Fla. couple who adopted 12 children found slain

[cece]

http://www.northescambia.com/?p=11311

Taking It To The Streets: Sheriff David Morgan Walks Walnut Hill Neighborhood

October 3, 2009

For Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan, days at the office are getting back to normal. After the Byrd and Melanie Billings murders cast him into the national spotlight, he was spending a lot of time doing interviews with the big boys in the news business — CNN, FOX, ABC and all those other three letter networks and celebrities like Larry King, Aaron Cooper and even Oprah.

But Friday afternoon, Morgan was back where he likes to be…on the streets of Escambia County. After taking part in Northview High School’s Homecoming Parade, the sheriff, Lt.  Roger Grice and Escambia County District 5 Commissioner Kevin White walked Juniper Street in Walnut Hill. It was a chance for sowalk13.jpgMorgan to meet some of the residents on a street that is often plagued by crime. Just last week, an Escambia County teacher’s aide was busted on Juniper Street after the sheriff’s department executed a search warrant and recovered a large amount of cocaine.

Since taking office in January, Morgan has walked many neighborhoods in the county, spreading the message that he is serious about crime.

“We have gotten tough on crime in Escambia County,” the sheriff said. “It is not business as usual for criminals in this county.”

“Getting out like this is a chance to meet the citizens of neighborhoods where crime is a problem to reassure them that we care,” Morgan said.

Morgan also made a stop at Escambia Grain — a community hub of sorts –  in Walnut Hill to talk to employees.






Pictured top: Escambia County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Roger Grice, District 5 Commissioner Kevin White and Escambia Sheriff David Morgan walk Juniper Street in Walnut Hill Friday afternoon. Pictured inset: Morgan talks with Juniper Street residents.

[trimmonthelake]

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2009/10/oparah-winfrey-to-explore-shootings-of-florida-parents-.html
'Oprah Winfrey Show' visits home where Florida parents were shot to death
posted by halboedeker on Oct 6, 2009 10:13:14 AM
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"The Oprah Winfrey Show" bills it as "one of the most heartbreaking stories in the news last summer."

On Wednesday's show, Winfrey will retell the story of Floridians Byrd and Melanie Billings, who were shot to death in their Panhandle home in July.

The Billings were known for adopting children with special needs. Nine children, between the ages of 4 and 11, were in the home when their parents were shot to death.

The Winfrey show said, "Our cameras go inside the home where the gruesome murders took place."

Ashley Markham, the Billings daughter, provides a tour. In the studio, Winfrey questions Markham, who has pledged to care for her siblings.

"The Oprah Winfrey Show" airs at 4 p.m. weekdays on WFTV-Channel 9.

[cece]

http://www.oprah.com/media/20090924-tows-ashleys-life-florida

(video from Oprah show)

http://www.oprah.com/article/oprahshow/20090924-tows-billings-florida-murder


Investigating the Billings Murders
Melanie and Bud Billings
One moment, they were sleeping peacefully in their Florida home. The next, they were innocent victims of a methodical murder plot.

On July 9, 2009, gunmen broke into Melanie and Byrd "Bud" Billings' home and killed them while they lay in bed. Bud was shot six times, and Melanie took five bullets to the chest, face and head.

Melanie and Bud weren't the only ones at home that night. Nine adopted children with special needs, members of the Billingses' large, loving family, were sleeping nearby.

Ashley Markham, their 27-year-old daughter who lives outside the home, remembers the day vividly. "I called the house about 7:30, and that's when Jacob answered," she says. "Jacob was very distraught."

Then, Jacob, Ashley's 10-year-old adopted brother with Down syndrome, handed the telephone to his autistic sister, Adrianna, who told Ashley their parents were laying on the floor.

Confused and scared, Ashley called 911 while she drove to her parents' house. "I remember pulling up outside the fence, and the yard was taped off," she says. "There were so many police officers, and nobody knew what was going on."

Further investigation led to a chilling discovery. The security cameras Melanie and Bud had installed to watch over their adopted children caught the moments before the murders on tape.

Before July 2009, Melanie and Bud were best known in Pensacola, Florida, as a generous, good-hearted couple who opened their home to children with severe disabilities. Now, their tragic deaths haunt the community and the children they left behind.

Ashley says she and her siblings are getting by day by day and hour by hour. "[The children are] very resilient," she says. "There are issues every day. Somebody has a different issue, different problem, and we just kind of deal with it how we can."

