Three Sentenced In Drug Case; Fourth Awaits Trial
August 16, 2010
As of last week, three people have been sentenced to jail or prison and a fourth is awaiting trial in connection with a drug-related search warrant executed in Century back in April.
Members of the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office Narotics Unit executed the search warrant at Travis Lavar Scott’s residence at 6860 Gilford Lane in Century on April 9 and arrested Orlando Dantaus Dixon, 22, of Robert Road, Century; Antwon Montrex Smith, 26, of Salters Like Road, Century; and Brandon Dewayne Jackson, 24, of Jefferson Avenue, Century, on variety of charges.
Orlando Dantaus Dixon
Dixon was charged with possession of marijuana over 20 grams. He was found guilty on the felony charge and sentenced to two years in state prison. He was also ordered to pay $518 in court costs and fees. Dixon has filed an appeal.
Dixon is being held in the Holmes Correction Institute in Bonifay. His earliest possible release date is April 3, 2012.
Antwon Montrex Smith
Smith was found guilty on a charge of possession of marijuana less than 20 grams. He was sentenced to 45 days and is currently in the county’s work release program. His driver’s license was suspended for two years, and $101 in currency seized from Smith was forfeited. He was ordered to pay $388 in court costs and fees.
Brandon Dewayne Jackson
Prosecutors dropped charges of possession of cocaine, possession of marijuana and destruction of evidence against Jackson.
Jackson had given deputies another name, according to the Sheriff’s Office, at the time of his arrest. When a relative of that person heard that the person Jackson named had been arrested, they called the jail to alert deputies about the incorrect name. About the same time, a fingerprint record returned positively identifying Jackson. Jackson was charged with a public order crime of using a false identification.
He entered a nolo contendere plea on the false name charge and was sentenced to 180 days in the county jail, with credit 124 days served. He was also ordered to pay $273 in court costs and fees. He remains in the Escambia County Jail.
Travis Lavar Scott
Scott is facing two felony counts of marijuana possession. His trial is set for September.
Arrest Warrant Served
According to the the Sheriff’s Office report, deputies heard several individuals running toward the rear of Scott’s residence when the arrest warrant was served on April 9. That is where they found Jackson standing in the bathroom near the toilet. Officers located plastic baggies containing marijuana floating in the tank water.
On Smith’s person, officers located under 20 grams of marijuana and $101 in cash, and on Dixon’s person, they located over 20 grams of marijuana, packed in two separate bags, according to the report.
During the search of the residence, deputies located a marijuana and crack cocaine on an end table, two plastic bags of marijuana in drawer by stove, four plastic bags of crack cocaine in a drawer by the sink, a set of digital scales with marijuana residue on a kitchen counter, a loaded Beretta .40 caliber handgun in a drawer by the kitchen sink and “miscellaneous paperwork”.
Tell Us: What Do You Think Of Your Child’s School Supply List?
August 16, 2010
Your child’s Escambia County school supply list was featured in the economy section of his weekend’s New York Times. The reason? The school district is one of a growing number in the county asking parents to purchase items like cleaning supplies and copy paper along with the basics like scissors and pencils.
Kleenex. Hand sanitizer. Paper towels. Wet wipes. Copy paper. Ziploc bags. Expo dry erase markers. Red pens. Those are some of the items that appear as optional or “wish list” items on the supply lists at Bratt Elementary, Molino Park Elementary, Jim Allen Elementary, Ernest Ward Middle, Ransom Middle and schools across the district.
Superintendent Malcolm Thomas told the New York Times that the items were listed as optional because “we know that people in our community are hurting”.
With a shrinking budget Thomas would probably have to cut personnel if the Escambia County School District paid for all of the supplies. He acknowledged that teachers — who have a starting salary of $32,500 — often purchase supplies out of their own pockets.
We want to know what you think. In our comment section below, tell us if the school district should ask for non-basic supplies like copy paper and hand sanitizer? If not, how should the district, and ultimately the state, fund the purchase of items like copy paper?
We would also like to know — How much did you spend on school supplies this year? Did you purchase the optional items? And what were your saving secrets?
To view Escambia County school supply lists, click here.
Under Budget: New ECUA Plant Starting Up This Month
August 16, 2010
ECUA’s new Central Water Reclamation Facility in Cantonment will quietly begin processing wastewater late this month.
