Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly and State Attorney R.J. Larizza have written the state clemency board stern letters opposing any commutation of sentence for Bruce Grove, the now-46-year-old former Palm Coast resident serving 35 years in prison for the killing of Flagler County Sheriff’s deputy Charles “Chuck” Sease in 2003 as Grove was eluding other deputies in a chase.
Featured
Again Indifferent to Process, Colleagues Dismiss Andy Dance’s Concern About County Commission’s Lack of Transparency
County Commissioner Andy Dance is concerned about the commission’s habit–unique among local governments–of holding special meetings and votes immediately after workshops, a habit that lacks transparency. As they have when he’s raised procedural issues before, Dance’s colleagues shrugged off the concern.
Flagler Gets the Message as Vaccines Quadruple in 4 Weeks, and Councilman Barbosa Declares Himself a Convert
As vaccine shots have quadrupled in Flagler in comparison with four weeks ago and covid hospitalizations have continued to rise, Palm Coast City Council member Victor Barbosa, just back from being hospitalized for covid, is now urging to get the vaccine he had previously resisted.
Flagler Commissioners Want to Cut Tax Rate, Give Sheriff 15 Deputies And Force Staff to Cut $2 Million in County Services
A majority of Flagler county commissioners ignored their administrator’s and finance director’s numbers and proposals today and told their staff to find ways to cut $2 million from the county’s own budget while ensuring that the sheriff and other constitutional officers, such as the clerk of court and supervisor of elections, get all the budget increases they’re asking for.
Rule Clarified: In Flagler Schools, the Vaccinated Exposed to Covid Don’t Have to Quarantine; Others Must at Least 4 Days
Unvaccinated students and teachers who have been exposed to Covid must quarantine at least four days before they are eligible for rapid-testing and, if asymptomatic, a return to the classroom. But the vaccinated, and those who have been Covid positive in the previous 90 days, and show no symptoms, can stay in school even after exposure, according to a new state rule.
St. Johns School District Again Fighting Ruling Allowing Transgender Students to Use Bathroom of Their Choice
The St. Johns County School Board is asking a federal appeals court to again consider a years-long battle about whether a transgender male student should have been allowed to use boys’ bathrooms.
Now That It’s Cleared, a Massive Gambling Compact Is About to Change the Florida Landscape
It’s official. Federal authorities green-lighted Florida’s gambling compact with the Seminole Tribe of Florida on Friday, marking the start of a new cultural era by allowing digital gambling statewide for the first time in Florida history. The 30-year compact is worth $2.5 billion to the state of Florida in just the first five years.
How Unemployment Insurance Fraud Exploded During the Pandemic
Bots filing bogus applications in bulk, teams of fraudsters in foreign countries making phony claims, online forums peddling how-to advice on identity theft: Inside the infrastructure of perhaps the largest fraud wave in history.
Back at Work, an FPC Teacher Worries About an Unmasked School and a District Unprepared for the Unexpected
A Flagler Palm Coast High School teacher describes a lack of information from the school board concerning Covid protocols, no discussions of contingency plans in case of breakouts, and no clarity about quarantines even involving staffers who are vaccinated but experience breakthrough infections.
Flagler Records 154 Covid Infections Today as AdventHealth Palm Coast’s In-Patients Soar to 86, Another Record
The 16-hospital AdventHealth network in Central Florida has 1,350 in-patients with covid, 400 more than it had during the highest previous peak of the pandemic last January. Patients who survive stay an average of 14 to 21 days at the hospital, averaging in age between 50 to 55–younger than in previous waves–but all ages have been seen in hospitals. Of the 1,350, some 350 are in ICU and on ventilators.