Based on all he’s done in the past, having gone from Chain Gang Charlie to Populist Charlie the freshman congressman is going to be a go-to guy for all the blues on the Hill, writes Nancy Smith.
No Sanctuaries: Undocumented Immigrants’ Fears Persist Even as Deportations Are Down
Immigrants’ fear can prevent them from cooperating with police, derail attempts to ensure that all drivers are licensed and endanger growth in areas looking to immigrants to help reverse population losses.
Seek Cover, Teddy: 3,500 Hunters Take Guns and Bows to Bears Across Florida
The hunt, which includes Flagler County, limits each permit holder to killing a single bear weighing at least 100 pounds and won’t exceed the overall 320 bears targeted for what the commission calls a “harvest.”
Latest Kimberle Weeks Pre-Trial Again Continued, to January, But Judge Getting Impatient
Circuit Judge Margaret Hudson put Weeks’s defense on notice that she expects the proceedings to move along come January. Weeks, as in previous hearings, did not attend, but her husband Dwayne did.
AJ Fernandez, Felled by Schizophrenia, Is Celebrated With a Skateboard Competition at Wadsworth Park
24-year-old AJ Fernandez of Palm Coast, diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 2010, took his life on Aug. 26. The Nov. 8 skate competition is a memorial benefit event for the Johns Hopkins Schizophrenia Center in Baltimore.
Palm Coast Woman Charged in DUI Manslaughter Was Stopped Moments Before the Crash, and Released
Rebecca Lawless, 26, charged in the death of Diane Upton, had been stopped by a deputy shortly before at another location and allowed to leave even though she was determined to be drunk.
Supreme Court Clears Floridians for Solar Choice’s Ballot Initiative, Setting Up Battle With Utilities
The initiative has drawn opposition from a coalition including major electric utilities and has spawned a competing solar ballot proposal. That proposal, spearheaded by the group Consumers for Smart Solar, is awaiting a review by the Supreme Court.
Rebecca Lawless, 26, Faces DUI Manslaughter Charge in Death of Diane Upton on SR100 Last Year
Lawless, a Palm Coast resident, turned herself into the Flagler jail almost a year to the day when she ran a red light and slammed into Diane Upton’s car, killing Upton and injuring two family members.
A Third Palestinian Intifada Is Inevitable. Intransigence and Extremism Make It So.
Israel’s occupation policy has undermined the state’s political and ethical foundations, while turning Prime Minister Netanyahu into a hostage of forces even more extreme than he is.
Spartan Extreme Race Re-Sets for Flagler: New Location, Same Lack of Transparency
While the Spartan race appears set at a private ranch in Flagler next March, again, serious questions of transparency and patronage are undermining tiourism chief Matt Dunn’s latest approach.
As Expected, Sheriff Jim Manfre Announces Run for Re-Election, and Draws Rivals’ Fire
Sheriff Jim Manfre is the only Democrat in a race that’s drawn six Republicans so far, including ex-sheriff Don Fleming and ex-Undersheriff Rick Staly, both of whom took Thursday’s announcement as an opportunity to discredit Manfre’s record.
NFL’s Dolphins Want $3 Million a Year in Taxpayer Subsidies, Daytona Speedway May Be Next
The Legislature created a new funding method for professional stadiums in 2014 in an attempt to reduce the lobbying from prior years for state money.
Bailey Anne Cagliuso, 26, Critical After Collision in Palm Coast’s F-Section
Bailey Anne Cagliuso was cycling out of a driveway when an 18-year-old driver struck her with her car on Felshire Lane.
Thursday Briefing: Flagler Home Sales Tepid but Prices Rise, Alcohol v. Pot, Millennials’ Bores
Flagler home sales fall close to year’s lows but median price rises substantially, why pot is safe and alcohol is not, why millennials don’t protest much.
Corey Jones Killing by Cop Triggers Black Lawmakers’ Calls for Independent Review
Corey Jones, 31, a church musician whose car stalled on an Interstate 95 exit ramp early Sunday after a gig, was shot by a plainclothes officer in an unmarked car. Some lawmakers are calling for automatic reviews of all police-related shootings, among other safeguards.
Voodoo Man Found Not Guilty in Machete Attack But Still Faces Murder Conspiracy Charge
Jurors found Roodlyn Mompremier not guilty in an alleged attack on his girlfriend’s brother two years ago in Palm Coast, but the two-day trial didn’t end it for him: he still faces a charge of conspiring to commit second-degree murder.
Fully-Loaded Moving Truck Overturns on State Road 100 at I-95 Exit, Driver Injured
A fully-loaded truck owned by Flagler Moving and Storage overturned on State Road 100 just after 11 a.m. today (Oct. 21), with three men on board. The driver sustained injuries to his head, shoulder and arm as the driver’s side window shattered and the truck scraped the pavement, scraping the driver with it. But he was treated at the scene and not hospitalized.
