John Ramsey Davis, a 44-year-old homeless man, faces felony charges after allegedly robbing the Circle K at Palm Coast Parkway of $368 Monday night. Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies apprehended him shortly afterward near the public library. No one was physically hurt. The stolen money was recovered.
Cops/Courts
Here Are the 3 Lawsuits Against the District the School Board Will Discuss Behind Closed Doors Tuesday
When the Flagler County School Board meets behind closed doors early Tuesday afternoon, a meeting that may at least in part be in violation of state law, it will discuss three pending lawsuits against the district, and potential settlements in two of them, including an employment discrimination lawsuit scheduled for trial in federal court in December.
22-Year-Old Man Is Killed When His Vehicle Skids Off Exit Ramp at I-95 and Palm Coast Parkway
A 22-year-old man was killed in a single-vehicle crash early this morning when his sedan veered off the exit ramp at I-95 and Palm Coast Parkway and struck a palm tree, cutting it in half. The driver was the sole occupant of the vehicle.
Florida’s Policing of Public Restroom Gender Draws Federal Lawsuit from Trans and Nonbinary Group
A group of transgender and nonbinary people on Friday filed a federal lawsuit challenging a new Florida law requiring people to use public restrooms that align with their sex assigned at birth, asking a judge to block enforcement before an upcoming march in Orlando.
Sally Hunt Raises Questions About Using Schools as Shelters During Hurricane Emergencies
Flagler County School Board member Sally Hunt questioned whether district schools should continue to be used as shelters during tropical storm emergencies, and whether the district could go to late starts rather than cancel whole days of school. Officials explained to Hunt that schools are an integral part of emergency management, with closures are carefully calibrated between potential risk and the safety of students and staff.
Michael Bowling, Serving 20 Years for Molestation of Teen at Sleepover, Fails in Move to Lighten Sentence
A jury found Michael Bowling, formerly of the Mondex, guilty in 2017. Representing himself, he argued in court today on three grounds that he received ineffective counsel. But there was little doubt about the outcome of the two-hour hearing: the judge denied the motion.
Nancy Abudu, Former ACLU-Florida’s legal Director, Seated Friday at 11th Circuit Court of Appeals
Nancy Abudu, former legal director for the ACLU of Florida, will be installed as a judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit on Friday in Atlanta. In doing so, she will make history as the first Black woman to serve on that court, which has jurisdiction over all of Florida.
Against Family’s Wishes, Chad Cordoma, 21, Is Sentenced to Prison for Texting His Little Brother a Threat
Chad Cordoma, 21, of Palm Coast, who’s had numerous mental health issues, was sentenced to 13.5 months in prison and 18 months on probation for texting his younger brother a death threat and the picture of a gun he was carrying. His parents called 911 thinking they were getting him help. He was arrested, charged with two felonies, and sentenced today, despite the family’s plea against a prison sentence.
Contrasting with Depa Case, Judge Dismisses Charge Against Autistic Female Who’d Assaulted Teacher at Matanzas
A felony assault charge against Reba Johnson, now 20, an autistic student who had attacked her teacher at Matanzas High School, was dropped today after she was continuously found incompetent to stand trial,. It’s a sharp contrast with the ongoing charge against Brendan Depa, who faces a more severe felony charge after he attacked a paraprofessional last February, though Depa’s and Johnson’s profiles parallel each other in many, but not all, respects.
Taylor Manjarres, 20, Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison for Her Role in Shooting Death of Zaire Roberts
Circuit Judge Terence Perkins sentenced Taylor Renee Manjarres, 20, to 12 years in prison for her role in the armed home invasion that resulted in the shooting death of 23-year-old Zaire Roberts at an R-Section house in Palm Coast in December 2021. Her co-conspirator, Kwentel Moultrie, got 35 years in addition to 10 years for a separate charge.
