The workplace-training part of the law listed eight race-related concepts and said that a required training program or other activity that “espouses, promotes, advances, inculcates, or compels such individual (an employee) to believe any of the following concepts constitutes discrimination based on race, color, sex, or national origin.”
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Bunnell Brawl Involving Up to 60 People Ends with 6 Arrests as Even Corrections Deputies Are Summoned to Help
A late-night brawl involving 40 to 50 people–and up to 60, according one sheriff’s report–on South Anderson Street in Bunnell Saturday ended with the arrest of four adults and two juveniles, including one, Andrea Armster, 41, on a felony charge of battering a law enforcement officer. The incident involved so many people, and so many law enforcement officers, that detention deputies from the jail had to assist.
County Issues Demolition Order for Old Dixie Motel as Attorney Describes ‘Dilatory Tactics in Bad Faith’
The Flagler County chief building official has issued a demolition order for the long disused Old Dixie Highway motel that, through a succession of opaque owners who promised the moon but delivered only low-orbit cosmetics, has gone from an eyesore to a hazard to a haze of hope and back to an infuriating thorn in the side of Flagler County government.
DeSantis Thinks He’s Abolishing the Homeless by Banning Them from Sight. He’s Wrong.
DeSantis and lawmakers are likely reacting to a shift in the way communities across the U.S. view homelessness from compassion to penalties and restrictions. Unfortunately, but true to form, DeSantis didn’t offer a palette of humane solutions to the homelessness problem. Instead, he spoke of the issue in stark, unsympathetic, self-absorbed terms characterizing homelessness in purely negative terms, blaming them for contributing to the erosion of the quality of life of others lucky to not be sleeping on the street.
Citing Efforts Against ‘Indoctrination,’ House Approves Bill Broadening Censorship in Teacher Prep Courses
The Florida House on Friday passed a measure that supporters say is designed to keep “identity politics” out of teacher preparation programs that lead to educators getting professional certificates — as Democratic members likened the bill to academic censorship.
Tom Joad, the Voice of a Better America, Has Been Silenced
From the Book of Ruth to Eugene Debs to Tom Joad in Steinbeck’s “Grapes of Wrath,” the voice of solidarity spoke a communion with needs and pains greater than one’s own, a willingness not only to walk in the other’s shoes, but to be the shoes–to be the soles–when the other has none. It was once the voice of America. We have lost that voice as blame and judgment have replaced solidarity and grievances about what we think we’re losing snuff out protest on behalf of those not lucky enough to have something to lose.
State Attorney Dismisses Charges Against Virgilio Mendez, 18, Migrant Accused of Manslaughter in Deputy’s Death
The State Attorney’s Office today dropped the charges against Virgilio Mendez, the 18-year-old migrant arrested last May in St. Augustine over a dubious encounter with sheriff’s deputies prompted by nothing apparent, then charged with aggravated manslaughter in the death of one of the deputies, who had died of a heart attack the medical examiner ruled was of natural causes from heart disease. The charges drew widespread public outrage.
Florida House Passes Ban on Homeless Sleeping In Public Despite Added Burdens to Local Governments
The Florida House on Friday approved a controversial proposal that would prevent homeless people from sleeping in public, despite concerns about increased costs for local governments. The Republican-controlled House voted 82-26 along almost-straight party lines to pass the bill (HB 1365), which is backed by Gov. Ron DeSantis. It also would make it easier for residents and business owners to challenge local officials over how homelessness is addressed.
No Back-Up Plan: Palm Coast Hip-Hop Artist Devante Collins Is Working for His Big Break
Devante Collins, whose stage name is Devante, The Artist, graduated from Flagler Palm Coast High School in 2015 and has been on a trek to breakthrough as a hip hop artist, writer and producer since in Los Angeles, Columbus, Ohio, Philadelphia and now back in Florida. He performs tonight at a Justice for Hip Hop music festival in Jacksonville, at the Justice Pub at 315 East Bay St.
Palm Coast’s Wishful 20-Field, $93 Million Sports Complex Rests on a Far Future of Dubiously Rosy Speculation
The Palm Coast City Council is embarking on an ambitious plan to explore and perhaps develop and finance, in a private-public partnership, an enormous sports complex on the west side of the yet-undeveloped city. A consultant encouraging the project is projecting rosy figures that would not mortgage tax dollars yet yield ample profits while drawing up to 250,000 athletes and spectators a year. The figures are speculative and do not easily stand up to scrutiny.
