CHIPLEY — Police have arrested a man they believe left the scene after the car he was driving struck and killed a teenager Thursday night. 

Matthew Lee Horn, 36, of Chipley is charged with vehicular homicide, leaving the scene of a crash with death and driving on a suspended license, according to the Chipley Police Department.

Investigators located a Dodge Avenger at 104 Corbin Road about 5:15 p.m. Friday that they believe struck and killed 18-year-old Thomas Richardson, police reported.  

The resident and vehicle’s owner told investigators the car was loaned to Horn on the night of the accident, according to reports.

The homeowner said Horn was inside the home, and officers found him hiding under blankets in a bedroom closet.

Horn later told investigators that he was driving the car Thursday night and that he “knew he hit something but didn’t know what it was,” police reported.

Investigators believe alcohol was a factor in the crash, according to police.

Officers recovered a piece of a car at the accident scene Thursday night. They eventually determined it came from a 2010 to 2015 Dodge Avenger.

Investigators looked for residents in Washington and Holmes counties who had a Dodge Avenger in that year range registered to them.

They eventually found the car after getting a tip from a resident. 

“As our community always does, an individual came into the Police Department and said that they had seen a Dodge Avenger in the Chipley area with damage that was consistent with the damage of our suspect vehicle,” Police Chief Kevin Crews said. “Not only did the individual report the sighting of our possible suspect vehicle, the individual was able to provide us with the vehicle’s tag number which led us to Corbin Road.”

Horn was found less than 24 hours after the accident.

Officers were dispatched to the area of South Boulevard and Iona Street about 6:13 p.m. Thursday after they received word that a pedestrian had been hit, police reported.

Richardson, of Wausau, was searching for an elderly woman’s missing dog, according to police. He found the animal dead on the side of the road and was waiting for police to arrive when he was struck, according to reports.

Richardson was taken by ambulance to Northwest Florida Community Hospital and was air-lifted from there to Bay Medical Sacred Heart in Panama City. He died at 11:08 p.m.

PANAMA CITY — Like many (if not most) 12-year-olds, Logan Chason of Fountain did something stupid last year.

Logan had a bad day in November and took to Facebook to let off some steam. Nothing unique about that —except that what he said broke the law.

“I’m in a bad mood, so it’s gonna be my worst week, then watch out Merritt Brown Middle School I’m gonna come to school with a gun and start shooting,” he wrote.

Logan didn’t have guns or access to guns, and he didn’t actually want to shoot up his school, he said.

“It was just the first thing I thought of,” Logan said Tuesday morning after a hearing at the juvenile courthouse.

The post got the attention of some friends, who criticized him in comments to the post. It also got the attention of someone in Ohio, who found the post and reported Logan to local law enforcement.

After investigating, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office arrested Logan and charged him with written threats to kill or do bodily harm, a second-degree felony with the potential to ensure Logan would have no shortage of bad days ahead of him.

Logan took the initiative to write a letter of apology to Bay District Schools Superintendent Bill Husfelt. That wasn’t enough to keep him from being kicked out of Merritt Brown for the rest of the year, but it earned him an ally in Husfelt, who said he must have threatened to kill his brothers a thousand times when he was 12.

“When I was growing up and you said something like that, people would just ignore it,” Husfelt said. “Somewhere, some point, we’ve got to get back an understanding that kids are going to say and do dumb things.”

Things have changed since Husfelt was a child. In an era when mass school shootings command the attention of the nation, even the empty threats of a 12-year-old simply cannot be ignored, but Husfelt also said he struggled to find a response proportional to the offense. Though he was kicked out of Merritt Brown, Logan was allowed to enroll at C.C. Washington Academy, where he makes As and Bs, he said.

What’s different: What separates Logan from other 12-year-olds who dabble in idiocy is that what Logan did was reported in print and television news and captured for posterity on the Internet.

The Sheriff’s Office issued a release to local media outlets noting that a student had threatened violence on the school campus so there would an increased BCSO presence at the school. BCSO released the information out of concern that parents with inaccurate or incomplete information might worry unnecessarily, especially since it was already on social media, BCSO spokeswoman Ruth Corley said.

Sometimes BCSO does identify juveniles accused of a crimes, but in Logan’s case he was not identified. That decision hinges on several factors, including the severity of the crime, said Maj. Tommy Ford, and the Sheriff’s Office is sensitive to the fact that identifying a juvenile crime suspect can have a negative impact, including the possibility that the accusations will live forever online.

“Certainly the decisions you make have consequences, and in the Internet age this is one of those,” Ford said. “But we are sensitive.”

 Because he was charged with a felony, the Sheriff’s Office was legally required to release documents that did identify him to anyone, including reporters, who asked for them. Logan was identified in media reports that still show up in a Google search. Logan was threatened by classmates, he said, and his grandmother got grief from strangers.

“He’s going to have this for  a while,” Husfelt said.

About Logan: Logan is being raised by grandparents; his parents are substance abusers who hurt Logan when he was a small child until they surrendered their parental rights, said his grandfather Roy Tipps.

Tipps agreed Logan needed to take responsibility for his Facebook post, but a felony charge seemed like a disproportionate response.

“If they charge him with a felony, they just ruined that kid’s life,” Tipps said Monday.