Michael Benkert, on the Run for 19 Days Since Flagler Beach Trailer Park Manhunt, Is Arrested
Michael Benkert, the thrice-imprisoned 31-year-old Palm Coast resident who had terrorized family members in Flagler Beach and whose evasion from law enforcement turned a trailer park there into a police-chase zone three weeks ago, was finally apprehended, along with his twin brother Anthony, and faces a half dozen charges, three of them felonies.
Court Rules Unanimous Jury Not Necessary in Death Penalty Re-Sentencing of 2 in ‘X-Box Murders’
Troy Victorino and Jerone Hunter were convicted in the murders of six people in a Deltona home in a case that drew national attention. The case became known as the “Xbox murders” because it involved a dispute about some of Victorino’s belongings, including an Xbox video-game system. A panel of the 5th District Court of Appeal ruled a unanimous jury is not necessary in the two men’s death-penalty re-sentencing.
Montessori School Owner Kerri Huckabee, 54, Arrested on 3 Felonies in Dispute with Flagler Beach Neighbors
Kerri Ann Huckabee, 54, the long-time owner of the Montessori school in Flagler Beach that moved to Bunnell in 2018, was arrested on three felony charges, including a second degree felony, and for kicking two police officers, and was booked at the Flagler County jail. The arrest was the result of long-running antagonism toward her neighbors on South 23rd Street since they moved in in 2018.
37-Year-Old Motorcyclist Killed in Rear-End Collison with SUV on I-95
A 37-year-old Deltona man on a motorcycle was killed early Sunday morning on I-95 just north of the Old Dixie Highway interchange after rear-ending an SUV.
Sean Barry, 33, Found Hanging at County Jail and Dies at Hospital. He’d Been Waiting for a Drug-Treatment Bed.
Sean E. Barry, a 33-year-old resident of Butternut Avenue in Bunnell’s Mondex, died at AdventHealth Palm Coast on Thursday afternoon, five days after he was found hanging in an apparent suicide attempt at the Flagler County jail. Barry was not at the jail on a criminal charge, but on a Marchman Act motion his sister had filed with the court in early August as she sought to get him the drug treatment help he needed.
How Local Law Enforcement Could Help Prevent Another Jan. 6-Style Insurrection
If police had treated Proud Boys as members of a street gang from the group’s inception in 2016, the events of Jan. 6, 2021, might have been avoided, or at least reduced in severity. Instead, police continues to mistakenly focus on the belief that, like terrorist groups, white supremacists are coordinated in ideology and intent. Evidence shows that perception actually diverts local police agencies’ attention from identifying and managing these groups.
2-Hour Standoff Involving Threats of Gunfire on Brunswick Lane Ends with Arrest of Michael Wells, 57, on 4 Felonies
Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies were involved in a two-hour, high-risk standoff at 94 Brunswick Lane in Palm Coast Monday night that ended with the arrest of Michael H. Wells, 57, who had barricaded himself and threatened a deputy with what appeared to be a gun after luring him into the house to pick up another firearm. He is being held at the county jail on $102,500 bond.
‘Savannah Asked Me To Never Be Silent.’ A Survivor of Brenan Hill’s Violence Speaks.
Brenan Hill was convicted on Friday for the murder of Savannah Gonzalez, 22. Shanell Torchia was a previous victim of Hill’s violence, and the mother of his child: he was a fugitive from justice, and the charges she had filed, when he shot Gonzalez. Torchia speaks out about her experience, her friendship with Savannah, and the dangerous leeway granted abusers.
Harry Kuleski Jr. Garlanded in Awards, Including Lifetime Achievement and Bunnel Police’s Medal of Merit
Harry Kuleski, Jr. was finally recognized at the regular city commission meeting this past Monday for years of service in the military and law enforcement, and thousands of hours of volunteer service.
