It was continuity and change today as Kyle Berryhill took over as Palm Coast Fire Chief before 200 people at the city’s community center, after Jerry Forte’s five-year tenure. Continuity, because both men are cut of the same cloth–unassuming, humble, impossibly emotional at times, but also unequivocally commanding. And change, because Berryhill, at 42, represents a generational change for a rapidly evolving department.
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How Courts Take His Drug and Gun Charges More Seriously Than Repeat Violence Against Women
Joseph Westervelt, 28, has repeatedly faced felony charges for attacking pregnant women. He’s yet to be convicted on more than a misdemeanor. He was arrested again on Wednesday on identical charges that got him arrested only last May. Those charges were dropped or reduced.
2 Men Syphoning Off Cooking Oil at Woody’s BBQ Charged with Felony Burglary
Two men face felony burglary charges after being caught allegedly syphoning gallons of used oil from Woody’s BBQ’s supplies in back on the business early Thursday morning. Used cooking oil theft is frequent, feeding a $6 billion global business that recycles the product into diesel fuel.
Video Shows Demoted Flagler Sheriff’s Cpl.’s Contempt for Colleague and Procedures at Traffic Stop
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Rob Myers was pulled over by deputy Seth Green after Myers’s pick-up brushed very close to Green at a traffic stop. Myers, who was demoted, repeatedly met Greene’s professionalism with defiance, flouting Green’s police procedures in a way no cop would tolerate long from civilians.
Only One Arrest for Curfew Violation Throughout Flagler During Ian Emergency
Law enforcement authorities in Flagler County and its cities made all of one arrest for a curfew violation, and even then, only because the woman was also in violation of drug laws. A companion she was with was only issued a warning.
Hurricane Ian’s Death Toll in Florida Is Up to 67 as Lee County Grapples With Delayed Evacuation
Gov. Ron DeSantis defended officials in Lee County, who delayed evacuation orders until Tuesday, while several other counties had issued evacuation orders and the National Hurricane Center was warning of a storm surge regardless.
Toddler’s Father Faces Kidnapping Charge After Fleeing with Child; He Is Tased and Bitten in Arrest
Brandon Leohner, 27, of Palm Coast, was arrested on charges of kidnapping after taking the toddler he has in common with his girlfriend and driving off against his girlfriend’s wish. He drove recklessly through Palm Coast and was arrested after a violent encounter with deputies and a police dog at McDonald’s.
Sheriff Preparing to Mobilize Over 200 Deputies and Air Boat, Courts Ramping Down Ahead of Ian
Courts are ramping down, law enforcement is ramping up in Flagler County in preparation for Hurricane Ian’s impact, now projected to be more serious than projected even as late as Monday evening. Curfews could become a possibility in the days ahead.
Canopy Walk Resident Faces 4 Felony Charges After Confrontation with 3 Boys He Claims Were Trespassing
58-year-old Gerald McCarthy faces two second-degree felony charges and other charges after a physical confrontation with three boys–13, 13 and 12–at Canopy Walk, where he claims they were trespassing. The boys claim they’d been given the code to get in.
Palm Coast Man Points Loaded Gun at Deputy Jacob West During Traffic Stop
A 42-year-old Palm Coast driver who appeared drunk allegedly pointed a loaded gun at a Flagler County Sheriff’s deputy during a traffic stop on Palm Coast Parkway late Thursday night before complying with orders to drop the gun. It was the latest successful de-escalation of what could have resulted in an officer-involved shooting.
Argument Over Chess Leads to Knife Attack and Felony Assault Charge
Kenneth Stephens, 54, of Sloganeer Trail in Palm Coast, was playing chess with his 41-year-old neighbor at his neighbor’s house Friday evening when the two started arguing. Before it was over, Stephens was captured in surveillance video footage pulling a knife and lunging at his neighbor before retreating to his house.
Man, 40, Killed at Old Dixie Roundabout in First Fatal Crash There Since Structure’s Completion
A 40-year-old Ormond Beach man lost his life in a single-vehicle car crash at the roundabout at U.S. 1 and Old Dixie Highway in the early hours of Wednesday (Sept. 14), the Florida Highway Patrol reports.
Randy Alexandre, 22, Now Faces Attempted Murder Charge in K-Section Incident, and October Trial
Randy Alexandre, 22, one of three men allegedly responsible for a shooting spree on Kalamazoo Trail nearly two years ago–Jamey Bennett has since been killed, Paul Pajotte is in prison–will go on trial next month on an attempted second degree murder charge. He faces up to life in prison if convicted. Prosecutors upgraded the charge only six weeks ago.
