’
April 20, 2011
Despite repeated studies showing no detectable effects from the BP oil spill, Florida seafood continues to get a black eye in the minds of Florida consumers, according to a poll released Tuesday by the Florida Department of Agriculture.
The survey found that 63 percent of Floridians have concerns over seafood safety, up from 48 percent in January.
“Over the last year, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has tested 230 samples, and our results confirm that Florida seafood is safe to eat,” said Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam. “The fact that we’ve found nothing of concern to the public is good news. Unfortunately, that message is not out there.”
Gov. Rick Scott said he hopes to change that perception through advertising and marketing efforts like the tour of the Panhandle he’s on this week.
“We know that it is safe,” said Scott, who attended a fish fry Tuesday evening. “The bigger concern would be if it wasn’t. …. Our job is to make everyone in the world know that that not only does it taste good but it’s safe.”
Pictured: Gov. Rick Scott fishing along the Gulf Coast Tuesday. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Story By Michael Peltier
The News Service of Florida