Logan doesn’t know what he wants to do with his life when he’s an adult. He enjoys writing, and he’s written a few horror stories; one of them is about a man’s descent into insanity during a period of prolonged isolation.

His family has a tradition of military service. Tipps was a hell-raiser in his youth, too, he said; it was his experience in the military that finally straightened him out.

“I have no idea” if he plans to serve in the military, Tipps said, “but I don’t want that option taken away from him.”

Tipps wanted a plea deal that would get Logan out from under the felony charge, but after going to court several times Tipps felt like he was getting nowhere. Logan’s public defender could not get the prosecutor to come down from the felony.

But on Tuesday he got some traction. Logan was offered a chance to plead to a misdemeanor count of assault on a school board employee and serve up to a year on probation. He would have to abide by a 6 p.m. curfew for 30 days, serve 50 hours of community service and satisfy some other conditions.

Logan took the deal. Judge Allen Register initially ordered him to write a letter of apology to Merritt Brown administrators, but when he learned Logan already had written such a letter to Husfelt, he instead ordered a letter to the BCSO. An emergency response to an event that turns out not to be an emergency puts first responders and citizens in danger, Register told Logan.

“Always remember that what you do doesn’t only affect you. ... Work to make sure that is a good effect,” Register said.

Logan said after the hearing that he was relieved to have the incident behind him, as far as that goes. He acknowledged his punishment could have been more severe, and said he’s taken a lesson.

“I have to watch what I do,” Logan said.

Husfelt said he hoped other students would take the same lesson.

“My hope and prayer is that kids learn from Logan’s mistake,” Husfelt said.

TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE —  A group of small business owners concerned about the potential impact of a plan to restrict public access to local waterways alleges Tyndall security forces have overstepped the bounds of their authority.

The Friends of Shell Island, a group formed in 2013 in opposition to Tyndall Air Force Base’s waterway security plan, heard from members of the boating public of at least four incidents in which base security forces operated in off-base waters, patrolling waters near Shell Island and detaining a civilian even before the controversial plan is in place, according to the group.

Stephanie Somerset, who leads Friends of Shell Island, filed a complaint alleging base security illegally detained a fisherman last fall.

According to the complaint, military police noticed a boater fishing in Crooked Island Sound on the night of Oct. 1 and waved him to the boat launch. The fisherman complied, and once he stepped onto land the police handcuffed and detained him for two to three hours, during which time his phone, wallet and boat were searched without consent or a valid warrant.

The complaint alleges police threatened him with arrest and asset seizure while he was detained.

The incident amounted to a realization of all the fears of Friends of Shell Island members; it was a peek into the future for boaters worried about public access to the water.

“This is exactly the kind of thing we’ve said could happen,” Somerset said. “It proves that our fears were not unfounded.”

Tyndall public affairs officer Herman Bell confirmed that an incident with a civilian boater did occur and “there was a mistake made,” but he did not provide details or confirm it happened as alleged in Somerset’s complaint.

“There was an incident,” Bell said. “I’m not going to release any details of it.”

Bell also doubted the inspector general would release details from its investigation to Somerset because she filed a third-party complaint; she didn’t witness the events she described in the complaint, and she didn’t identify the fisherman involved, who she said wished to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation.

Bell noted the fisherman had made no complaint in the wake of the incident.

“The fisherman that was there, we have satisfied,” Bell said. “Quite frankly, it’s none of their business.”

Waterway restriction plan: The complaint is the group’s latest move in opposition to what they say is a threat to their livelihoods.

In 2013 in the Federal Register, military leaders quietly released their plan, which would give the base authority to restrict civilian access to many of the area’s most popular boating destinations. When boaters learned of the plan, the backlash was swift, the plans were withdrawn and Tyndall officials promised to revisit the matter in a more transparent fashion.

Later in the year the plan re-emerged with slight modifications based on feedback from the public. In a nod toward transparency, base officials held two open houses to discuss the plan and face the angry boaters who complained of being steamrolled by vague restrictions so vague they could be interpreted as giving base leaders authority to close the waterways permanently without explanation.

The proposal would give Tyndall authority to restrict access to several popular bayous, as well as anywhere within 500 feet of the shoreline along the base. That area is a sweet spot for customers at Sunjammers Watersports, which sells kayaks, often to people who want to fish, owner Brad Stephens said.

“We do like to be in that 400- to 500-foot range because we want to stay clear of boat traffic,” Stephens said.

Tyndall officials explained the waters would be closed only if they received information of a specific security threat, but said that such a threat is unlikely and any restrictions imposed would be limited in duration. Still many citizens remain convinced the proposal is so broad and vague it could be abused.

But those abuses already have begun, said the Friends of Shell Island, which counts more than 50 small business owners as members.

Somerset actually filed two complaints with Tyndall’s inspector general; the other alleges the military police are violating Posse Commitatus, the law that prohibits the military from conducting civilian law enforcement, by patrolling state waters.

Tyndall public affairs officer Lt. Christopher Bowyer-Meeder said Tyndall has vessels that operate in the state-controlled waters off the base’s shoreline, but they’re not conducting law enforcement. Rather, the vessels are monitoring for potential security threats, he said.

If base security were to observe anything that might warrant law enforcement attention, they would call in the U.S. Coast Guard, which has authority to enforce the law on the water.

