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By JOE SEELIG
SEBRING — A 70-year-old Sebring woman woke up at about 4 a.m. Sunday, awakened by a bright light, turned her head and saw an unknown man standing in her bedroom, according to a sheriff’s report.
She yelled “Get the hell out of here, I’m calling the police.”
Luckily for her, the burglar ran off. Unfortunately for her he took a laptop computer worth $3,000 with him.
The victim lived in a manufactured home just off of Hammock Road near Brunns Road. The address has been withheld by Highlands Today to protect the victim’s privacy.
Meanwhile, not far away, a couple in their 60s living with their 86-year-old mother discovered the same night that their home had been burglarized as well, while they slept.
Deputies and an Avon Park K-9 unit working on the first burglary were notified at about 4:05 a.m. Sunday that the 86-year-old woman was awakened by a bright light in her bedroom.
Another laptop computer was missing along with her purse, some items of clothing, some cash, a wallet and two sets of car keys.
The K-9 track ended with a loss of scent, which indicated the burglar got into a vehicle of some sort.
Sheriff’s Det. Bobby Burch said these incidents were among as many as 10 similar crimes reported within the last two months in the Sebring area. Other such crimes took place at the Francis II and the Fairmount Mobile Home parks, Burch said.
The Highlands County Sheriff’s Office is recommending that residents report any suspicious activity anytime they see it.
“If anyone sees anything suspicious they need to call law enforcement right away,” said Burch. “Do not delay.”
People need to make an extra effort to make sure their homes are secured, Burch said. “By any means necessary.”
Deputies are recommending people close and lock their doors and windows, especially at night or when leaving their homes or going to sleep.
To report a crime in progress call 911. For information call Burch at 402-7200 or call CrimeStoppers at 1-800-226-TIPS to report information about a crime and remain anonymous.
By JOE SEELIG
AVON PARK — After nearly four days of firefighting, the Big Pine fire in southern Polk County has been contained, according to Florida Division of Forestry Public Information Officer Chris Kintner.
About 150 acres on Avon Park Bombing Range property were burned, Kintner said. The fire still had about six miles to go before it reached the Highlands County border, Kintner said. Part of the bombing range is located in Polk.
The fire started Sunday afternoon in Polk County’s River Ranch area. River Ranch is filled with small hunting camps, shacks and cabins, 310 of which were destroyed.
An estimated 3,250 acres burned in all, said Kintner, quoting new ground positioning satellite measurements.
Bombing range personnel suppressed the fire in the bombing range, she said.
“They have a big fence there. We couldn’t get in there if we wanted to.”
After three days of firefighting a Division of Forestry task force was brought late Wednesday from northern Florida to help relieve Polk County personnel, Kintner said, including eight additional pieces of firefighting equipment and about 17 more firefighters.
The fire never reached the Blue Jordan marsh area, so a muck fire may have been averted.
No firefighters or civilians have been injured, she said.
There are no significant chances of rain in sight to put this fire out.
“The best we can hope for is the humidity goes up and the winds stay calm,” Kintner said.
“We’re not out of the woods yet,” she joked.
While the dry season continues she encouraged people to use caution and good sense when camping and using open fires. Contrary to at least one media report, she said Wednesday that burn permits have not been canceled.
By JOE SEELIG
SEBRING — Three men were free on bond Tuesday after their arrests when a security guard reported seeing a suspicious light at Spring Lake Services late Friday, according to a Highlands County sheriff’s arrest report.
Arrested was James Franklin McNabb, 45, of Okeechobee, charged with possession of burglary tools with intent to use them and loitering or prowling.
Roger Dean Rushlo, 53, of 3710 Paradise Drive, Sebring, was charged with possession of burglary tools with intent to use them, loitering or prowling and possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana.
Neal Howard Buchanan, 34, of 4908 Briarcliff Ave., Sebring, was charged with loitering or prowling.
McNabb was free on $1,250 bail; Rushlo was free on $1,750 bail and Buchanan was free on $250 bail according to Highlands County Jail central records.
Sheriff’s deputy Kevin Awbrey reported that at about 11:43 p.m. Friday, he was called to West Deer Trail, in Sebring, responding to a call of a suspicious person with a flashlight at a commercial property.
