Some 23 burglaries struck Palm Coast’s B-Section overnight, the latest in a series, but this time five Jacksonville boys from 14 to 17, and a 19-year-old man, were arrested after a chase and search through the neighborhood.
Flagler, Palm Coast & Other Local News
Arthur McGovern Jr., Palm Coast City Council Candidate: The Live Interview
Arthur McGovern Jr. is a candidate for Palm Coast City Council, District 1. He does not appear to be taking his candidacy seriously.
Mystery Woman Killed in US1 Wreck on July 10 Identified as Kathleen Tillman of Bunnell
A pedestrian killed in a crash with a motorcycle on U.S. 1 near Church on the Rock in Bunnell on July 10 has been identified as Kathleen Tillman, a 56-year-old Bunnell resident.
With Latest Claims Against County Government Thrown Out, Flagler Prevails in 25 of 26 Cases
The latest claims were filed by Dennis McDonald, who is running for Palm Coast mayor, and who is disputing the elections commission’s findings that his complaints were legally insufficient.
Gov. Scott Censures and Reprimands Sheriff Manfre in Executive Order, Ending Ethics Case
Last November Gov. Rick Scott, in Bunnell, said Flagler County had a “great sherif”‘ in Jim Manfre. Earlier this week, the governor censured and reprimanded him over ethics violations.
Sims Jones, Palm Coast City Council Candidate: The Live Interview
Sims Jones is a candidate for Palm Coast City Council, District 1. He faces three other candidates: Robert Cuff, Troy Dubose, and Arthur McGovern, Jr. in the non-partisan election on Aug. 30, in which all registered voters may cast a ballot.
Missing Frank Meeker
Some elected officials leave a much bigger void than others when they die in office. Flagler County Commissioner Frank Meeker’s loss an interrupted legacy that was just hitting its stride.
Carla Traister, Champion Protector of Flagler’s Homeless, Wins Outstanding Leadership Award
The 2016 Northeast Florida Community Action Agency’s award cites Traister’s work at the Sheltering Tree, Flagler County’s only homeless shelter on cold nights, which Traister co-founded in 2009.
Troy DuBose, Palm Coast City Council Candidate: The Live Interview
Troy DuBose is a candidate for Palm Coast City Council, District 1. He faces three other candidates in the non-partisan election on Aug. 30: Robert Cuff, Sims Jones and Arthur McGovern, Jr. All registered voters may cast a ballot.
Boy, 13, Arrested in Assault and Robbery of 10-Year-Old Over Sneakers at Ralph Carter Park
A 13-year-old boy and resident of Riverina Drive in Palm Coast was arrested on a second-degree felony robbery charge after allegedly beating down a 10-year-old boy playing Pokemon Go and taking his sneakers at Ralph Carter Park Tuesday afternoon.
Appeals Court Upholds Red-Light Cameras But Urges Florida Supreme Court to Rule Decisively
A court upheld Aventura’s program, which relies on police, not the private contractor, to make decisions about ticketing motorists. But the court wants the supreme court to decide the issue more finally.
Robert Cuff, Palm Coast City Council Candidate: The Live Interview
Robert Cuff is a candidate for Palm Coast City Council, District 1. He faces three other candidates in the non-partisan election on Aug. 30: Troy DuBose, Sims Jones and Arthur McGovern, Jr. All registered voters may cast a ballot.
Ex-Cop Stavris Pleads, “I Wouldn’t Make It Out of State Prison,” and Gets 3 Years for Lewd Facebook Use Involving Children
Ex-Bunnell cop Michael Stavris had fabricated a Facebook page under his girlfriend’s daughter’s name, solicited boys’ naked pictures and said he wanted to break up his daughter’s relationship because she was dating a black boy.
European Village Resident Ralph Wolff, 68, Critical After 4-Story Fall
Wolff had been locked out of his apartment and was attempting to hop from balcony to balcony to make it hope. A chair may have broken his fall.
School Board Readies to Approve Lowest Tax in at Least 22 Years, But Without Cheers
The new tax rate equates to a 4.2 percent decrease from the current rate for homeowners and businesses, which will make a noticeable difference on tax bills.
Bunnell’s Tucker Upsets Colleagues With Surprise Bid to Merge Fire Department With County
Previously Bunnell Commissioner Elbert Tucker wanted to dissolve the city’s police department to save money. Now he wants to dissolve the volunteer fire department and shift savings to add a police officer. The commission is not enthusiastic.
Forest Grove Drive Access to Old Kings Road North Closes Permanently
This permanent road closure is the final step in the recent construction of the Old Kings Road extension on the west side of Forest Grove and the Palm Harbor Parkway extension on its east side.
