People with disabilities, domestic and sexual violence programs, mental health and substance abuse programs, juvenile justice and children’s services all got bigger budgets for the first time since the recession began.
All Else
Taking Stand in His Defense in Murder Trial, Miller Projects More Surliness Than Sympathy
If it was sympathy that Paul Miller was trying to elicit from the jury Wednesday afternoon, his nearly two-hour performance was not a model. He may have hurt his case more than he helped it when he elected to take the stand in his defense in his trial for the killing of Dana Mulhall in March 2012.
Miller Trial Turns to 5 Bullets’ Paths, Mulhall’s Last Moments–and Blood-Alcohol (0.188)
Paul Miller, accused of murdering Dana Mulhall, looked away or closed his eyes for the first time in the now-three-day-old trial as images of the bloodied and shot Dana Mulhall were placed on an easel for the jury to see and the prosecution to analyze with witnesses Wednesday morning. The defense takes up its case in the afternoon.
NFL and MLS Snub Florida After Bill to Subsidize Dolphins and Soccer at Taxpayers’ Expense Fails
The NFL awarded the 2016 Super Bowl to the San Francisco area and the 2017 championship contest to Houston, a little more than two weeks after a bill tied to potential state funding for the Miami Dolphins and an Orlando soccer stadium died in the Florida House.
Miller Trial: As Shooter’s Shows of Affection Are Restricted, Prosecution Draws Victim’s Portrait
The prosecution concluded its first full day in the murder trial of Paul Miller Tuesday by painting a portrait of Dana Mulhall, the victim in the March 2012 shooting in Flagler Beach, as a non-confrontational creature of habit who liked his Miller Lites, his friends and his lottery tickets. The defense laid low.
Report of Incident Involving 11-Year-old and a Possible Sex Offender Has R Section on Edge
An incident took place Sunday afternoon in Palm Coast’s R-Section that rattled a boy and his mother, and has since rippled beyond the R-Section into an alert throughout local schools about a potential sex offender. But evidence is based on a single report.
Miller Killed Mulhall “With Depraved Indifference, With Ill Will, Hate, Spite,” Prosecution Argues
In the second day of Paul Miller’s trial (Monday was devoted to jury selection) the prosecution was piecing together a picture of a shooting no witness actually saw, but that several witnesses described in sounds and sights before, during and after the shots that claimed the life of Dana Mulhall on March 14, 2012 in Flagler Beach.
Two Flagler Projects Among $368 Million in Vetoes as Scott Approves $74.1 Billion Budget
Having powerful House Speaker Will Weatherford on its board did not spare Heather Beaven’s Flagler Beach-based Florida Endowment Foundation from a veto eliminating its $2 million appropriation. Flagler also lost $150,000 for a retraining program.
Ken Mattison Named Florida Hospital Flagler CEO, Switching With Ottati in Swift Succession
Ken Mattison, for 16 years the CEO at Adventist Health’s Florida Hospital Waterman, has been named to take over for David Ottati at Florida Hospital Flagler, a $156 million business with 1,017 employees in 2011. Ottati will assume Mattison’s position at Waterman, a $205 million hospital with 1,879 employees.
As Jury Is Seated in Paul Miller Murder Trial, Questions About Guns Weed Out Prospects
The most anticipated trial of the year—of Paul Miller, the 66-year-old Flagler Beach man accused of murdering his neighbor Dana Mulhall last year during an argument over Miller’s barking dogs—began Monday with jury selection, which by day’s end had seated an all-white jury of three men and three women, plus three alternates (a woman and two men, one of them black).
Matanzas High Student Allen Brown Tasered After Allegedly Punching Student and Deputy
Matanzas High student Allen Brown, 18, was Tasered by a Flagler sheriff’s deputy Monday after being involved in a fight with a 15-year-old student and allegedly punching the deputy, in the first use of a Taser on a Flagler school campus in six years.
Closing Flagler’s Alternative School: When The Classmate Next to Your Child Is a Felon
The Flagler County school, district may close Everest alternative school (formerly Pathways) if the June 7 referendum for a modest property tax increase fails. Jo Ann Nahirny, a teacher at Matanzas High School, describes the disruptions of managing a classroom with felons and sex offenders in seats alongside other students.
