Mark Gregory McKerlie, a 48-year-old resident of 16 Blyth Place in Palm Coast, faces a first-degree felony arson count and two felony counts of assaulting firefighters or law enforcement officers following authorities’ response to the Blyth Place house, where McKerlie is accused of starting a fire.
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Three People Killed in Two Separate Head-On Crashes in Heavy Fog on SR100 West of Bunnell
Three people have lost their lives in two unrelated car crashes within minutes of each other in heavy fog on State Road 100 early this morning, causing the road to be closed in both directions from the Putnam County line to County Road 305, Sheriff Rick Staly said.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, February 25, 2022
Donald Trump is apparently siding with Vladimir Putin, Free For All Fridays on the invasion of Ukraine and what it may mean to Flagler, Anthony Burgess, and Voltaire on arbitrary justice.
Setting the Record Straight on Ukrainian and Russian History
Much of the history of Ukraine and Russia the public is hearing is incomplete, some of it is wrong, and some of it is obscured or refracted by the self-interest or the limited perspective of who is telling it. Here’s a corrective.
Anti-‘Woke’ and ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bills Clear Florida House Following Emotional, Futile Debates
Yet two hotly-debated bills — HB 7, limiting conversations about racism and sexism in schools and at work, and HB 1557, restricting classroom discussions on sexual orientation and gender identity — were both passed by the House on near-party lines Thursday.
Found Guilty on All Counts, Palm Coast’s Philip Martin, 56, Faces Life in Prison for ‘Massaging’ Girl, 11
A jury convicted Philip Martin, 56, guilty on three counts of molesting the 11-year-old daughter of his late girlfriend in Palm Coast over a long period, as he took to “massaging” the girl’s legs, back and other body parts while distracting her with his phone. He faces life in prison when sentenced in early May.
15 Year Old Arrested in Shooting Death of Jamey Bennett, 19, Near Matanzas Woods
Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly this afternoon announced the arrest of 15-year-old Da’Mari Barnes, a 10th grader currently enrolled at Matanzas High School, on a manslaughter charge in the shooting death of Jamey “JuJu” Bennett, 19, during a bonfire party nearly three weeks ago in north Palm Coast.
Cost and Location Questions Arise Over County’s Push for Visitor Center on A1A and South 9th Street
The chairman of the Flagler Beach City Commission and the chairman of the county’s tourism council, who also sits on the County Commission, both have questions about the location and the cost of building a potential visitor center the county’s tourism division is eying for South 9th Street and State Road A1A in Flagler Beach.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, February 24, 2022
The Flagler Beach City Commission considers permitting a neighboring tattoo business, the Philip Martin trial enters its final day, Wendell Berry on the making of morons, Rodney Dangerfield, and Estonians.
Taxpayers: Expect Serious Delays from IRS This Year
Over 15 million returns and 5 million pieces of taxpayer correspondence from 2021 sit untouched – including 6 million original 1040s. Amended 2021 returns are taking more than 20 weeks to process. It’s not just complicated returns that are getting delayed. Even simple individual returns are caught in the backlog.
Senate Confirms Vaccine-Snubbing Ladapo as Surgeon General in Partisan Divide
A 24-15 party-line vote displayed the fissure between the parties on DeSantis’ approach to the pandemic, which in the past year has mostly concentrated on treating people who have tested positive for Covid-19 rather than boosting vaccinations. Ladapo has often echoed DeSantis’ positions since the September appointment.
17 Attorneys Apply for Appointment to Volusia County Court Seat; Interviews on March 1
Seventeen attorneys have applied for appointment to a county judge seat in Volusia that became vacant after the elevation to circuit court of Christopher Kelly of New Smyrna Beach late last year. Kelly replaced Circuit Judge Steven C. Henderson, who died at age 49 in August from Covid.
