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.
Flagler, Palm Coast & Other Local News
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.
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.
Flagler Sheriff’s Deputies Arrest 31 in Year-Long Undercover Operations Targeting Illegal Drugs
Over $746,000 of illegal drugs and 31 drug dealers are now off the streets after a nearly year-long countywide undercover operation targeting drug dealers in Flagler County by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
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.
Austin Ross, 27-Year-Old Recruit Hopeful with Flagler Sheriff’s Office, Dies Following Physical Agilities Test
Austin Ross, a 27-year-old Palm Coast resident hoping to become a Flagler County Sheriff’s deputy, fell to the ground during a physical agilities test Monday morning, the first step toward becoming a recruit, and later died of an apparently heart-related medical episode.
In Trial’s Opening, Prosecution Describes Andrew Sharp, 22, as Babysitter Turned Sexual Predator on His Own Young Cousins
Donald Andrew Sharp was 20 and 21 when he lived with his cousins in Palm Coast, as their babysitter. He is on trial on charges of raping his cousin when she was 8 and 9, and of forcing her brother to molest her, allegedly as a scapegoat for Sharp: if he were to be blamed, he would turn the accusation toward his young cousin. The two children testified today, after opening arguments by the prosecution. The defense reserved its opening argument for later in the week.
Sally Hunt’s ‘Causes’ to Fire Attorney, Withheld Despite Numerous Requests, Repeat Fabrications and Unfounded Claims
Sally Hunt, who now openly says she will not complete her term on the board, claims she did not think her “notes” on firing former School Board Attorney Kristy Gavin qualified as public records. The list of 10 grievances echoes the six fellow-Board member Christy Chong filed, repeating some of the same inaccuracies or fabrications and making several unsupported statements.
High-Profile Attorney Jose Baez Takes Over Defense of Migrant Virgilio Mendez Accused in Death of Sheriff’s Deputy After Arrest
Virgilio Aguilar Mendez, the 18-year-old migrant facing a manslaughter charge in the heart-attack death of a St. Johns County sheriff’s deputy following Mendez’s arrest on a minor charge, is now represented by Jose Baez, the Miami attorney and one of the most successful and high-profile trial lawyers in the country. Baez’s involvement and a petition that has gathered 600,000 signatures for Mendez’s release reflect the reach of the case far beyond St. Johns County, and shock over a charge that, according to the medical examiner’s conclusion, is disconnected from deputy Michael Kunovich’s heart attack.
MAGA Has Taylor Swift’s Number
Clearly, Taylor Swift hates America, practices mind control, is corrupting the NFL and is an emissary from the Deep State, but at least people like Stephen Miller, Matt Gaetz and Mike Crispi know the score, and are saving us from the cabal.
Joe Saviak, Frequent Flier of Local Government Mentoring, Helps Palm Coast Council Launch Its Goal-Setting Season
Joe Saviak spearheaded a dynamic orientation meeting on Monday morning at the Palm Coast Community Center, guiding the Palm Coast City Council, administration, and department directors through a strategic action planning session. The City of Palm Coast has consistently undertaken an annual strategic action plan process over the past decade, a crucial initiative to address community needs and pave the way for a positive future.
Indian Trails Middle’s Giles Platt Is Flagler’s Spelling Bee Champ After Conquering ‘Apparatus,’ ‘Vicarious,’ and of Course ‘Acclaim’
It took Indian Trails Middle School eighth grader Giles Platt eight rounds, but he hoisted the 2023-24 Flagler County Spelling Bee Champion’s trophy Thursday evening after spelling apparatus and vicarious correctly. He knew he had it right even before the judges confirmed it, beaming a grin as he repeated the word, then jumping with joy as the audience applauded. Joyce Holmes, an eighth grader at Imagine School at Town Center, is the runner-up.
Flagler Beach Is Fiercely Opposed to Consolidating Library With County, But Cooperative Intrigues Even Jane Mealy
Flagler Beach on Thursday formally rejected an inquiry by Flagler County government about the possibility of merging the Flagler Beach Public Library with the county’s system. But that does not necessarily close the book on a collaborative partnership. City Commissioner Jane Mealy, the fiercest defender of the Flagler Beach library’s independence, is intrigued by the possibility of a cooperative that would preserve that independence but expand Flagler Beach residents’ access to county library resources, likely at no additional cost.
