With a dramatic video narrated by Mayor Jon Netts and a line-up of presenters, the Palm Coast City Council heard and watched a recap of the December tornado that ripped through the city’s B, C and F Sections, with nearly final costs to property owners and to the city’s bottom line.
Cops/Courts
Six Gay Couples and Equality Florida File Lawsuit in State Court Seeking Freedom to Marry
The lawsuit argues that Florida’s laws barring same-sex couples from marriage violate the United States Constitution by denying them the legal protections and equal dignity that having the freedom to marry provides.
Hit-and-Run Leads to DUI and Child Abuse Charges for Repeat Offender Bruce Ganem
Bruce Ganem, a 49-year-old resident of Bracken Lane in Palm Coast who’d been booked at the Flagler County jail six times on charges ranging from drunk driving to indecent exposure, was arrested a seventh time Sunday after an alleged hit-and-run and leading cops on a weaving chase up Belle Terre Parkway, with three young children in his car’s backseat.
Public’s Help Sought in Locating Caressa Lynnette Mercer, 25, Disabled Woman Missing Since Saturday Morning
Margaret Mercer reported to deputies that her daughter, Caressa Lynnette Mercer, left the home sometime after 3 a.m. Saturday morning. According to the mother, Caressa has the mental capacity of a 5 or 6-year-old child and has run away several times in the past.
Michelle Hunter Roberts, 59, of Palm Coast, Is Killed in Midnight Wreck on Belle Terre Pkwy
Michelle Hunter Roberts, 59, was killed moments before midnight in the night of Friday to Saturday in a two-vehicle wreck at the intersection of Belle Terre Parkway and Pine Grove Parkway.
Deputies Looking For Suspect in Car Break-In at Anytime Fitness
Flagler County Detectives are looking for the public’s help in identifying a woman who broke into a parked car outside of Anytime Fitness located at 260 Cypress Edge Drive in Palm Coast just before noon on Thursday.
Flagler Sheriff Renewing Call For Help Solving Dennie Cayton’s Murder in Palm Coast a Year Ago
Flagler County Sheriff’s detectives are seeking the public’s help in solving the stabbing death of Dennie Keith Cayton, 60, whose body was found the afternoon of January 11, 2013 in a marsh area behind the home he was staying in at 16 Covington Lane in Palm Coast.
As Walkers and Cyclists Complain of Predatory Drivers at Belle Terre and SR100, Officials Call For More Education
The dangerous intersection at State Road 100 and Belle Terre Parkway focused discussions by county and city officials this week about more safety improvements, starting with making drivers more respectful of pedestrians and cyclists–a shift many drivers are resisting.
Mayhem on Belle Terre: 4 Teens Arrested in Stolen Car After a Chase, A Crash and a Foot Pursuit in R-Section
Kelvin Parks, 18, was among four teens arrested Tuesday afternoon after a car chase up Belle Terre Parkway as the suspects fled in a stolen vehicle. Marijuana and a stolen gun were found in the car, which crashed near Ponce de Leon.
Sheriff Pleads Long Punishment For Old Nemesis: Andrew Rulon Is Sentenced to 8 Years
Andrew Rulon, 41, of Palm Coast, had served seven years in prison when arrested on armed robbery charges during Jim Manfre’s first stint as sheriff in 2004. In an unusual move, Manfre appeared in court Monday to plead for a long sentence on drug and burglary charges against Rulon, who was released from prison in 2010.
Arrest of Deputy’s Wife Over Stolen Power Meters and Jewelry Triggers Internal Affairs Investigation
Heather Anne Nunziato, the 39-year-old wife of Flagler County Sherifff’s deputy William Greg Nunziato, turned herself in at the Flagler County jail Monday on a felony and two misdemeanor charges relating to incidents that took place over the past 22 months. The arrest triggered an internal affairs investigation of William Nunziato, who’s been with the agency 13 years.
Suspected New Year’s Day Burglar in Palm Coast’s W-Section Is Arrested, Staking Targets
Frank Debisceglie, 28, a resident of 6 Warren Place in Palm Coast, was sentenced just last July to three years’ probation for dealing in stolen property. He’d been allegedly staking homes to burglarize not far from his own home when he was arrested Wednesday and charged in connection with a Jan. 1 burglary.
Proposed Law Would Halt New Red-Light Cameras and Cut Fines By Half to End Profits
Besides no longer allowing municipalities and counties to install red light cameras after July 1, the proposal would cut fins to $83 and allow local governments to impose only a $25 surcharge on tickets to fund the existing systems, which would be allowed to continue. That would lower Palm Coast’s and its private provider’s take by two thirds, likely rendering the system too expensive to run.