Anita Moeder, Palm Coast City Council Candidate: The Live Interview
Anita Moeder is a candidate for Palm Coast City Council, District 3. She faces two other candidates: Nick Klufas and Pam Richardson in the non-partisan election on Aug. 30, in which all registered voters may cast a ballot.
Chris Yates, Flagler County Sheriff Candidate: The Live Interview
Chris Yates is one of six Republican candidates for Flagler County Sheriff in the Aug. 30 primary. Two Republicans are contesting the primary in what has been the most heavily and expensively contested race for a local office this year.
6 People Rescued From Tugboat on Fire in Ocean Off Marineland
It was not the first recent problem for the Thomas Dann tugboat. Two fireballs were seen from shore, indications of explosions. Its crew was picked up by a fishing vessel, though Flagler County Fire Rescue’s Marine Unit was set to carry out the rescue.
Bunnell’s Dalton Edwards Charged With 2 Counts of DUI Manslaughter in Deaths of 2 Women in Flagler Estates Crash
Katie Stecker, 19, and Victoria Sutton, 20, were killed Jan. 9 in a car crash in Flagler Estates allegedly caused by a drunk Dalton Edwards, who blew through a stop sign and collided with another vehicle. He is being held on on $367,518 bond bond.
Frank Meeker, County Commission Workhorse and Tenacious Optimist, Is Dead at 61
Meeker had been in and out of the hospital battling cancer the last few weeks, and was in the hospital this week as his condition worsened. He was moved to hospice overnight and died around 6 a.m.
Anna Pehota Is Found Guilty of 2nd Degree Murder in Husband’s Killing and Sentenced to Life
A surprisingly quick verdict reflected the jury’s belief that Anna Pehota had killed her husband with intent, even though there’d been no argument or abuse that day, only her fear that he’d leave her.
2nd Trial Day Curdles for Pehota as 3-Hour Tape Shows More Resolve Than Remorse in Husband’s Killing
The defense rested without calling a single witness in Anna Pehota’s murder trial today, and what dementia issues may have played a role in her husband’s killing could not be introduced before the jury. Closing arguments are Friday morning.
Mark Whisenant, Flagler County Sheriff Candidate: The Live Interview
Mark Whisenant is one of six Republican candidates for Flagler County Sheriff in the Aug. 30 primary. Two Republicans are contesting the primary in what has been the most heavily and expensively contested race for a local office this year.
“A Hair Between Sanity and Insanity”: Pehota’s Anguished Account of Killing Husband Marks 1st Trial Day
A video interview of Pehota describing the killing of her husband and the circumstances surrounding it underscored the first day of her trial. She faces a second-degree murder charge. Nothing happened today to shake an aura of sympathy–even empathy–around Pehota.
Bunnell’s Michael Davis, 22, Arrested on Rape Charge Involving 15-Year-Old Boy
Michael Anthony Davis, a 22-year-old resident of Peach Street in Bunnell, was arrested Tuesday on a charge of raping a 15-year-old boy, a first degree felony.
Palm Coast Votes 3-2 Against $5,000 Hike For Jim Landon in Stinging Rebuke
Two council members said Palm Coast Manager Jim Landon had been overpaid, with his $169,000 salary now where it should be. The vote ends a long, in many ways improper and opaque process.
Bill McGuire, Palm Coast City Council’s Grandmaster, Resigns Effective Aug. 15
McGuire’s resignation was expected, and the council is hinting that it may be uninterested in filling his post for the remaining few weeks of his term before the election, even if the charter says the council “shall” fill it.
Jerry O’Gara, Flagler County Sheriff Candidate: The Live Interview
Jerry O’Gara is one of six Republican candidates for Flagler County Sheriff in the Aug. 30 primary. Two Democrats are contesting the primary in what has been the most heavily and expensively contested race for a local office this year.
Woman With History of Fabrication Claims Home Invasion-Armed Robbery in W-Section
Brittany Cartier, 21, a caretaker for an elderly homeowner on Watermill Place, claimed she and the homeowner were robbed at gunpoint of $5,000 in cash by two men late Monday. Cartier had fabricated a kidnapping three years ago.
In Jury Selection for Anna Pehota Trial, Pronounced Sympathies for the Killer
Anna Pehota, 76, facing a second-degree murder charge for shooting her husband in the Hammock last September, is benefiting from inherent sympathy going into her trial, which began with jury selection Monday and starts in earnest Wednesday.
John Lamb, Flagler County Sheriff Candidate: The Live Interview
John Lamb is one of six Republican candidates for Flagler County Sheriff in the Aug. 30 primary. Two Democrats are contesting the primary in what has been the most heavily and expensively contested race for a local office this year.
Fire Flight Called to Assist in Search for Fleeing Burglar in Palm Coast’s P-Section
Fire Flight was circling the P Section after 9:30 a.m., helping in the search for a suspect who fled the scene of a burglary on Ponderosa Lane, according to a sheriff’s spokesman.
