Judge: No Bond For Driver Charged With DUI Manslaughter
November 12, 2010
A Navarre man charged with DUI manslaughter in connection with a Tuesday night wreck in Molino was ordered held without bond during his first court appearance.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, driver Terry E. Lee, 41, of Navarre was traveling on Omega Drive about 6:15 p.m. Tuesday when his Toyota car left the roadway, traveled through a wooden fence and across a pasture before hitting another fence and a tree. Lee’s passenger, Brandee N. Scott, 49, of Pensacola, was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash.She was reportedly impaled by a wooden board from the fence.
Lee, who was airlifted to Sacred Heart Hospital following the crash, reportedly told Florida Highway Patrol troopers that he was not involved in the crash.
Terry Eugene Lee, 41, is facing charges of DUI manslaughter, DUI property damage, no driver’s license, driving with license suspended resulting in death, and three counts of possession of a controlled substance without a prescription.
For Wednesday’s NorthEscambia.com story about the accident and more photos, click here.
Pictured above: One person died in this single vehicle crash Tuesday evening in Molino. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Your Money: Gulf Power Bills Going Down
November 12, 2010
A little good news for Gulf Power Company customers — power bills are headed down in January.
Beginning January 2011, the typical residential customer will see a 2.8 percent decrease on their electricity bill as compared to January 2010, according to the company.
Gulf Power said the decrease is primarily driven by a lower cost of fuel the utility uses to produce electricity. By strategically monitoring its generation fuel mix to use the most cost-effective generation available, the company was able to lower residential electricity prices for 2011.
“The bottom line is that fuel prices have come down and we’re passing that savings along,” said Jeff Roger, spokesman for Gulf Power. “It’s a drop that will directly benefit our customers.”
Gulf Power’s base rates have not changed since 2002, but the cost of fuel continued to rise. Now, those fuel costs are coming back down.
“In previous years we saw the costs for fuel soar, but right now we’re projecting the costs will continue to be lower,” said Rogers. “In the end it means lower electricity bills and that’s great news for Gulf Power customers.”
Gulf Power primarily uses coal and natural gas as fuel for generating electricity, Rogers said.
Millions Of Gallons Of Reclaimed Wastewater Put To Use
November 12, 2010
Millions of gallons of reclaimed water now are flowing from the Emerald Coast Utilities Authority’s new Central Water Reclamation Facility in Cantonment to Gulf Power, a partnership that company officials said is bringing cleaner air and water to Northwest Florida.
Gulf Power’s Plant Crist has started receiving up to 10 million gallons a day of reclaimed water from ECUA’s new plant through a four-mile pipeline connecting the two facilities in Cantonment. The water is being used for the scrubber system at Plant Crist and for generating electricity.
The scrubber system, which cost $645 million and started operating last December, reduces regulated air emissions from Plant Crist by more than 95 percent. And, because of the partnership, Gulf Power will reduce the amount of water it takes from the Escambia River by about 10 million gallons a day.
“We’re giving this reclaimed water a beneficial use while conserving a valuable natural resource,” said Sandy Sims, Gulf Power Public Affairs manager. “While our scrubber has been providing cleaner electricity for almost a year now, this innovative project shows how partners can work together to benefit our customers and the environment — with cleaner air and water.”
The partnership earned Gulf Power and ECUA a 2010 Sustainable Florida Best Practices Award from the Florida Collins Center for Public Policy.
Gulf Power eventually will use up to 17 million gallons a day of reclaimed water, of which more than 80 percent will be evaporated as part of the scrubber, cooling tower and plant operations.
The new ECUA facility eventually will replace the Main Street Wastewater Plant, which had been discharging up to 20 millions of gallons of effluent daily into Pensacola Bay, and stands in a coastal flood zone, vulnerable to storm surge. The new wastewater treatment plant is a zero discharge facility.
Pictured above and below: The Central Water Reclamation Facility in Cantonment. Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
W.D. Childers Bribery Case Headed To Federal Court
November 12, 2010
The case of W.D. Childer’s overturned bribery conviction will now be heard by a federal appeals court.
Childer’s bribery conviction was overturned in a federal appeals court in June, with the judge ruling that testimony that was disallowed in the original trial could have led to a different outcome and that his constitutional rights were violated.
Now, 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals will rehear the case after vacating the decision to reverse his conviction.
Childers, who once served as President of the Florida Senate, 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.
Most notably for North Escambia, Childers was the man responsible for the funding to four-lane Highway 29 to the Alabama state line.
Northview Parents Invited To ‘Muffins For Moms’ Or ‘Doughnuts For Dads’
November 12, 2010
Northview High School will be reaching out to parents with “Muffins for Moms” and “Doughnuts for Dads”.
The two programs will allow moms and dads to meet with other parents while receiving information on topics such as learning strategies, student progression, the Parent Portal, Google Docs and much more.
“Muffins for Moms” will be held Thursday, November 18, and “Doughnuts For Dads” will be held Tuesday, November 23. Both events will take place from 8-9 a.m. in the Northview High Media Center.