60 Participants Take Part in Memorial Stair Climb Honoring 9/11 Firefighters
For the second year Flagler County and the Hammock Beach Golf Resort and Spa came together to host a “Memorial Stair Climb” in honor of the 343 New York City Fire Department (FDNY) firefighters who heroically gave their lives trying save others when they rushed into the World Trade Center 21 years ago.
14 Months in Prison and 3 Years’ Probation for Palm Coast Man’s Sadistic Acts Toward Stepchild
Craig Allen Ripple, the now 57-year-old former resident of Wellford Lane in Palm Coast arrested two years ago on two felony child neglect charges after spiking his step-child’s medication with laxatives, out of spite, was sentenced to 14 months in prison followed by three years on probation.
State Attorney Files 5 Life Felonies Against Andrew Sharp, 21, in Sex Abuse Cases Involving Pre-Teens
Donald Andrew Sharp, a 21-year-old resident of Huntington, W.Va., who lived with relatives in Palm Coast’s P Section, faces five life felony charges stemming from acts of sexual abuse he would have two pre-teens commit before his eyes or rapes he himself committed against them.
Wadsworth Park Employee’s Vigilance Leads to Veteran Felon and Bleacher Stealer’s Arrest in 2 Hours
Ronald Schmitt, 56, of Flagler Beach, was stealing bleachers used by children at Wadsworth park when County park employee Ryan Belhumeur confronted him and relayed all the necessary information to law enforcement that led to Schmitt getting apprehended at a scrap yard south of Bunnell two hours later.
Robert Orr, 59, Las Brisas Condo Association President, Charged with 4 Counts of Video Voyeurism
Robert Orr, 59, is accused of hiding a tiny surveillance video camera in a condo unit at the Las Brisas Condos in palm Coast, capturing guests staying in the apartment as they undressed.
‘Hot Rails of Meth’ Lead to Bizarre R-Section Burglary and Slew of Charges for Palm Coast Man
After the alleged burglary and after making death threats to the R-Section home’s residents, to cops and to hospital staff, Daniel Matthew Reyes would tell Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies that he’d “snorted hot rails of meth,” and screamed for help. After a brief stop at the local hospital, he was booked at the Flagler County jail Saturday night (Sept. 3) on seven charges, including two first-degree felonies.
Leroy Sampson Jr, Repeat Offender on Probation, Arrested After 2-Hour Stand-Off With Deputies
Leroy Sampson Jr. was wanted on five warrants involving aggravated assault with a weapon and a repeat felony battery charge, among others, when detectives readied to pick him up in Palm Coast’s Town center, only for Sampson to barricade himself in an apartment he did not live in, for which he got an additional felony burglary charge. He surrendered after two hours.
Police Lock Down Bridgehaven Drive in Standoff With Suicidal Man
A law enforcement situation involving a person who’d barricaded himself on Bridgehaven Drive this afternoon led the Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies to close off streets in that neighborhood and divert a school bus from making its usual run and dropping off elementary age students at their regular bus stops.
On the Run from Charges for 2 DUI Crash Deaths, Randall Howard, 46, Is Arrested at Econo Lodge
Howard 46, originally from Gaston, S.C., was staying at the Econo Lodge on Kingswood Drive in Palm Coast., wanted on warrants stemming from the death of two people who were in his car when he crashed, allegedly high on meth.
Flagler Sheriff’s Cpl. Rob Myers, Who’d Been Drinking and Driving, Demoted Following Heated Stop
Flagler County Sheriff’s Cpl. Rob Myers, a nine-year veteran of the agency, was demoted to deputy and placed on 18 months’ internal probation following an internal investigation that found he had been drinking and driving and drove alarmingly close to a deputy who was conducting an unrelated traffic stop. He was only given a warning at the traffic stop, and had a ride arranged for him to get him home.
4 Years Later, Suspected Armed Robber of Kay Jewelers Near Target Is Booked at Flagler Jail
After spending the last four years incarcerated in Georgia, Tyrone Walker, now 29, was booked at the Flagler County jail on a first-degree felony robbery with a weapon charge dating back from 2018, when he is accused of robbing Kay Jewelers in Palm Coast’s Target shopping center. An accomplice remains at large.
75-Year-Old Man Killed, Dive Team Searching for Another Victim at Head-On Crash on US1
A 75-year-old Deland man was killed and a dive team was called out to search for possibly another victim at the scene of head-on, wrong-way crash on U.S. 1 at Eagle Rock Road in Favoretta early this morning.