Again Breaking a Pledge, Children’s Advocacy Center Sets Ultimatum On Rape-Crisis Intervention as Top Cops Scramble
The Children Advocacy Center’s promise in July to provide rape-crisis exams to adults in Flagler and Volusia counties turned out to be relatively hollow, and was followed by an ultimatum that the CAC would get out of the business altogether by June, triggering a furiously critical response from State Attorney R.J. Larizza, Sheriff Manfre and other local top cops.
Long-Time Sheriff’s PIO Debbie Johnson Fired as Part of Continuing Restructuring
Manfre said the changes continue to reflect the modernization of the agency and its restructuring from eight years under the previous sheriff that Manfre has not shied from criticizing, from a managerial and law enforcement perspective.
Commissioner’s Latest Move to Replace Bunnell Police With Sheriff May Be Stillborn
For the third time in five years, Bunnell City Commissioner Elbert Tucker wants the city to consider letting the Flagler County Sheriff’s office provide policing services to Bunnell, but this latest effort is facing stiff resistance even before being officially floated before commissioners.
No Need To Lie Anymore: Proposed Law Would Allow Sale of Fireworks For “Personal” Use
Currently the law limits sales to relatively innocuous devices such as sparklers, while banning sales of such things as bottle rockets. Lawmakers are gathering support for a proposal that would allow the sale of aerial and explosive devices as long as the individuals buying the fireworks sign a waiver asserting that it’s for personal use–not just agricultural use, as is now the case.
Preparing For the Next Hurricane: Flagler Firefighters Join Statewide Rescue Exercises
A seven-member team from Flagler County Fire Rescue is taking part today in statewide disaster-preparation exercises in Palm Beach County, honing skills that could be used locally or whenever a disaster strikes in the state, and a statewide response calls on Flagler to offer assistance.
Two Teens Arrested in Car Theft and Burglary Attempt as Details Emerge in W-Section Chase
Two teens—18-year-old Danquelle Nash and a 17 year old—were arrested Monday afternoon following a car theft, an attempted home invasion, and a car and foot chase through the R and W Sections of Palm Coast. The midday incident had residents of the southwest corner of the W Section concerned as it teemed with cops and roadblocks checked vehicles going in and out of the neighborhood. No one was hurt.
Accused of Pawning Sister’s Tablet, Christopher Hubbard and Girlfriend Are Jailed for Theft
Christopher Hubbard, a 26-year-old resident of 8 Wellwater Drive in Palm Coast, and Nicole Bogus, 25, of Biddleson Place in Palm Coast, were jailed after allegedly pawning Hubbard’s sister’s computer tablet three days after Christmas. Hubbard has been jailed half a dozen times. Bogus was jailed once before.
Attempted Breaking and Entering in R-Section Triggers Search and Checkpoints in W-Section
Shortly after noon Monday two individuals walked up to a house in Palm Coast’s R-Section in what appears to have been an attempted breaking and entering. It was foiled, but the two males, one believed to be black, the other Hispanic, then fled in the northeastern part of the R Section and into the W Section around Wood Arbor, Wood Ambre and Wood Acre Lanes, a Flagler County Sheriff’s spokesman said.
Ex-Sheriff Veteran Lynn Catoggio a Finalist for Bunnell Police Chief, Burke and Clair Miss Cut
In addition to Lynne Catoggio making the short-list of four names for Bunnell Police Chief were Ronald Chapman and Thomas Foster of Orange County and FHP’s Harry Coates. Acting Chief Randy Burke, ex-Sheriff’s Captain Steve Clair and ex-Sheriff candidate John Pollinger did not make the cut from a list of 27.
Double-Murder Charge Dropped as Stand Your Ground May Head for Supreme Court Review
The 3rd District Court of Appeals ruling Thursday overturned a lower court’s second-degree murder conviction of Gabriel Mobley outside a Chili’s restaurant in Opa-Locka, and could once again put Florida’s first-in-the nation “stand your ground” law and its meaning before the Florida Supreme Court.
Violence at Home, Moments Into the New Year: Shotgun, Knife and Fights Land 2 in Jail
The very first hours of the new year in Palm Coast were punctured by two separate domestic violence incidents, one of them involving a stabbing, the other involving a shotgun and a knife and unfolding in front of a 14-year-old girl.