On his arrival he discovered a blue Jeep parked behind a Dumpster near the end of the road. He called for assistance.
The three men walked out from behind a trash and bent metal rod pile. The three men were inconsistent in their stories and could not provide a justifiable reason for being there at that time of night, Awbrey reported.
McNabb was carrying a pair of pliers and the flashlight, “with the intent to use the tools to commit a burglary or trespass,” Awbrey wrote. Rushlo had pliers, a flashlight and leatherman tool as well as a half-smoked marijuana cigarette, according to the report.
By JOE SEELIG
AVON PARK — The Big Pine Fire in southern Polk County was about 80 percent contained, according to Florida Division of Forestry Public Information Officer Chris Kintner said Tuesday afternoon.
The fire began about 2 p.m. Sunday in Polk in the River Ranch area.
While the fire did slightly encroach on Avon Park Bombing Range property over night, it is a long way off from crossing into Highlands County, she said.
A portion of the bombing range is located in Polk.
The fire thus far has consumed about 3,000 acres. The fire was described as having burned an area four miles long by one mile wide.
“We’re estimating about 350 hunting camps were destroyed but no other structures were damaged,” Kintner said.
Some recreational vehicles were also destroyed, Kintner said.
Tim Elder is forest area supervisor Okeechobee District with the Florida Division of Forestry, which includes Highlands County.
Elder said Monday the fire is threatening the Blue Jordan subdivision in Polk County and voluntary evacuations have been ongoing.
Kintner said one concern is if the fire gets into the muck in the Blue Jordan swamp. Muck fires are difficult and expensive to put out, she said.
Parts of County Road 630 was closed to traffic to prevent sightseers from getting in the way of firefighters who could have to move equipment on a moment’s notice, said Kintner.
American Red Cross volunteers returned to southeastern Polk County to assist evacuees the a wildfire well into its third day, according to American Red Cross spokesman Phil Attinger.
“On Sunday, March 25, the American Red Cross Polk County Chapter responded to a large brush fire in the River ranch area of Polk County – east of Lake Wales off State Road 60 – with hot food, cold drinks, snacks, water and ice for Division of Forestry and Polk County fire crews, who had battled the blaze all day,” Attinger said.
On Monday the Red Cross prepared to open evacuee shelters in the Lake Wales and Frostproof areas. The first of those shelters is located at the First Baptist Church of Lake Wales, at 324 E. Central Ave., Lake Wales.
Anyone who needs assistance is urged to contact the American Red Cross there or at the Polk County Chapter office in Winter Haven at (863) 294-5941.
Every person is urged to follow all fire safety precautions, indoors or outdoors, and to make and practice a family fire escape plan, especially from wildfire, Attinger said.
The division was using about 20 firefighters, 10 bulldozers, five fire engines, two helicopters along with the help of the Polk County Fire Service, Kintner said, and one large air-tanker was used to strategically drop two 3,000-pound loads of flame retardant on the blaze.
By JOE SEELIG
AVON PARK — The Big Pine brush fire located in southern Polk County was approaching a section of the Avon Park Bombing Range property located inside Polk County on Monday afternoon, a Florida Division of Forestry spokesman said.
Tim Elder is forest area supervisor Okeechobee District with the Florida Division of Forestry, which includes Highlands County.
Elder said the fire is threatening the Blue Jordan subdivision in Polk County and voluntary evacuations have been ongoing.
The fire began about 2 p.m. Sunday and has burned more than 1,500 acres in Polk.
“If it crosses south (into Highlands), it isn’t going to be a problem since the Bombing Range burns regularly,” Elder said.
Thus far, 19 Division of Forestry firefighters from the Lakeland District, and one from the Okeechobee District, have been committed to battle the blaze, along with firefighters with other agencies.
The division was using 10 bulldozers, five fire engines, two helicopters and was trying to access one large air-tanker to drop flame retardent.
The fire, which began in the River Ranch area, was a little more than six miles from the Highlands County border, said Lakeland District media spokeswoman Chris Kintner.
Some hunting camps and recreational vehicles have been destroyed, she said.
The River Ranch area is tough to control fires due to fractured land ownership, many with one acre lots, very little controlled burning, heavy fuel, the dry season and camp sites scattered throughout, Elder said.