The IRS’ Nonprofit Dysfunctions: A Problem Deeper Than Conservative Targeting
The IRS division responsible for flagging Tea Party groups has long been an agency afterthought, beset by mismanagement, financial constraints and an unwillingness to spell out just what it expects from social welfare nonprofits, former officials and experts say.
Flagler Beach’s Endowment Foundation’s $2 Million on List of Annual Legislative “Turkeys”
The Flagler Beach -based Florida Endowent Foundation for Florida’s Graduates’ $2 million appropriation, representing all its budget, is among the 107 items of Florida Tax Watch’s annual “turkey” list in the Legislature’s $74.5 billion budget.
Joseph Drenner, 50, Is Killed in Early Morning Wreck on U.S. 1; Companion Survives
Joseph Drenner, 50, was killed when he was ejected from a Toyota SUV his companion, Christina Laming, 41, was driving north on U.S. 1 in Palm Coast early Saturday morning. Charges are pending against Laming, who refused to have her blood tested at the scene for impairment.
With Medieval Wit and Drama, “Lion in Winter” Ends City Repertory’s Second Season
James Goldman’s “Lion in Winter”–opening at Palm Coast’s City Repertory Theatre this weekend–may be set in a Medieval Christmas, but the themes are as contemporary as family love, quarrels, mistresses and jealousies, and the action blazes with humor and passion.
Flagler’s Jobless Rate Drops to 9.3% as Local Employment Grows; Florida’s Falls to 7.2%
Florida’s unemployment rate fell sharply from the previous month, to 7.2 percent in April, as 17,000 jobs were created statewide, bringing the unemployment rate to its healthiest level since September 2008, when it was 7 percent. It also brings Florida’s rate below the national rate of 7.5 percent. In Flagler County, the rate fell two decimal points, to 9.3 percent, spurred by growth both in jobs and in the local labor force.
President Barack Aux Scandals
The Benghazi story is a bogus scandal. IRS targeting of conservative groups and the Justice Department’s hacking of reporters’ phones is not. The Obama presidency is getting derailed, and that’s without going down the path of even more serious scandals Washington and the electorate are accepting as business as usual.
Florida Loses Out on Amazon Deal, and Up to 3,000 Jobs, Over Sales Tax Fumes
In a statement issued Thursday, Gov. Rick Scott’s administration implied that if Amazon were to locate in Florida and begin collecting taxes, that would amount to a tax increase on Florida residents who use the popular shopping portal.
Flagler’s African-American Mentor Program Celebrates Another Year Against Odds and Age
The Flagler County African-American Mentor Program graduated 10 of its 62 students in a ceremony Thursday evening, attended by 42 mentors and parents and grandparents as the program, started by Jim Guines and John Winston, celebrated its ninth year.
Fleming Farewell: Flagler Crime Rate Falls to Lowest Level in 12 Years in Ex-Sheriff’s Last
In Flagler, crime declined in every major category except robberies (up by one), including overall domestic violence, though domestic aggravated assaults account for half the county’s total. The crime in Florida hit a 42-year low, with falling crime continuing despite the bad economy.
Speculative Bust: How Widening Old Kings Road Left Palm Coast on Hook for $6.7 Million
Palm Coast borrowed millions from its own utility fund to complete the Old Kings Road widening on the assumption that the economy would pick up and enable the city to re-finance with bonds. That never happened. Now the city is looking to recoup its money from property owners along the road, who’d agreed to a special taxing district but with optimistic assumptions of their own that never panned out.
Record $288 Million in Taxpayer Cash Flows to Florida’s Cargo and Pleasure Cruise Ports
Florida’s seaports are set to embark on a massive round of 26 waterfront and transit upgrades as Florida seeks to expand its trade with partners in Central America and South America, while working to attract more Asian traffic that has grown via the Suez Canal and the expansion of the Panama Canal approaches completion.
Blacks Charge Cop Harassment and Bullying As County Cancels Block Party in Bunnell
When Bunnell police alerted the county of a large block party for South Bunnell’s black community the county had previously permitted–as a “picnic/party”–to take place on county land near Carver Gym, the county cancelled it. Monday evening, several members of Bunnell’s black community complained to the city commission of chronic harassment and bullying by Bunnell police.