After her parents were found dead, Ashley and her husband of two years, Blue Markham, took over parenting duties for her nine adopted siblings, which fulfills a promise Ashley says she made to her mother years ago.

"She would talk about it to us. 'If something were to happen, make sure my babies are taken care of. Make sure they're all kept together,'" Ashley says. "I told her, 'Well, you never have to worry about that.'"

Ashley and Blue now live in her parents' home and sleep in the same room where they were gunned down.

"When we came back to the house, it was very difficult for either of us to sleep in here," she says. "We changed the comforters out and changed the mattress out, and I just developed a certain sense of peace, almost like her telling me: 'It's okay. You can do this.'"

In just a few months, Ashley and Blue have adapted to their new routines. Ashley wakes up before dawn to care for each child before heading to her full-time job. All nine children require specialized medical care. Emma, the baby of the family, has Down syndrome and must be fed through a feeding tube. Katie and Nicholas take seizure medication, while Ricky takes an anti-psychotic medicine, which helps with his behavioral problems.

When she gets overwhelmed, Ashley draws strength from her mother's memory. "I feel like she's right next to me, pushing me to go on," she says. "I feel like her strength is in me to keep me going, because I know I have to."

The ongoing murder investigation has led to eight arrests, but Ashley is still searching for answers. She says she asks herself every day why someone would want to kill her parents. "They were good people," she says. "They did wonderful things."

Sheriff David Morgan, the man leading the Billingses' murder investigation, says the killers' motive was money. "It was a robbery," he says. "We believe that they garnered some information through business contacts that they thought possibly that, sadly, the Billings family would be a good family to rob because Mr. Billings was a very successful businessman in town."

There is also speculation that the suspects in custody may have connections to the Mexican mafia. "We have not taken anything off the table," Sheriff Morgan says.

One thing Sheriff Morgan says he does know for sure is Melanie and Bud are not, nor will they ever be, the subject of an investigation involving their murders. "[Mr. Billings] had the misfortune, I repeat, the misfortune, of doing some business with some people that were very bad," Sheriff Morgan says.

To date, all eight suspects have pleaded not guilty, but Sheriff Morgan says they have an excellent case against these individuals. "We're also building information on some additional suspects," he says.

[cece]

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/zlALKDBuBc8&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;color1=0x3a3a3a&amp;color2=0x999999&amp;border=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/zlALKDBuBc8&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;color1=0x3a3a3a&amp;color2=0x999999&amp;border=1</a>

[kc1234]

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/zlALKDBuBc8&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;color1=0x3a3a3a&amp;color2=0x999999&amp;border=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/zlALKDBuBc8&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;color1=0x3a3a3a&amp;color2=0x999999&amp;border=1</a>

Cece, thanks for posting this video.

[kc1234]

LPG Jr's attorneys are excused due to a conflict of interest.

Source: http://www.weartv.com/newsroom/top_stories/videos/wear_vid_4385.shtml

************************************

"The alleged mastermind of the murders of Byrd and Melanie Billings will soon be appointed a new lawyer.

Today, a judge allowed two attorneys to remove themselves from representing Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Jr.

Rick Hill and Elton Killem cited a conflict involving one of the witnesses in the case.

The judge says he will appoint a private attorney for Gonzalez.

But, who that will be or when the appointment will be made has not been determined.

Gonzalez and six others are charged with first degree murder for allegedly shooting and killing Byrd and Melanie Billings inside their Beulah home on July 9th.

The state attorney's office says it should not delay the case.Judge To Appoint Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Jr A New Attorney"

[SuzieQ]

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/usworld/news-article.aspx?storyid=146542&catid=6


PENSACOLA, FL -- Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for four men charged in the July home-insvasion killings of a Panhandle couple known for adopting numerous children with special needs.

State Attorney Bill Eddins announced Monday he will seek the death penalty against alleged ring leader Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Jr., 35, Air Force Staff Sgt. Donnie Ray Stallworth, 28, Wayne Thomas Coldiron, 41, and Frederick Lee Thornton Jr., 19.
Another man and a 16-year-old boy have pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder. A woman has pleaded not guilty to accessory to first-degree murder.

The group is charged in the deaths of Byrd and Melanie Billings. The couple were shot to death in their home as some of their nine adopted children with varying special needs watched and listened.

 

[kc1234]

http://ricksblog.biz/?p=7734

Patrick Gonzalez booked for battery (updated)
October 22 2009
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office website shows that Patrick Gonzalez has been charged with aggravated battery. We’ve requested the arrest report.