“We have waterways around our base, and we have to patrol them to keep them safe,” public affairs officer Herman Bell said.

Somerset’s complaints seek the withdrawal of the waterway security proposal until officials provide a written description of the base security force’s policies for interaction with civilians on waters around the base, including arrest and detention policies.

Chilling effect? Bill Molnar, a local fisherman who served 20 years in the military, said incidents like the one cited in the complaint will have a chilling effect on boaters and fishermen. Power perceived is power achieved, he said; if base security forces harass enough boaters, the idea of visiting the areas will lose its appeal quickly — even if their authority over civilians technically ends where the water meets the sand.

“All you need is a few incidents and the perception becomes the reality,” Molnar said. “Just imagine when they get that authority.”

And that ultimately is what Somerset and the Friends are trying to prevent. Somerset’s complaints say the waterway security plan should be considered an “arbitrary and capricious use of discretion,” enforcement efforts by security forces constitute government waste, and that military police are not prepared to exercise the expanded authority the plans would grant.

“This complaint has been filed because, since the regulation was proposed, the Tyndall MP organization continues to act in bad faith toward the civilian public, and as a result have not demonstrated the ability to handle any proposed increase in authority acceptably,” Somerset writes.

The News Herald attempted to interview Tyndall security officials for this report. The interview was not possible, but Bell issued a written statement after reviewing Somerset’s complaints. He said because the anonymous fisherman has not filed a formal complaint, Tyndall considers that incident a private matter and will not release further information about it.

Bell also addressed the approval process for the waterway security proposal.

“Tyndall’s waterway security proposal is currently working through the approval process and is being reviewed by the Army Corps of Engineers. The Corps will post the document after making necessary adjustments, at which point it will once again be open for public review and comment,” Bell said. “Upon notification that the Corps is posting the proposal, we will inform the public through all available means, including public forums, that the document is available for public review and comment. We value the input of all our community members, and look forward to their continued engagement in this important process.”

PANAMA CITY — Two fired employees of NantHealth have filed a lawsuit alleging they lost their jobs after objecting to illegal practices.

Stephanie Davidson and William Lynch filed the lawsuit in Panama City against the NantWorks subsidiary in U.S. District Court of Northern Florida in January. They allege, in part, that the company engaged in fraudulent practices that could have devalued the company’s stock and ended its initial public offering.

NantHealth belongs to a network of companies, including a Panama City location, owned by billionaire Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong that have gathered to improve healthcare data sharing and computerized decision making, particularly related to cancer care.

A NantHealth executive described the suit as part of an attempt to extort money from the company.

“The allegations made by this couple are completely false and belied by written statements made by one of them in an email shortly before the filing of the lawsuit,” said Steve Curd, COO of NantHealth. “We believe it is also telling that this lawsuit was filed after NantHealth turned down a demand by the plaintiffs for $2 million, with an accompanying threat that unless NantHealth paid, they would launch a smear campaign filled with false and trumped up allegations.”

Curd added that both of the employees were fired for “improper behavior” and indicated a counter-suit could be filed in the future.

“The company will vigorously defend against these false allegations and will take all legal actions necessary to protect against false and libelous claims made,” he said.

The lawsuit also alleges that Davidson, a former senior vice president, and Lynch, a former senior marketing director, were fired after voicing their objections about certain activities to their superiors and others. The pair claimed that the company’s products did not perform as their marketing materials and labels claimed. They also alleged that the products posed “significant patient safety, compliance and security risks.”

The company paid for a mock Food and Drug Administration audit that raised a number of issues, including that, “although it may seem that your product cannot create risk to the patient, if a customer misuses the device, it could cause a hazard to health and these issues are reportable to the FDA ...,” the complaint claims.

The lawsuit alleges that NantHealth illegally used federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) money through a joint venture with Phoenix Children’s Hospital and the city of Phoenix.

“By way of example, (NantHealth’s) foundation would donate 10 million dollars into the joint venture, which would then use that money to obtain matching funds from CMS of 30 million dollars,” according to the lawsuit. “In return, the joint venture agrees to purchase products and services from Defendants.”

Davidson and Lynch claimed to have left substantial positions to join NantHealth. They are seeking damages for mental anguish and loss of dignity, lost wages and lawyer fees.

NantHealth’s office in Panama City, formerly known as iSirona, employs more than 200 people.

“We are deeply focused on helping patients with life-threatening ailments such as cancer and are exceptionally proud of our nearly 200 colleagues in the Panama City area,” Curd said. “We applaud their integrity and devotion to delivering outstanding products and services.”

PANAMA CITY — Jurors were selected Monday in a murder trial in a case stemming from a stolen bicycle, according to prosecutors.

During the first day in the second-degree murder trial of 33-year-old Stephen Trusty, two men testified to seeing Trusty fire the shots near Roosevelt Drive in Panama City that would end the life of 38-year-old Leonard Price on May 28. In the wake of the shooting, however, police arrested the wrong man based on those accounts — a point Trusty’s attorney said discredited the witness’ statements.

Tanya Baker said when he pointed out Price on the stolen bike at about 12:30 a.m. that he thought Trusty had pulled a handgun as a “scare tactic,” he told jurors Monday. But when the revolver fired once as Trusty allegedly pistol-whipped Price, he realized the confrontation had escalated.