More Sound and Fury Than Broad Problems as 3 Residents Complain to City of Ralph Carter Park’s Popularity
When the Palm Coast City Council gets its administration’s latest report on the state of Ralph Carter Park in the R-Section, it’ll have to decide how much of the sound and fury again hemming the popular park is the grousing of a few people signifying nothing or a reflection of a broader problem. Judging from a community meeting the administration hosted at City Hall Wednesday evening, there is no broad problem.
Renner and DeSantis Trying to Ward Off Veto Over Social Media Ban for Children Under-16
With a Friday deadline looming, House Speaker Paul Renner said Wednesday that he and Gov. Ron DeSantis are trying to work out differences on a bill aimed at keeping children under age 16 off social-media platforms. Renner is keeping silent on alternatives.
Ahead of Trial, Lawyer for Man Accused in Murder of Noah Smith Says Interrogation Was Constitutional Violation
Tyrese Patterson is one of three men facing a murder charge in the shooting death of 16-year-old Noah Smith in Bunnell in 2022. In court today, Patterson’s attorney, Tim Pribisco, heatedly sparred with Flagler County Sheriff’s detective Augustin Rodriguez, who was testifying, and just as fiercely argued to Circuit Judge Terence Perkins that an interrogation of Patterson at the county jail by Rodriguez is inadmissible, because Patterson twice directly and indirectly asked about his attorney, only for the interrogation to continue.
‘Three Amigos’ Who Shepherded Flagler Through Covid Return as Vigilante Philanthropists. But Don’t Tell Anyone.
For two years, Dr. Stephen Bickel, then-Health Department chief Bob Snyder and Flagler Broadcasting President David Ayres shepherded Flagler County through the Covid pandemic on WNZF’s airwaves. The three have teamed up again as a group that calls itself Vigilante Philanthropy, but they’d prefer to do their work outside the limelight.
Florida Lawmakers Back Modest Reparations for Dozier School’s Black Victims of Rampant Abuse
The Florida Senate measure would create a $20 million “Dozier School for Boys and Okeechobee School Victim Compensation Program” to compensate “living persons who were confined” to Dozier or the Okeechobee School, another reform school, between 1940 and 1975 and “who were subjected to mental, physical, or sexual abuse perpetrated by school personnel.”
SR100 Pedestrian ‘Faith’ Bridge Gets Somewhere After All: To an Award, But Ex-County Engineer Is Snubbed
The Flagler Greenways Pedestrian Bridge over State Road 100 earned the “National Recognition Award” from American Council of Engineering Companies in the 2024 Engineering Excellence Awards. The award will go to Kisinger Campo and Associates, the engineering company that designed the bridge for the county. At the county, the bridge was overseen by engineer Faith al-Khatib, whom the county unceremoniously pushed out last year.
Palm Coast Searches for Its New Attorney In the Open. School Board Chooses Secrecy.
The Palm Coast City Council and the Flagler County School Board are searching for new attorneys to represent them in two very different ways. The council is conducting its search entirely in the open, ensuring that all related documents are public, providing them on request, and interviewing the firms in open forum. The school board, in contrast with its own precedents and with all other local governments, possibly in violation of law, is not.
Snuffed Out for 4 Years, Commission Debate Continues to Smolder Over July 4 Fireworks in Flagler Beach
It’s as if a stash of July 4 fireworks keeps smoldering somewhere under Flagler Beach, looking for a burst skyward–and getting snuffed out at every turn. Some Flagler Beach city commissioners and members of the business community are not happy with the uncertainty. So the commission will hold a workshop on the matter for still more talk, to hear from the public and to figure out of fireworks could return to the pier for the first time in five years come July 4.
GOP Lawmakers Recommend Co-Founder of Moms for Liberty, an Extremist Group, for Ethics Job
Republican lawmakers in a Senate hearing Monday recommended Tina Descovich, co-founder of Moms for Liberty, cited by the Southern Poverty Law Center as an anti-government extremist group, for an appointment for the Florida Commission on Ethics. The full Senate must approve the executive appointment.