Palm Coast’s Jonathan Rockholt Arrested on 3 Federal Charges in Jan. 6 Attack on Congress
Jonathan Rockholt, a 38-year-old Palm Coast resident who described himself as a member of the Three Percenters militia, was arrested on three federal charges in connection with the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, where he confronted and attempted to overcome police.
Brooke Lorenzen, 20, Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison for DUI Crash Causing Death of Mario Bizier, 56
Truck driver Mario Bizier’s family and friends forgave Broke Lorenzen for causing Bizier’s death on I-95 in 2020 in an emotional sentencing hearing this morning. Lorenzen was also sentenced to 12 years on probation, will no longer have the right to drive, and will have to give 100 hours of presentations to youths about the dangers of drunk driving.
Same Scripts, Same Looming Absence of Chief Witness in Kwentel Moultrie’s Rape Trial Redux
A mistrial was declared in April on Kwentel Moultrie’s trial on a charge of raping a 16-year-old girl in a P Section house in 2019, when he was 20. He was back in court today for a re-trial, with the defense and the prosecution reprising their almost identical arguments from April: rape versus consensual sex.
False Active Shooter Alarm Triggers Massive Response at Matanzas High School
Matanzas High School went into lockdown, deputies swarmed toward the school, as did rescues, shortly after 11 this morning when a signal intended to alarm the school to the presence of an active shooter or assailant went off.
Woman Who Started Small Fire Outside Larry’s Guns Was Seeking Police Attention
Bunnell police is investigating an incident that took place early Tuesday morning in front of Larry’s Guns, the store near the corner of State Road 100 and U.S. 1, as a woman was burning belongings in a small fire she had started. She told police she wanted to catch their attention because her car had broken down.
Joe Mullins Says Drug Dealer Sought to Sell Him Cocaine, So He Turned Him In. The Public Sneers.
Mullins says someone randomly contacted by by text and offered to sell him an “eight-ball” of cocaine. Mullins reported the attempt, leading to the arrest of the 18-year-old alleged dealer, a glowing release issued by the Sheriff’s Office, and a cascade of sneering, doubting reactions about Mullins from the public.
1st Early Voting Day Begins With Harmony and a Cross-Party Prayer. Then Joe Mullins Shows Up.
Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies were called to the public library early voting site this morning after Commissioner Joe Mullins got into a heated verbal altercation with Linda Hansen, wife of Commissioner Greg Hansen, who has himself been the target of Mullins’s insults. It was the latest burst from a mass of dark clouds that have increasingly cloaked Mullins week after week as he attempts to win re-election.
Mom Faces Felony Charges After Alleged Series of Lurid Attacks on Her 12-Year-Old Daughter
Priscilla Jocelyn Florentino was booked at the Flagler County jail on three felony charges, including child abuse and assaulting an officer, after allegedly handcuffing her 12-year-old child’s hand to a steering wheel in a hot car, defacing the child with lurid accusations on her face, shoving a pipe down the 12 year old’s mouth, shoving her fingers down her mouth, choking her, striking the girl with a phone, and shearing off the child’s hair to a military-style cut.
Recovery of 90% of Human Skeleton Ends Toscana Subdivision Dig for Mystery Remains
Sheriff Rick Staly announced that the dig was declared over after the effort recovered 90 percent of a human skeleton. The investigation now enters a different stage, with efforts focused on identification through the use of DNA technology. Staly said that every missing-person file at the Sheriff’s Office includes DNA samples against which the find at Toscana will be tested.
Sheriff’s 911 Center Director Christina Mortimer Awarded Public Safety Executive Designation
Communications Director Christina Mortimer graduated from the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials Institute (APCO), Certified Public Safety Executive (CPE) program. The graduation ceremony was held at the Shores Resort in Daytona Beach Shores.
FWC Investigating Boating Incident That Killed Palm Coast’s Thomas Daquila
FWC issued a report identifying the man who died in a July 2 boating incident just north of Marineland as Thomas Daquila, 52, a resident of Cherokee Court in Palm Coast since 2017. All four other occupants of the boat were from Palm Coast.
Man Faces Felony for Forcibly Removing from Home 11-Year-Old Trying to Protect His Mother
Charles Morgan Sanders, 42, faces a felony child abuse charge and a domestic battery charge after he forcibly removed an 11-year-old boy from a P-Section house. Sanders was in a confrontation with the boy’s mother when the boy tried to intervene, further angering Sanders.