“That’s when it changed,” Baker said. “He stood over the man, fired the rest of the rounds into him and that was it. (Price) was rolling around on the ground — bleeding — hollering like he wished this was just a bad dream for him, too.”

Price had earlier approached Baker in an attempt to sell a bike he knew belonged to Trusty. Price was a known drug-user and regularly stole items in the neighborhood, Baker said, so he called Trusty.

“I thought ‘dang, this man trying to sell another man’s bike,’ ” he said. “So I thought I’d tell him.”

Trusty then met up with Baker and allegedly asked Baker to point Price out. Trusty crouched behind one the homes between Carver and Roosevelt drives and told Baker to wave Price over, Baker said.

Sawson Owens said he watched as Price walked over toward where Trusty allegedly waited. Trusty then sprang out, pulled a gun and beat Price to the ground before he straddled Price and fired the remaining rounds in the revolver, Owens said.

Price “just kept screaming for help,” Owens said.

Despite Price’s cries for help, neither of the men called police; and Owens was initially a suspect in the shooting after police found him with a firearm in his possession. Trusty’s attorneys highlighted the actions of the two witnesses after the shooting in an attempt to discredit their testimonies.

Baker waited about a week after the shooting to tell authorities he witnessed a killing because he was “pretty high at the time,” he said in court. And Owens denied seeing anything on two occasions when questioned by police. He also identified the wrong man from a photo line-up once he decided to cooperate, which was after officers offered him immunity from jail on the firearm charge he faced.

“That’s what the state wants you to accept as evidence,” defense attorney Jean Downing told jurors.

However, Owens said he recognized his mistake once he saw the man he’d wrongly identified at the jail in person. The charges were dropped, and Trusty was charged with second-degree murder. During Monday’s testimony, Owens said he was positive Trusty was the man he’d seen fire the fatal shots.

Trusty faces additional charges in the trial.

A separate charge of tampering with a witness was filed against Trusty in June. He was charged with allegedly threatening a family member of Owens. Trusty allegedly told the witness he would beat the murder charges — and anyone who cooperated with law enforcement, according to court documents.

An alleged hunting violation led to more charges for two Alabama residents, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office reported.

Hovie E. Sawyers, 50, and Karry N. Crutchfield, 43, were arrested and charged with possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine) and possession of drug paraphernalia on Monday, JCSO reported. Both are residents of Slocomb, Ala.

The JCSO received a request for assistance from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission in reference to a night hunting case. A JCSO deputy observed an FWC officer during a traffic stop shortly after midnight in the area of Highway 2 and Holyneck Road, a JCSO press release stated. The FWC officer witnessed the occupants of the truck commit a game violation for night hunting and also advised the deputy the driver had a suspended license and a warrant out of Walton County, according to the report.

While searching for evidence of the night-hunting violation, deputies located several items of drug paraphernalia and two plastic baggies that contained suspected meth, police reported. The deputies then took over the narcotics portion of the investigation and took the occupants of the vehicle into custody.

The FWC charged both occupants with several game law violations along with the driver being additionally charged for driving with a suspended license.

OCALA — Police were called to the troubled Spring Manor apartment complex again this weekend, this time because a man tried to circumcise his 20-month old nephew with a knife.

Ocala police arrested Larry Leroy Floyd, 24, on one count of aggravated domestic battery.

The incident happened around 6:30 p.m. on Saturday when the boy’s father went to the store to pick up groceries and left his sleeping child in the care of his two brothers-in-law.

When he returned, the child was bleeding. Floyd told the father he circumcised the boy, and then Floyd left the scene.

The boy’s father scooped up his son and took him to hospital. The boy’s condition is unknown.

Jail records show Floyd has been arrested seven times since 2008 on charges including stalking, trespass, armed robbery, theft and drugs.

Spring Manor, located in Ocala off Northeast Seventh Street, has received some bad press lately for a number of recent shootings, two of which resulted in deaths, and other criminal activity.

TALLAHASSEE — Florida Department of Corrections Secretary Julie Jones told a Senate panel Monday that her agency is already implementing most of the changes included in a sweeping bill aimed at improving prison safety and ensuring that guards don’t mistreat inmates.

But codifying the department’s policies in law should help restore the public’s confidence in the beleaguered agency in the aftermath of stories about prisoner abuse and corruption, Jones told the Senate Criminal Justice Committee.

“We have very specific rules and regulations on use of force,” said Jones, a veteran law enforcement officer who came out of retirement at the request of Gov. Rick Scott to take over the corrections agency last month. “How you treat inmates humanely, the care you give that inmate and the care and consideration for training and anything else that inmate is due … but quite frankly … there is a perception that we’re not doing it. I’m fighting this negative perception.”

Committee Chairman Greg Evers, R-Baker, filed the bill (SB 7020) last week. The proposal would require periodic inspections and audits to look for safety problems in prisons, require specialized training for dealing with mentally ill inmates and allow staff members to make anonymous and confidential reports to the Department of Corrections’ inspector general if they witness abuse or neglect of inmates but fear retribution.

Jones said she has launched a “habitability” inspection of the state’s prisons, the first in decades. And, she said, corrections officials are working to install more video and audio equipment in the institutions.