From arrest report:
Kevin Dale Wilkins is housed in the cell adjacent to Gonzalez. According to Wilkins, on Sept. 26, Gonzalez had permission to leave his cell and use the telephone. Gonzalez asked Wilkins to hold some paperwork for him. When Wilkins refused, Gonzalez stabbed him with a pencil in the upper left shoulder as he passed Wilkins’ cell. When he returned from using the phone, Gonzalez stabbed him again in the same are. Detention Deputy on duty saw the second stabbing and intervened.

Wilkins is a black male awaiting trial for sexual assault. He has been in jail since 8/31/09.

[kc1234]

http://ricksblog.biz/?p=7729

Thoughts on Mexican Mafia
October 22 2009
Today the daily newspaper published the interview with Silvano Gonzalez, that we posted on this blog on Monday. Based on that interview, the paper reports “Mafia theory falls flat in Billings murder case.” I don’t know if the Mexican Mafia is involved in the murders of Bud and Melanie Billings.

I do know that several of the witnesses and suspects mentioned the Mexican mafia. Several that I’ve interviewed are scared to death of them.

Patrick Gonzalez mentioned them to Chief Deputy Bill Chavers. Tice brings it up in his interview. Then in August, Silvano Gonzalez tells investigators he made it all up.

But why did Tice mention the Mexican mafia if it had nothing to do with Billings case? Tice also tells investigators about Jose Sanchez, who Tice is a used car dealer and money launderer. He tells that he threatened Sanchez, who Tice also claimed was trying to destroy his ex-wife and son’s car business in Foley. “If you ever pull a gun on me, I’ll take it away from you and beat you to death with it.”

Is there a Mexican mafia in the Pensacola area? As I reported earlier, the Cancun Mexican Grill (Gulf Breeze) had direct ties to the Mexican drug cartels, according to testimony in the trial of Rogelio Galvan-Chavez. Chavez was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine, conspiracy to use a communication facility to commit a felony, concealing, harboring and shielding illegal aliens for the purpose of commercial advantage or private financial gain, and aiding and abetting the possession of a firearm by two illegal aliens.

The Sun Herald in Biloxi reported on the Mexican mafia in south Mississippi (read). Guns and Hugh Wiggins are mentioned in the article.

Not sure why the PNJ continues to diss any story angles beyond what the state attorney releases

[kc1234]

http://www.nwfdailynews.com/news/stabbing-21850-charged-gonzalez.html

UPDATED: 'Mastermind' of Billings' murder accused of stabbing fellow inmate
October 22, 2009 4:22 PM
Pensacola News Journal
Leonard Gonzalez Jr., the man accused of killing Byrd and Melanie Billings, faces a new criminal charge of stabbing a fellow inmate with a pencil.

Kevin Dale Wilkins, 29, said that in late September he was housed in a cell adjacent to Gonzalez Jr. When Gonzalez Jr., 35, left his cell to use the telephone, he asked Wilkins to hold some paperwork.

Wilkins refused.

As Gonzalez Jr. passed by his cell, he stabbed Wilkins in the upper left shoulder, according to a copy of the arrest warrant.

But it didn’t end there.

Wilkins told an investigator that as Gonzalez Jr. returned to his cell, he stabbed him a second time in the same area, the warrant says.

A corrections officer witnessed the second stabbing and ran to the cells to intervene.

Escambia County sheriff’s investigator Alvin Johnston Jr. questioned Gonzalez Jr. on Oct. 8. Gonzalez Jr. refused to speak without an attorney present, according to the warrant.

Wilkins has been in the Escambia County Jail since his Aug. 28 arrest on a charge of sexual assault on a victim over the age of 12.

Gonzalez Jr. already faces the death penalty in the July 9 home invasion in Beulah that resulted in the murder of Byrd and Melanie Billings. He now faces an additional charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

Gonzalez Jr. is scheduled for a Nov. 6 arraignment hearing before Circuit Judge Frank Bell in the Oct. 26 stabbing incident.

[kc1234]

http://www.pnj.com/article/20091022/NEWS01/91022021

Gonzalez Jr. charged

Kris Wernowsky • kwernowsky@pnj.com • October 22, 2009

Leonard Gonzalez Jr., the man accused of killing Byrd and Melanie Billings, faces a new criminal charge of stabbing a fellow inmate with a pencil.