“It’s a major problem every year,” he said.
Elder said if the winds there were in the same direction as those in Highlands County, the fire would be heading more in a westerly direction. Kintner agreed saying the fire had traveled about two or three miles west.
By JOE SEELIG
SEBRING — A Sebring woman, who reportedly walked into the side of a Jeep on Thursday, was pronounced dead Monday morning due to complications from her injuries, said Sebring Police Cmdr. Steve Carr.
Police reported that about 10:53 a.m. on Thursday, Mary Vocke-Trinier, 83, tried to cross to the north on Schumacher Road, west of the SunTrust Bank when she hit the jeep.
Betty Flint Fowler, 66, of Sebring, was in driving in the left turning lane heading toward U.S. 27 from the west on Schumacher, police officer Joe Stump said Thursday. Schumacher is located next to the Sebring Wal-Mart.
Vocke-Triner sustained trauma to her leg and chest, Stump said, and was transported to a landing zone at the West Sebring Volunteer Fire Dept. Station 9 and was flown to Tampa General Hospital by Aeromed helicopter.
She was pronounced dead at 12:59 a.m., Monday, according to the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner’s Office. Her death was caused by complications caused by fractured ribs and flailed chest due to blunt impact trauma to her torso, a spokesman said.
No charges were filed against the driver, Stump said.
By GARY PINNELL
SEBRING — Restaurants will have until 2008 before they’re required to post trans fat warnings.
But a Sebring restaurant owner says, “We’ll need some help.”
The House Business Regulation Committee let Rep. Joe Gibbons, D-Hallandale Beach, work on a bill that would force restaurants to alert customers when foods contain trans fats. It will be taken up next year.
HB 309 would require restaurants to post this general warning in a conspicuous location: “Some foods served here contain trans fats. Eating foods with trans fats can increase your risk of stroke and heart attack.”
Gibbons says his plan would empower customers.
But Reba Hendry, co-owner of EJs Cafe, said most cooked food has trans fats.
“We can’t keep it from coming from our suppliers,” said Hendry, a nurse by profession.
Which is what lawmakers learned. Virtually every restaurant in the state serves at least one dish with trans fats, so all would have to post the warning. Some lawmakers were concerned businesses would be subject to inappropriate criminal penalties, mandated by the bill.
The biggest restaurant chains are still frying French fries, chicken nuggets, and other fast foods with partially hydrogenated oils, according to a survey conducted by the Center for Science in the Public Interest. It’s also in baked goods. For instance, a Kentucky Fried Chicken pot pie has 14 grams of trans fat; Taco Bell’s Nachos BellGrande has seven grams.
The Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association opposes the bill. A spokesman said many restaurants are already eliminating trans fats in their cooking oil, and they’re informing customers about those fats.
A more helpful warning would be the exact amount of trans fats in each food, but Hendry said, “It would take a scientist to sit down and calculate how much.”
She wouldn’t be opposed to the bill if the state health department would supply general numbers for, say, for a 6-ounce serving of French fries or a quarter-pound cheeseburger.
Vocational Education
School districts would have a financial incentive to create career and professional academies that train students to meet the needs of Florida employers under a bill that passed the Senate 33-4.
SB 1232 was sponsored by Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, and is patterned after a program he established when he was Okaloosa County’s school superintendent in cooperation with local employers.
Districts would get about $1,200 – the current year figure under an existing funding formula – for every student who successfully completes the program and receives industry certification.
It’s unclear whether community colleges would also receive the benefit, said Norman Stephens Jr., president of South Florida Community College. He met with legislators this earlier this week, but he didn’t recall SB 1232 being mentioned.
“Every time we link the interests and aptitudes of a student with preparation for a high-demand career, we’re building Florida’s future,” Gaetz said in a statement.
Opponents were worried the bill would force school districts to shut down programs that fail to get national industry certification. Gaetz assured them it would not and offered an amendment the Senate adopted to further that assurance.
Communications Tax Cut
The House unanimously passed a bill that will lower taxes on the use of cell phones, cable, satellite systems and other communications devices.
The House voted 112-0 to pass HB 567, which would cut taxes by $60 million for those who use the devices by July 2009.