Felony Charge for Mom Who Left Child Alone With Dead Man After Night of Sex and Drugs at Hammock Resort
The State Attorney’s Office filed a third-degree felony child neglect charge against Amy M. Kemper, 32, of Richland Place in Palm Coast on Thursday. The charge is in connection with an incident at the Hammock Beach Resort on Sept. 9 involving drugs and group sex in the proximity of Kemper’s 11-year-old child, and that ended with the death of a 60-year-old man, according to her arrest report and the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Hillsborough County Judge Nancy Jacobs Accused of ‘inappropriate and Disparaging’ Remarks
The panel of the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission filed what is known as a “notice of formal charges” against Judge Nancy Jacobs, who unseated then-Circuit Judge Jared Smith in the 2022 election.
Third Cyclist Killed in 6 Weeks, on Narrow CR 302, as Flagler County’s 2-Wheel and Pedestrian Fatalities Rise
A 51-year-old Palm Coast man cycling on County Road 302 early this morning died in a crash involving two vehicles, the third cyclist to die on Flagler County’s roads in six weeks. County Road 302 is a narrow two-lane road with no shoulders, no bike lanes and no street lights.
Jury Finds Brenan Hill Guilty In Murder of Savannah Gonzalez, and Faces 25 Years to Life in Prison
A jury of four women and two men found Brenan Hill guilty of second degree murder and two other charges in the shooting death of Savannah Gonzalez, 22, after deliberating two hours and 45 minutes today. He faces life in prison when Circuit Judge Terence Perkins, who presided over the five-day trial, sentences him at a later date.
Brenan Hill Takes Stand in His Defense, Weeping, then Seething that Shooting Savannah Gonzalez Was an ‘Accident’
It was not an exactly calm man the jury saw when Brenan Hill took the stand this afternoon in his own defense. Not the sort of man who helped himself much in his trial on a second-degree murder charge that could send him to prison for life if he is convicted: when the prosecution cross-examined him, he was angry, exasperated and at times barely responsive.
Kwentel Moultrie Pleads to Murder, Will Serve 45 Years in Prison on Series of Convictions
Kwentel Moultrie, the 24-year-old former Palm Coast resident convicted last year of raping a 16-year-old girl, this morning pleaded guilty to a second degree murder charge and was sentenced to 35 years in prison. He will serve that sentence consecutively to the 10-year sentence for the rape charge.
Almost a Good Day for Brenan Hill in Murder Trial: Jury Does Not Hear Him Speak. Then the Hammer Falls.
In the third day of trial for Brenan Hill, 34, who faces a second-degree murder charge in the shooting death of Savannah Gonzalez, 22, the prosecution built its case through forensic evidence and almost a dozen witnesses today, including testimony from a firearm expert who appeared to all but demolish the defense’s claim that Hill could fire the gun accidentally, as he claims.
Jury Hears Brenan Hill in a Confederacy of Lies About Shooting that Led to Girlfriend’s Death
Brenan Hill lied at least six times times about what led to him shooting Savannah La-Rynn Gonzalez in the head on March 26, 2021, including a lie to his mother. The 22-year-old Palm Coast woman never recovered. She died last Nov. 9. The jury heard most of those lies today in Hill’s second day of trial on a second-degree murder charge that could send him to prison for life if he’s convicted.
Pedestrian Reported to Have Jumped in Front of Car Is Killed on Belle Terre Parkway
A 39-year-old Palm Coast man on foot was killed Monday evening in a collision with a sedan on Belle Terre Parkway, just north of Palm Coast Parkway.
Florida Wants ‘Marsy’s Law,’ Designed for Crime Victims, to Prevent Death Penalty Appeals
Nearly five years after voters passed a constitutional amendment about victims’ rights, Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office Monday urged the Florida Supreme Court to use the measure to make it harder for Death Row inmates to get stays of execution.
Jury Selection in Brenan Hill’s Trial on Murder Charge Keys In on Guns, Violence and Intent
Brennan Hill, 32 at the time, shot Savannah Gonzalez in March 2021 near the Microtel in Palm Coast. Hill’s attorney, made his intentions clear in his remarkably brief interactions with potential jurors at the end of a day of jury selection Monday: the shooting was accidental. It had nothing to do with domestic violence. It was a homicide, but not a murder.