 
Kevin Dale Wilkins, 29, said that in late September he was housed in a cell adjacent to Gonzalez Jr. When Gonzalez Jr., 35, left his cell to use the telephone, he asked Wilkins to hold some paperwork.


Wilkins refused.


As Gonzalez Jr. passed by his cell, he stabbed Wilkins in the upper left shoulder, according to a copy of the arrest warrant.


But it didn’t end there.


Wilkins told an investigator that as Gonzalez Jr. returned to his cell, he stabbed him a second time in the same area, the warrant says.


A corrections officer witnessed the second stabbing and ran to the cells to intervene.


Escambia County sheriff’s investigator Alvin Johnston Jr. questioned Gonzalez Jr. on Oct. 8. Gonzalez Jr. refused to speak without an attorney present, according to the warrant.


Wilkins has been in the Escambia County Jail since his Aug. 28 arrest on a charge of sexual assault on a victim over the age of 12.


Gonzalez Jr. already faces the death penalty in the July 9 home invasion in Beulah that resulted in the murder of Byrd and Melanie Billings. He now faces an additional charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.


Gonzalez Jr. is scheduled for a Nov. 6 arraignment hearing before Circuit Judge Frank Bell in the Oct. 26 stabbing incident.




Next PageundefinedPrevious Page

[kc1234]

Wish they had an interpreter for this one:

http://ricksblog.biz/?p=7700

Tice creditor claims Mexican mafia a hoax
October 19 2009
The State Attorney’s Office released today more documents and DVDs of the interviews with suspects, persons of interest and witnesses – 36 CDs and DVDs.

Among the documents is an interview with Silvano Gonzalez, the former Hispanic-American Auto Sales employee who Cab Tice said gave him $20,000 as a loan from the Mexican Mafia. Gonzalez tells investigators that he made up the Mexican Mafia connection to pressure Tice to repay the loan.

The interview is a mess. Gonzalez jumps around and isn’t very clear about his relationship with Tice, Patrick Gonzalez or Bud Billings. He doesn’t seem to understand the questions and at times appears to be evasive.

Read Silvano… the pdf isn’t the clearest. Will try to upload a better copy in the a.m.

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.pnj.com/article/20091028/NEWS01/910280337
Long Wiggins asks judge to lower $500,000 bond
Request to he heard Tuesday for suspect in Billings case

Kris Wernowsky • kwernowsky@pnj.com • October 28, 2009
Pamela Long Wiggins wants out of jail.

A central figure in the deaths of Byrd and Melanie Billings has asked a judge to reduce her half-million-dollar bond.

Circuit Judge Nick Geeker will hear the request at a hearing next Tuesday, his assistant said.

Long Wiggins was arrested July 15 after investigators found her and her husband in Orange Beach, Ala., aboard her yacht, The Classy Lady.

She is accused of providing a van for the seven suspects in the deadly July 9 home invasion to transport guns and a safe from the Billingses' Beulah residence.

Long Wiggins, a real estate agent and antique mall owner, buried the safe in the backyard of her Gulf Breeze home, according to arrest papers. She and her husband, Hugh, took several guns used in the robbery to Mississippi, according to statements he made to investigators.

In an agreement with the State Attorney's Office, Long Wiggins gave a statement and was released on $10,000 bond on an accessory after the fact to a robbery charge. She remained free until the charge was upgraded to accessory to murder.

A judge increased her bond to $500,000 on Aug. 17 and she remains in Escambia County Jail.

In the request to reduce Long Wiggins' bond, attorney Patrece Cashwell said that Long Wiggins is not a flight risk and has strong community ties.

"The defendant was out on bond until Aug. 11, 2009, and was in close contact with her attorney," Cashwell wrote. "She made all court appearances."
Two friends of the Wigginses' testified that they overheard conversations shortly after the murders that led them to believe that the couple were ready to flee the Pensacola area.

At that August hearing, Circuit Judge Frank Bell expressed "a lot of concern" over Long Wiggins' potential flight risk.

Her husband received limited immunity for providing investigators with extensive information that led to eight arrests. He has not been charged with a crime.

Cashwell also complained that her client, who previously underwent a gastric bypass procedure, has health concerns.

"Due to a previous medical procedure, she requires a specific diet which she is not receiving while incarcerated," Cashwell wrote. "This can result in anemia, kidney and intestinal damage. She is suffering ... and losing her hair."