Palm Coast’s Years in Sinai End as It Moves Into Long-Sought City Hall in Town Center
Sixteen years after the city was born, Palm Coast moved into its own roomy, $9.1 million, 40,000-square-foot City Hall at Town Center this week, with a grand opening set for Nov. 3.
Wednesday Briefing: Golden Lion’s Gift to Second Harvest, Unity Day, Why Hillary Will Win
Golden Lion donation makes 7,000 pounds of food for the needy possible, Unity Day in flagler schools, National Review explains why Hillary Clinton will likely win the white house.
Belle Terre Swim Club Has Until January to Find 400 Members or Close, Absent Savior
A divided Flagler County School Board voted 3-2 for a drop-dead date, relying on current members to build their ranks while leaving out, for now, a sports academy that sought to run the facility. But board members said such talks can continue.
Openly Displaying Handguns and Guns on Campus Bills Win Senate Panel Approval
One of the Florida Senate committees also supported a measure that might make it easier for people to claim they have stood their ground in self-defense when shooting others.
Detectives Seeking Public’s Help Identifying 2 Women in TJ Maxx Theft and Credit Card Fraud
Two women stole a 72-year-old Palm Coast resident’s credit card and wallet at TJ Maxx in September then used the card to buy $4,600-worth of merchandise at Target locally and Best Buy in Daytona Beach.
Flagler Beach Manager’s Short-List Gets Shorter as 3 Withdraw, Leaving Only 2
Flagler Beach is having trouble attracting candidates for its city manager’s job, with just 23 applying and most of those making the short-list deciding to take jobs elsewhere. The commission interviews Andrew DeCandis this evening.
Charter Review Proposal Finally Dies Amid Accusations of “Political Ploy” and Straw Men
Palm Coast Council member’s proposal for a charter review got no support as fellow-council member Jason DeLorenzo called the move a “political ploy” and Council member Heidi Shipley’s attempt to have the council itself lead a review also failed.
Tuesday Briefing: Belle Terre Swim Club’s Fate, Palm Coast Attorney’s Raise, Flagler Beach Interviews
The Flagler school board this evening decides the fate of the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club, the Palm Coast City Council votes on a 15 percent raise for its attorneys, Flagler Beach interviews a candidate for city manager.
Conflict Concerns Raised Over Tourism’s Matt Dunn Moonlighting at His Own Agency
Flagler government tourism chief Matt Dunn, an $82,000-a-year employee, owns a company that offers services similar to those he provides the county, raising questions of conflicts of interest.
Regulators Again Approve Billing FPL Customers For Unbuilt, Unlicensed Nuke Plants
FPL will charge customers–including most of Flagler County power customers–$34.2 million for a pair of nuclear reactors that have yet to be licensed and may not be built until the end of the 2020s.
Crime Round-Up: Bomb Threat at Palm Coast Data, Assaulting Police in Flagler Beach, a B-Section Theft
The phoned-in bomb threat at Palm Coast Data Friday, by an angry man in Canada, was found to be non-specific and did not require facilities to be evacuated. The arrest in Flagler Beach evolved out of a confrontation at the Taco Shop downtown.
County Administrator’s and Attorney’s Contracts May Renew Through 2019 Without Discussion
Flagler County Administrator Craig Coffey’s contract renewal does not appear on this evening’s county commission agenda, and is set to renew automatically absent a decision by one of the commissioners to discuss the contract. The same standard applies to County Attorney Al Hadeed’s contract.
Citing Abuse, Cigna Pulls Out of Florida Health Marketplace, Affecting 30,000 Clients
Individuals can still enroll in a Cigna plan by seeing an insurance agent. But enrollment through the Marketplace, which begins Nov. 1, is the only way to obtain tax credits that subsidize the cost of premiums.
Monday Briefing: A Home for a Wounded Iraq Veteran, Special Session Starts, County’s Tourism
Sergeant Carlos De Leon, wounded in Iraq, gets a donated modified home in the B Section, the Flagler County Commission prepares to take over the tourism office from the chamber of commerce.
Palm Coast Utility Billing Switches to Paymentus
At the same time as Palm Coast’s switch to the new utility billing system, the city also established a new online application option for utility service.
NRA’ Misinformation, Mendacity and Victim-Blaming Take a Dive Into Rabbit Holes
More guns do not lead to less crime. More guns lead to more crime, argues Julie Delegal, who sees NRA zealots misrepresented the facts on guns with junk science wrapped in blame-the-victim hysteria.
