The playground area and portions of the parking lot at Holland Park will close the first half of next week, from May 6 to May 8, to accommodate the continuing $3 million reconstruction of the splash pad at the park. Meanwhile, the city’s lawsuit against a slew of contractors is heading for a trial in late summer.
Flagler, Palm Coast & Other Local News
When Is Punishment Enough for a Predator? A Child Rapist Makes His Case to End Probation, and Loses.
Lawrence William Morton, formerly of Flagler Beach, served 20 years in prison and five on probation for sex crimes against six minors. He appeared before a judge Monday, seeking to end his probation five years early, as the law allows, arguing that he’s been a model probationer. The judge denied the motion in a case broadly illustrative of recurring requests by sex offenders and predators, and dilemmas faced by the court and prosecutors.
15-Year-Old Palm Coast Boy Critical After Electric Bike Collision with Pick-Up on Laramie and Lakeview
A 15-year-old Palm Coast adolescent was in critical condition Wednesday evening after a pick-up truck collided with the electric bike the 15 year old was riding as he crossed the intersection at Lakeview Boulevard and Laramie Drive in north Palm Coast.
Joan Naydich, Brendan Depa’s Victim of Beating, Details How ‘Everything Was Taken Away’ from Her
Joan Naydich, the former teacher’s aide at Matanzas High School, described how Brendan Depa destroyed her life at 10 o’clock that Tuesday morning in 2023, when the then-17-year-old special education student rushed her as she was leaving his classroom–after he spat on her–knocked her unconscious and pummeled her, all on video.
Flagler County and Ormond Beach Will Hold Extraordinary Meeting in Hopes of Resolving Dispute Over 1,750 Feet
The Flagler County and Ormond Beach city commissions will meet on May 16 in hopes of resolving a lawsuit Ormond Beach filed against the county, disputing Flagler’s use of a 1,750-foot stretch of dirt road on Ormond Beach’s side of the county line, through conservation land the county manages.
Jayden Jackson, 21, a Sheriff’s Deputy’s Son, Is Arrested in Hit-and-Run Death of Shaunta Cain on U.S. 1
Jayden Ikaika Jackson, the 21-year-old son of a Flagler County Sheriff’s deputy, was arrested on Monday on a first-degree felony charge of hit-and-run causing the death of 51-year-old Shaunta Cain in late 2022.
Veranda Bay Says It’s Ready to Annex Into Flagler Beach; Its 2,700 Future Homes Will Double City’s Size
Ken Belshe, who represents Veranda Bay, the planned 2700-home development along John Anderson Highway, told Flagler Beach’s city attorney in an email that voluntary annexation is a go. The city had been assiduously pursuing Veranda Bay to annex, amending its annexation ordinance to make it possible, courting Belshe with what amounted to a love letter, and with not a little bit of anticipatory drool, sharply increasing its development impact fees that would disproportionately be generated from Veranda Bay.
Man Accused of Woodlands Murder Judged Incompetent for Trial. State Hospital Won’t Take Him. Now What?
Charles Kidd, the 86-year-old former resident of 20 Blare Drive in Palm Coast’s Woodlands, where he is accused of shooting and killing 36-year-old Mark Ruschmeier last August, has been deemed incompetent to stand trial and ineligible for restorative treatment that could bring him back to court to face a second degree murder charge.
‘I Love You Mayor’: Palm Coast’s David Alfin Gets a Warmer Reception at Coffee Talk Than at Council
Based on the pillorying he regularly gets from the floor at Palm Coast City Council meetings, David Alfin can look like a mayor more embattled than front-running barely three months from an August primary. Judging from this morning’s town hall-style “Coffee Chat” with Alfin at Panera Bread, where he was warmly received, reports of Alin’s demise may be premature. “I love you Mayor” isn’t something you hear at council meetings lately. It was heard this morning.
Bunnell Man and His Family Wake Up to Find Ex at Foot of His Bed With a Knife, Ready to Attack
It is among the worst imaginable situations in one’s home: to wake up and see an armed, threatening assailant at the foot of the bed. It was even worse for R.G. and his family: his two young children were in the bedroom, as was his girlfriend. The assailant clenching a knife was his ex-wife, Melinda Gould, 40, who’d previously faced a stalking charge, and who earlier that night had been on the hunt for a gun. She now faces five felonies, one of them punishable by up to life in prison.