Jail officials could not be reached Tuesday to comment on the allegation raised in Long Wiggins' motion.

Cashwell also complained that the state did not comply with requirements to provide evidence to her in a timely manner, the motion says.

Assistant State Attorney Greg Marcille said his office addressed Cashwell's complaint the day she filed the Sept. 23 motion.

"There was a very short delay in providing some discovery," he said. "Our position that nothing she may not have received at that point would in any way delay that case from going forward."

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.pnj.com/article/20091107/NEWS01/911070320/1006/NEWS01/Billings-murder-suspect-enters-pencil-stabbing-plea
Billings murder suspect enters pencil-stabbing plea

From staff reports • November 7, 2009


A suspect in the July murders of Byrd and Melanie Billings made an appearance in court Friday on an unrelated assault charge.
Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Jr., 35, is accused of stabbing a fellow Escambia County Jail inmate twice with a pencil in late September. Gonzalez pleaded not guilty Friday to the charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The maximum penalty is 15 years in prison.

Gonzalez faces a first-degree murder and other charges in the home invasion that resulted in the July killings. The state is seeking the death penalty.

His next court appearance in the pencil-stabbing incident is Jan. 6.

[cece]

http://www.pnj.com/article/20091204/NEWS01/912040315

New face in Billings case
With Rimmer becoming judge, Molchan joins prosecution

Kris Wernowsky • kwernowsky@pnj.com • December 4, 2009



The promotion of a longtime assistant state attorney to a judgeship leaves an empty seat at the prosecution table in seven local murder cases, including that of Byrd and Melanie Billings.

Gov. Charlie Crist on Tuesday appointed homicide prosecutor David Rimmer to a position vacated by Circuit Judge Kim Skievaski, who will retires in January.

State Attorney Bill Eddins has acted as the lead prosecutor in the Billings case with assistance from Rimmer.

Assistant State Attorney John Molchan will take Rimmer's place in the Billings case and also will handle most of the office's other murder cases as well, office spokesman Greg Marcille said Thursday.

"I'm privileged that Mr. Eddins has the confidence for me to jump in here and be a part of this case," Molchan said. "It's certainly going to be a challenge, and we'll do the best we can to make sure justice is done."

Molchan has worked for the State Attorney's Office since 1998. Before becoming a prosecutor, he served in the U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General Corps in Pensacola.

He's a graduate of St. Mary's University law school in San Antonio.

The seven charged with first-degree murder in the Billings case are next due in court on Jan. 6. The couple were killed on July 9 during an invasion of their Beulah home.

With Rimmer's departure, the State Attorney's Office has lost more than 40 years of combined experience within the past six months.

Former prosecutor John Simon was tapped by the governor in August to fill the vacancy created with the Judge G.J. Roark III retirement.

Rimmer worked in the State Attorney's Office for 27 years; Simon for 13.

[cece]

http://www.pnj.com/article/20091202/NEWS01/912020326/1006/NEWS01/Prosecutor-David-Rimmer-is-appointed-circuit-judge

Prosecutor David Rimmer is appointed circuit judge



Longtime Pensacola prosecutor David Rimmer was appointed a circuit judge on Tuesday by Gov. Charlie Crist.

Rimmer, 61, has served as an assistant state attorney for the local, four-county First Judicial Circuit since 1982.

He has prosecuted numerous high-profile murder cases, including that of Derek and Alex King, the Cantonment boys convicted of killing their father in 2002.

Rimmer had been assigned to prosecute the eight suspects in the July slayings of Melanie and Byrd Billings. A new prosecutor has not yet been named.

He also served as a Pensacola police officer from 1971 to 1972 and an Escambia County deputy from 1972 to 1979.

He graduated from the University of West Florida and the Cumberland School of Law in Birmingham, Ala.

Rimmer could not be reached late Tuesday.

He will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Circuit Judge Kim Skievaski.

[cece]

William "Bill" Eddins, State Attorney
http://sao1.co.escambia.fl.us/




Pensacola Police traffic homicide investigator Brad Buddin, left, and Assistant State Attorney John Molchan

[cece]

http://www.pnj.com/article/20091213/OPINION/912130308/Editorial-Sheriff-we-need-to-talk

Editorial: Sheriff, we need to talk

It is easy for a community to surrender to the randomness, to give in to the circumstances, to brush away someone else's sheer bad luck when trying to come to grips with violent crime, especially murder.