The $320 million relocation project is expected to come in under budget, according to Natalie Bowers, Emerald Coast Utilities Authority spokesperson. And, she said, it is expected to be complete on schedule.
Once construction is complete, there will be a period of several months where the new plant and lift stations will be starting up. During that time, the 73-year old Main Street Plant will remain in operation.
Once all start up is completed, the ECUA will start shutting down the Main Street Plant, a process expected to take several months. Once the downtown plant is completely decommissioned, ECUA will begin the demolition process.
Construction on the new Cantonment facility started in July 2007.
Four Uninjured In Quintette Crash
August 16, 2010
There were no injuries in a single vehicle accident Sunday night in the Quintette area. The accident happened about 10 p.m. at the intersection of Quintette Road and Highway 95A. The driver of a car apparently failed to stop at a stop sign on Quintette Road. Four people in the car were uninjured. NorthEscambia.com photo by Kristi Smith, click to enlarge.
Northwest Escambia Football Schedule Released
August 16, 2010
The 2010 Northwest Escambia football schedule has been released.
| September 4th | ||||||||
| At NW Escambia | ||||||||
| Mini-Mites | 11:00 | Milton Black | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| Mites | 12:30 | Milton Black | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| Midgets | 2:00 | Milton Black | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| September 11th | ||||||||
| At NW Escambia | ||||||||
| Mini-Mites | 11:00 | Navarre Black | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| Mites | 12:30 | Navarre Black | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| Midgets | 2:00 | Navarre Black | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| September 18th | ||||||||
| At NW Escambia | ||||||||
| Mini-Mites | 11:00 | Ensley Blue | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| Mites | 12:30 | Ensley Blue | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| Midgets | 2:00 | Ensley Blue | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| September 25th | ||||||||
| At Pace | ||||||||
| Mighty-Mites | 8:00 | East Milton | vs. | Pace | ||||
| Mini-Mites | 9:30 | NW Escambia | vs. | Pace Blue | ||||
| Mini-Mites | 11:00 | East Milton | vs. | Pace Red | ||||
| Mites | 12:30 | NW Escambia | vs. | Pace Blue | ||||
| Mites | 2:00 | East Milton | vs. | Pace Red | ||||
| Midgets | 3:30 | NW Escambia | vs. | Pace Blue | ||||
| Midgets | 5:00 | East Milton | vs. | Pace Red | ||||
| Juniors | 6:30 | East Milton | vs. | Pace | ||||
| October 2nd | ||||||||
| At NW Escambia | ||||||||
| Mini-Mites | 11:00 | Brewton | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| Mites | 12:30 | Brewton | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| Midgets | 2:00 | Brewton | vs. | NW Escambia | ||||
| October 9th | OFF | |||||||
| October 16th | ||||||||
| At Jay | ||||||||
| Mini-Mites | 11:00 | NW Escambia | vs. | Jay | ||||
| Mites | 12:30 | NW Escambia | vs. | Jay | ||||
| Midgets | 2:00 | NW Escambia | vs. | Jay | ||||
| October 23rd | ||||||||
| At Navarre | ||||||||
| Mini-Mites | 11:00 | NW Escambia | vs. | Navarre Maroon | ||||
| Mites | 12:30 | NW Escambia | vs. | Navarre Maroon | ||||
| Midgets | 2:00 | NW Escambia | vs. | Navarre Maroon | ||||
| October 30th | ||||||||
| At Brent | ||||||||
| Mighty-Mites | 8:00 | Cantonment | vs. | Brent | ||||
| Mini-Mites | 9:30 | NW Escambia | vs. | Brent White | ||||
| Mini-Mites | 11:00 | Cantonment | vs. | Brent Blue | ||||
| Mites | 12:30 | NW Escambia | vs. | Brent White | ||||
| Mites | 2:00 | Cantonment | vs. | Brent Blue | ||||
| Midgets | 3:30 | NW Escambia | vs. | Brent White | ||||
| Midgets | 5:00 | Cantonment | vs. | Brent Blue | ||||
NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Elementary Students Participate In Fire Dept. Poster Contest
August 16, 2010
Flomaton Fire and Rescue named winners Friday in their second annual poster contest at Flomaton Elementary School.