Obviously, the prosecution disagrees, though it did not tip its hand today as Bettman did.
Law Enforcement, Court and Incident Round-Up: Sept. 1-8
Running a stop sign leads to an arrest on two felonies, a bored inmate triggers a fire sprinkler, four are arrested for illegally picking palmetto berries, a child drowns in Seminole Woods, Brendan Depa’s pre-trial is postponed.
Palm Coast Fire Department’s Lt. Richard Cline Retires After 25 Years of Service
The Palm Coast Fire Department bids a fond farewell to Richard “Rich” Cline as he embarks on a well-deserved retirement after a proud career spanning 25 years, dedicated to serving the City of Palm Coast.
Palm Coast Fire Department Wins $23,000 EMS Grant
The Palm Coast Fire Department proudly announces its success in securing the 2022-2023 Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Matching Grant, administered by the Florida Department of Health, with a grant value of $23,183.00. This grant, part of the EMS Trust Fund, underscores the department’s ongoing commitment to elevating emergency medical services in the community.
40-Year-Old Cyclist Killed in Collision with Pick-Up on U.S. 1, North of Old Dixie Highway Roundabout
A 40-year-old Ormond Beach woman was killed and her 45-year-old husband was seriously injured when both were struck by a pick-up truck as they rode their bicycles south on U.S. 1, just north of the Old Dixie Highway roundabout, in midafternoon Thursday.
‘Fairness and Diversity’ Training for Judges? Florida Supreme Court Rules It Unnecessary.
The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday kept in place a decision to delete part of a rule that allowed judges to take courses in “fairness and diversity” to meet continuing-education requirements. In a 5-1 order, the court said it had considered comments and determined that “no further amendments to the rule are warranted at this time.”
Ex-Matanzas Student Facing Adult Gun and Molestation Charges Here Is Attending High School in Wisconsin
Marshall Thomas, the former Matanzas High School student who was charged as an adult with gun theft and, separately, charged as an adult with the sexual assault of a Matanzas student at school in May 2022, was enrolled in a charter school in northern Wisconsin after posting $60,000 bond in Flagler County. Both cases are pending, with Thomas’s next scheduled pre-trial in Circuit Court in Bunnell on Oct. 11. A parent in Wisconsin is concerned about Thomas’s presence among students there.
Witnesses Say C.J. Nelson Jr. Had ‘Handled’ Jammed Gun Before Shooting of 18-Month-Old Girl
C.J. Nelson Jr., the 21-year-old resident of 2 Ranwood Lane arrested the night of the fatal shooting of an 18-month-old girl at that house Sunday, was said by “more than one” witness in the house that he had been handling the gun that fired the fatal shot, and that he had described the gun as “jammed” before the shooting, according to his arrest report.
18-Month-Old Girl Killed by Gunshot in Palm Coast’s R-Section; Person of Interest Arrested on Unrelated Charge
An 18-month-old girl was killed by a single gunshot wound to the head from an automatic pistol at 2 Ranwood Lane in Palm Coast shortly before midnight Sunday. The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office and two other agencies are investigating. The victim had not handled the gun.
Flagler Sheriff’s Corrections Deputy Colin Haggerty Arrested for Boating Under the Influence on the Intracoastal
Colin Haggerty, a 38-year-old Flagler County Sheriff’s corrections deputy, was arrested and charged with boating under the influence of alcohol on Saturday (Sept. 2) in the Intracoastal just north of the Hammock Dunes Bridge.
Brendan Depa, Now 18, Is Transferred to the Flagler County Jail to Await Trial
Brendan Depa, the former Matanzas High School student facing a first-degree felony charge of aggravated battery in the beating of a school paraprofessional last February, has been transferred to the Flagler County jail, from the Duval Regional Detention center in Jacksonville, where he’d been held for the past six months.
