Three People Homeless, Several Pets Dead After Molino House Fire (Updated With Photo Gallery)
January 12, 2011
A Wednesday morning house fire in Molino left three adults homeless and took the lives of several family pets.
For a photo gallery from the scene, click here.
The fire, reported just after 11 a.m. in the 6000 block of Jahaza Road, heavily damaged the small wood frame home.
An adult female in the house was evaluated at the scene for minor injuries she received while trying to rescue several pets from the home. A dog, several cats and a gerbil were reported to have died in the blaze. A cat rescued from the fire was severely injured.
The fire was believed to have started with space heater in the living room of the home.
For a photo gallery from the scene, click here.
Pictured above: Fire shoots from the windows of the Jahaza Road home Wednesday morning. Pictured inset and below: Firefighters make entry into the home. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge. Some photos by Kristi Smith for NorthEscambia.com.
Suspect Shot By Escambia Deputy
January 12, 2011
A deputy-involved shooting in Escambia County early this morning is under investigation by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Deputy Courtney Clanton fired shots at a suspect’s vehicle as the suspect drove towards him in an aggressive manner, according to Chris Welborn, public information officer for the Sheriff’s Office.
Around 12:25 a.m. Wednesday, deputies responded to an officer in trouble call on New Forest Court after 50-year-old Harold Anthony Baggett, of Pensacola, confronted Deputy Clanton.
According to Welborn, Deputy Clanton was standing outside near the roadway when he was approached by Baggett (pictured), who was driving a silver Honda. Baggett asked Deputy Clanton if he was a cop and Deputy Clanton identified himself as a deputy sheriff. Baggett then drove his vehicle towards Deputy Clanton in an aggressive manner.
Fearing for his life, Deputy Clanton fired shots at the vehicle. As a result, Baggett suffered gunshot wounds but was able to flee the area. He was later found at a residence in the 700 block of Deedra Avenue.
Baggett was treatedfor his injuries at Sacred Heart Hospital. After his release he was booked into the Escambia County Jail on a charge of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and was being held at the Escambia County Jail on a $15,000 bond.
Deputy Clanton, who has worked for the Sheriff’s Office since 2006, has been placed on routine administrative leave pending the results of the on-going investigation.
Pictured: Suspect Harold Anthony Baggett.
Atmore Police Investigate Overnight Armed Robbery
January 12, 2011
Atmore Police were on the scene of an early morning armed robbery of a convenience store in less than a minute, but the suspects managed to escape.
“Two black males, both wearing masks, entered the store and robbed the clerk on duty at gunpoint of an undisclosed amount of money while another remained outside,” according to Atmore Police Investigator Robby Williams. “All three fled on foot and were not on scene when police arrived within the same minute of the call.”
The robbery was reported at 3:25 a.m. Wednesday. Responding officers worked to establish a perimeter around the Kangaroo Express on West Nashville Avenue and tracking dogs were called from Fountain Correctional Facility. The K-9 unit was able to track the suspects to the Rocky Ridge Apartment Complex, according to Williams.
Williams said the Atmore Police Department is “actively investigating the case and will withhold further information pending the outcome of that investigation”.
NorthEscambia.com photo.
Meteor Spotted In North Escambia, Across 9 States
January 12, 2011
Residents of North Escambia and nine southern states reported seeing an apparent meteor Tuesday night.
“While I was talking to a friend out in the yard, we saw something big fall from the sky,” Matthew Brook of McDavid emailed NorthEscambia.com shortly after seeing the fireball. “It was bigger than a falling star and when it fell below the tree line, there was a big flash that looked like lighting from the ground. We listened but didn’t hear anything after the flash.”
One resident even stopped by the McDavid Volunteer Fire Department to report the bright streak across the sky, but firefighters were obviously unable to find anything out of the ordinary during their investigation.
The flash of light from the meteor was reported in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas , North Carolina, and Oklahoma.
The Sebastian County (OK) Sheriff’s Office told CBS News affiliate KTHV it was a meteor and likely hit near Poteau Mountain, Oklahoma.