Residents of Hidden Lakes and Toscana Appeal Palm Coast Approvals of 2 Self-Storage Lots on Old Kings
A group of Palm Coast residents in the Toscana and Hidden Lakes subdivisions off Old Kings Road have filed an appeal of a decision by the Palm Coast Planning Board clearing the way for a self-storage facility on Old Kings Road. The same group is preparing to file a civil suit in circuit court seeking to quash decisions by the planning board and the Palm Coast City Council clearing the way for both that facility and another like it nearby.
Dozens of Anti-Semitic Fliers Tied to ‘Let’s Go Brandon’ Appear in Palm Coast and Ormond Beach
The fliers, which authorities and the Anti Defamation League do not consider criminal, have been appearing at least since December in neighborhoods in Surfside, Miami, San Francisco, Denver, Las Vegas, Kenosha, Wis., Cartersville, Ga., towns in Texas, and California, according to press reports and a tally by the ADL.
Full Federal Appeals Court Re-Hears St. Johns Schools Transgender Bathroom Case
In a case with local and national implications, a previous, three-judge panel of the court had ruled in favor of the student who was denied use of the boys’ bathroom. The St. Johns school district appealed to the full court.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, February 23, 2022
The trial of Philip Martin enters its third day, the county parks and rec committee meets, genocide in Ukraine, Brunei’s stoning-free National Day, “Defender of the Fatherland Day” in Russia.
At Least 650 Migrants, a Record, Died on the US-Mexico Border in 2021
A majority of people crossing the border are not from Mexico, having traveled instead from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. People migrate and attempt to cross the U.S.-Mexico border for complicated reasons, including violence and lack of work opportunities in their home countries.
Treasured, Embattled Whispering Meadows Ranch Has New Home as County Seals Partnership Deal
Whispering Meadows, the equine therapy ranch on John Anderson Highway treasured for nearly 15 years for providing a healing refuge to children with disabilities, veterans and others living with traumas, will move to 15 acres at the county fairgrounds as the County Commission unanimously approved a private-public arrangement through a special exception.
Florida Lawmakers Scale Back Broadband Expansion, Potentially Hurting Flagler Efforts
Flagler County has been making just such a broadband expansion a priority for its west-Flagler residents, who have been perennially underserved. The county was banking on both federal and state expansions, the federal portion proving not sufficient–so far–to reach the county’s goal of universal coverage. State lawmakers’ latest move, substituting federal dollars instead of supplementing state dollars, will likely be a setback to Flagler.
County’s Approval of Flagler Schools’ Impact Fee Increase Again Delayed, and Patience Wears Thin
The Flagler County School District and the county administration share the same building, and the same floor, but interpret construction’s impact on school enrollment very differently, thus causing one further delay that means the district will not see increased revenue from its development impact fees until a year later than it hoped.
Palm Coast Government Awarded 2022 National Customer Service Association Service Organization of the Year
The National Customer Service Association has awarded the 2022 Service Organization of the Year award to the City of Palm Coast as part of their ‘All-Stars Awards’ program.
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn on Ukrainian Nationalism and Separatism
“Russia and the Ukraine are united in my blood, my heart, my thoughts,” Solzhenitsyn wrote in The Gulag Archipelago half a century ago. “But from friendly contact with Ukrainians in the camps over a long period I have learned how sore they feel. Our generation cannot avoid paying for the mistakes of generations before it.”
Democratic Lawmakers Attempt to Raise Florida’s Stingiest Unemployment Benefit to $375 a Week
Mississippi has the lowest unemployment benefit in the nation, at $235. Arizona is next, at $240, but that ends in July, when it goes up to $320. Florida, Tennessee, Louisiana and Alabama remain tied for the lowest weekly benefit of $275, but Florida’s is still the stingiest at 12 weeks, while the other three states, plus Mississippi, all offer up to 26 weeks.
Flagler Beach’s Tardy Dunes Project Is Down to a Single Holdout As Another Property Owner Signs Easement
Flagler County Attorney Al Hadeed Monday evening announced he had secured a long-sought easement from Flagler Beach property owner Leonard Surles, reducing the list of holdouts to a single property owner: Cynthia D’Angiolini.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, February 22, 2022
The East Flagler Mosquito Control District talks slightly larger boundaries, the full 11th Circuit Court of Appeals takes up a high-profile transgender bathroom case from St. Johns County schools, English as a Second Language class, John Quincy Adams buys Florida from the Spanish. John McGahern reflects on the existence of God.
