5 Years Ago, 2011

Two ordinances restricting alcohol sales at three Wells Road night clubs set to go into effect June 1 would not do so until a federal court ruled on the ordinances’ constitutionality.

The YMCA, the Mercy Network and the Foundation of the Personal Empowerment Center came together to dedicate a group home on Doctors Lake Drive that would serve as temporary housing for area homeless.

A ceremony at the Middleburg Boat Ramp recognized Fort Heileman for its role in the Second Seminole War where it provided munitions and supplies to troops fighting in North and Central Florida.

10 Years Ago, 2006

Green Cove Springs Police Sgt. John Jenner shot Joel Jack Craven, 32, of Baxley, Ga. several times after Craven got out of his truck wielding a shotgun after a police chase ended on State Road 16. Craven fled his Appling County, Ga. home after killing his wife, Tina Craven, 37, his stepson, Zachary Wayne Moore, 16, and a family friend Katrina Wood, 37, and setting the house on fire. Craven later died at Orange Park Medical Center.

Mark Monsees received broken bones and several cuts when he was ran over twice and dragged 40 feet by a man driving a stolen pickup truck in the 400 block of Janell Drive in Orange Park. Christopher Shane Summerford was charged with grand theft auto and DUI.

The Clay County Sheriff’s Office arrested Fred Ray Foley, of Valdosta, Ga. for grand theft of a vessel after allegedly stealing four boats the previous year from a Green Cove Springs storage facility.

20 Years Ago, 1996

Orange Park Town Attorney C. Edward Rich indicated that a lawsuit the town filed against River Road resident Rene Wilke “may be fading.” The town filed suit after Wilke blocked a bulldozer with a body to prevent sidewalk construction on River Road.

Clay County Teacher of the Year Susan Sailor was named Florida Teacher of the Year, which brought with it numerous cash awards, including a $10,000 checks from Burdine’s.

Clay County Sheriff’s Office deputy Gary Cannon said a new program to raise awareness about underage drinking in Keystone Heights was gaining traction and retailers have begun to crack down on illegal sales to minors there.

30 Years Ago, 1986

The Clay County Sheriff’s Office charged George Harry Morris of Orange Park with three counts of attempted murder and one count of discharging a firearm after he allegedly shot a .380-caliber pistol at his wife, three-year-old and three-month-old daughters.

Clay County Library Director Bob Lipscomb urged the Board of County Commissioners to “look to the future” and purchase two adjacent parcels of land near Orange Park Library.

Parents of students at S. Bryan Jennings Elementary School formed the Committee to Stop the Transfer of Sara Reese, school principal. The committee brought billboards and urges residents to call School Superintendent Ann Wiggins to stop Reese from being moved to an assistant principal position at Clay Hill Elementary.

40 Years Ago, 1976

The newly-formed nonprofit Community Action for Orange Park raised $6,000 in separate $250 pledges to beautify Park Avenue in the town. Organizer Frica Massee said the group will work with Jacksonville planners to design the corridor’s new look and feel.

During Memorial Day festivities, Green Cove Springs Mayor Leamon Johns presented U.S. Rep Bill Chappell(D-4) with a proclamation thanking him for all the help he had garnered the city on the federal level.

Clay County Sheriff Jennings Murrhee assigned a full-time investigator to lead the search for Janita Maureen Estes, 16, who had been missing for three days with her car left abandoned in the Orange Park Mall parking lot.