The trial of the Milton woman accused of helping carry out a murder spree across the Gulf Coast that left four women dead starts Monday. From January 31st to February 6th, 2017, 38-year-old Mary Rice accompanied Billy Boyette when the murders were committed. The two were located in a motel room in West Point, Georgia,…… MORE
Category Archives: Uncategorized
COMPROMISED JACKSON CO. CRIMINAL CASES
Prosecutors are reviewing more than 250 criminal cases involving a Jackson County Sheriff’s Deputy after a video showed him planting drugs in a vehicle during a traffic stop. 26-year-old Zachary Wester was a patrol deputy with the Jackson County Sheriff’s office and was fired September 10th. He is under investigation by the Florida Department of…… MORE
VALPARAISO FIRE CHIEF SUSPENDED
Valparaiso Fire Chief Mark Norris has been suspended by Mayor Brent Smith who notified Norris he was being placed on paid administrative leave pending a hearing after the Mayor said he had lost confidence in his ability to guide the Fire Department. Norris was ordered to surrender all city property, including badges, radios and vehicles.…… MORE
WALTON COUNTY TEACHER DISCIPLINED
A Walton County 4th-grade teacher has been formally disciplined by the state for giving her students the answer to a question on a standardized test last year. Gina Ealum, an Exceptional Student Education teacher at West DeFuniak Elementary School, administered the Florida Standards Assessment test to her students on April 20, 2017, and gave them…… MORE
NEW STATE PRESCRIPTION DRUG LAW
A new law requires more than 92,000 health-care providers in Florida to use an electronic database that tracks patients who are prescribed controlled substances. The law is designed to reduce what is called “doctor shopping,” where substance abusers seek prescriptions for addictive drugs from multiple physicians. The Legislature also banned doctors from writing prescriptions for…… MORE
OPIOID FUNDING
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says Florida has been awarded almost 62 million dollars to help fight opioid addiction. The agency said the majority of the funding, will be go to medication-assisted treatment and prevention. The remaining money will be used to help community health centers, academic institutions and rural organizations expand…… MORE
FT. WALTON TO CHICAGO NON-STOP FLIGHTS
Airport officials at the Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport have announced that American Airlines will be offering non-stop service to Chicago. The flight from Fort Walton Beach to Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport begins March 9, 2019, but tickets will go on sale Monday, September 24th. The airport’s explosive-detection equipment was also recently replaced at a cost…… MORE
FORMER PROSECUTOR CONVICTED
The former chief prosecutor of the State Attorney’s Office in the 14th Judicial Circuit was found guilty yesterday of possessing contraband in a detention facility and perjury. Greg Wilson was second-in-command at the State Attorney’s Office, but resigned in 2016 to mount an unsuccessful run for state attorney against his former boss, Glenn Hess. After…… MORE
RABID ANIMALS
Another raccoon captured in the Cove neighborhood of Panama City has tested positive for rabies. According to the Florida Health Department in Bay County, the animal was captured at the intersection of Cove Boulevard and Cherry Street, only a few blocks away from where the first rabid raccoon was captured back in February. This is…… MORE
BAYVIEW CROSS DECISION APPEALED
The City of Pensacola is asking the U.S Supreme Court to hear the case of the Bayview Park cross. The appeal comes as the Supreme Court is considering a similar case involving the Bladensburg Peace Cross, a World War I memorial in Maryland. Pensacola has asked the Supreme Court to join the two cases together…… MORE