Gov. Scott Now 0-For-4 on Drug-Testing as Federal Judge Harshly Criticizes Violation of Welfare Recipients’ Rights
In a harshly worded, 30-page opinion, the judge concluded that “there is no set of circumstances under which the warrantless, suspicionless drug testing at issue in this case could be constitutionally applied.”
A Flagler Farewell to 2013: The Local Year in Review
A tornado, plane crashes and mishaps, Flagler County going bonkers for clunkers, a spate of murders in Palm Coast, Flagler Beach’s firehouse follies, Bunnell’s reality show: 2013 is ending not a moment too soon. But first, a review.
DNA Evidence and Stout Investigation Lead to Arrest in Hit-and-Run Death of Sean Lynn Ryan
Sean Lynn Ryan was killed three days shy of his 26th birthday a year ago when a car struck him as he walked on U.S. 1 near Plantation Bay. The driver fled. On Friday, John D. Steele, 48, of Daytona Beach, who claimed to his insurance agency that he’d hit a deer, was arrested and charged with a first-degree felony after a long investigation by FHP’s Randy Naugher.
FHP Trooper Is Shot in the Face Then Kills Assailants in Palatka; 2nd Suspect Still at Large
Florida Highway Patrol trooper Lawrence Andrew Litzell, an 11-year veteran, was shot in the face following what had started as a routine traffic stop in Palatka after midnight today. Litzell was able to return fire, FHP reports, and killed one of two assailants, Somourian Jamal Wingo, who had turned 24 today. The second suspect is at large.
Lost on Christmas Eve, Rottweiler Is Found on I-95 After Pooch Alert and Search By Flagler Sheriff’s Detectives
A young female Rottweiler named Kayenne was back home Thursday and in good health after being on
the loose since Christmas eve. Kayenne was recovered and returned home thanks in part to the efforts of a few Flagler County Sheriff’s Office investigators.
Your Backpack Please: Florida Appeal Court Rules Legal Search Based on Anonymous Tip
A high school student who took a loaded gun to school argued that the search of his back-pack, based on an anonymous tip, was illegal. A 2-1 ruling of the Third District Court of Appeal disagreed.
Fuel Truck Explodes in Collision With Another Truck on I-95, Killing One; I-95 Shut Down North of Palm Coast Parkway
A wreck involving two tractor trailers and resulting in at least one fatality shut down I-95 in both directions in Palm Coast at 3:45 a.m. Tuesday. Southbound lanes reopened at 7, but northbound lanes will remain closed as the roadbed has been destroyed by the fire.
Palm Coast Man Charged With Raping 8-Year-Old Girl; Bunnell Man Charged With Statutory Rape
Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies arrested Gregory Selts of Palm Coast and Dante Mobley of Bunnell in unrelated cases between Dec. 19 and 22 involving the rape of children—in Selts’s case, a girl who claims she was raped when in first grade in Palm Coast, and in Mobley’s, the case of an alleged statutory rape of a 14-year-old in Bunnell.
In Wealth of Heart, Flagler County and Palm Coast Firefighters Fulfill Christmas Wishes of 58 Children
Flagler County Fire Rescue’s Station 92 Sunday was transformed into a Christmas giveaway station for some 58 children thanks to county and Palm Coast firefighters who’d donated their own money and time to make it possible. The event was organized by firefighter Kyle Lockwood.
Theodore Moore Arrest Video
Bunnell police, Case # 2013CF370 Theodore Moore Arrest[media id=362 width=500 height=400]
Safety Advocates and Sheriff Oppose 75 on Highways And Higher Speeds Elsewhere
Representatives from the National Safety Council and the Consumer Federation of the Southeast, along with the Wakulla County Sheriff say a proposal to raise speed limits will make roads less safe as motorists further surpass speed limits that exceed their ability to safely operate vehicles.
Matanzas High Community Awakens to Suicide of One of Its Own, 9th Grader Dalton Coxwell
Dalton Coxwell, a 9th grader at Matanzas High School, hung himself at his home in Palm Coast the afternoon of Dec. 18. The school is responding to students’ grief with a stepped-up presence of administrators and counselors while a school board member asks that social media be monitored.
FDLE Arrests 4 in Two Convicted Murderers’ Escape Scheme, But Unanswered Questions Remain
The escapes of Charles Walker and Joseph Jenkins deeply embarrassed the Department of Corrections and raised grave questions about the state’s security measures, down to the office of the Orange County Clerk of Court, where the forged paperwork landed on desks that cleared the way to free the inmates on bogus reduced sentences.