In Flagler Beach, A Lack of Consensus Even About the Discussion on Changing Mayor’s Role and Commission’s Make-Up
The Flagler Beach City Commission is heading to a Feb. 15 workshop to discuss possibly placing on a referendum questions about changing the mayor’s role to a voting one, changing commissioners’ terms, and changing the role of the chair. But the commission is more divided than not both about the questions themselves and the purpose of the workshop. That does not bode well for its outcome–at least the outcome Commission Chair Eric Cooley wants, which is to put the questions to a referendum.
He’d Burglarized Tourists’ Car at a Local Park and Bought Apple Watches with Their Cards. He Was Sentenced to Life in Prison.
Last November, Caisy Frank, a 40-year-old resident of Brooklyn, N.Y., was tried and found guilty of armed burglary, grand theft of a firearm, additional grand theft counts, and fraud, among 10 charges. On Tuesday, Circuit Judge Terence Perkins sentenced Frank to life in prison. The severity of the sentence is a reflection of Frank’s status as a prison-release reoffender.
School Board’s Sally Hunt Is Getting Tired of All Those Celebratory Spotlights and Awareness Proclamations
Flagler County School Board member Sally Hunt does not seem to be enjoying her job. At least not the fun parts, the parts that give district teachers, employees and students a chance to showcase their accomplishments, the parts that give the community a voice through proclamations. They just drag on too long, and maybe they shouldn’t be part of the “business” portion of the meetings, Hunt told her colleagues at a workshop earlier this week, as she spoke from an undisclosed location, phoning it in.
Heidi Petito Gets a Combined C+ from Commissioners’ Evaluation of Her 2nd Full Year as County Administrator
It was not the strongest evaluation year for Flagler County Administrator Heidi Petito, who scored a C-plus from the five combined reviews by her county commissioner bosses, despite perfect scores from two of the five. But the commissioners’ written comments to Petito generally painted a more complimentary picture than their numbers.
School Board’s Christy Chong’s ‘Cause’ Letter to Fire Attorney Is a Tissue of Fabrications, Petty Grievances and Cluelessness
The six “causes” Flagler County School Board member Christy Chong listed as reasons to fire attorney Kristy Gavin come nowhere near “just cause” as defined in Gavin’s contract. Rather, they’re petty, inaccurate, gossipy and falsified grievances that have more to do with Chong being out of her depth, her embarrassment, her hatred for the press and her contempt for transparency and the public than anything to do with the quality of Gavin’s work in nearly two decades of representing the board.
Palm Coast Firefighters Honored for Heroic Acts, Bringing Back to Life Three Palm Coast Residents
Lieutenant Richard Cline (retired), Lieutenant Joseph Paci, Driver Engineer Brandon Davis, Driver Engineer Dylan Mulligan, Driver Engineer Julie Rivera (retired), Firefighter Kyle Gardner, and Firefighter Tyler Major were awarded unit commendations in recognition of their decisive actions that effectively led to the successful resuscitation and life-saving rescue of Palm Coast residents Mike Rowlings, Mark Leinemann, and Vito Mattioli.
Palm Coast Clears Way for $31 Million Connector to Loop Road Through Vacant West of the City, With a Warning to FPL
The Palm Coast City Council on approved four related measures that will advance the opening to development of 12,000 acres on the west side of U.S. 1, from the Matanzas Woods Parkway area, including a $25 million state grant contributing to the cost of a $31 million connector road, dubbed a “flyover,” that will cross above the Florida East Coast railroad corridor. But FPL drew withering criticism from council members over the manner in which the company is charging the city for an “estimate” about moving its infrastructure as part of the Matanzas Woods project.
Brenan Hill Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murder of Savannah Gonzalez, 22, as Her Cousin Tells Him: ‘I Loathe You’
Circuit Judge Terence Perkins this afternoon sentenced Brenan Hill to life in prison for the murder of Savannah Gonzalez in the Publix parking lot off Belle Terre Parkway the morning of March 26, 2021. Gonzalez was 22 when Hill shot her that morning. She lived, incapacitated, hospitalized and unaware, until Nov. 9, 2022, when she died. Hill’s initial explanations for the shooting were a confederacy of lies.