In Bunnell, 100 Black Marchers Chant for “All Lives,” For Unity, But Also For Looking Inward
The Black Lives Matter-themed march Sunday evening around Bunnell was itself a display of the harmony it called for, though it clearly didn not get participation from the county’s whiter surroundings.
“We Don’t Need Vigilantes”: P-Section Man Shoots at Teen Pokémon Go Hunters
Two P-Section residents, 16 and 19, were shot at early Saturday morning by a homeowner on Primrose Lane as they played Pokemon Go and the homeowner mistook them for trouble-makers after hearing a loud noise outside his home.
At European Village and in Bunnell, Separate Events For Fallen Cops and Black Lives as Reactions Multiply
The march in Bunnell and the fund-raiser for the families of fallen police officers at European Village are the latest in a spate of local initiatives that have sought to respond to shootings, by or of police, in various ways.
Don Fleming, Flagler County Sheriff Candidate: The Live Interview
Donald Fleming is one of six Republican candidates for Flagler County Sheriff in the Aug. 30 primary. Two Democrats, including incumbent Jim Manfre, are contesting the primary in what has been the most heavily and expensively contested race for a local office this year.
Flagler Judge Gives Pot Plan a Lift, But Council And Whiff of Politics Again Delay Adoption
The proposal would reduce the penalty for first-time possession of pot to a $250 fine rather than a criminal charge, but it’ll be at least another month before the proposal gets out of a council, if then, and heads for approval (or rejection) by local governments.
Jim Manfre, Flagler County Sheriff Candidate: The Live Interview
Jim Manfre is one of two Democratic candidates for Flagler County Sheriff in the Aug. 30 primary. Six Republicans are contesting the primary in what has been the most heavily and expensively contested race for a local office this year.
Man Stabbed on Palm Coast’s Zenoble Place, Site of Numerous Previous Arrests
The man was stabbed in the neck in what appears to have been a violent confrontattion that damaged parts of the house, but the man was not cooperating with authorities.
At Flagler NAACP Town Hall, Matters of Black Lives, “The Talk,” and the Gap Between Community and Policing
A town hall organized by Flagler’s NAACP branch, with several top officials from the sheriff’s office, took stock of the recent police killings of black men and the killing of five white police officers in Dallas by a black veteran sniper.
Abra Seay, Flagler County Supervisor of Elections Candidate: The Live Interview
Abra Seay is one of three candidates for Flagler County Elections Supervisor in the Aug. 30 primary, which in this race amounts to the general election: All voters, regardless of party affiliation, may cast a ballot in this race, which will decide the winner.
Home Invasion Assailant Killed by Tenant on Frank Place in Palm Coast, 2nd Suspect Surrenders
Victor J. Betty, 28, was killed in an attempted home invasion on Frank Place in Palm Coast early this morning, and Carl Devore of Palm Coast turned himself in later today as the wanted second suspect in the incident.
In Debt, Flagler Chamber of Commerce Seeking to Sell Building But Stay Put as Tenant
As debts have caught up with the organization, members of the Flagler Chamber of Commerce and Affiliates this afternoon learned that the chamber is seeking to sell the 10,000 square foot building it has owned, occupied and leased to other tenants since 2006.
An AR-15, a Shotgun, and Claims of Shots Fired: Confrontation in The Mondex
No one would end up arrested, but an investigation is continuing into claims that an assault weapon was brandished, shots fired and threats made.
Kimble Medley, Flagler County Supervisor of Elections Candidate: The Live Interview
Kimble Medley is one of three candidates for Flagler County Elections Supervisor in the Aug. 30 primary, in which all voters, regardless of party affiliation, may cast a ballot. The primary will decide the winner with no further vote in November.
Proposal to De-Criminalize Pot Possession Again Teetering as Flagler Council Nears Verdict
The Flagler Public Safety Coordinating Council decides Wednesday whether to recommend the de-criminalization proposal, but the reactions from palm Coast, Bunnell and Flagler Beach have been discouraging.
Kaiti Lenhart, Flagler County Supervisor Of Elections Candidate: The Live Interview
Kaiti Lenhart is the incumbent candidate for Flagler County Elections Supervisor in the Aug. 30 primary, which in this race amounts to the general election: All voters, regardless of party affiliation, may cast a ballot in this race, which will decide the winner.
Chris Sousa, 21, Matanzas Graduate and Driven Entrepreneur, Struck and Killed by Car in Ormond Beach
Chris Sousa, a Palm Coast resident of Island Estates and a 2013 graduate of Matanzas High School, was killed early this morning as he walked when a vehicle struck him in Ormond Beach.