We understand the frustration when someone asks: How can law enforcement stop the death of a man killed while sitting at a bar during a robbery? What can police really do when an argument escalates into a stabbing? Who on earth could have prevented a band of misfits from invading a home filled with special-needs children and slaughtering their parents?

But to think that way, to shrug one's shoulders while counting one's lucky stars, would be nothing more than community-surrender.

Escambia County saw 16 of its own murdered in 2009. That number is higher than our peer counties within Florida.
Related

To tens of thousands of people in Escambia County, these are problems far from their daily lives. Or so they believe, or want to believe.

Then, there is the let-them-kill-each-other crowd, a position hardly endorsed by the Pensacola Bay Area Chamber of Commerce, let alone the church.

In truth, we know that such problems are not so far away from any of us, and they cast a terrible shadow on our entire community.

Escambia County is becoming known as a dangerous community. We know the military is concerned when a young sailor is killed while jogging near Corry Field.

The good news is that there are things that can be done to lower the rate of violence.

In cities across the United States, there are crime prevention programs that are working. These are programs that target specific types of crimes, from drugs to shootings. They deal with pulling the entire resources of a community together to help law enforcement, for this is not law enforcement's problem alone.

They range from successful programs in smaller cities in North Carolina, to Nashville, where the once-troubled East Nashville section is now home for young adults, good restaurants and nightlife.

In Cincinnati, marked by anti-police riots just a few years ago, innovative crime fighting has drawn both results and community applause in the city's troubled Over-the-Rhine district.

Towns have crime marches in front of crack houses. Cities work to identify crime pockets, pushing entrenched crime from certain areas of the city — the old divide-and-conquer strategy. The federal government and universities have joined with law enforcement to think outside the traditional law enforcement arrest-and-lock-'em-up mentality.

As for Escambia County?

We don't know. The sheriff wouldn't talk to us about it.

It is bitterly ironic that a sheriff who was so offering of his time to national television to advance his so-called "Mexican Mafia'' theories with the Billings' murders will not comment on what's going on in Escambia County.


That is wrong.

David Morgan owes it to the community that elected him to tell its citizens what his department is doing, or not doing, to get the number of murders down.

We are saddened, but not surprised by Morgan's silence. The sheriff has developed a troubling history of not communicating well with the community when controversy follows: the department's problem with its K-9 unit, the sheriff's clumsily worded letter to the spouses of men who had been arrested for soliciting prostitutes, a tendency to place blame on the past sheriff and his continued cold shoulder to Escambia County Administrator Bob McLaughlin following a disagreement they had several months ago.

We expect innovative efforts from our Sheriff's Office. That is why this community elected Morgan, who was a fresh face on the local law enforcement scene, and a man who received praise from this newspaper for his personal door-to-door visits in areas affected by crimes.

Those things are what the public needs to know about.

[cece]

http://blog.al.com/live/2009/12/family_of_slain_florida_panhan.html

Family of slain Florida Panhandle couple moves on
By The Associated Press
December 25, 2009, 12:00PM



PENSACOLA, Fla. -- A framed copy of a newspaper story dated Christmas Day, 2005, hangs on the wall near the kitchen inside the Billings' Beulah house.

The front page photo depicts a grinning family sprawled across the house's playroom floor. In the middle, surrounded by a swarm of smiling kids, Byrd and Melanie Billings beam with pride.

It is a snapshot of a life many people didn't understand. A life with a dozen adopted children, many with special needs. A life of challenges, to be sure, but also happiness.

A life that on July 9, tragically was cut short.

"Christmas was my mom's favorite holiday," said Ashley Markham, 27, as she sat at the kitchen table in her parents' Beulah home Monday.

Her mom loved to shop, she said, and relished in the annual opportunity to shower the kids with gifts.

It's a role that, this year, Markham is doing her best to fill.

In the living room, a dozen stockings hang from the mantel over the fireplace. A Christmas tree draped with flashy decorations towers overhead. The house is light and cheery, and, for the moment, surprisingly quiet. The dull drone of cartoons on the living room TV is the only noise. Sunlight pours in through broad picture windows, illuminating walls covered with wedding portraits and framed photos of happy family memories.

There's no sense that something terrible happened here.

"On the normal day, it's more of a distant memory," Ashley said.

The grisly details of what happened to Byrd and Melanie Billings in their home on July 9 played out in the national news. Five masked men wielding guns burst through the doors as some of the children slept upstairs. In the chaos that followed, Byrd and Melanie Billings were shot and killed.