Carlos Rivera-Hernandez, 32, Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison Over Child Sexual Abuse Materials
Ten years ago Carlos Rafael Rivera-Hernandez of Palm Coast served prison and was declared a sex offender on a conviction on statutory rape of a child. On Monday, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison followed by 15 years on probation, and was declared a sexual predator, over possession of child sexual abuse material.
County Gives Its Constitutional Officers Extra Month to Prepare Budget in a Year of ‘Uncertainties’
The Flagler County Commission on Monday voted to give its constitutional officers an extra month–until June 1–to turn in their proposed budgets for the fiscal year beginning Oct.1, ahead of what County Administrator Heidi Petito described as a year of “uncertainty.” The commission also appeared to agree, without a formal vote, to reduce the tax rate next year, though that may end up being more of a symbolic than an substantial reduction.
DeSantis Lends Support to Proposal Banning Local Governments from Giving Refuge to Homeless on Public Property
Saying that while no city in Florida is contending with the issues of homelessness that are prevalent in places like San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York City, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday came out in support of a proposal moving through the Florida Legislature that would ban local governments from allowing people to sleep on public property without a permit.
Roundabout Will Be Built on Old Kings Road by Bulow Plantation, at Entrance to Radiance Development
The Flagler County Commission approved spending roughly $2.5 million to build a roundabout on Old Kings Road, at the intersection with the entrance to Bulow Plantation and what will be the entrance to the Radiance development–what used to be known as Eagle Lakes.
Fight at Dollar General Escalates to a Shooting as 2 Men Chase Each Other Through North Palm Coast
Victor Smith, 46, is at the Flagler County jail on $96,000 bond after a physical fight that escalated to a shooting in Palm Coast’s Matanzas Woods neighborhood at midday Sunday. The alleged victim is living with the woman to whom Smith is still married to, but from whom he’s been separated or five months.
Florida’s Open Season on Civil Liberties
Florida lawmakers don’t care about the insurance crisis; they don’t care about runaway rents; they don’t care about hungry children or sick women or the climate crisis or pollution or the teacher shortage or anything that you and I and anyone else with two brain cells to rub together would identify as pressing problems here in the increasingly dysfunctional State of Florida. What they care about is ending your liberties. Here’s a list.
Florida’s Sunshine Law Is Dying
The battle, mostly lost, is not those individual exemptions to the Sunshine Law. It’s the totality of what’s been lost over the years: a presumption of openness has been replaced by the reverse, thanks to an unspoken but very effective bureaucracy of secrecy by process. The secrecy isn’t explicit. Most of your average government gatekeepers would never think of themselves as suppressing information. But the rules they have in place, allowing them to delay, obfuscate, censor and charge a ton of money before they comply, amount to the same thing: secrecy as standard operating procedure.
Vacation Rental Bill Weakening Local Control Passes Senate and Now May Depend on Renner in the House
While one bill passed the Senate on a 27-13 vote, the House version may depend on House Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast, on whose authority the bill may–or may not–eventually come to a vote on the floor. Sen. Travis Hutson, who represents Flagler County, voted against Flagler County priorities opposing deregulation, and in favor of the Senate bill last month.
Flagler County Lands $4 Million Grant for South Branch Library, Nearing $16 Million Needed for Construction
Drawing on federal funds channeled through Florida–and the strength of a grant application by Holly Albanese, the county’s library director and chief of special projects–Flagler County today was awarded a $4 million grant for its planned $16 million south-branch library in Bunnell, known as the “Nexus Center.” It is a major win for the county, all but securing the necessary funding for the library, which has been a dream of the library Board of Trustees for a decade.
Palm Coast Mayor Spotlights State of City’s Heroes and Names Flagler Cares’ Carrie Baird Citizen of the Year
At Palm Coast’s State of the City Thursday evening, Mayor David Alfin awarded David Lydon the Public Service Award for his work with veterans. Erik Libby and The To-Do-Dudes got the Next Generation Award, and Flagler Care’s Carrie Baird received the Citizen of the Year Award for her dedication to “building a robust social safety net for our community.”