“I’m saying it’s optics,” Jones said. The bill includes “much of what we are doing” but “it still helps back up the department to point to, these are the things we are holding our folks accountable to,” she said.

But later, Jones acknowledged that the prison system, rocked by reports of cover-ups of inmate deaths at the hands of guards, was in need of more than an image makeover.

“The perception that we don’t have policies to keep us accountable … by ramping it up in statute helps show that we do have those policies and procedures. It’s up to me that they’re followed. So no, I do not have a perception that we don’t have a problem,” she said.

Jones tried to dispel concerns about an 18 percent increase in “use of force” incidents by guards against inmates over the past year. Although there were 894 more reports of use of force, the number of incidents in which inmates acted inappropriately and force could have been used but wasn’t climbed by more than 2,800, Jones said.

“I think these numbers show that in the majority of … instances there is no use of force,” she said, crediting what she viewed as an improvement to a “zero tolerance” policy for abuse of inmates, additional training and other changes implemented last year by her predecessor Michael Crews.

Instances of improper use of force by guards declined from 40 in 2013 to 27 last year, Jones said.

But Sen. Rob Bradley, R-Fleming Island, was unconvinced.

“I don’t know if I would draw the same conclusions because I don’t know what conclusions to draw based on all I’m hearing,” Bradley, a former prosecutor, said.

As in her first appearance before the committee late last month, Jones insisted that $16.5 million she requested to fill staff vacancies would be instrumental in resolving issues involving inappropriate guard behavior. Scott included the $16.5 million in a budget proposal he released last week. She also stressed the need for additional training for guards to deal with a growing number of mentally ill inmates and $15 million, also included in Scott’s budget proposal, to repair the aging prison infrastructure.

Evers, whose Panhandle district includes three prisons and several work camps, was sympathetic to the plight of guards, who, like most other state workers, have gone without a salary hike for at least five years. At a recent visit to a prison in Santa Rosa County, Evers said guards complained about not having batteries for radios used to call for back-up.

“It becomes a safety issue to me when officers get tired and inmates get unruly,” he said. “If there’s an emergency where an inmate is hanging himself, it takes three officers to breach the door. And if we have one, he’s standing there watching. If he gets on the radio and the battery’s dead, the inmate’s dead before we can get to him. I’m just very concerned about the equipment and the supplies.”

He blamed part of the problem on overtired guards who work 12-hour shifts and on staffing shortages in prisons caused by budget cuts during Florida’s economic downturn. The agency has more than 3,300 fewer guards than were working in the state’s prisons five years ago, Evers pointed out.

“At all of the institutions I’ve been to that are running 12-hour shifts, when you get there and you watch those guys on the last four hours of those shifts, they’re getting tired. And you can see exhaustion. At those particular times, under the right conditions, they may cross the line,” Evers told reporters after the meeting. “The use of force we’re seeing is because of exhaustion, underpay and stress.”

PANAMA CITY — A Fountain man has been sentenced 15 years in prison and will have to live with the designation as a “sexual predator” for life following a circuit judge’s decision Monday.

Joseph Gable Wood Sr., 66, was sentenced Monday to 15 years in prison on charges of lewd or lascivious battery on a 13-year-old girl, according to court documents. Wood will face 15 years of probation following the prison time.

Assistant State Attorney Megan Ford told jurors during the trial that Wood’s wife found him engaged in a sex act with a 13-year-old girl on Nov. 2, 2013. The girl told authorities that Wood had been molesting her for several years.

Wood was found guilty as charged of lewd or lascivious battery and lewd or lascivious conduct. He faced up to 30 years in prison, according to the State Attorney’s Office.

CALLAWAY — A bridge replacement project several years overdue will finally kick off in the coming years thanks to an $8 million grant from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT).

The causeway over Laird Bayou, also known as Cooks Bayou, on County 2297 has been on Bay County’s radar since well before 2012, when officials approved $500,000 for design and permitting of the project in the hopes of receiving state funding. Prior to that, the causeway cost the county $300,000 for emergency repairs to stabilize the crumbling box culverts that support it.

“It’s been a problem for a number of years; the causeway has unsuitable material for the use,” said Bay County traffic engineering manager Keith Bryant. “This route is the only reasonable access for Sandy Creek, all the citizens that live down in Allanton and for Eastern Shipbuilding.” 

The project will construct a bridge, an elevated structure, instead of a causeway, which is a raised road positioned closer to the water. Bryant said the raised structure also will help improve water flow in the area and provide easier access for boaters.

Funding for the bridge is included in FDOT’s 2016 work plan, and with the state fiscal year set to begin this July, Bryant hopes to have construction bids out by late summer. Staff is now working to finalize permits, he said.

“It’s going to be a great project,” Bryant said. “We’re excited about it.”

Carol Roberts, president of the Bay County Chamber of Commerce, said securing funding for the bridge was one of the top priorities on the chamber’s legislative agenda last year.

“That was really a community effort,” said Roberts, citing efforts from the Bay County Economic Development Alliance, the county, chamber and private businesses. 

As the primary access road for Eastern Shipbuilding’s larger Allanton Shipyard, Roberts said the bridge is essential for supporting business growth for the company, which employs about 1,500 people.