The halls at Flomaton Elementary were filled with posters reflecting all of the students’ hard work. Members of Flomaton Fire and Rescue were hand and had the hard job of judging and picking the winner. When they were done, there was a two-way tie for the winner.
Hayley Adams and Kristen Coleman had the winning posters. Thanks to a grant from Alabama Association of Volunteer Fire Departments, each students that entered the contest will receive a free T-shirt with the winning designs.
Pictured top: Kristen Coleman (left) and Hayley Adams with their winning poster designs. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Owe The State Money? Take Advantage Of Amnesty Program
August 16, 2010
Do you owe the State of Florida money? The state is giving you a chance to settle up without penalties and with reduced interest.
Errant or forgetful taxpayers have until Thursday, September 30 to save a little money if they pay their state taxes under an amnesty program courtesy of the Department of Revenue. The program allows taxpayers who owe money to the state as of July 1 a chance to avoid penalties and reduce the interest charges on outstanding tax bills.
“For taxpayers who owe taxes or who may have made a mistake in the past, tax amnesty is a chance to pay taxes owed to the state and save money,” Lisa Echeverri, Executive Director, Florida Department of Revenue, said in a statement.
For more information, click here for the revenue department website. The amnesty program is not available to those who are already in court or have regulatory actions pending.
Deputies Investigate Mystic Springs Mystery
August 15, 2010
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a Mystic Springs mystery — who is responsible for burning a stolen vehicle from Davisville at an Escambia River boat launch?
Saturday morning, the owner of a gold-colored 2005 Pontiac reported her vehicle stolen from her residence near Highway 164 and Green Village Road, just east of Highway 97. Escambia County Deputy Rudy Brown took the stolen vehicle report before noon.
Shortly before 3:00, just before the end of his shift, Brown was on routine patrol at the Mystic Springs boat ramp on Mystic Springs Road east of Highway 29. That’s when he found the completely burned-out shell of a car near an Escambia River boat launch — about 12 miles from the reported theft location. The fire happened an unknown amount of time prior to the discovery; the vehicle was no longer warm.
Deputies were unable to locate a vehicle identification number (VIN) remaining on the car, even under the hood. The McDavid Station of Escambia Fire Rescue was called to the location to open the vehicle’s hood using a power saw.
After finding what appeared to be traces of gold-colored paint around the burned-out car, deputies contact the woman who had reported her Pontiac missing earlier in the day. After arriving at the Mystic Springs boat ramp, the owner identified the burned vehicle as her own by body damage to the front quarter panel.
No arrests have been made in the incident. An investigation is continuing by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. Anyone with information on the theft or arson should call the Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9630.
For more photos from the scene, click here.
Pictured: A burned-out car reported stolen Saturday morning was found at the Mystic Springs boat launch Saturday afternoon. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Summer Fun: Camp Quarternote (With Photo Gallery)
August 15, 2010
Almost five dozen kids spent a week having a little summer “Fun In the Son” at Highland Baptist Church’s Camp Quarternote.
After learning an entire play in just a week, over 50 music camp students performed the play “Fun In the Son” Sunday night at the Molino church.
A cast and crew party followed the play in the church fellowship hall.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Do you have news or photos from your church to share? Email news@northescambia.com
Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Valentino Cleared In Political Contribution Case
August 15, 2010
A judge dismissed a misdemeanor campaign solicitation charge against incumbent District 2 Escambia County Commissioner Gene Valentino.
Okaloosa County Judge Jim Ward said Saturday he was dismissing a charge of the solicitation of a political contribution in a building owned by a governmental agency. Valentino was accused of accepting a campaign donation at his county office from Pensacola developer Dan Gilmore on November 5, 2009. If tried and convicted, the commissioner could have faced up to one year in jail and a $1,000 fine.
“We can now get back to the work of the people, without distraction. This event shows that the charges against me were baseless, without merit, and politically motivated. I am grateful for the public’s ongoing and uncompromising support,” Valentino said in a released statement Saturday afternoon.
Valentino is being challenged in the August 24 Republican primary by three others – Florida Rep. Dave Murzin, former Planning Board member Karen Sindel and former embattled County Administrator George Touart.