Christopher Lemke, Who Threatened Neighbors With a Gun on July 4, Avoids Jail Or Felony Conviction
Christopher Lemke, 70, threatened to shoot his neighbor’s family last July 4 in Palm Coast’s R-Section as he pointed a laser-equipped firearm at several people, including a pregnant woman. He was sentenced Friday to 48 months on probation, but will not be adjudicated a felon. Still, he will have some of the same consequences, among them a lifetime ban on owning or possessing guns.
The Controversial Concept of ‘Fetal Personhood’ Is Creeping Up on Florida
If fetuses have legal personhood, abortion-rights activists argue it would infringe the rights of pregnant women and have serious implications for medical procedures like in vitro fertilization and the treatment of ectopic pregnancies and miscarriages. For all practical matters, the Florida Constitution is silent on the issue of fetal personhood, despite Chief Justice Muniz’s suggestion that fetal personhood rights might already exist.
Rick de Yampert, FlaglerLive’s Arts and Culture Writer, Releases ‘Crows and Ravens’ Book
Rick de Yampert, FlaglerLive’s arts and culture writer, will have his book “Crows and Ravens: Mystery, Myth, and Magic of Sacred Corvids” released March 8 by Llewellyn, one of the world’s major metaphysical publishers. The Palm Coast author will hold a book signing and meet-and-greet from 2-4 p.m. Saturday, March 9, at Vedic Moons – Ayurvedic Wellness, Metaphysical Shop & Herbal Apothecary, 4984 Palm Coast Pkwy NW, Unit 4-6, Palm Coast. The event also will feature de Yampert’s Mr. Crow art for sale.
Stunningly, Florida’s Ladapo Tells Parents It’s Fine to Send Unvaccinated Kids to School with Measles Outbreak
With a brief memo, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo has subverted a public health standard that’s long kept measles outbreaks under control. On Feb. 20, as measles spread through Manatee Bay Elementary in South Florida, Ladapo sent parents a letter granting them permission to send unvaccinated children to school amid the outbreak. Ladapo’s move contradicts advice from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
St. Mary Catholic Church in Korona, a Legacy of Immigrants, Is Listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The community of Korona’s St. Mary Catholic Church (also known as the St. Mary Mother Church) at 89 St. Mary’s Place in Bunnell was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on Jan. 25. The structure meets several NRHP requirements for historic significance including: architecture, ethnic heritage (European, Polish), and exploration/settlement. The very unique Shrine of Saint Christopher, a short distance north of the church, was also listed as a contributing resource.
Da’Mari Barnes, 17, Sentenced to 9 Years in Prison for Shooting Death of Jamey “JuJu” Bennett, 19, at Bonfire
Da’Mari Barnes was sentenced to nine years in prison followed by 15 on probation for the shooting death of Jamey “JuJu” Bennett two years ago at a bonfire party near Matanzas High School. Barnes was 15. Bennett was 19. The two had argued over a girl Barnes had pushed. Barnes had been carrying a gun out of fear, since the shooting death of his cousin, 16-year-old Noah Smith, days earlier.
7 Years in Prison for Unrepentant Man, 48, who Stalked and Solicited 14-Year-Old Girl, and Still Blames Her
Palm Coast’s Jerome Byron Malerba, 47, was sentenced to seven years in prison, two years on probation and a lifetime as a sex offender for luring and soliciting a girl starting when she was 13–when he offered her pot–and going on for 18 months. The judge used unusually strong language to describe Malerba as “creepy” and as a man who still blames the victim and covers himself in self-pity.
Bill Banning Children Younger Than 16 From Social Media Passes and Heads for a Skeptical DeSantis
Florida lawmakers Thursday gave final approval to a bill that seeks to keep children under age 16 off social-media platforms, as Gov. Ron DeSantis continued to raise concerns about the measure. The House voted 108-7 to pass the bill (HB 1), which has been a priority of House Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast. That came after the Senate voted 23-14 earlier in the day to approve the measure.
Vacation Rental Bill Scaling Back Local Control, Opposed by Flagler County Government, Heads to House Floor
The House Commerce Committee today approved a bill on a 10-4 vote pre-empting most vacation-rental authorities to the state. The bill heads to the House floor for a vote and reconciliation with the Senate’s version. It is the closest a pre-emption proposal has come to enactment in the dozen years that the vacation rental industry has pushed them.