Lisa Barnes, special projects manager at Eastern, said the high frequency of truck traffic in and out of the shipyard requires a more reliable route.

“We have a lot of deliveries to our shipyard,” Barnes said. “For everybody out toward Allanton, it’s replacing a causeway that has long outlived its life.”

The project could prove even more essential in the future as Eastern competes for a $10.5 billion contract with the U.S. Coast Guard, which could bring hundreds of new jobs to the area. The Bay County company is one of three finalists vying to build 25 next-generation offshore patrol cutters.

“It is a huge contract and we’re very pleased to be one of the finalists in that contract,” Barnes said. “Having the bridge is a good thing if we get that contract. There would be more materials coming in.”

PANAMA CITY — A trial date has been set in the case of a man accused of shooting his neighbor, Steven Justin Ayers, the day he brought home his newborn son, according to court documents.

Charles Shisler, 63, was arrested on several charges after a single round from a 9mm Luger traveled more than 200 feet into the home of his 33-year-old neighbor, Ayers. The stray bullet struck Ayers in the back of the head June 17, killing him instantly. Shisler allegedly admitted he accidentally fired the gun, according to official reports.

A trial date on the charges of manslaughter with a firearm, felon in possession of a firearm and possession of methamphetamine was set for April 20.

However, a motion to suppress physical evidence seized in a police search of Shisler’s home remains unresolved. Shisler’s attorney has argued officers did not have reliable evidence to obtain a search warrant, according to court documents.

Shisler’s attorney also has filed documents to suppress Shisler’s comments following arrest from the trial, saying that since there was not probable cause for the arrest, the comments were “illegally obtained,” according to court documents.

After being arrested, Shisler told officers the shooting was accidental, according to the Bay County Sheriff’s Office arrest affidavit.

“The damn gun doesn’t usually shoot,” Shisler’s arrest report quoted him as saying. “You have to squeeze the hell out of the trigger to shoot it.”

Ayers and his wife had gathered family members to celebrate the homecoming of their 3-day-old baby — born on Father’s Day. But the celebration at 2502 Michigan Court ended shortly after 6 p.m. when the stray bullet entered the home from more than 200 feet away.

The bullet traveled out of Shisler’s window screen, through about 60 feet of medium-density woods, through the Ayers’ back porch glass door and into their home before striking Ayers in the back of the head.

Shisler was arrested, and a blood test taken more than four hours after the incident indicated Shisler had a blood alcohol content of 0.079, BCSO reported. Shisler was initially uncooperative with deputies and “extremely belligerent,” according to arrest reports.

Authorities filed additional charges of methamphetamine possession against Shisler the next day. BCSO allegedly found a glass pipe and “shake and bake” kit in Shisler’s residence. Both items tested positive for methamphetamine residue, authorities said.

PANAMA CITY — A driver has been charged with careless driving after a collision with a school bus on U.S. 231, according to a Florida Highway Patrol report.

No injuries were reported from the incident. But there were 40 children on the bus, plus the driver, at the time of the crash, officers said.

John Yates, 50, was stopped in a Bay County school bus Monday at about 3 p.m. at the stop sign of Cato Road and U.S. 231 facing eastbound. Yates was stopped behind a 2010 Toyota Camry, which was being driven by 42-year-old Donna Melvin. Melvin attempted to turn right (South) onto U.S. 231 but stopped because it was unsafe to merge into the outside travel lane on U.S. 231, FHP reported.

Yates was following behind the Camry, and the front bumper of the bus struck the car’s rear bumper, officers reported.

Neither the drivers nor the children reported injuries, FHP reported.

The bus driver was charged with careless driving.

DENVER (AP) — Disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong hit two parked cars after a night of partying in Aspen but agreed to let his longtime girlfriend take the blame to avoid national attention, police reports show.

Aspen police cited Armstrong with failing to report an accident and speeding on Jan. 12 after the Dec. 28 accident, but only after his girlfriend, Anna Hansen, admitted to lying for him.

Armstrong declined immediate comment, and his attorney, Pamela Mackey, didn't immediately return a call.

Hansen initially told police she had been driving home from an Aspen Art Museum party when she lost control of Armstrong's GMC Yukon on the icy roads, hitting the cars. She said she drove because “Lance had a little bit to drink,” according to the reports.

A man who had been renting one of the damaged cars told a police detective that Hansen came running up to his house in high heels, apologizing and promising to pay for the repairs.

“She said, ‘I'm Anna, we're the Armstrongs, my husband's Lance, he was just driving maybe too fast around the corner or something,’” the man told police, according to the reports.

He called 911 to report a hit-and-run. Hansen and Armstrong left the scene before police arrived.

Detectives later interviewed Hansen, who eventually told them Armstrong was driving, but they had both decided to let her take the blame.

“We've had our family name smeared over every paper in the world in the last couple of years and honestly, I've got teenagers, I just wanted to protect my family,” Hansen told police. “I thought, gosh, Anna Hansen hit some cars, it's not going to show up in the papers, but Lance Armstrong hit some cars, it's going to be a national story.”

Hansen is not charged with a crime.

The Aspen Daily News first reported the citation.

Armstrong won the Tour de France every year from 1999-2005. Those titles were stripped after a massive report by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency detailed the use of performance enhancing drugs by Armstrong and his U.S. Postal Service teammates.