Domestic Altercation Leads to Arrest on Child Porn Possession Charge for Palm Coast Man
What started as a domestic dispute between Palm Coast resident Scott P. Ward and his girlfriend ended in an arrest the afternoon of Dec. 17 on a domestic battery charge and charges of possession of child pornography stemming from the discovery of allegedly sexually explicit images of a 15-year-old girl.
Marijuana Use Barely Up, Synthetic Drug Use Sharply Down, Along With Other Narcotics
The use of synthetic marijuana products and bath salts dropped sharply in 2013 among students in middle and high school as students increasingly see the products as dangerous, according to the most authoritative annual drug and alcohol survey, with marijuana use up slightly but most other drugs showing declines.
Senate Wants to Make Florida “Scorched Earth” For Violent Sexual Offenders
The proposed bills would “widen the net” to apprehend, punish and monitor sexually violent predators anywhere in Florida. The proposals have bipartisan support and the Senate and House are speeding toward a comprehensive effort in both chambers.
Sheriff Seeking Help to Nab Thief of Laser Device at Palm Coast’s Fantasy of Lights Display
Flagler County Sheriff’s deputies are seeking help in tracking down whoever stole a pair of laser lights from the Palm Coast Rotary’s holiday fantasy light display in Central Park in Palm Coast’s Town Center. This year is the 8th year that the event has been sponsored by the Rotary.
Palm Coast Mayor Declares State of Local Emergency as Tornado Details Emerge
The state of local emergency does not release state or federal aid dollars, but it gives the city more freedom and authority to address the storm’s aftermath such as expediting permitting, scheduling more debris and trash removal than normal and applying for state support.
Cops’ Extra Presence in Palm Coast’s Tornado-Damaged B-Section Helps Lead to Hit-and-Run Arrest
Wendy Labell, 55, was arrested at her Baydside Drive home early Sunday morning when a sheriff’s deputy helping with the storm’s aftermath there noticed her driving her car erratically into her driveway–and matched the car’s description to a hit-and-run incident that had felled a bicyclist a short time earlier at Belle Terre and Palm Coast Parkway.
Warning Shot Bill: Public Defenders Back a Revised Version of Marissa Alexander-Inspired Measure
Polk County Rep. Neil Combee sponsored the 2013 bill after hearing about Marissa Alexander, a Jacksonville woman who was sentenced to 20 years in prison under the 10-20-Life sentencing law for firing a gun into a wall during a fight with her husband. Combee said her sentence was an example of the “negative unintended consequences” of 10-20-Life, which requires mandatory-minimum prison terms for gun-related crimes.
Palm Coast’s B-Section Residents Awake to Tornado’s Wreckage; Severe Damage Is Limited; City Ready to Help
Residents of Palm Coast’s B-Section awoke Sunday to a morning soggy with the wreckage of Saturday night’s tornado. One resident, who was hosting a birthday party for her 12-year-old son, compared the tornado to “a front on steroids.”
Family of Four From Palm Coast’s Woodlands Among 32 Arrested or Sought for Pill-Pushing
The Bridewell family of 7 Blackberry Place in Palm Coast were part of a vast drug sweep Friday morning by the Flagler County Sheridff’s Office. The sweep targeted 32 individuals involved in one form of drug infraction or another. The sweep netted 19 arrests, all but one in Palm Coast.
They Don’t Only Shoot Them: Sheriff’s Deputy Bret Wood Saves Raccoon Stuck in Tree
When a 12-year-old student on his way to school this morning noticed a raccoon stuck in a tree on Palm Coast’s Florida Park Drive, deputies were called in, and as Animal Control would not respond, deputy Bret Wood used a car jack to pry the imprisoning branches apart and free the raccoon.
Chris Molumby, 27, Dies From Injuries Sustained in Single-Car Wreck on I-95
Christopher W. Molumby, a 27-year-old resident of Palm Coast’s W Section, is in critical condition at Shands Hospital in Jacksonville following a single-car wreck Monday afternoon on I-95 just north of the Flagler-St. Johns County line.
Police and Firefighters’ Unions Troubled by Plan to Give Local Governments Freer Hand in Pensions
A Senate committee pushed forward Wednesday with a bill that would overhaul how local governments fund pensions for police officers and firefighters, hoping that a different political climate in 2014 will allow the legislation to succeed after it died in the House during the spring legislative session.
Florida Sentencing Guidelines
Overview of Florida’s sentencing policies, guidelines, first, second and third degree felonies, life sentences.