“Florida’s current tax is the third highest in the country,” Gov. Charlie Crist said in a statement. “This legislation is the first step to significantly reduce this tax burden on the people of Florida.”
A companion measure in the Senate has not yet been heard in committee.
“That would be a benefit to our customers,” said Jeff Mechlin. Avon Park District communications manager for Embarq. “It affects almost everyone in Florida.”
However, he didn’t believe the bill would affect land lines – telephones which are connected by wires.
Smoke And CO Alarms
The families of Anthony Perez and Janelle Bertot urged House members to pass proposed legislation that would require every residence in Florida to have smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors by July 2009.
HB 483 would also mandate detectors in all new construction starting this July.
Perez, 25, and 19-year-old Bertot were killed two years ago by carbon monoxide, an odorless gas, inside a car in Weston.
Janelle’s mother, Barbara Bertot, said statistics show most homes in Florida do not have carbon monoxide detectors.
Anthony’s sister, Jennifer Perez, said her family remains devastated by her brother’s death and she believes the bill would prevent other families from losing loved ones.
The House Business Regulation Committee approved the proposal. It now heads to the full House chamber for debate.
Rep. Denise Grimsley, R-Lake Placid, said smoke detectors were removed from the amended bill Carbon monoxide detectors must be installed in newly constructed and existing single-family dwellings, multi-family dwellings and rental properties. Lodges must install carbon monoxide devices in machine rooms.
DeSoto City resident Malena Pack and her five-month-old daughter Jenna were saved by a smoke detector.
“They would have been gone,” said her mother, Cyndee Pack. “It would have been a quickie. Mobile homes, they’re just like kindling.”
Home Depot sells a combination smoke and carbon monoxide detector for $44.
“I don’t care if it’s $500. What’s a life worth?” Pack asked rhetorically.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
By DOUG CARMAN
SEBRING — The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation advertised a reduction in homeowners’ insurance averaging more than 20 percent when the state forms its public reinsurer, under the ongoing reforms.
Many condo owners, however, will lose their coverage before they see any of that, if they haven’t lost it already.
With most of the major insurers still pulling out of the commercial residential market, which includes condominium insurance, some fear the recent legislation is being rendered worthless for the condo residents as they resort to Citizens Property Insurance, the state-ran insurer of last resort.
Bob Domako, who owns a condominium unit in the Fairway Village in Sun ‘N Lake, said his insurance agent anticipated a 20 percent higher rate for the condominium policy.
“That goes against the grain of everything we read in the media,” Domako said.
A Few Loopholes
George Hensley, an insurance agent with the Heacock Insurance Group in Sebring, said the reductions applied only to the wind damage portions of the insurance policies. Furthermore, for larger insurers like Allstate and State Farm, a more realistic deduction would be around 7 percent to 9 percent in the premium.
“The whole thing was misleading,” Hensley said, referring to the earlier coverage on the expected reductions.
Condominiums use two different insurance policies. One applies to individual units, which are purchased by the residents and protects the interior property. The second, a commercial residential policy, applies to the entire building and is paid through a property owners association. Typically, a maintenance fee charged to each resident of the condominium covers that other insurance.
An emergency order that went into effect Jan. 31 also prohibited insurers from raising rates beyond a set factor, while at the same time preventing insurers from canceling personal residential properties.
However, commercial residential policies could still be cancelled, and some insurers are doing so.
Running Out of Options
A list provided to Highlands Today from the OIR shows only two major insurers with a substantial number of policies remaining in the state’s commercial residential market, other than Citizens.
“The ones that wrote substantial amounts (such as) State Farm and Allstate are in the
process of non-renewing several of them,” OIR spokesman Bob Lotane said. State Farm, which is one of those two major holders, stated that it will be withdrawing from the market completely.
Domako said his insurance company, Hanover, prepared to drop his policy by notifying him just before Jan. 31 when the emergency order took effect. After repairing the building’s roof and after several phone calls, he said he managed to salvage his coverage and get a renewal.
Ian Wilson, the property manager for The Bluffs of Sebring, was not as lucky. Allstate dropped the Bluffs of Sebring Condominium Association’s policy at the end of 2006, forcing him to take a Citizens policy.
“There has been no other option,” Wilson said.
