Two Jailed For Escambia’s Latest Murder
August 14, 2010
Two suspects are now behind bars in an Escambia County homicide that happened earlier this week.
Tyrone Vincent Moultrie, 21, turned himself in Friday morning. Omar Shereef Hickenbotham, 18, was arrested earlier in the week. Both are facing murder charges in the death of Jerome Peters. Investigators believe Peters was gunned down during a robbery attempt in the parking lot of an Exxon gas station on Fairfield Drive.
Moultrie and Hickenbotham are being held without bond in the Escambia County Jail.
Early Voting Continues
August 14, 2010
Early voting will continue in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties through this weekend and next week leading up the August 24 primaries.
As of the close of business Thursday, more than 2,100 voters had voted early and almost 23,000 absentee ballots had been issued in Escambia County. During the same period in Santa Rosa County, 1,322 people had cast their ballot.
There are four early voting locations in Escambia County:.
- Supervisor of Elections Main Office, 213 Palafox Place 2nd Floor
- Supervisor of Elections Annex, 292 Muscogee Road, Cantonment
- Southwest Branch Library, 12248 Gulf Beach Highway
- West Florida Genealogy Library (former Tryon Branch Library), 5740 North 9th Avenue
Early voting in Escambia County will be offered Sunday, August 15th from 11:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.; and Monday, August 16th through Saturday, August 21st from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Early voters will cast paper ballots through our digital scanners, and may choose any one of the four sites.
And there are two early voting locations for Santa Rosa County residents:
- Elections Office (behind McDonalds on U.S. 90, Milton), 6495 Caroline St., Suite F
- South Service Center (one block east of the zoo on U.S. 98), 5841 Gulf Breeze Parkway, Gulf Breeze.
Early voting in Santa Rosa County will held from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. through August 21, with no early voting on Sunday.
Another option for voters is to cast an absentee ballot, which can be obtained by contacting the Escambia County Supervisor of Elections by mail, phone (850-595-3900), e-mail (absentee@escambiavotes.com), fax (850-595-3914), or by using the online form at EscambiaVotes.com. Requests must include the voter’s date of birth and the address where the ballot should be mailed, and must be received no later than Wednesday, August 18th. Voted ballots must be received in the Elections Office no later than 7:00 p.m. on Election Day. Absentee voters may now follow the status of their ballot by clicking “Track My Ballot” on EscambiaVotes.com.
To obtain an absentee ballot in Santa Rosa County, contact the supervisor of elections by mail, phone (850-983-1900), e-mail (bodenstein@santarosa.fl.gov), fax (850-983-1829), or by using the online form at www.santa rosa.fl.gov/elections.
Visit Gulf Islands, Other National Parks Free
August 14, 2010
Gulf Islands National Seashore will join with other National Park Service sites around the country and offer fee-free entry into the park this weekend.
At Gulf Islands National Seashore, all entrance fees will be waived for visitors to the park on Saturday and Sunday. At this time of the year, entrance fees are collected at two of the park’s units: Fort Pickens and Perdido Key.
Acting Park Superintendent Nina Kelson states, “This is such a good opportunity to reconnect with all the natural and historic features of the national seashore as well as its ranger led programs.” Park entrance stations will have Senior and Annual Passes available for those who wish to purchase them. Kelson points out that faster moving lines makes this an excellent time to acquire annual passes for those visitors wanting to take advantage of what the park offers year-round. For a full description of the facilities and programs currently available, visit the park’s web site at www.nps.gov/guis or contact the Naval Live Oaks Visitor Center at (80) 934-2600.
Pictured: Fort Pickens in the Gulf Islands National Seashore. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Fall Veggies Are Cool To Grow In North Escambia Area
August 14, 2010
In Northwest Florida, vegetable lovers can enjoy harvests from their backyard gardens throughout the year. However, to ensure a productive and enjoyable vegetable garden, you must understand and abide by planting times.
In general, vegetable crops can be grouped into warm-season and cool-season varieties. Warm-season crops do not grow well at temperatures below 50 degrees F and are killed by frost. Cool-season crops are those that grow at lower temperatures, are not injured by light frost, but can’t take the heat.
In late summer and early fall, North Florida gardeners experience a unique opportunity. You can still plant another round of warm-season crops and/or start your cool-season vegetables.
Planting of warm-season vegetables gets to be more critical with the fall garden because we have an end point—frost and freezes. When planted too late, plants will grow, but may not provide enough of a harvest to make the effort worthwhile. Examples are peppers, eggplants and tomatoes. These vegetables can easily take up to two months from transplanting to producing the first fruit. All the time, the fall is getting shorter in day length and cooler in temperatures. That’s really tough on “warm-loving,” full-sun plants.
Since timing is so important with the fall crop, choose warm-season crops that will produce well within a short time. Look for fast-maturing and determinant or bush-type cultivars to ensure a good yield before frost.
Crops to plant outdoors in August include bush and lima beans, cauliflower, collards, cucumbers, onions, southern peas, peppers, squash, tomato and turnips.
