News Archive

The upcoming fundraiser for Boys Scouts programs in Northwest Florida and south Alabama has been moved to March.

Okaloosa County has developed a new way to help those with special needs notify emergency personnel of their disabilities.

The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office has put in place a program called SAFE to establish better communication between first responders and citizens with special needs.

Florida Attorney’s General Ashley Moody presented a Back the Blue Award to Florida Highway Patrol Troop A last week for their part in rescuing a human trafficking victim. Troopers recovered a minor who was trafficked by a known gang member after a car pursuit.

The Crestview Police Department had something of a changing of the guard on Monday morning at Freedom Hall.

Sergeant Mike Leadmon, Investigator Van Schmidt and K9 Officer Kody were honored in a retirement ceremony and Officer John Sprague, a former member of the CPD, was added to the force after serving in Ohio.

The District One Medical Examiner’s Office (DOMES) board met earlier this month to discuss a site plan review and to discuss the path ahead for what could potentially be a new medical examiner’s facility.

Founded in 2019, DOMES oversees the medical examiner’s office and meets monthly. It is comprised of representatives from the medical examiner’s office and county administrators from each county in District One (Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton).

Navarre and Niceville high schools each had five students nominated by U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz for enrollment in the nation’s military academies.

“The Raiders definitely have a home advantage,” Gaetz joked as friends and family cheered each NHS nominee during a ceremony Jan. 17 in the school’s cafeteria/auditorium. “They’re well represented.”

A fire started at a mobile home on Roosevelt Avenue in Baker at approximately 9:40 a.m. Baker Fire Department, Holt Fire District, Crestview Fire Department Battalion 1, Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, and Okaloosa EMS all responded to the call were on scene assisting with putting out the fire and aiding the residents. The fire was extinguished by 10:40 a.m.

Eglin Air Force Base — The 96th Test Wing is scheduled to conduct testing on the Eglin range complex requiring the closure of State Road 285. Testing is scheduled to take place from Jan. 31 to Feb. 3. The road will be closed between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. each day.

The Crestview community gathered Jan. 20 to watch as the Florida Forest Service, Okaloosa County Extension Office and master gardeners planted the 100th tree at the John McMahon Environmental Center to celebrate Florida’s Arbor Day. The new tree, a sand live oak, will be part of the arboretum at the center and can be seen numbered on the marked trail for visitors to identify and learn about the different types of native trees.

Okaloosa County continues to experience staffing issues at the correction facilities, which is having impacts beyond the walls of the jail. Reports from Okaloosa County Corrections indicate an ongoing shortage problem with jail staffing.