TheWeatherSpace.com reports the meteor was greenish-blue, indicating that contained copper, and that other described it was being like lightning. A photo submitted to TheWeatherSpace.com shows what was believed to be the meteor as it passed over Little Rock, Arkansas.
Security cameras at a home in Ridgeland ,Mississippi picked up the flash of light as the meteor passed overhead. See the video from CNN below.
Pictured top: Internet site TheWeatherSpace.com says this is a photo of the meteor over Little Rock, Arkansas, Tuesday night. Courtesy of TheWeatherSpace.com.
New Molino Library Ready For Bids Next Month
January 12, 2011
The renovation of the old Molino School into a community center, library and museum is moving a bit closer to reality.
The architects, DAG, have completed the design documents and are at the 90 percent stage on the construction documents. Escambia County Facilities Management expects to have the project ready for contractor bids by the end of February.
In May, 2009, commissioners approved the $400,000 purchase of the building from the Escambia County School District. Commissioners have since approved a budget of $2,089,156 from Local Option Sales Tax monies for the renovation project. DAG Architects is being paid $214,580 to design the renovations.
The project includes one section of the 15,600 square foot main building that will be converted into a library with both a children’s and adult area, computers and thousands of linear feet of book shelving. The old auditorium will remain a community auditorium with available seating for 242 people. The rest of the building will include a museum, classrooms and meeting rooms.
First opened in 1939, the Molino School closed in 2003 when the new Molino Park Elementary School consolidated Molino Elementary and Barrineau Park Elementary.
Pictured: A front hallway of the old Molino School. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
North Escambia Schools To Receive iPads, Apple Computers
January 12, 2011
New Apple Ipads and desktop computers are headed to several North Escambia area elementary schools.
Bratt will receive four iPads and nine Apple basic desktop computers. Molino Park Elementary will receive 22 Apple iPads, and there will be 12 Apple basic desktops will be headed to Jim Allen Elementary.
The computers are part of a $426,623.50 purchase of just over 450 Apple computers, iPads and iPods for schools across the county for student instruction use.
Drug Charges Dropped Against Century Woman
January 12, 2011
Charges have been dropped against a Century woman arrested after a search warrant was executed at her mobile home last June.
Cocaine possession and possession of drug paraphernalia charges were dropped against Karen Louise Quinley due to insufficient evidence, according to Escambia County Circuit Court records.
On June 9, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at Quinley’s home on West Highway 4 near the Century Care Center. No one was home at the time the warrant was executed. According to an arrest report, deputes found a stem of marijuana in a bedroom, crack cocaine on the kitchen table, a razor blade with cocaine residue, a marijuana cigarette and digital scales during their search.
Could Florida Allow More Casino Gambling?
January 12, 2011
Could more casino gambling be on the way for Florida, even Escambia County?
The panel of lawmakers that helped orchestrate the Legislature’s gaming compact with the Seminole Indian Tribe is now taking bets on whether it can bring in more winnings if non-Indian, Vegas style casinos or online poker are authorized to operate in Florida.
The Senate Regulated Industries Committee is beginning to look at research compiled by its staff that poses a variety of options the Legislature could consider if it wants to expand gaming, including opening the door for huge hotel and casino chains like Las Vegas Sands or Wynn Resorts to enter the Florida market.
Newly inaugurated Gov. Rick Scott has met with representatives of Las Vegas Sands and lobbyists for the group met with lawmakers last spring as the Legislature worked on the gaming compact and looked at other options for the state.
And Senate President Mike Haridopolos told a Tallahassee radio show this week that he was open to an expansion, if a large number of senators were interested in the issue.
Senate Regulated Industries Committee Chairman Dennis Jones is in the process of drafting legislation to allow more gambling options if the committee decides to proceed. He told reporters that inviting Las Vegas style gaming to the state could be appealing because it would allow cities to attract big convention business.
“A lot of people just get tired of going to the Peabody or Gaylord (Palms),” Jones said, referencing two Florida convention hotels. “Other than that, where are you going to go? Really, where you going to go?”