In September, you can set out beets, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, endive, kale, kohlrabi, mustard and radish.
The cooler temperatures of October are better for planting Chinese cabbage, lettuce and spinach.
To find specific recommendations on when to plant vegetables in Florida, read the UF/IFAS “Vegetable Gardening Guide”. It’s online at edis.ifas.ufl.edu/vh021
The leafy crops excel in the fall. Some of the more popular leafy crops are Swiss chard, collards, spinach, mustard, turnip greens and lettuce. Endive, escarole, kale, arugula and the greens of mesclun mix also do very well during the cooler months.
Garden lettuces can be divided into three classes based on habit of growth – leaf or loose-leaf types, semi-heading types (such as butterhead and romaine) and heading or crisp-head types.
Crisp-head lettuces, such as the iceberg types available in supermarkets, are more of a challenge to grow here, so its recommend you stay with the leaf and semi-heading varieties. Other than generally avoiding the heading types, feel free to try just about any variety that strikes your fancy.
Leaf lettuces are the most decorative and least-demanding. They also are among the most heat-tolerant lettuces. This type of lettuce grows in a loose rosette of foliage, and the leaves can be smooth or crinkled, pointed, lobed, curled or ruffled. Foliage color runs from deep ruby red to dark green to pale greenish yellow, with just about every combination in between.
Collards will withstand wide ranges of temperatures if properly conditioned. They may be direct seeded and or plants can be transplanted. Collards may be harvested by cutting the whole plant or by “cropping” individual leaves.
Onions are generally grown from sets or plants. Sets and plants will require about six to eight weeks to reach eating size. Bulbing onions will not be ready to harvest until spring.
Radishes are fast growers and fun for the kids. Many are ready to harvest 25 to 30 days after planting.
So take the leap and “fall” into vegetable gardening.
Theresa Friday is the Residential Horticulture Extension Agent for Santa Rosa County
Funeral Services Set For Principal Killed In Police Chase
August 13, 2010
Funeral services have been scheduled for Saturday for Donald Wayne “Coach Rotch” Rotch, 60, of Brewton.
Rotch, principal at T.R. Miller High School, was killed when his vehicle was hit head-on by a car involved a high-speed chase with Brewton Police. He was assistant principal for nine years and principal for 10 years at T.R. Miller High School.
Visitation for Rotch will be held Saturday, August 14, from 2 until 4 p.m. at Brewton First United Methodist Church. Funeral services will be held Saturday, August 14, at 4 p.m. at Brewton First United Methodist Church with Dr. Ed Glaize officiating. Burial will follow in Union Cemetery with Williams Memorial Chapel Funeral Home directing.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donation by made in memory of Donnie Rotch to the Donald W. Rotch Scholarship Fund, Greater Brewton Foundation, P.O. Box 469,Brewton, AL 36427.
For the complete obituary, click here.
Man Found Dead By Highway 29 In McDavid Was In Prison 10 Days Prior
August 13, 2010
The man found dead by Highway 29 in McDavid on Tuesday had been released from a Florida prison just 10 before his body was discovered.
The body of Donald Freeman, 49, was found by a road crew near the West Fraser McDavid sawmill.
“We have ruled out any blunt force trauma, and there are no signs of foul play,” said Sgt. Ted Roy, spokesperson for the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. Roy also said there were no obvious signs of trauma that would indicate Freeman was struck by a passing vehicle. His death is no longer being treated as a homicide.
Freeman was believed to be walking toward Century were he had friends or relatives, Roy said.
According to the Florida Department of Corrections, Freeman was released July 31 from the Apalachee Correctional Institution, West Unit in Sneads. He was sentenced to state prison in 2006 for aggravated assault with a weapon without the intent to kill and cocaine possession.
Authorities are still trying to piece together what happened in the hours leading up to Freeman’s death, and Roy said the cause of Freeman’s death is still unknown. He said the department is still waiting for toxicology and additional test results.
Click here for a photo gallery from the scene.
Click here for raw news video from the scene.
NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
We’ve Got The Beat: Northview Band Summer Practice Photo Gallery
August 13, 2010
The Northview High School Tribal Beat band is wrapping up summer practice this week.
Band director Scott Slay said the band is preparing a Beatles halftime show for this year’s football season plus several rock songs to perform from the stands.
For a photo gallery from Thursday morning’s Northview Tribal Beat practice, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Strict Pursuit Policy In Effect In Escambia County
August 13, 2010
Following Wednesday night’s deadly crash in Brewton following a police pursuit, NorthEscambia.com is taking a look at the pursuit policy in place in North Escambia.
“We are very restrictive in our pursuit policy,” said Commander Eric Haines of the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. “We probably have the strictest policy in the area.”
Haines said the department’s policy allows vehicle chases only for forcible felonies and DUI’s but only when the risk of not stopping the driver is greater than if they are not stopped.