Wilson added that the insurance budget rocketed from $80,000 for 2006 to roughly $300,000 for the current year. To cover this, after digging into the treasury to cover part of the expense, the association gave the condo residents one-time access fees ranging from $700 to more than $1,000 to cover the balance.
Even for those who are holding onto their policies, prices are not yet remaining stable.
Bob Zorn, the treasurer of Fountainhead Condominium Inc., said the cost for the condominium’s policy was more than 10 percent higher this year, even though he declined to specify the name of his insurer or the exact cost.
“We did have to make adjustments,” Zorn said, but then he down-played the impact. “Everyobdy complains about the rising costs, just as everyone complains about the higher city taxes.”
By CHRIS BUTLER
SEBRING — Juvenile crime might be on the rise.
The Highlands County Sheriff’s Office is unable to provide the numbers to compare juvenile crime arrests on a year-by-year basis. The agency was able to provide statistics on a month-by-month basis, however.
Lt. Paula Weeks of the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office said Friday that the Highlands County Sheriffs Office conducted 43 juvenile arrests in February of last year. But in February of this year, sheriff’s deputies oversaw the arrests of a larger number of juveniles – 51.
Weeks said those juveniles were the ones not sentenced as adults after being taken to the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice in Bartow.
The increasing numbers may reflect perceptions that juvenile crime is on the rise.
Highlands County Sheriff Susan Benton said earlier this month she didn’t have any knowledge of the latest numbers, but hasn’t personally seen any other evidence of an upswing in juvenile arrests.
“I do a weekly intelligence bulletin and don’t see anything more or less than what I’ve seen the last couple of years. I think the trends we are seeing are proportionate with the growth in population.
“You might see a larger number of referrals versus two years ago, but if you look at that to the relationship in the population increase, I don’t think you’re going to see the ratios going up,” Benton said.
She said juveniles committing serious violent crimes are far more likely to wind up in an adult court than they were five-10 years ago.
Statistics concerning juvenile arrests within the 10th Judicial Circuit counties of Highlands, Polk and Hardee were not available as of press time Friday. Florida Department of Juvenile Justice Data Integrity Officer Jay Harris was unavailable when reached for comment.
‘Gang Wannabes’
Benton said signs of juvenile gangs in the area such as graffiti signal nothing more than a pattern of “gang wannabes.”
“We encourage businesses to clean or paint over any graffiti because that tends to be a marking of territory. So far we’ve been fortunate we haven’t yet reached that level where it’s gotten out of hand,” she said.
Highlands County Sheriff’s deputies said in January that five juvenile suspects were involved in an armed robbery at Sebring’s Dollar General Store.
One store employee told police one of the suspects pistol-whipped her twice before running away with an undetermined amount of cash.
The five suspects were eventually arrested, but not before law enforcement officers spent a substantial portion of the night tracking them down.
All five were transported to Florida’s Department of Juvenile Justice in Bartow.
Benton said the juvenile offenders often get community service for either first offenses or less serious crimes.
By JOE SEELIG
SEBRING — An off-duty Highlands County sheriff’s detention deputy said he happened to be in the right place at the right time about 5 p.m. Monday, to assist with an arrest of two burglary suspects.
Two teenagers were in the care of the department of children and families on Friday after they were charged in connection with a theft from the Radio Shack store at the Lakeshore Mall.
According to the arrest report, two teens, a male and a female, entered the Radio Shack store, located at the Sebring mall, but shopping may not have been on their minds.
While the male engaged employees with questions about cell phones, the female reportedly entered a private office and removed a black and pink purse belonging to an employee and exited the store, heading into Kmart, the report states.
Both teens went into the handicap stall in the Kmart men’s bathroom, where they emptied a wallet and the victim’s keys, stuffing the purse into a garbage can, the report states.
The pair then went to the parking lot and were able to locate the victim’s Dodge Neon, using a keyless entry system attached to the key chain. They began going through the victim’s trunk. The girl acted as lookout, the report stated.
Meanwhile, sheriff’s detention deputy Shon Abeln was parking his car, several spaces away. He was in his street clothes. He walked past the pair going through the car’s trunk and overheard the girl say, “Did you find your keys yet,” Abeln said. The boy replied “No.”