Putin Orders Troops Into Ukraine: 5 Essential Reads
Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a provocative address that could be construed as a pretext to war, claimed today that all of Ukraine belongs to Russia and formally recognized the independence of two breakaway regions in Ukraine that are controlled by Moscow-backed separatists. His government then ordered troops to those regions.
Myth-Ridden Bill That Would Reduce Rooftop Solar Credits to Residents Advances, Angering Industry
People who own rooftop solar systems are required to hook up to utility systems and are able to sell excess electricity and receive bill credits in return. Under the 2008 rule, monthly credits are provided at utilities’ retail rates. The bill could reduce the amounts going to rooftop solar owners.
The GOP Is Using ‘Parental Rights’ to End Public Education as We Know It
The Florida GOP is using the Parents’ Bill of Rights to weaponize a minority of insurrectionist parents against schools, giving parents the right to violate privacy and autonomy where it counts most at school: between students and teacher. No wonder there’s a teacher exodus. It’s just what the GOP wants. Destruction from within.
Development Opponents Win Minor Procedural Step in Court Fight Over The Gardens
Preserve Flagler Beach and Bulow Creek, the citizens’ group opposing in the main the development of The Gardens, on Friday won a small procedural step in a court appeal that, so far, has been a losing battle against the proposed development of 335 homes along John Anderson Highway south of State Road 100.
Daytona State College Receives $532,000 for Technical and Adult Education Student Grants
Daytona State College is excited to partner with the Florida Department of Education as the recipient of $532,000 in funding through the Open Door Grant Programs.
Mondex Man Faces Life Felony in Accusation of Armed Burglary Against His Step-Father
A similar incident involving the same weapon would have ordinarily resulted at most in a second degree felony of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon against William Rubert, 32. But because of the circumstances, the charge was entered as a first degree felony of armed burglary.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, February 21, 2022
The Flagler County Commission considers finalizing its agreement with Whispering meadows Ranch and approving the school district’s revised, scaled back impact fee schedule. Sebastian Maniscalco, trial week in Flagler court. Commemorating Nina Simone, W.H. Auden, Malxolm X.
How the Loudest Voices in the Room Distort Democracy
Not all voices are pitched the same. Amplified by technology, it’s easy for a loud and relentless minority to dominate the soundscape and drown out all other points of view. That’s not democracy. It’s a form of repression.
Florida House Set to Take Up Bills Silencing Discussions of Race and Gender Identity
The Florida House, dominated by Republicans, is poised this coming week to pass two fiercely debated bills that would place restrictions on how issues about race, gender identity and sexual orientation are taught in public schools.
Where There’s Smoke: County Flagler Conducting Prescribed Fire at Bulow Creek Off Old Kings Road South
Flagler County on Sunday (today) will continue to conduct a prescribed fire at its Bulow Creek conservation property, and residents living off of Old Kings Road South in the Bulow Plantation area may see smoke. Those living on Secretariat Lane, Steeplechase Trail, and Lexington Court may also see emergency vehicles there to monitor conditions.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, February 20, 2022
The United Nations’ World Day of Social Justice and Frederick Douglass’ death anniversary, “The Mountaintop,” at City Repertory Theatre, waning civil rights concerns in the United States.
Why Calling Covid the ‘Chinese Virus’ Encourages Racist Violence
The way media frame, depict and describe events can have a profound influence on the public’s perception of those events. Researchers have found that audiences are prone to interpret media stories in the context of their biases, especially in relation to racial groups.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, February 19, 2022
St. Mark by the Sea Bazaar and Sale, Vincent Adejumo on the Destruction of Rosewood, “The Mountaintop,” at City Repertory Theatre, the 80th anniversary of the order to intern Japanese Americans in concentration camps in the West.