“Let’s say your family is in that car that might be hit by the pursuit. Is it worth it for your wife to die because someone threw out a bag of crack?” is a question Haines said he presents to deputies as he explains the pursuit policy.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says about 360 people are killed each year in police chases. That’s an average of one every day.
“Police officers want to catch what they chase. The adrenaline gets pumping, and it’s hard to stop,” he said. That’s where supervisors come in, deciding in real time if any pursuit that might happen in Escambia County is allowed to continue.
When an officer does become involved in a pursuit in Escambia County, it is reviewed as seriously as if he discharged his weapon.
“That patrol car is a several thousand pound weapon flying down the street,” Haines said.
The officer’s immediate supervisor will review the pursuit, along with a patrol captain and perhaps other senior officers. If it is found that the pursuit was not justified, the deputy can receive a letter of reprimand or even be suspended from the force.
The policy also provides for limitations on forcible felonies when the danger to the public is too great. Officers are taught to carefully weigh their options before becoming involved in a chase. Many times, Haines said, officers know the identity of a driver and a warrant can be issued for their arrest at a later date, rather than becoming involved in a pursuit.
Pursuits can’t be based on “if’s”, he said, such as “what if” an unknown driver that runs a stop sight might actually be a wanted felon.
“Perhaps it is valid argument with ‘what if you could have caught them’ when someone goes on to commit a serious crime. But you are responsible for the knowledge you have at the time,” Haines said, not the various “what if” scenarios.
Simply failing to stop for a deputy is not a pursuit, according to Haines. In the event a driver fails to stop but does not pose a danger to the public, deputies are allowed to continue to attempt a traffic stop until the person takes a dangerous evasive action.
“If we had someone that failed to stop — say a drunk or someone having a medical problem — but they otherwise drove within the law, we would follow them as long as it takes.”
NorthEscambia.com graphics.
Local Woman’s Jewelry Featured On Vogue Magazine Cover
August 13, 2010
It really sounds like an unlikely combination. An Atmore woman, handmade jewelry, a Vogue magazine cover and rubber bicycle inner tubes. But add it all together, and you have a high fashion success story.
The August cover of Italian Vogue magazine features recycled rubber jewelry handcrafted in Atmore by Kathleen Nowak Tucci. Tucci has been creating art for 25 years and has recently begun working with recycled bicycle inner tubes. Kathleen has shown her work in private, corporate, and university collections nationally and internationally. Her latest interest in recycled rubber has landed her in some of the most exclusive boutiques across the country.
Tucci, whose recent artistic accomplishments includes a successful line of one-of-a-kind lamps, said she was intrigued with rubber. She tried creating art from industrial gaskets, but that “was a total flop”, she said. But then her artist’s eye took a long look at the seemingly unlikely rubber bicycle inner tube.
“It was an interesting material to play with,” Tucci said. “As a material, I was totally drawn to it.”
“Art deco style, swirls and curves…I’ve always love them,” she said of her jewelry’s design.
And thanks to the marketing eye of her sister, Margaret Nowak Dobos, the high fashion world was drawn to her creations. Dobos lives in Orange County California and serves as the marketing representative, distributor, photographer and stylist for Kathleen’s accessories.
“It’s unbelievable to be sold in Beverly Hills,” she said.
It’s only been six months since inner tubes were first recycled by Tucci from trash to fashion treasure on the website mysistersart.com. Italian Vogue found the website and contacted the sisters in June to say they were looking for rubbery jewelry for a photography shoot. They shipped Tucci’s jewelry to New York City. They knew it was used in the magazine photoshoot, but they also knew the odds were very slim that the jewelry photos were ever make the printed magazine.
“It was an honor just to know that Steven Meisel took the photos,” Tucci said. “He’s one of the world’s best known photographers.” Meisel, without a doubt, has an eye for fashion — he’s credited with discovering or promoting the careers of models like Linda Evangelista, Naomi Cambell and Christy Turlington, as well as taking rather famous photos of his friend Madonna.
Then Tucci visited the Italian Vogue website to see the preview of the August magazine. There, on the cover, she found her jewelry.
“It was amazing,” she said.
Tucci and her sister Annie Nowak, owner of Annie’s Community Cup, looked at cover image appear on the Vogue website over and over.
“I never aspired to this,” Tucci said. “It is beyond my wildest dreams.”
Pictured top: Kathleen Nowak Tucci at work on her bicycle inner tube jewelry, courtesy Ben Twingley. Pictured top inset: The August cover of Italian Vogue magazine, courtesy Vogue. Pictured middle and bottom inset, bottom of page: Tucci’s jewelry, as photographed by her sister Margaret Nowak Dobos.
School Board To Hold Meeting At Northview
August 13, 2010
Mark your calendars — the Escambia County School Board is hitting the road for a North Escambia town hall meeting.
The school board will hold the town hall meeting at the Northview High School theater on August 26 at 5:30 p.m. The purpose of the meeting is to provide a presentation and engage in discussion about class size reduction requirements.
An agenda will be available at a later date and will be made available on the school district’s website and here on NorthEscambia.com.