The attackers escaped with a safe that contained only heirloom jewelry, children's medication and family paperwork not the stack of cash law enforcement investigators say they were seeking.

Eight people have since been arrested in connection with the crime. Seven face charges of first-degree murder.

The following months have passed in a blur, Ashley said. Meetings with lawyers. Talks with investigators. News conferences. Courtrooms. And the kids.

Always the kids.

It hasn't left anyone in the family with much time to think about what happened.

"In quiet times, I think about it more," she said.

She pauses, lost for a second in thought. But the moment doesn't last long.

In a flash, a swarm of kids, dogs and commotion arrives, flooding the room with chatter about toys, adventures and a newly built fort in the woods behind the house.

Ashley smiles.

"Normally it's pretty calm. They're really good kids. They're very well-mannered," she said. "They talk a lot, but what kids don't?"

In the weeks after the attacks, Ashley and her husband, Blue Markham, scrambled to take over care of nine children who lived in Byrd and Melanie's house.

At first, the kids stayed in the couple's home in Perdido and with family friends. But after a few days, the kids wanted to go home.

Ashley said she and Blue had no real choice but to go along for the ride.

"I've heard people say, 'How can they stay in the house?' But where else are we going to go?" Ashley said. "It's not every house that can be a home for nine kids."

The upside is that life for the kids has stayed, more or less, the same.

There are still birthday parties, bedtimes and the 5 a.m. chaos of getting nine kids dressed and out the door in time to catch the school bus.

"I've got it mastered to where I can get it down to an hour," Ashley said. "No one can do it as good as my mother, but I'm going to give it a shot."

The kids still talk about the "bad men" every once in a while, she said.

The four youngest kids, ages 4 to 7, don't really understand what happened. The five most severely disabled children may never fully understand.

But the older kids, ages 8 to 11, live normal lives. They know what happened. They know their mom and dad are dead. But why?

It's a question even the adults struggle to answer.

"How do you explain death to a child when you don't really understand it yourself?" Ashley said. "I know there's a heaven. I know everything happens for a reason. ... I don't know how to explain it to them."

As months have passed, the questions have tapered off. For the most part, the kids are doing well in some ways, they're doing better than Ashley.

"I think if I didn't have them, I probably wouldn't have gotten out of bed for three months," she said.

Ashley said the family was also aided by an outpouring of support from the community in the weeks after the murders.

As the story made national news, they received a wave of donations from people across the country, which have been used to establish a trust fund for the children.

"It was really an overwhelming thing to see," Ashley said.

Friends and families have stepped up, donating their time and providing emotional support.

"We really want to thank everyone in the community who has done so much for us. With the support we have, and the friends and family we have, I know it'll be OK."

The couple are trying to decide the best option to care for the children in the future. They have met with family counselors and experts, but for the moment, it's difficult to find time to think much past Christmas.

After a time of relative quiet in the house on Monday, Adrianna, 11, the oldest of the kids, began doing the holiday math in her head.

After a moment, she proclaimed "We've got three days left!"

Ashley thought about it for a second, then said "No, we've got four."

Adrianna groaned as her expression drooped.

But her disappointment didn't last long. About that time, Blue returned home from work and was greeted by an eruption of cheers, hugs and high-fives.

That's how things are in the Billings home.

The chaos has a way of forcing things forward, drowning out thoughts that would otherwise linger on the bad.

For a second, everything feels OK. And in that second, everything is.

[cece]

http://www.northescambia.com/?p=13509

Year In Review North Escambia’s Biggest Stories Of 2009: July

January 2, 2010

NorthEscambia.com is looking back at 2009 with our “Year in Review” series. Each day, we will review the biggest stories of 2009. Today, we take a look at the biggest stories of July 2009.

Byrd and Melanie Billings were found dead in their Beulah home, setting off a series of arrests that captivated the nation. NorthEscambia.com was the first media in the nation to report that one of the suspects, Donnie Stallworth of Brewton, was in the military. As a result, NorthEscambia.com was mentioned on CNN, Fox and by United Press International (UPI), and we were linked to by Anderson Cooper and CNN, the New York Times, Huffington Post and MSNBC.

About two weeks after the Billings murders, Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan sat down with just one media outlet — NorthEscambia.com — to talk about what life was like for him personally behind the scenes of the investigation.

snipped.