Controversial Bill Allowing Lawsuits Over Wrongful Death of an ‘Unborn Child’ Advances
The proposal, now ready to go to the full House, would add “unborn child” to a law that allows family members to seek damages when a person’s death is caused by such things as wrongful acts or negligence. The bill (HB 651) has drawn intense pushback from abortion-rights advocates, who argue the proposed changes could put abortion providers and people who help women obtain abortions at risk of being sued.
Charles Kidd, Facing Murder Charge in Woodlands Killing, Was Suffering from Dementia and May Not Stand Trial
Charles Kidd, the 86-year-old former resident of Blare Drive in Palm Coast who shot and killed 36-year-old Mark Ruschmeier in August, was suffering from dementia severe enough at the time that two psychologists have concluded he is not competent to stand trial.
Three School Board Members Are Champing at the Bit to Close Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club to the Public
If they could have voted on it Tuesday, Flagler County School Board members Will Furry, Christy Chong and Sally Hunt would have closed the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club to the public. They would have turned the 11-acre club gifted to the school board by ITT in 1996 into a facility for students and school programs only, with the exception of swimming pool rentals to other clubs or parties.
School Board and Parents Grapple with County’s ‘Blindsiding’ Call To Defund Its Portion of School Deputies
Flagler County School Board members and parents spoke of surprise, concern and “blindsiding,” in the words of the board’s chair, in reaction to a Feb. 13 letter from County Administrator Heidi Petito to the superintendent saying the county had reached “an important decision” to “gradually transfer the financial responsibility” for $1.4 million in “these legacy expenditures to the school district,” including the county’s more than $1 million commitment to school resource deputies.
Florida Moving To Ban References to Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Florida lawmakers are moving toward approving an overhaul of state energy laws, including eliminating references to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and imposing a ban on offshore wind-energy generation.
Sally Hunt Is Again a No Show, Raising Questions Among Her School Board Colleagues and Her Seat
School Board member Sally Hunt’s “chronic” absences drew criticism from fellow-Board member Cheryl Massaro at today’s meeting, concerns about the functioning of a board that, without a majority, could see many of its actions fail (a 2-2 vote is equivalent to the death of a motion) and questions about Hunt’s seat when she resign, as she said she will.
Palm Coast Council Postpones Water Rate Increase in Face of Opposition, But Raises Utility Impact Fees on Builders
There will be no water and sewer rate increase in Palm Coast for now: the Palm Coast City Council today voted 4-1 to postpone a rate increase, while significantly raising “capacity,” or utility impact fees, the one-time levy on builders of new homes and businesses. That revenue is used to defray the cost of growth on the city’s utility infrastructure.
Feral Hogs Are Trampling Residents’ Properties, But County’s Containment Capabilities Are Limited
As feral hogs continue to trample all over private property in what residents say are increasing numbers spurred by development and a diminishing habitat, the Flagler County Commission is proposing to increase traps, encourage more volunteer to join a corps of hog-hunters, repair fencing along county roads, and work with homeowner associations on their own hog-management plans. But a solution remains elusive.
Palm Coast P-Section’s Last 35 Acres of Trees Leveled to Make Room for 74-Home ‘Ponce Preserve’ Gated Community
The 74-home gated community of Ponce Preserve will be built by in a 35-acre expanse–the last undisturbed expanse in the P-Section–between Point Pleasant Drive, Ponce de Leon Drive, Pony Express Drive and Port Royal Drive. Because it’s under 100 homes, the development did not need to go before either the planning board or the City Council.
Flagler County Plans to End $1.4 Million Contribution for School Deputies, Administrator Tells Superintendent
Flagler County Administrator Heidi Petito last week wrote Superintendent LaShakia Moore that county government will no longer pay the $1.4 million a year in subsidies for the school district’s School Resource Officer, ending a 50-50 cost-sharing agreement that’s been in place for a decade. The county is not required by law to share the district’s security costs.
Jimmy Carter in Hospice Is Still Better than Trump in White House
Biden is old. He’s slow. He’s forgetful. He trips all over the place, he’s in hiding, and the Democratic Party is a pitiful band of backbenchers who couldn’t give us a more convincing alternative. For all that, compared to Trump he’s still the only credible choice, if it’s a republic we still want.