Abeln walked toward the mall entrance near the Kmart garden center.
“I stepped up onto the curb at the garden shop,” said Abeln. “And then the owner of the car came out.”
She saw the teens rummaging through the trunk and began to run toward her car, he said, pushing the boy.
Abeln thought at first it could be a domestic thing, but began to walk toward the scene. The boy and girl walked off.
Abeln was distracted briefly, then looked up.
“They started running toward Outback Steak House,” he said. “I hopped back into my truck and drove across the parking lot.”
He could see the pair standing at U.S. 27, waiting to cross. He turned north but had to turn around. He saw the two heading through the Knights of Columbus property.
Abeln spotted the pair walking along the beach on Lake Jackson.
“He took off his black tank-top and the girl turned her shirt inside out,” Abeln said. “They were trying to change their appearance a little bit.”
When they spotted Abeln the pair bolted into a wooded lot. Sheriff’s deputy Chris Gunter arrived with his K-9 partner Wyatt, and tracked the pair from the beach and into the lot as other deputies and Sebring Police officers arrived to assist.
Arrested were Philip Lee Hill, 17, of Frostproof and Sarah Elise Young, 15, of Sebring, each charged with burglary of a structure or conveyance, petty theft and tampering with physical evidence.
Young was additionally charged with violation of probation or community control on an undisclosed charge.
The victim’s purse, credit cards and driver’s license were recovered from the trash can.
The victim could not be reached for comment.
By JOE SEELIG
SEBRING — A Sebring woman was in critical condition Friday after she was airlifted Thursday morning to Tampa General Hospital
At about 10:53 a.m., Mary Vocke-Triner, 83, was trying to cross north on Schumacher west of the SunTrust Bank when she walked into the side of a Jeep sports utility vehicle, according to Sebring police.
The Jeep, driven by Betty Flint Fowler, 66, of Sebring, was in the left turning lane approaching U.S. 27 from the west, police officer Joe Stump said Thursday.
Vocke-Triner sustained trauma to her leg and chest, Stump said, and was transported to a landing zone to be flown to Tampa General Hospital.
A landing zone was set up at the West Sebring Volunteer Fire Station No. 9, on Longview Court, where she taken to Tampa by Aeromed helicopter.
Stump said she was listed in stable condition.
No charges were filed against the driver, Stump said.
By GARY PINNELL
SEBRING — New employees, road projects, computer upgrades. A million dollars here, two million there. Pretty soon, the sum is $38.3 million, the difference between the Fiscal Year 2005-06 total budget of $114,388,005, and the Fiscal Year 2006-07 total budget of $152,697,345.
Highlands County department heads were asked how they spent the money.
First, said Budget Manager Tim Mechling, 18-20 percent was added to the general fund to cover fixed-cost increases in health insurance, property insurance, fuel and equipment.
Other increases:
Most of that $500,000 went to eight technology projects, said Bob Jamison, the senior director of business services.
“The clerk of courts provides computer services to about 600 users – the majority are county employees, a few are municipal police and law enforcement. We upgraded those services to improve security and data storage capacity, reduce computer
downtime and improve network speed,” Jamison said.
“The major portion of that was spent on GIS conversion, which the county asked us to do for them,” said Raymond McIntyre.
A geographic information system is computerized mapping. Layers of maps are created, like water sources, fire hydrants, streets and landowners.
“That money is still sitting there, waiting for the project to begin,” said Penny Phillipi, housing director.
“Sebring Parkway was a big chunk in that increase,” said Ramon Gavarrete, the county engineer. Phase II of the downtown loop will extend from Highlands Avenue past the high school
He got permission to hire five new employees, but because of a lack of engineers, they haven’t clocked in yet. He’s still looking for an engineer with a traffic background and a Computer Aided Design draftsman.
Two other projects include redesigning the intersection of Hammock Road and Lakewood, to solve turning problems – “It’s very congested today, and it’s just going to get worse,” Gavarrete said – and Sparrow Road, where drivers turn into Lakeshore Mall. “We’ve had a very limited right of way, but with the Heacock Insurance building going in, we’re able to get additional right of way.”
Soon, Gavarrete said, he’ll start engineering the sheriff’s new law enforcement building, a $13 million project.