Fish and Wildlife Escorts 2 Teens Out of Seminole Woods Area Over Illegal Hunting
Officers searched the woods with weapons drawn for hunters yesterday evening between Seward Trail East and Sea Breeze Trail in Palm Coast. Two teen hunters were found and issued a warning for hunting on private property.
Risks You Didn’t Know About Tylenol, Because Its Marketing Campaign Didn’t Convey Them
Internal company documents that have emerged in a New Jersey trial that ended Friday make clear that marketing for Tylenol did not convey doctors’ concerns about its risks.
Superintendent Apologizes Over Gender-Neutral 8th Grader Sanctioned for Wearing a Dress
Leon County School Superintendent Jackie Pons apologized to the family of an 8th grader who identifies as neither boy nor girl, but who was accused of violating the dress code for wearing a dress on Tuesday. The violation was, in fact, committed by the school principal.
Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Advisory Club Committee: Why We Should Run the Facility
The Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club Advisory Committee makes the case to run the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club, ahead of next Tuesday’s decision by the Flagler County School Board on the fate of the facility.
Professional Pathways: Why We Should Run the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club
Professional Sports Pathways, a private sports academy that runs the Center for Excellence soccer school in Palm Coast, makes the case to run the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club.
Palm Coast Government’s Arrogance
Proves It: Charter Review Is Overdue
The Palm Coast City Council has responded to calls for a charter review with smugness, contempt and disrespect toward a council member elected by more people than three other council members combined. Enough of the charade.
Unemployment Falls to 6% in Flagler and to Lowest Level in 7 Years in Florida
The unemployment rolls shrank by some 150 people in Flagler, bringing the total number of people out of work to 2,569. The labor force grew by about 150, but it remains lower than it was a year ago.
Palm Coast Warily Explores Buying $1 Million Yacht Club for Nature and Senior Center
Buying the Palm Coast Yacht Club would help the city avoid building a required nature center near Long Creek Preserve, but council members are skeptical about creating what would amount to a second community center so close to the first.
Weekend Briefing: Harper Lee’s “Go Set a Watchman” at the Library, Haunted House for Flagler Habitat
Friends of the Library will discuss the Harper Lee novels at the county library, Flagler Habitat’s haunted house opens at Atlantis Industrial and Business Park, Bernie Sanders rejects a donation from the most hated man on the internet.
Daytona Beach Democrat Dwayne Taylor Announces Run for DeSantis Congressional Seat
Dwayne Taylor, the four-term member of the Florida House and a Daytona Beach Democrat, announced today his candidacy for the 6th Congressional District that includes all of Flagler County, a surprise announcement that gives the district its most politically seasoned Democrat in a generation.
Palm Coast Readies to Give Its City Attorneys a 15% Raise as Councilman Objects to Method
The contract will bring Palm Coast’s legal costs to close to half a million dollars a year. Councilman Steven Nobile objected to the the absence of some accountability process before ratifying the new contract amendment, but had no support from fellow-council members.
Palm Coast Joins Local Governments in Opposition to Utilities’ Proposed Cost-Shifting
Upending a century-long arrangement, utilities want local governments to pay for moving utility lines in public construction projects even though the lines use public right of ways at no cost to utilities.
Thursday Briefing: Hadeed on Long Creek Preserve, FHF’s Organ Donor Registry Award, DeSantis’s Bombs
County Attorney Al Hadeed talks about the history and significance of the Long Creek Nature Preserve in Palm Coast at noon, Ron DeSantis’s House Freedom Caucus throws bombs and thinks nothing of shutting down government, but is it more than that?
Scott Wants Tax Cuts Larger Than Projected Surplus. Lawmakers Are More Prudent.
Scott wants a larger tax-cut package in 2016 than the $673 million he sought this year, even though the state budget surplus is projected at $635.4 million, much of it one-time revenue that won;t recur in subsequent years.
1-Acre Brush Fire Off SR 100 Mobilizes Division of Forestry and Flagler Fire Flight
A 1-acre brush fire broke out just after 4 this afternoon in an area difficult to reach for firefighters, just south of the Winn Dixie shopping center on State Road 100, and some 75 feet eastt of I-95.
Child’s Death at Bus Stop Prompts Creation of Joint School-City Safety Committee
Palm Coast City Council member Andy Dance and School Board member Andy Dance formed the joint committee with administrators from both agencies to explore safety improvements at bus stops.
Palm Coast’s Russell Muller, 52, Missing Since Oct. 8, Is Found
Russell Muller, 52, of 17 Patrick Place in Palm Coast, was driving a PT Cruiser that was found empty on Ridgewood Avenue in Daytona Beach Tuesday. He is a student at Flagler Technical Institute and a full-time employee at Walmart. He has reported to neither place since Oct. 8.