Unexpected Death of Dr. Bulic, Medical Examiner for Flagler and 2 Other Counties, Triggers Key Process
Dr. Predrag Bulic, the chief medical examiner for Flagler, St. Johns and Putnam counties–a position as low profile as it is critical to the justice system and families in the determination of the cause of death of thousands of individuals each year–died unexpectedly over the weekend of a severe stroke. His replacement’s highly political appointment will involve some of the top elected law enforcement and judicial officials in Flagler, St. Johns and Putnam counties.
Human Remains Found at Toscana Development Off Old Kings Road in Palm Coast
Flagler County Sheriff’s detectives and partner agencies are investigating the discovery of human remains at a construction site expanding the Toscana subdivision off Old Kings Road in Palm Coast, Sheriff Rick Staly said this afternoon.
Alphonso Joseph, 48, Pastor at Bunnell Church, Charged With Molesting Teen on Golf Course
Alphonso Joseph, a 48-year-old Palm Coast resident and pastor associated with several Bunnell churches and spiritual organizations, was arrested Friday and charged with molesting a 15-year-old boy in a vehicle on the Matanzas Woods Golf Course.
Drug Sweep on Flagler’s West Side Nets 13 Arrests as Sheriff Underscores Fentanyl’s Toll
The youngest offender was 18, the oldest 66, and most had trails of arrests behind them already–64 felony and 95 misdemeanor convictions between them, Sheriff Rick Staly said, including one, Twain Slater, who’s been arrested more than a dozen times since becoming an adult (he’s 31), for a combined 23 felony and misdemeanor convictions.
Threat Called In to FTC Campus Requires Building Evacuation and FPC Lockdown
A threat was called in to Flagler Technical College on the campus of Flagler Palm Coast High School late this morning, requiring evacuation of buildings at FTC and a lockdown at FPC, a district spokesman said.
Robin C. Bloom, 63, and a Dog Die in Mobile Home Fire at Bulow RV Resort
Robin Bloom, a 63-year-old resident of the Bulow RV resort in Flagler Beach, died in an early morning fire Monday at the mobile home she was sharing with a roommate. Her roommate, Celina Fiorino, 65, was not injured. A dog also died in the blaze.
Kwentell Moultrie’s Re-Trial on Rape Charge Involving 16 Year Old Scheduled for Aug. 22
Kwentell Moultrie, the 23-year-old Bunnell resident facing a first-degree rape charge involving a 16-year-old girl will go on trial for that charge, for the second time in four months, on Aug. 22.
‘I Run the County,’ Commissioner Joe Mullins Tells FHP; A Trooper Calls Him ‘Belligerent’ and ‘Disrespectful’
Flagler County Commissioner Joe Mullins, who has made a chronic habit of speeding, getting pulled over then attempt to get out of a ticket by abusing his authority, told a Florida Highway Patrol trooper that “I run the county” in one such attempt on I-4 last month, video of the encounter shows, and another trooper called him “extremely condescending, belligerent, illogical, and disrespectful.”
16 Flagler Businesses Pass July 4 Test: None Sold Booze to Underage Undercover Agent
State Agents from Jacksonville’s Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco (ABT) conducted compliance checks throughout Flagler County, in an effort to combat underage drinking for the 4th of July holiday weekend.
Two Trauma Evacuated, Including Child, in 3-Vehicle Crash Near Flagler Beach Bridge
The eastbound lanes across the bridge into Flagler Beach were shut down this morning just as the city’s annual Independence Day parade was ending following a severe three-vehicle crash at the intersection of State Road 100 and John Anderson Highway.
‘If You Get Out of This Car You’re Going to Jail,’ Troopers Warned Joe Mullins in Confrontational Stop
Flagler County Commissioner Joe Mullins was threatened with arrest by troopers as he argued with them and told them, twice, he was an elected official, after being pulled over for going 91.7 mph on I-4 in June, and after initially ignoring the troopers even as one of them clocked him.
A Seemingly Threatening Graffiti Facing Wawa Parking Lot Has Palm Coast Officials on Edge
An ominous set of red and black graffiti in bold letters, some of it possibly threatening a former Palm Coast City Manager, appeared on the wall of a property facing the Wawa on Bulldog Drive. The property owner and his son have had a long running feud with the city.
In Rare Invocation of Unsecured Gun Law, Mother faces Felony Charge in Son’s Accidental Shooting
Parents or guardians are rarely prosecuted for leaving guns unsecured or within reach of children, even though under Florida law it’s either a misdemeanor or a third-degree felony. Last week, the State Attorney’s office filed a rare such charge against a Bunnell mother whose 13-year-old son accidentally shot himself with an unsecured firearm.