PANAMA CITY BEACH — On Sept. 11, 2001, eight firefighters climbed onto Rescue Four, a fire truck that didn’t even carry water — only the gear the elite firefighters would need in a high-risk rescue situation like the one they would face that morning — and went to the World Trade Center.

Only the truck survived.

The truck was two blocks away from the towers when they fell, and it sustained minor damages. Rescue Four was one of the New York Fire Department’s five rescue trucks. Rescue One and Two were destroyed, and Rescue Three and Five were seriously damaged.

--- PHOTOS: MORE OF RESCUE FOUR»»

--- VIDEO: REMEMBRANCE PROJECT COMES TO PCB»»

This month Rescue Four is in Florida, spending the month with the Panama City Beach Fire Department.

“I call it the truck that’s been to hell and back,” said Lt. Terry Parris, who organizes the department’s annual 9/11 stair climb and worked to bring Rescue Four to the beach.

Two years ago at a firefighters’ convention, Parris met with representatives of the group Remembrance Rescue Project, a nonprofit organization in Chicago formed to acquire and preserve Rescue Four and Rescue Five as educational tools.

Since that meeting, Parris has been working to bring the historical trucks to town, though he had hoped to do so in September to coincide with the stair climb; alas, the two vehicles are very much in demand in September, Parris said.

Parris picked up the “rolling memorial” himself Saturday on Interstate 10. He’s planned several local events to showcase the vehicle, including a First Responder Appreciation Night at the Pier Park Grand Theatre on Feb. 21. Any firefighter from any department can attend a screening of the Denis Leary-produced documentary “Burn,” but they must contact Parris to get on the list.

The first chance for the public to see Rescue Four will be Saturday from 1-6 p.m. at the Wal-Mart on Front Beach Road, Parris said. Rescue Four will be at the Back Beach Road Wal-Mart the following Saturday, Feb. 14, but Parris said the hours of public viewing still are being worked out for that event.

Any firefighter interested in attending the First Responder Appreciation Night on Feb. 21 should contact Parris at 850-819-1156 or tparris@pcbfire.com.

Want To Go?

• What: See Rescue Four
• When: Saturday, 1 - 6 p.m.
• Where: Wal-Mart, Front Beach Road
• More info: Contact Lt. Terry Parris, 850-819-1156, or tparris@pcbfire.com.

PANAMA CITY — Stephen Trusty was found guilty Tuesday of shooting a man who stole his bike and threatening retaliation to a witness of the brutal slaying.

Jurors found Trusty, 33, guilty as charged of second-degree murder after more than an hour of deliberation. The jury also found him guilty of threatening one witness to the murder but did not find sufficient evidence to convict him of the threatening the other.

He faces life in prison during his sentencing on Feb. 20.

Trusty was charged with murder after police found 34-year-old Leonard Price shot to death on a grass eve between Roosevelt and Carver drives of Panama City on May 28. The jury watched video of Price leaving the area of room 118 of the USA Inn, 710 East 15th St., with the bicycle at about midnight. Police would be called to the shooting about 40 minutes later to find him dead from five gunshot wounds — two in the back.

Trusty left his clothes, medication and room at the USA Inn, and he headed toward Tampa as the murder investigation developed. But Tuesday he denied confronting Price over a “neighborhood bike” and killing him.

“I have no reason to kill nobody,” Trusty told jurors.

Trusty averted his eyes during the autopsy photos, glancing up occasionally before shaking his head and looking away.

Prosecutor Bob Sombathy said, though reason might not have played a part in the shooting, the two eyewitness accounts and phone records placed Trusty at the scene of the crime.

Trusty “was mad because someone had the nerve to steal his bike,” Sombathy said. “It’s hard for me to say motive because there is no motive to kill someone over a stupid bike.”

During the trial, two witnesses testified to seeing Trusty fire the fatal shots. Both Tanya Baker and Swanson Owens said they saw Trusty stand over Price and empty a .38-caliber revolver into him.

“He stood over the man, fired the rest of the rounds into him and that was it,” Baker said. Price “was rolling around on the ground — bleeding — hollering like he wished this was just a bad dream...”

Baker said he called Trusty at 12:11 a.m. after seeing Price on the bike leaving the USA Inn. Trusty met up with Baker in the neighborhood off MLK Jr. Boulevard and asked him to yell for Price to come over. Trusty then hid behind a house in wait for Price, Baker said.

Owens said he watched as Price walked over toward where Trusty waited. Trusty sprang out, pulled a gun and beat Price to the ground before one round rang out. Trusty then straddled Price and fired the remaining rounds in the revolver, Owens said.

Price “just kept screaming for help,” Owens said.

During much of the defense attorneys’ cross-examination Tuesday, Trusty’s counsel steered the focus to the statements of Owens. He was the first to identify Trusty, but he initially identified Trusty’s brother, Michael Ray Davis, as the shooter.

Baker waited about a week before contacting authorities.

Though Owens admitted to officers he’d identified the wrong man, defense attorneys used their uncertainty to discredit both men’s testimony during the trial.

Trusty made a similar case for jurors while explaining his decision to leave the county instead of facing authorities.