Ending 3rd Budget Drag-Out in 8 Days, School Board Settles on $1.8 Million in Cuts
After 13 hours of at times harrowing debate, the Flagler County School Board by Tuesday evening settled on $1.8 million in cuts, sparing most programs but not Everest alternative school. The cuts will be restored should voters approve a tax referendum on June 7.
Florida College Presidents’ Compensation Ranges From $143,866 to $630,157
The contracts for Florida’s 28 state college presidents range widely, totaling almost $10 million in compensation, and in several cases seem to violate state law, according to a review released Monday by Gov. Rick Scott’s top oversight official.
Fast-Track Kill Bill Aside, Scott Speeds Death Warrants, Slating 3 Executions in 26 Days
Gov. Rick Scott is not waiting to sign a bill that would accelerate the pace of capital-punishment executions in Florida. The death warrants he’s signed since April lead to the fastest-paced series of executions since four inmates were killed in March 1998, when Lawton Chiles was governor.
Andy Dance: Why I Will Vote “Yes” On the School Tax Referendum
“I will vote for the half mill, and I ask those that are on the fence or are leaning “no” to reconsider,” writes Andy Dance, the Flagler County School Board chairman, who has himself reconsidered his earlier opposition to the full .50-mill tax referendum. He explains why.
School Board Chairman’s Q&A on Flagler District’s 0.5-Mil Tax Referendum on June 7
Flagler County School Board Chairman Andy Dance has been taking and answering questions on the referendum, on June 7, proposing to raise property taxes modestly to ensure the continuation of certain academic programs. The full Q&A is published here.
In Flagler Beach, a First Friday Flare-Up Derails a Hot-Rod Idea, Cautioning Businesses
Flagler Beach has been urging businesses to get involved in planning First Friday events. A restaurant owner did, only to see her initiative–a hot rod contest judged by commissioners–cancelled, costing her $1,000, over questions Commissioner Steve Settle raised about the legality of Commissioner Jane Mealy’s judging the auto contest.
Jim Saunders Is News Service of Florida’s New Executive Editor, Replacing David Royse
The News Service of Florida announced the promotion of Jim Saunders to executive editor on Monday (May 13), putting him in charge of the daily news report. He is taking over that role from founding executive editor David Royse, who will become associate editor of special projects for the News Service.
Its Value $26 Million in the Hole, Bunnell Rethinks Downtown Redevelopment Zone
Bunnell established its 800-acre downtown redevelopment zone in 2007, assuming that most tax revenue generated there could then be reinvested in the area to reinvigorate it. Instead, property values fell $26 million in the zone, forcing the city to rethink the CRA’s viability.
Despite Snubbing Obamacare, Florida Gets Thousands of Jobs and Cash from Health Act
Even though Florida officials tried to block the implementation of the Affordable Care Act at every turn over the past three years, the state will gain millions in grants and hundreds of new jobs this year from its implementation.
Mother’s Day Confidential: News of My Mom’s Death Was Slightly Premature
Receiving a condolence note about my mother sent in error by the hospice company caring for her should have been disturbing. It was merely disappointing–for not being true.
Paul Bouler, 49, Found Dead of Self-Inflicted Gunshot at Varn Park After an Argument
Paul Pete Bouler Jr., a 49-year-old lawyer, was found dead in his car at Varn Park Saturday night in an apparent suicide by firearm, about an hour and a half after he’d left his Palm Coast home after an argument with his wife.
At Hollingsworth Gallery:
JJ Graham’s Furious Marathon
In “Marathon,” his first one-man exhibit in two-and-a-half years, JJ Graham fills his own Hollingsworth gallery with a tour de force of a show featuring almost all new work created in the last 10 days and combining humor, surprises, shock, beauty, narcissism, polemic, and an open dare.
Burglarized Palm Coast Homeowner Briefly Sets Chase; Suspects Later Caught in Volusia
Though Sheriff Jim Manfre doesn’t recommend it, a burglarized homeowner in Palm Coast’s E Section chased two suspected burglars Friday and got key descriptions of their car and clothes, helping to lead to further chases and the two individuals’ arrest in Volusia County Friday afternoon.
