Page 3 - Florida Sentinel 3-8-16 Edition

Features
Clerk Of Circuit Court Offers New Ways To Pay Fines
MS. PAT FRANK Hillsborough County Clerk of Circuit Court
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
Ms. Pat Frank, Hillsbor- ough County Clerk of the Cir- cuit Court, has instituted several changes in the meth- ods used to pay fines. One of those changes is the newly centralized Customer Service Center, located on the first floor of the George Edgecomb Courthouse, 800 E. Twiggs Street.
Ms. Frank said, “Our number one goal is to serve the public and we are commit- ted to doing that in the most efficient way possible.”
The new Hillsborough County Clerk of Circuit Court Customer Service Center is located on the first floor of the George Edgecomb Courthouse, 800 E. Twiggs Street.
The Clerk’s Office allows online payments with a credit card. This option has been widely utilized by hundreds of individuals.
Another method made available to the public is to pay traffic tickets at any Amscot location. The ticket must have been received within 30 days. Ms. Frank hopes to expand the services being offered by Amscot later this year.
The third option available is paying the fines in person at the Edgecomb Courthouse. In October of last year, the first floor of the Courthouse was re- designed to consolidate serv-
ices previously provided in eight separate offices.
Once an individual checks into the office, a computerized system keeps track of the wait time. There are also 26 win- dows open to accommodate customers. Nearly 5,000 peo- ple are served at the Customer Service Center each week. The Customer Service Center is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.
The Clerk of Circuit Court also has satellite offices in Brandon, Southshore, and Plant City that are open Mon- day through Friday, from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.
Woman Charged With Defrauding Employer
A 48-year-old Tampa woman was arrested last week and charged with defrauding her employer. She was released after posting a $10,000 bond.
According to police, be- tween February 2011 and June 2015, Ms. Angela Romera began writing checks from her employer, Boger Homes of Lutz, to herself, her son, and her boyfriend. She initially re- paid the money.
However, the situation got out of hand, and when it was discovered, she had written checks totaling $254,000.
Having been employed with the company since 1996,
ANGELA ROMERA
Ms. Romera was allowed to write business-related checks, police said.
Popular Singer Looks Forward To Appearing At Strawberry Festival
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
On Saturday, March 12th, members of the community will be presented the “Charlie Wilson Experience.” He will appear at the Strawberry Festival as one of the headlin- ers.
Wilson, one of the co- founders of the Gap Band, said he is looking forward to not only being a headliner at the festival, but just enjoying the festival in general.
“I love Florida and I’m so happy to have been invited to be a part of the Strawberry Fes- tival. I’m so excited,” Wilson said.
An eleven-time Grammy nominee, Wilson offers a string of hits that include “Goodnight Kisses,” “My Love Is All I Have,” “You Are,” “There Goes My Baby,” and “Charlie Last Name Wilson,” among many others.
Last year, Wilson became a published author with the re- lease of his memoir, “I Am Charlie Wilson.” The book has become a bestseller on the New York Times (Best Seller) list and Washington Post (Best Seller) list.
Wilson said he applies the same energy to his perform- ances in every venue. “I put the same show on regardless of the size of the audience. I work the
CHARLIE WILSON ... Grammy nominee
same way every time.”
When talking about his
road to success, Wilson said when he began singing every- one wanted him to become a gospel singer. But, he had been exposed to all types of music and ended up performing all types.
During his years as a per- former, Wilson has accumu- lated numerous accolades, including two 2016 Grammy nominations, Best Traditional R & B Performance for “My Favorite Part of You,” and Best R & B Album for “For- ever Charlie.”
He is also the recipient of three2016 N A A C P Image Award nominations, and was honored with the BET Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013.
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