Some departments made do without a budget increase, or less:
They spent the extra $10,000 on sandblasting, repairing and repainting dumpsters, fuel and contract workers to sort the 13 tons a day of recycled goods that comes in.
County Administrator Carl Cool, Major Mark Schrader of the sheriff’s department, Mary Foy of the Human Services Department, and Jim Polatty of Highlands County Development Services did not return calls before press time.
By MARC VALERO
SEBRING — The Highlands County School District did not effectively perform fingerprinting and background checks on construction workers who were permitted access to school grounds when students were present, according to the Florida Auditor General.
Noted in the audit report for the year ending June 30, 2006, the school district had not conducted the required fingerprinting or background screening, using its agency code, for workers on the Lake Placid Elementary School new classroom building construction.
Failure to conduct the fingerprinting/background screening, to ensure that independent contractors and subcontractors have met level 2 screening requirements, increases the risk that contractual personnel may have backgrounds that are not suitable for direct contact with students, according to the audit.
The Jessica Lunsford Act requires checking the names of contractual personnel against the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Sexual Predator/Offender Registry.
The school district responded to the Auditor General, “The district will review its procedures to ensure that the required fingerprinting and background checks are performed.”
Also noted in the audit report, the district improperly entered into a design-build contract with a roofing contractor for six projects totaling $545,354 rather than engaging a licensed design professional and soliciting bids as required by Florida statutes. The district negotiated the cost of each project and established a guaranteed maximum price with the contractor rather than soliciting bids.
The district responded that it will retain a design professional as needed for future roofing projects.
Also, improvements were needed in the district’s procedures to ensure that the charter school, Hopewell Academy for the Arts, meets the provisions of the contract between the school board and the charter school, the Auditor General noted.
By JOE SEELIG
SEBRING — A Sebring woman was airlifted Thursday morning after she walked into the side of a Jeep sports utility vehicle, trying to cross Schumacher Road, according to Sebring police.
At about 10:53 a.m., Mary Vocke Priner, 83, was trying to cross north on Schumacher west of the SunTrust Bank.
She walked into the side of a Jeep driven by Betty Flint Fowler, 66, of Sebring, who was in the left turning lane approaching U.S. 27 from the west, police officer Joe Stump said.
Priner sustained trauma to her leg and chest, Stump said, and was transported to a landing zone to be flown to Tampa General Hospital.
A landing zone was set up at the West Sebring Volunteer Fire Station No. 9, on Longview Court, where she taken to Tampa by Aeromed helicopter.
Stump said she was listed in stable condition.
No charges were filed against the driver, Stump said.
By CHRIS BUTLER
SEBRING — The same Highlands County judge hearing your case in March may not be the same one hearing your case if it continues into the summer.
A few changes are coming to the Highlands County Courthouse.
The chief judge responsible for deciding which 10th Judicial District judges oversee which courts has made some key changes.
Chief Judge David Langford released a list of new appointments for Highlands County last week, in addition to those in Polk and Hardee counties.
Langford said in a statement that the changes in Highlands County will take effect July 2 and will remain effective until Jan. 6 of next year.
Judge Olin Shinholser will become the administrative judge for the county’s Civil and Probate Court.
Meanwhile, Judge John K. Stargel will move from his current position in Polk County to oversee Highlands County’s Family Court.
Judge J. Michael McCarthy will remain as Highlands County’s Juvenile Court judge. Judge Peter Estrada will retain his position as Highlands County’s Felony Court judge.
Langford has previously said many judges in the 10th Judicial Circuit are rotated from court to court, often on an 18-month basis.
The circuit includes Highlands, Hardee and Polk counties.
Langford announced last week he was reassigning controversial Judge Susan Roberts to Polk County’s Family Court. Roberts is currently the only judge hearing first-degree murder cases coming out of Highlands and its surrounding counties.
State attorneys filed motions last month asking that Roberts be removed from first-degree murder cases.
They faulted Roberts for what they said was her insensitivity to the families of murder victims and stated opposition to the death penalty in at least one instance. They also said in documents filed against Roberts that she’s conducted her court in an “inexcusable” manner.
Langford said Judge Michael Hunter will assume Roberts’ duties as a capitol murder judge in July.
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