Author: Don Fletcher

Jay By DON FLETCHERNews Staff Writer Retirement couldn’t do it, but death finally forced Jimmy Jay, one of the most popular and respected police officers in Atmore history, to put away his badge after more than 40 years of patrolling the city and protecting its residents.Jimmy, who walked a beat during the earliest days of his 33-year “first” career with Atmore Police Department, died August 27 at the age of…

By DON FLETCHERNews Staff Writer A 65-year-old resident of the Poarch area remained behind bars without bond at midweek, charged with murder in a shooting that authorities say stemmed from an argument over a dog.Escambia County (Ala.) Sheriff Heath Jackson said last week that sheriff’s investigators determined that the canine controversy came to a head around 5:15 p.m. on August 26 and led to the fatal shooting of a resident…

A Nokomis fire engine arrives with a tank of water to help fight the fire. By DON FLETCHERNews Staff Writer Note: The following story was written late Monday, September 4. Early Tuesday, September 5, Nokomis Volunteer Fire Department Capt. Jerry Gehman reported the fire had jumped containment and was raging again.Firefighters from Alabama Forestry Commission, Atmore, Poarch, Perdido and Lottie were still battling the blaze as Atmore News went to…

By DON FLETCHERNews Staff Writer Although Escambia County Board of Education members gave Superintendent of Education Michele McClung an overwhelmingly satisfactory evaluation during a special August 30 meeting, a majority of the board still refused to move forward with a motion to renew McClung’s contract, which expires in less than 10 months.BOE Attorney Kirk Garrett told board members, who filled out evaluations over several days and returned them to him,…