Daily Record FINANCIAL NEWS &
MONDAY, JANUARY 9, 2017
Vol. 104, No. 040 • Two SecTioNS
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
Stein Mart expects 4th-quarter loss
The fourth quarter is generally the best time of the year for Stein Mart Inc., with the Jacksonvillebased fashion retailer often making more money in that threemonth period than it does in the other nine months combined. However, Stein Mart on Friday said after a disappointing holiday season, it is expecting to report a loss for the fourth quarter ending Jan. 28. The company said total sales for the last nine weeks of the calendar year fell 1.9 percent and comparable-store sales dropped 4.8 percent. Comparable-store
Hawkins said in a news release. “We have been aggressive with our promotions and markdowns to manage our inventory levels. This has impacted our gross profit rate and, as a result, we are now expecting to report a loss for the fourth quarter but will be profitable for the (fiscal) year,” he said. Hawkins was named interim CEO in September after the sudden resignation of Dawn Robertson, who left after only six months on the job amid concerns she was moving too quickly with new marketing strategies.
sales are sales at stores open for more than one year and are considered a key indicator of a retailer’s performance. Stein Mart operates 290 stores in 31 states, up from 278 stores at the end of fiscal 2016. “Our sales in November and December were particularly difficult,” interim CEO Hunt
Stein Mart’s stock dropped sharply after Robertson’s resignation, and the company ended 2016 as one of the few Jacksonville-based companies to decline in value, down 18.6 percent. After Friday morning’s announcement, Stein Mart’s stock fell to a 52-week low of $4.50 in early trading and closed Friday at $4.51, down 75 cents on the day. The three analysts following Stein Mart had been expecting a profit of between 1 cent and 16 cents in the quarter, according to Yahoo Finance. BASCH CONTINUED ON PAGE A-7
Hawkins
Assistance is needed on backlog of cases Court seeking $450,000 transfer from fines fund
Fourth Judicial Judge Virginia Norton will receive the 2017 Distinguished Judicial Service Award from Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Jorge Labarga on Jan. 19. She was nominated by attorney Michelle Bedoya Barnett.
Photo by Fran Ruchalski
By Max Marbut Staff Writer
Carrying on his legacy
By Marilyn Young Editor It was New Year’s Eve, a night to say farewell to the past and usher in the future. And there they were, two friends with a past of helping offenders get a second chance spending time making plans for the future. Fourth Judicial Circuit Judge Virginia Norton and Richard McKissick had many of these talks over the years they worked together on the Developing Adults with Necessary Skills program. The course provides training to inmates in the Duval County Jail to help them get their GEDs, life-skills training and transitional counseling. It also has lowered recidivism rates.
Public UBLIC
Norton’s work with DAWN is a key factor in her being selected for the 2017 Chief Justice’s Distinguished Judicial Service Award, which she will receive Jan. 19 at the Florida Supreme Court. McKissick handpicked Norton as the next-generation leader for the program he started many years before. And even though McKissick was in declining health at a rehabilitation center that December 2015 night, they still talked about the future.
Starting of a friendship
Norton and McKissick had frequently seen each other when she worked for the General Counsel’s Office from 1998-2008 and he was a NORTON
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Norton and the late Richard McKissick formed a friendship and a partnership during her work with him on a program in the Duval County Jail. McKissick often left the judge notes like the one above.
Photo by Marilyn Young
Norton honored for work in program started by McKissick
When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in January 2016 that Florida’s death penalty sentencing protocol should be amended, court officials predicted there could be an avalanche of post-conviction motions from inmates on death row. They were right. That’s why a bill will be introduced Tuesday to City Council to appropriate $450,000 to assist the courts in disposing of 3,850 cases seeking post-conviction relief. The money will be used to hire attorneys to review the motions. The funds come from from the $65 court cost fee paid by people who plead guilty or nolo contendre to, are found guilty of or adjudicated delinquent for any misdemeanor, felony or delinquent act or criminal traffic offense. The fee established by the Florida Legislature in 2004 may be collected by each county. “It’s a user fee — on the criminal side,” said 4th Judicial Circuit Chief Judge Mark Mahon. Use of funds derived from the fee is equally earmarked for four categories: Mahon • To provide legal aid services and programs • Personnel and legal materials for the public as part of a law library • Fund teen court and other juvenile alternative justice programs • Use at the chief judge’s discretion for innovations, to supplement state funding for elements of the court system or for local requirements. In April, council approved transfer of nearly $87,000 from the fund to hire staff attorneys to review a backlog of about 1,200 post-conviction motions. Court Administrator Joe Stelma said after the Supreme Court ruling, post-conviction motions started being filed at a faster pace. The court still receives at least 10 new motions each day, he said, nearly POST-CONVICTION
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