Both representatives of Las Vegas Sands and Wynn Resorts offered their insights to lawmakers should they decide to go ahead with a proposal and assured them that they would likely invest in Florida, which Wynn lobbyist Slater Bayliss said “undoubtedly would create tens of thousands of jobs” through building the property and then operating a casino, restaurant and hotel.
The potential gaming expansion is also backed by at least one representative of the state’s business community, the Associated Industries of Florida.
“We believe that destination resorts in Florida will utilize gaming in the proper manner as an economic engine that creates more than 100,000 jobs, signify international and domestic tourism and also brings world class convention and trade shows to the state of Florida,” AIF President Barney Bishop told the committee.
The state’s gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe may provide some obstacles depending on the timing of any new projects. If the state does approve casino expansion, it could potentially violate a clause in the compact that gives the tribe exclusive rights to operate banked card games such as blackjack. If a Las Vegas-style operation is up and running in Florida before the compact’s banked card authority is up for renegotiation in 2015, the tribe could reduce or cancel its payments to the state.
Jones said he was not worried because it would take any company that does invest in building a huge facility several years to build the operation and ultimately shuffle its first desk of cards.
“It would not even impact the compact until the first card was played,” he said.
Opposition also could come from religious groups, and organizations that work to promote family values. In the past, a number of religious and social groups have opposed expansions of gambling in Florida, though none appeared before Jones’ committee on Tuesday.
The committee could also examine the value of legalizing, and therefore regulating, Internet poker.
Melanie Brenner, the executive director of Poker Voters of America said there are an estimated 900,000 online poker players in Florida already, so if the state chose to legalize it and regulate it, there could be an immediate infusion of cash.
Online poker isn’t an expansion of gaming,” she said. “It is going on already.”
Jones noted that lawmakers have until the first day of the legislative session in March to file bills and that the committee still needed to wait and see what was filed. He also said that it is his policy not to take up bills that are lacking a House companion.
By Kathleen Haughney
The News Service Florida
Alleged Gangster Arrested For Escambia Carjacking
January 12, 2011
A 21-year old Escambia County gang member was arrested Monday, accused of carjacking a 19-year-old man and wounding his 19-year-old passenger in a robbery on December 17 of last year.
Members of the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office gang unit, investigations division and the U.S. Marshals Task Force arrested George Andrew Fountain of Pensacola, on an arrest warrant for aggravated battery, grand theft, armed robbery and carjacking.
At around 2:02 am December 17, deputies responded to a reported carjacking at the intersection of Avondale and Durham Roads.
Christopher Robert Lullo and Malcolm Dacota Wheeler, both of Pensacola told deputies that they were in the area to buy marijuana. According to an offense report, Lullo stated that another friend made a phone call, possibly to the suspect in this case, and made arrangements to purchase the marijuana.
As Lullo and Wheeler attempted to make this purchase near the intersection of Avondale and Durham Roads, Fountain allegedly entered into their vehicle and displayed a handgun. Fountain then demanded money, taking $350 in cash from Wheeler.
According to the report, Wheeler was at first reluctant to cooperate with the suspect. As a result, the suspect struck Wheeler in the face with the handgun, causing an injury to Wheeler’s nose.
Deputies with the Sheriff’s gang unit say Fountain is a member of the Insane Gangster Disciples. The gang is made up of predominantly white males. Although a national gang, most of the members are from the Midwest and Southern states.
Fountain was booked into the Escambia County Jail and held on a $325,500 bond.
Exams, Early Release At Northview This Week
January 12, 2011
The remainder of this week will bring exams and early release days for students at Northview High School.
The exam schedule is as follows, with each day Thursday-Friday an early release day:
- Thursday: 3rd Period Exam 8:45-10:35; 4th Block Exam 10:40-12:30
- Friday: 6th Period Exam 8:45-10:35; 7th Period Exam 10:40-12:30
Make-up exams will be given each day Wednesday-Friday from 1-3 p.m. and Tuesday, January 18 from 9-11 a.m.
For more information, contact the school at (850) 327-6681.