Moms for Liberty’s Book of Morons
The moms of Moms for “Liberty” are feeling a little touchy, put-upon, even diminished. Their do-boy DeSantis crashed out of the presidential race. They’re losing school board elections. They’re making idiots of themselves in the national media, as when Moms co-founder Tiffany Justice simultaneously defends taking books off school library shelves while denying that Moms want books taken off school library shelves, unless they’re by Black writers or gay writers, or ones dealing with the Holocaust, racism, or any sex.
Equal Justice Initiative Unveils Statue of Rosa Parks
The Equal Justice Initiative has unveiled a statue of Rosa Parks at its Legacy Museum in Montgomery, Ala., on Wednesday, part of a broader effort to memorialize civil rights icons.
In the coming months, statues for Martin Luther King Jr. and John Lewis will also be erected at the museum, connected with the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, also known as the lynching memorial.
Senate Backs Paul Renner Initiative Banning Children Younger Than 16 From Social Media, With Caveats
The House overwhelmingly passed the initial version last month, and the newly revised version does not change the basic components. It would prevent children under 16 from creating accounts on at least some social-media platforms; require platforms to terminate existing accounts that they know or have “reason to believe” are held by minors younger than 16; and allow parents to request that minors’ accounts be terminated.
Palm Coast Has No Money to Pave Your Neighborhood Streets. It’ll Apply a Cheap Sealant and Hope for the Best.
Facing a $10 million deficit in road repairs and no new revenue identified, the Palm Coast City Council approved a diminutive $1 million plan to “microsurface” 29 neighborhood roads and $2.7 million to resurface a few arterial roads. Microsrufacing is not traditional paving. It’s more like a tooth sealant, but for roads: cavities aren’t fixed. They’re covered up. The tentative approach points to the consequences of a council deferring infrastructure needs while rolling back the tax rate.
Flagler Beach Steps Back from Pushing Changes to Mayor’s Powers, Opting for Charter Review Instead
With a majority of city commissioners and the public speaking their skepticism about changing the make-up of the Flagler Beach City Commission, giving the mayor more voting or veto power, or changing the lengths and limits of commissioners’ terms, a proposal to go down that road appears to be teetering on the edge of a failing vote, if it comes to that. But it won’t.
Jury Finds Andrew Sharp, 22, Guilty of Raping His 9-Year-Old Cousin and Faces Life in Prison
A jury found Donald Andrew Sharp, 22, a former Palm Coast resident, guilty of raping his cousin when she was 8 and 9, and of directing her brother to molest her, in case Sharp needed a scapegoat if he were ever accused of improprieties. He will be sentenced to life in prison.
Before Ordering a Costly and Likely Unnecessary Forensic Audit, Palm Coast Will School Itself on Process
The Palm Coast City Council is hesitant to give in to vague and unsubstantiated calls for a forensic audit without first knowing more clearly what such an audit entails, what it will cost the city, and whether it is even necessary in the absence of accounting red flags. The city is soliciting firms to provide that schooling.
GOP Proposal to Teach Tendentious ‘History of Communism’ in K-12 Draws Heated Debate
An at-times tense meeting of a House panel exposed a simmering debate about whether a proposal to teach about the history of communism in grades as low as kindergarten is a polarizing idea or, as a supporter said, “not divisive in any way.”
Babysitter Accused of Turning Predator Against Children in His Care Confronts His Most Damning Witness: Himself
Donald Andrew Sharp took the stand in his own defense today in his trial on numerous capital sex charges of raping a child. But he was ineffective in countering his own recorded confessions, in a conversation with the child’s father and with detectives, that he had committed the very acts he is accused of.
Flood-Causing Or Not, Homes Built at Higher Elevations Are Way of the Future, Jonathan Lord Tells Palm Coast
For months, residents of Palm Coast’s older sections have been complaining about new homes rising next to them at sharply higher elevations, and seemingly causing flooding on their own lots. Flagler County Emergency Management Director Jonathan Lord, however, told the city council that, in a time of climate change and more pronounced flooding risks, those higher elevations are the way of the future.
Palm Coast Council Still Not Thrilled by Proposed Utility Rate Increases Near 18 Percent Over 3 Years
As in November, the city’s utility consultant was again tasked with drafting an amendment to a study recommending sharp water and sewer rate increases, on the heels of a 20 percent increase in the last four years. Council members want to know what the consequences would be if certain capital projects were delayed, since they drive a lot of the need for the rate increases through 2028.