We keep hearing that Interim County Administrator George Touart will be proposing handing over health care at the county jail to a private company. In the June 20 county commission meetings, he…
Category: Escambia County
Mayor Hayward terminates Reynolds
Press Release: Statement from Mayor Ashton Hayward Today, I made the decision to terminate Bill Reynolds from his position as City Administrator. Last week, I received the disappointing news from the State…
County budget workshops this week, no reports on jail transfer received
The Escambia Board of County Commission will hold budget workshops this week. On July 15, Interim County Administrator George Touart repeatedly has told the commissioners that he will deliver them a balanced…
Valentino Earns FAC’s ACC
Escambia County Commission Chairman Gene Valentino has been presented with the Advanced County Commissioner (ACC) designation by the Florida Association of Counties. The designation follows the commissioner’s completion of a comprehensive study…
Grover Wins FAC Award
Escambia County Commissioner Grover Robinson is the recipient of a 2013 Florida Association of Counties Presidential Advocacy Award. The award is given annually to county officials throughout the state who have partnered…
What is going on with old Escambia County courthouse?
As with so many things in county government these days, no one knows for sure what is happening the space in old county courthouse that is currently being leased by Artel Gallery,…
Searchin’
Escambia County’s selection committee for the county administrator position meets for the first time today. The committee was formed by the Escambia County Commission, with each commissioner selecting one person to sit…
No idea what jail will cost county
Once it became clear last Thursday night that Commissioner Valentino and Interim George Touart were taking over the Escambia County Jail, Touart and his staff showed that they have no idea how…
If one commissioner will make the motion…
George Touart will be retired and can no longer badger the commissioners, run off good department heads and block any worthwhile county administrator being hire. Gene Valentino can be removed as the…
If commissioners take over jail, Touart will get three-year contract
I walked over to the agenda workshop held this morning for the Escambia County Commission. The board is being driven by Chairman Gene Valentino and Interim County Administrator George Touart to take…
A job too important if put in the wrong hands
The county administrator is one of the most powerful people in Escambia County. Yes, he runs the county operations for the Board of County Commissioners, but that is only the tip of…
Buzz: Sheriff Morgan gives jail back to the county
We are hearing that Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan has drafted a letter returning the county jail to the Board of County Commissioners. The sentiment at the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is…
McNesby era in the jail described as “one of the darkest periods the history of American prisons”
While the interim County Administrator George Touart and Commissioner Chairman Gene Valentino are doing everything they can to avoid paying to hire more staff at their county jail and our daily newspaper…
Union official says Valentino may need remove himself from DOJ negotiations
Alan Miller is incensed. The senior vice president of Northwest Chapter of Police Benevolent Association, and who recently retired after working at the Escambia County Jail since 1984, can’t believe Escambia County…
Valentino attacks detention deputies in WEAR interview
Escambia Commissioner Gene Valentino has gotten off his negotiations with Sheriff David Morgan on the county’s response to the U.S. Department of Justice’s findings of longstanding “systematic” problems at the Escambia County…
Inside DOJ report on Escambia County Jail
The cover story for the May 30 issue covers why the U.S. Department of Justice investigated the Escambia County Jail. It’s story that some would rather forget. The issue will be on…
Baldwin County does not want Escambia County, Fl garbage
Baldwin County commission chairman Tucker Dorsey is speaking to the Escambia County at its special meeting today. He is telling the commissioners that they don’t want this county’s garbage. No one has…
Has Touart hired jail director that killed Robert Boggon?
The buzz we are hearing out of the county complex is that Interim County Administrator George Touart plans to fight the Department of Justice findings regarding the under-staffing and longstanding abuses. His…
County Jail cited by DOJ as unsafe, needs more staff and better mental health program
The Civil Right Division of the U.S. Department of Justice has concluded its five-year investigation of the Escambia County Jail and its findings are as bad as Sheriff David Morgan tried to…
Toll Plaza Construction Update
Here’s an update from Escambia County on the toll plaza construction project: Today, May 16, one lane is closed on the Pensacola Beach Boulevard bridge until the foot of the roadway approaching…