“People where I come from don’t call the police to talk to them, we run from them,” he said.

In his closing statements, Sombathy praised the witnesses for coming forth and testifying. He also pleaded with the jury to consider witness testimony to the brutal shooting.

“Most witnesses will never talk because they’re afraid will get done,” he said.

Trusty was also convicted of threatening retaliation against Owens’ family for identifying him in a line-up.

YOUNGSTOWN — A pedestrian was killed Tuesday afternoon after being struck by a vehicle while walking along U.S. 231 north of Bayou George.

Brandon Baggett, 20, of Panama City, was taken to Bay Medical Sacred Heart, where he died after he was hit by a box truck around 12:30 p.m. Douglas Corbin, 30, of Headland, Ala., was the driver of the truck. He was not injured.

Several Florida Highway Patrol troopers converged on the site of the incident, but they said FHP policy prohibited them from providing any information on the incident outside of a press release. They were interviewing a man standing next to a moving truck, presumably Corbin.

At the scene, troopers closed the outer lane of U.S. 231 in order to mark areas on the pavement significant to their investigation with spray paint.

According to an FHP press release issued later Tuesday, Baggett was walking north in the shoulder along the highway north of South Bear Creek Road when he entered the outside lane and was struck. The impact propelled him onto the shoulder of the highway.

The FHP has assigned a homicide investigator to the case, and Corbin has not been charged with any crime. Alcohol use by Corbin has been ruled out as potential factor in the crash; whether Baggett had used alcohol remains under investigation.

YOUNGSTOWN — A raccoon killed in the Nixon area of Youngstown tested positive for rabies, the Bay County Health Department reported on Wednesday.

This is Bay County’s first laboratory confirmed rabid animal of 2015. Seven raccoons and one bat tested positive for rabies in 2014. Those animals were found in areas of Lynn Haven, Cedar Grove, Panama City, Youngstown, Callaway, and a High Point neighborhood.

The department reminds citizens that Florida law requires all dogs, cats, and ferrets over four months of age to be currently vaccinated for rabies by a licensed veterinarian. Unvaccinated dogs and cats should not be outdoors without direct and continuous adult supervision. Most laboratory confirmed rabid raccoons are discovered after conflicts with dogs.

The following advice is issued:

• Secure outside garbage in covered containers to avoid attracting wild animals.
• Do not leave pet food outside overnight as this attracts wild animals to your home and increases the chance of a pet-raccoon conflict. Placing or offering food or garbage in such a manner that it attracts raccoons is illegal in Florida.
• If bitten or scratched by an animal, wash the wound immediately with soap and water. Seek medical treatment as needed and report the injury to the Bay County Health Department at (850) 872-4455, ext. 1125.
• If the animal is stray or wild, call 911 or Bay County Animal Control at (850) 784-4005 and report the animal’s location. In the City of Lynn Haven, call the Lynn Haven Police Department at (850) 265-1112.

A DeBary man chose the wrong menu item for a Super Bowl meal when he decided to kill five small alligators for a gator tail dinner, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials said Monday.

Richard Nixie, 30, was arrested Sunday afternoon and charged with possession and taking alligators without a proper tag, Volusia County Branch Jail records show.

According to a report from the wildlife commission, Nixie caught five small alligators — less than 5 feet in length.

Nixie admitted trapping the alligators and then cutting off their tails for “Super Bowl Dinner” at his home at 130 Maple Drive, the report states.

Nixie was released after posting $500 bail but will have to appear before a judge March 3, according to court records and his arrest report.

A Kentucky teenager who was arrested in Panama City Beach following an alleged a multistate crime spree of stolen cars and forged checks has been indicted by a grand jury, officials at the Grayson County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Wednesday.

Dalton Hayes, 18, was indicted on 11 charges, including rape in the second-degree and custodial interference on Tuesday after he and a 13-year-old girl allegedly undertook a multistate crime spree of stolen cars and forged checks. Hayes said he was unaware of the girl’s young age up until the trip. He was extradited back to Kentucky to stand trial, after being arrested in Panama City Beach on Jan. 18.

Hayes, who already was wanted on burglary and theft charges from December, and 13-year-old Cheyenne Phillips allegedly set out on their multistate crime spree Jan. 3.

The Kentucky couple allegedly ditched cars and stole replacements in Kentucky, South Carolina and Georgia — evading arrest all the while — before arriving in Panama City Beach. Hayes said the two got lost looking for an interstate leading to Miami.

Because Phillips is underage, authorities were unable to comment on the charges she could be facing. She is expected to face charges in juvenile court.

PANAMA CITY — Authorities are asking for the public’s help in identifying a suspect believed responsible for the fraudulent use of bank account information, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office announced Wednesday.

The victim reported his account information was used to make four transactions at two businesses in Bay County totaling nearly $2,000.

--- VIDEO: THE SUSPECT»»

The suspect, captured on security video cameras at the businesses, is described as a black male, in his 20s, of medium height and build. He was last seen wearing a pair of black athletic pants with a white stripe going down the leg, a black, long sleeve T-shirt and Nike flip-flops. He was driving a yellow Chevrolet Camaro.

Anyone with information on the identity of this suspect is asked to contact the Bay County Sheriff’s Office at 747-4700 or Crime Stoppers at 785-TIPS.