Sheriff’s Michael Breckwoldt Demoted to Corporal Following Investigation of Drinking Incident at Finn’s Bar
Michael Breckwoldt, the 20-year veteran of the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office who was in charge of the agency’s narcotics unit until last May, was demoted from sergeant to corporal and placed on last-chance probation for a year and a half as a result of an incident at Finn’s Beachside Pub in Flagler Beach, where Breckwoldt’s drinking led to “offensive behavior,” in violation of agency policy, and where he behaved in an unbecoming way toward patrons.
Flagler Sheriff Sends 10-Member Emergency Response Team to Help in Hurricane Idalia Recovery
Ten members of the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office Emergency Response Team are deploying to Florida’s Big Bend region to assist in the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Idalia after being activated by the Florida Division of Emergency Management and the Florida Sheriff’s Association Task Force.
Gabriella Alo Pleads Out in Brutal, Dual Flagler Beach Attack, Leaving Herself Open to Steep Prison Sentence
Gabriella Alo, the 19-year-old woman accused, with her brother, of beating a teen and running over a woman’s foot at Wickline Park last January, pleaded to numerous charges that add up to a potential 67 years in prison, though she will likely face considerably less than that when she’s sentenced on Dec. 1. How much less is the question: she tendered an open plea to Circuit Judge Terence Perkins, who is neither softie nor sadist.
White Supremacist Murders 3 Black People at Dollar General in Jacksonville, Before Shooting Himself
Sheriff T.K. Waters said two males and one female — all Black — were killed in the shootings, and the shooter killed himself. He had been armed with an AR-15 style rifle and a handgun, with the rifle showing several swastikas. At the time of the news conference, the shooter’s name had not yet been identified, but Sheriff Waters said the man had authored manifestos that were provided to his parents, the media, and federal agents. The sheriff referenced the “disgusting ideology of hate.”
Man Arrested at Flagler Beach’s Boardwalk for Swinging Bat, Threatening Adults and a Child and Calling Himself God
Stephen Douglass Torma, 43, swung a bat as he threatened passers by on Flagler Beach’s boardwalk, damaged the boardwalk with the bat then threatened a Flagler Beach police officer and his family with harm. Torma’s spiral has been traced in his court file over the last four years.
Bomb Squad Disarms Report of Grenades After Swarming Around House of Murder Suspect in Woodlands
The house at 20 Blare Drive, the scene of a murder by gunshot last week, drew authorities again today, including a bomb squad, after a resident reported finding a crate of grenades inside. But the crate ended up containing only ammunition.
Lyonel Jeune, 65, Arrested on 1st Degree Felony Charge in Hit-and-Run Death of William Rembert, 56
Lyonel Jeune, a 65-year-old resident of Beacon Mill Lane in Palm Coast, was arrested over the weekend and charged with a first-degree felony in the hit-and-run death of William Joseph Rembert, 56, on Dec. 1, 2021, at Palm Coast Parkway and Leanni Way, near Belle Terre Parkway. The charge carries a penalty of up to 30 years in prison on conviction.
Dad Accused of Neglect as 4-Year-Old Child Wanders Across SR100 Against Traffic in Middle of Night
Christian Zaborowski, the 22-year-old father of a 4-year-old boy, faces a felony child neglect charge after authorities accused him of leaving his front door unlocked and being unaware that his son had wandered out of the apartment and onto State Road 100 after midnight Monday, where a vehicle came to a dead stop just before striking the child.
Unprecedented $1 Billion Available in Grants to Prevent Wildfires. Most Towns Don’t Know About It.
There’s a huge pot of federal money available to communities across the country — an unprecedented amount that would allow towns to quickly tackle work that otherwise would take decades.
Flagler County Jail Wins National Innovation Award for Initiatives Preparing Inmates’ Re-Integration
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office’s jail has been awarded the 2023 Innovation Award for medium-sized facilities by the American Jail Association. Sheriff Staly, Court and Detention Services Chief Dan Engert, and other Detention Services members accepted the award at AJA’s 42nd Conference and Jail Expo in Omaha, Nebraska during the awards banquet.