The GOP Is Now Openly Aligned Against Democracy
Majorities of Republicans report believing the ridiculous lie that the 2020 election was stolen — something not even GOP-led investigations have found a shred of evidence for. And an alarming 40 percent of Republicans now say violence against the government is justified.
On False Flag Attacks
In the past few weeks, U.S. officials have warned several times that Russia plans to create the appearance of an attack on its own forces and broadcast those images to the world. Such a “false flag” operation, they alleged, would give Russia the pretext to invade Ukraine by provoking shock and outrage.
Another Self -Storage Facility for Old Kings Road, a Car Wash Near Starbucks and Taco Bell on SR100
The Palm Coast Planning Board cleared the way for the third self-storage facility approved for Old Kings Road in the past four weeks, and a car wash near Aldi and Taco Bell on State Road 100. The self-storage facility was not permitted to have boats and RVs.
Palm Coast Fire Lieutenant Jason Wagner Celebrates 25 Years of Service
Jason Wagner began his career with Palm Coast Fire Department on February 3, 1997 as a Firefighter-EMT. He was promoted to Lieutenant in October 2000 upon the fire department coming under control of the newly incorporated City of Palm Coast. Wagner grew up in Palm Coast.
Daytona Solisti Chamber Orchestra Presents ‘Romancing the Strings’ March 6
A Franz Schubert sonata originally composed for piano and arpeggione, a now-rare, almost forgotten instrument, will be featured in an arrangement for viola solo and strings, when the Daytona Solisti Chamber Orchestra presents its annual “Romancing the Strings” concert March 6 in Ormond Beach. The concert also will feature music of Vivaldi, Bach and Holst.
Big Changes Afoot for Bright Futures Requirements as Lawmakers Shift to Paid Work Instead of Volunteer Service
Florida High school kids vying for a scholarship could compile hours for paid work, not volunteer service, to qualify for Bright Futures scholarships, a popular merit-based scholarship program that can shave off thousands in college tuition, requires a high GPA, top college entrance exam scores, at least 75 hours of volunteer service, plus a project on civics or social issues.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, February 18, 2022
“The Mountaintop,” at City Repertory Theatre, reimagines Martin Luther King Jr.’s last night, dying languages, Bach’s “Here, in My Father’s place” from a cantata, reason’s salvation from extremism.
Blue-State Cities Led the Wave of Anti-Asian Violence in Pandemic
Before 2020, the average number of Asian Americans killed or injured in anti-Asian attacks was just over eight per year. In 2020 and 2021, however, 49 were physically harmed, an average of almost 25 per year. Almost half of the anti-Asian attacks in 2020 and 2021 were motivated, at least partially, by anger and animosity associated with COVID-19, a disease first identified in Asia.
New Bunnell Police Chief Dave Brannon Steps In as Interim Snead Offers Valentine of Firsts to City
Dave Brannon, for 26 years a member of the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office and the commander of the DeLand and Deltona districts, will take-over as Bunnell Police Chief on Feb. 28 as Interim Chief Brannon Snead neared the end of his three-month tenure by presenting the commission with a series of firsts, including the department’s first-ever strategic plan.
A Flagler Palm Coast High School Student’s Message to Lawmakers: Stop Policing My Education
A spate of GOP bills in the Florida Legislature seek to sever the trust and safety inherent in the confidentiality of student-teacher discussions, putting the safety of students at risk and further accelerating an exodus of teachers and other education professionals from the profession at a time of critical teacher shortages in Florida.
Father Is Jailed Over Whipping 7-Year-Old Girl, 3rd Palm Coast Case of Parental Child Abuse in 10 Days
Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies arrested Charles Nazworth, 69, of Palm Coast’s W Section on a charge of child abuse Tuesday after he was accused of whipping his 7-year-old daughter with a belt and causing her to run away from home. The girl was found bruised, shoeless and coatless on Pine Lakes Parkway Tuesday afternoon.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, February 17, 2022
Another round of listening in a town hall about Flagler Schools’ dress code, but no one showed up at the first one; Blame Biden? UK inflation hits 30-year high, how Republicans exploit the word “freedom.”