Suspected Gas Station Armed Robber Who Was Shot By a Store Clerk in 2nd Incident Returns to Flagler to Face Charge
Qwinntavus Kwame Jordan, the 32-year-old man suspected of armed robbery at the Shell convenience store on State Road 100 in Palm Coast last April, and of another robbery in Georgia hours later, where a store clerk shot at him eight times, was booked at the Flagler County jail Wednesday, on no bond, to face a first-degree felony charge of armed robbery.
Flagler Beach Breathes Sigh of Relief as Beach Front Grille Announces It’s Here to Stay
After days of uncertainty when Beach Front Grille owner Jamie Bourdeau had publicly announced that the business was over half a million dollars short of the money needed to buy out the location, Bourdeau today announced that the deal had worked out, and that the restaurant, which opened in 2014, would remain at its A1A location.
Flagler Pride Installs Its New Board as It Looks To Be a ‘Beacon of Support and Empowerment’
Flagler Pride, the non-profit Eryn Harris established four years ago as the county’s first LGBTQ+ advocacy organization, and the organizational muscle behind the annual Pride Fest, installed its new, four-member board at Coquina Coast Brewing on Jan. 12. It’s led by President Tyler Jones, with Skyler Loder as vice president, Margaret “Maggie” Potter as secretary and Calvin Vincent Neugent as treasurer. The organization’s founding board members–Harris, Erica Rivera and Garrett Marinconz–have taken on advisory roles.
Ending Speculation, Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin Announces Re-Election Run and Joins Crowded Field
Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin, first elected in July 2021 to complete the term of Melissa Holland, will run for a full four-year term in an Aug. 20 primary that has drawn four other candidates so far. In 2021, Alfin won in a six-way race, taking 36 percent of the vote. His absence from the list of declared candidates had begun to draw speculations about his intentions, though he left no doubt about those in an interview on Tuesday.
Mother of 6-Week-Old Boy at Project Warm Is Charged with Aggravated Child Abuse After Discovery of Burns
Jessica Marie Jordan, a 35-year-old resident of Project Warm, the behavioral health program in Bunnell for pregnant women and young mothers who have battled addiction, is at the Flagler County jail, facing two grave child abuse charges after her 6-week-old child was found to have burn marks that were several days old. Jordan has been a client, or resident, at Project Warm since May 2.
Defense Files Motion to Dismiss Manslaughter Charge Against Migrant in Arrest Followed by Deputy’s Heart Attack
Two weeks after all but accusing the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office of fabricating parts of the account surrounding the arrest of 18-year-old Virgilio Aguilar Mendez, the migrant’s defense attorney has filed a motion to dismiss the manslaughter count against him, calling it “legally insufficient” and arguing that there’s no connection between Mendez and what led to the death of Sheriff’s deputy Michael Kunovich of a heart attack after the arrest.
Contrary to Flagler Beach’s Impressions, Palm Coast Is Not Pursuing Veranda Bay for Annexation
Palm Coast is not pursuing the annexation of Veranda Bay, the 335-home development formerly known as The Gardens on John Anderson Highway, nor would it pursue an annexation: that would be the land owner’s prerogative. And in veranda Bay’s case, the developer has not filed any kind of formal document suggesting he’d want to annex into Palm Coast.
Circle K Murder Trial of Marcus Chamblin Is Set for April 8, With Co-Conspirator’s Trial Soon to Follow
Circuit Judge Terence Perkins today set April 8 as the trial date for Marcus Chamblin, one of two defendants facing a first-degree murder charge in the October 12, 2019 murder of Deon O’Neal Jenkins and an attempted murder charge in the shooting of a second victim, whose name authorities have not released. The shooting took place in the parking lot of the Circle K gas station and convenience store on Palm Coast Parkway, off of Belle Terre Parkway.