Pink Ladies in a Mud Run, On the Other Side of Flagler’s Beaches
Mud runs in Flagler County–such as Saturday’s FL.ROC Mud Run on Cemetery Road in Bunnell–are a mostly unknown sub-specialty of Flagler County special events. Casey Ryan takes you into the mud on her October run, as she prepares for Saturday’s.
Flagler Beach Police Seeking Help Identifying ATM Robber in Planet-of-the-Apes Mask
A potential victim of an ATM robbery at the Flagler Beach Sun Trust on Thursday was startled when the assailant was a robber in a monkey suit. The victim punched the assailant, possibly hurting him. Flagler Beach police is seeking help identifying the man in the monkey suit.
Gun Zealots Urging Scott to Veto Firearm-Regulation Bill Even the NRA Supports
The bill closes a legal gap, as state law already bars firearms purchases by people who are involuntarily committed under the Baker Act. This one focuses on people who are found to be an “imminent danger” and face the possibility of being involuntarily committed if they do not admit themselves.
Sheriff Opens Palm Coast Precinct at City Market Place, Halving Cost, Not Space Needs
On Friday, the Sherif’s Office office opened its newest Palm Coast precinct, at City Market Place, a two-storefront 2,600-square foot space at $2,.000 a month that’ll add new life to the struggling shopping center in the heart of town, and a few doors down from the Palm Coast city offices.
Flagler Beach Bats Down Fire Department Consolidation, Agreeing Only to Ask Questions
Flagler Beach Commissioner Kim Carney’s proposal to formally ask the county for information on possible consolidation got no support but was replaced by a watered-down agreement to “ask questions” and have them answered by City Manager Bruce Campbell, through meetings with the county if necessary.
Updating Facebook Status, Charlie Crist Endorses Gay Marriage in Florida
Amid speculation he will run as a Democrat for his old job, former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist on Wednesday said he supports allowing same-sex marriage, joining other politicians who recently have changed stances to support gay marriage, including Florida’s Bill nelson and Ohio Republican Rob Portman.
Closing Schools a Possibility With or Without Referendum as District Closes Budget Gap
The Flagler County School Board found the $1.8 million in cuts it needed to balance its books Thursday, but was also told that closing Indian Trails Middle, Wadsworth Elementary or Old Kings Elementary may become necessary by 2014-15 if enrollment declines persist.
Florida Hospital CEO David Ottati, Major Force in Local Economy, Leaving for Tavares
David Ottati, the CEO at Florida Hospital Flagler for the past seven years, where he oversaw a vast expansion that increased hospital employment past 1,000 and helped cushion the local economy’s severe downturn of the past few years, will be leaving the hospital to take a new post as CEO of the 269-bed Florida Hospital Waterman in Tavares, in Central Florida, in early June.
“In the Line of Duty”: Fallen Officers Are Remembered in Annual Ceremony
“What is the meaning of ‘In the line of duty?’,” Rick Staly, Flagler County’s undersheriff, said during his brief remarks at the annual commemoration of fallen law enforcement officers at the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office this morning, before describing the meaning of ultimate sacrifice.
Nine Surprises You May Not Know Are in Florida’s New Budget
The Florida Legislature’s $74 billion budget contains, as always, innumerable surprises in the fine print, from $240,000 to be spent on orange juice served visitors at highway stops to $500,000 to advertise stay-in-state vacations to Floridians.
Palm Coast’s Arbor Day Moves Back to Central Park on May 18
Palm Coast is bringing back its rescheduled Arbor Day celebration to Central Park (from Waterfront Park), on May 18. the event will be featuring a tree give-away, butterfly release, food drive, walk and run, exhibits and activities for children including a petting zoo, character visits and rock-climbing wall. Admission and parking are free.
As Closing a School Emerges as an Option, District Calls for Emergency Meeting Thursday
Despite some confusion about budget numbers described as a “moving target,” the Flagler school board was spending a day-long workshop to find some $1.7 million in cuts, many of them affecting educational programs directly.
As Gov. Scott Looks to Re-Election, Legislative Wins Have Yet to Bump Approval
Gov. Rick Scott got the teacher raise he sought, and a sales-tax exemption for manufacturing equipment in the last legislative session, but his poll numbers haven’t showed improvement as he heads into the 2014 campaign for a second term.