Parents are asked to RSVP to Dray@escambia.k12.fl.us or (850) 327-6681 ext. 221 by Tuesday, November 16.
Local Students Named To All-State Bands
November 12, 2010
Several North Escambia area students are among 23 selected to a Florida Bandmasters Association’ All-State bands.
Travis Allen of Jay High School on the trombone was selected to the All-State High School Honor Band. Chris Snyder of Tate High on the trumpet was selected to the All-State Symphonic Band, while Jacob Dearrington of Tate on the trumpet was named to the All-State Symphonic Orchestra Winds.
Lindsey Gordon of Tate on the piccolo was named to the All-State Concert Orchestra Winds, and Kirstin Pike of Jay on the clarinet was named to the All-State Middle School Honor Band.
Two Ransom Middle School students, Matthew J. Hardy on the tuba and Robin Hall on the saxophone, were selected for the All-State Middle School Band.
The students will perform January 14 and 15 in Tampa during a series of All-State concerts.
Here is the complete list of Escambia and Santa Rosa county students named to one of the All-State bands:
All-State High School Honor Band
- Stephanie Borg, home school, flute
- Kay Jackson, Milton High, bassoon
- Andria Beasley, Navarre High, B flat clarinet
- Travis Allen, Jay High, trombone
- Charles Hernandez, Milton High, baritone
All-State Symphonic Band
- Michael Tran, Pace High, B flat clarinet
- Tyler Gellos, Pensacola Christian Academy, trumpet
- Chris Snyder, Tate High, trumpet
All-State Concert Band
- Katherine Lirette, Pace High, B flat clarinet
- Nancy Taguiam, Pace High, B flat clarinet
All-State Symphonic Orchestra Winds
- Meghan Dunne, Pace High, piccolo and flute
- Jacob Dearrington, Tate High, trumpet.
All-State Concert Orchestra Winds
- Lindsey Gordon, Tate High, piccolo
- Seth Traylor, Gulf Breeze High, French horn
- Jennifer Waters, Pace High, trombone
All-State Middle School Honor Band
- Kristin Pike, Jay High, clarinet.
- David Shin, Bellview Middle, clarinet
- Brandon Malone, Ferry Pass Middle, tenor saxophone
- Patrick Greene, Hobbs Middle, French horn
All-State Middle School Band
- Hank Landrum, Gulf Breeze Middle, B flat clarinet
- Robin Hall, Ransom Middle, alto saxophone
- Jacob Howard, Beulah Academy of Science, trumpet
- Matthew J. Hardy, Ransom Middle, tuba
Photos: Honoring Our Veterans
November 12, 2010
Veterans were honored across the area Thursday. There were parades in Atmore and Pensacola, and at students lined the fence with hundreds of flags at Ernest Ward Middle School in Walnut Hill.
For a Veterans Day photo gallery, click here.
Pictured top: The Tate High School AJROTC “Aggie Battalion” marched in the Pensacola Veterans Day Parade. Pictured left: Atmore World War II veteran John Garrard waves during the Atmore Veterans Day Parade Thursday morning. Pictured below: Hundreds of flags placed by the Ernest Ward Middle School SGA line the fence at the school. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Honoring Our Veterans: Pensacola
November 11, 2010
The Tate High School AJROTC “Aggie Battalion” marched in the Pensacola Veterans Day Program this morning. Submitted photos by April Mitchell for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Honoring Our Veterans: Walnut Hill
November 11, 2010
On this Veterans Day, hundreds of flags line the fence around Ernest Ward Middle School in Walnut Hill. The flag were placed by the EWMS Student Government Association.
The annual Ernest Ward Middle School Veteran Program will be held Friday at 9:30 a.m. in the school gym.
The program will include special music, a drama performance, student presentations and more. The program will also include student-led interviews with area veterans about their wartime service, giving them an opportunity to tell their story “in their own words”. Plans also call for the Coast Guard to land a helicopter at the end of the program and to honor them for their service in catastrophes such as Hurricane Katrina and the oil spill.
All veterans are invited to attend. Refreshments will follow the program.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
By The Numbers: Century General Election, Absentee Votes
November 11, 2010
The percentage of voter turnout in Tuesday’s Century general election was much higher than countywide turnout for the 2010 primaries.
There were 318 votes cast in Tuesday’s general election in Century out of 1,081 registered voters — a 29.4 percent turnout. That virtually mirrored the turnout for the October primary when 321 votes were cast — a 29.6 percent turnout. In the August primaries across Escambia County, the voter turnout was 12.6 percent.
Of the 318 votes in Tuesday’s general election, 34 percent (108) were absentee In Escambia County’s August primary, 36.8 percent of ballots were absentee.
The number of absentee ballots “were not unusual at all”, according to Escambia County Supervisor of Elections David Stafford.
There were 81 absentee ballots cast Tuesday for winner Jacke Johnston and 27 for Henry Hawkins. Johnston was the Century Town Council Seat 3 winner with 174 votes (54.72%) while Henry Hawkins received 144 votes (45.28%)
For more on Tuesday’s general election in Century, including candidate reaction, click here for previous story.