Veranda Bay Courtship: Flagler Beach Swiftly Changes Its Annexation Rule In Defensive Move Against Palm Coast
Flagler Beach is in an annexation race with Palm Coast to win over Veranda Bay and its hundreds of homes along John Anderson Highway. To that end, Flagler Beach changed its annexation rule. By convincing it to annex into Flagler Beach, the city is hoping to limit development impacts on its rim. It fears that under Palm Coast standards, Veranda Bay could be an intense cluster of high rises and high-density developments.
Brendan Depa’s Sentencing is Postponed as Lawyers Cite More Preparation Needed
Originally scheduled for Wednesday, the sentencing of Brendan Depa, the former Matanzas High School student who pleaded to a count of aggravated battery on a school employee, has ben postponed to an undetermined date, and may not be held until past mid-March.
Stabbing at Econolodge: Money Issues for Homeless Family Staying There Escalate Into Violence
A juvenile girl apparently defending herself from being choked stabbed her mother’s boyfriend, 35-year-old Tyland Chambers, at the Econolodge in Palm Coast Sunday morning, before Chambers allegedly attacked another man who was trying to protect the girl. Chambers ended up hospitalized for treatment, and facing four charges, including two felonies. The girl was not charged.
Palm Coast’s Eric Galdabini, 56, Randomly Attacks and Stabs a Man After Attempting to Pick-Up His Girlfriend
Eric Philip Galdabini, a 56-year-old resident of 126 Birchwood Drive in Palm Coast, had circled by a couple walking in the B-Section and asked a 21-year-old woman if she wanted a ride before he stopped the car and rushed her boyfriend. The two scuffled, Galdabini slashed at the man with a pocketknife, and was later arrested on an aggravated battery with a deadly weapon count.
On His Trial’s Eve, Marshall Thomas, 17, Is Arrested for the 3rd Time in 18 Months, This Time for Distributing Porn to Kids
Marshall Thomas, 17, has twice been released on bond since his original arrest in July 2022, and both times has re-offended, getting charged with serious felonies. Now, on the eve of his trial in Flagler County on charges of molesting a girl at Matanzas High School, and on two counts of stealing firearms, prosecutors in Flagler County are asking that Thomas’s bond be revoked following his latest arrest, in Wisconsin, on charges of distributing child pornography to other children.
County Commissioners Plan to Develop 4 or 5 New Economic Development Incentives to Diversify Tax Base
The Flagler County Commission is looking to step up its incentive programs for economic development, focusing on certain approaches more than others, as it looks to diversify the local tax base and expand on the availability of local jobs in a county where nearly half the working population of 51,000 people commutes out of county.
Flagler Beach Will Sign 3-Year, $94,000 Deal for New Year’s Eve Fireworks, But With an Escape Clause
The Flagler Beach City Commission will approve a three-year, $94,000 deal with My Three Sons, the fireworks company, to produce New Year’s Eve fireworks through 2026, assuming there’s a place from where to set them off. The deal stems from last New Year’s Eve fireworks display, the first in the city on that date, which My Three Sons produced to local acclaim.
At Joint Meeting of Local Flagler Governments, Homelessness Draws a Vague Pledge to Seek Funding
A joint meeting of Flagler County’s cities and the county again took up homelessness and again mostly deferred to non-profits and churches to pick up the pieces. But officials also agreed at least to explore state funding possibilities. More firm commitments to tackle the issue are still lacking.
Flagler Receives $15.7 Million from State for Beach Project, Making Dip Into Reserves Unnecessary
Flagler County will not have to dip into its reserves for $15.7 million after all. The county administrator said late this morning that the Florida Department of Transportation had just wired money pledged to the county to cover the county’s share of the cost of the long-awaited U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ beach-reconstruction project in Flagler Beach, which begins in late spring.
Palm Coast’s Noah Michael Urban, 19, Faces 14 Counts of Cryptocurrency Fraud in Federal Indictment
A federal judge in Jacksonville on Monday signed an order to have former Palm Coast resident Noah Michael Urban held in prison pending trial, and finding him at risk of fleeing if he were released meanwhile. Urban is alleged to have stolen virtual currency from five victims’ accounts by fraudulently obtaining their personal identifying information, managing to take control of their cell phone numbers, and gaining access to their online accounts and cryptocurrency exchange accounts.