Finally, construction of the roundabout first planned in 2018 at Cody’s Corner–the intersection of State Road 11 and County Road 304, one of the deadliest in the county–begins Monday. The roundabout is the result of two studies that confirmed what local residents have always known: the intersection is a magnet for crashes, with six deaths there since 2014–two in 2022 alone–and 15 injuries.
Cops/Courts
Bunnell Man Faces 2 Felony Child Abuse Count After Accusations He Recklessly Slung Occupied RV Around
Michael Gambino, a 51-year-old resident of Hibiscus Street in Daytona North, faces two felony child abuse counts and a battery count after his family accused him of intentionally driving recklessly as he towed the RV in which his wife and her two children were huddling. His wife called police from the RV while Gambino was still driving.
School District Still Cagey About $719,000 It Lost to Fraud, But Lawsuit Possible as Details Emerge in Drips
Six months after it was defrauded of $719,000 in a conventional phishing scheme, district officials had little to disclose in an update to the school board, though about $20,000 was recovered and a board member suggested that a lawsuit may be ahead in hopes of recovering more. The money was due the construction company building the Matanzas High School addition.
A 59-Year-Old Woman Dies After Getting Pinned By Her Rolling Car at South End of Flagler County
A 59-year-old woman lost her life when she was pinned by her rolling car on an isolated property on Strickland Road and Boice Lane at the south end of Flagler County late Monday night.
Civilian Oversight Boards Are Now Prohibited from Investigating Police Misconduct in Florida
Gov. Ron DeSantis signed two bills last week that would prohibit civilian oversight boards from investigating police misconduct and stop people from getting too close to first responders doing their jobs.
The Marcus Chamblin Trial in Pictures
A pictorial documentation of the six-day trial of Marcus Chamblin on a first-degree murder charge in the death of Deon Jenkins, featuring all the main participants and some of the evidence, traces the trial’s development from jury selection to its conclusion today (April 15), when Jenkins was found guilty and sentenced to prison.
Marcus Chamblin Found Guilty in Murder of Deon Jenkins; He Is Immediately Sentenced to Life in Prison
After deliberating for just 48 minutes, a stunningly short amount that betrayed the inevitability of the case, a jury of 12 today–eight women, four men, three of the jurors black– found Marcus Avery Chamblin guilty of first-degree murder in the shooting death of Deon O’Neal Jenkins the morning of Oct. 12, 2019 at the Circle K off Palm Coast Parkway. He was sentenced to life in prison.
Flagler County Sheriff’s Office Honored for Commitment to Hiring Military Veterans
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office is proud to announce that the agency has earned the designation of VETS Indexes 4 Star Employer in the 2024 VETS Indexes Employer Awards. The award recognizes the organization’s commitment to recruiting, hiring, retaining, developing, and supporting veterans and the military-connected community.
Prosecution Stumbles to an End in Chamblin Trial for Murder as Star Witness Confounds Both Sides
The prosecution in the trial of Marcus Chamblin for the murder of Deon O’Neil Jenkins outside a Palm Coast Circle K in 2019 drew circles of circumstantial evidence around Chamblin, some of it damning, as the evidence portion of the case stumbled to an end on the fifth day of trial today. But the defense was also effective at showing the state’s flawed star witness to have lied often. The jury went home for the weekend. Closing arguments, deliberations and a verdict are expected on Monday.
Local Governments Ask Court to Dismiss Suit by ‘Disgruntled Citizen’ Challenging Carver Center Agreement
The three local governments and one agency that each have a role in funding or running the Carver Center in South Bunnell have filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit against them filed by what they call a “disgruntled citizen” who doesn’t like the Flagler County Sheriff’s Police Athletic League’s involvement at the center, and who they say has no standing to sue.