VENUS — The Glades County Sheriff’s Office on Friday still was seeking three teenage inmates who escaped from the Last Chance Ranch, also known as the Florida Environmental Institute, on Dec. 31.

The three teen-age inmates beat one guard with baseball bats and then overpowered and beat a second guard before they escaped in his car.

Emergency Medical Services was called to the scene, to which the first guard, Winston Leroy Harvey, was airlifted to Lee Memorial Hospital, where he was listed in stable condition.

A second guard, Robert Morris, was also overpowered and beaten, then stuffed into a mattress cover and locked inside a bathroom closet.

At about 1:56 a.m., on Dec. 31, the Glades County Sheriff’s Office reports it received a 911 call from Last Chance Ranch, located at 122 Ranch Road, in Venus, Fla.

This is located in the northwest corner of Glades County.

“The caller advised that two guards were injured and down,” according to Glades sheriff’s Chief Deputy Duane Pottorff. “Upon Deputy Donald Crosswell’s arrival, he located the first guard lying inside a vehicle covered in blood.
“Winston had received multiple injuries to the head area including a concussion along with a broken arm.”

Harvey was able to give Crosswell a statement that the three inmates had beaten him with baseball bats and then escaped.
Crosswell moved further into the ranch property to investigate the escape, Pottorff said. While doing so he made contact with the second guard, Robert Morris.

“Robert explained that he was in the bunk room when he was distracted by one of the inmates that the toilet was backed up and requested a plunger,” Pottorff said. “When Robert entered the bathroom with the plunger, he was jumped by the three inmates and overpowered. They threw him to the ground and began kicking him in the head area.”

Morris was later able to free himself from the mattress cover and kicked open the bathroom door. This is when Morris noticed that his car was stolen and traveling down the driveway toward County Road 731.

The car has not yet been recovered, Pottorff said Friday.

Morris was attended to by emergency services personnel and was later taken to a hospital by a friend, where he was admitted into the hospital for his injuries.

Glades County sheriff’s Detective Terry Deese was also notified and went to the scene.

“The three inmates have not been located as of this time,” Pottorff said. “Warrants were signed by Judge J. Lundy for all three inmates on the following charges, felony battery, false imprisonment, criminal mischief, burglary, grand theft of a motor vehicle and escape.

The three inmates are Jesus A. Duran, 15, described as 5-feet 5-inches tall and weighing 140 pounds with brown eyes and black hair; Edward Russo Woodruff, 14, 5-feet 4-inches tall and weighing 125 pounds with brown eyes and black hair; Andrew James Helderman, 16, white, 5-feet 11-inches tall, 175 pounds with green eyes, and black hair.

Helderman was sentenced to the ranch for two counts of battery. Woodruff was sentenced to the facility for two counts of grand theft, giving false information to a law enforcement officer, resisting arrest with violence, and battery on a law enforcement officer.

“Woodruff is a known active member of the Latin King Gang,” said Pottorff.

Duran was sentenced to the ranch for fraud and grand theft.

“Duran is a known active member of the SIR-13 Gang,” said Pottorff.

They were last seen driving a 1989 Honda Civic, beige in color with Florida tag No. J26TBD.

It’s anyone’s guess where the three may have gone, Pottorff said.

“Some are from south Florida and some are from North Florida,” he said.

Lake Placid Police Chief Phil Williams said Friday that his previous experience with inmates from the ranch have been positive ones.

Williams described the ranch program as an alternative to prison for boys who may not be beyond help.

“It’s not the worst of the worst, but it isn’t the best of the best,” Williams said. “They didn’t go out there because they didn’t go to Sunday school.”

He said most of the residents go through and complete the program with a low rate of recidivism (relapse into criminal behavior).

“In this end of the county they’re pretty well entrenched into the community,” he said. “The boys work with the community sometimes on different community projects.”

Anyone with information regarding these escaped inmates is asked to contact detective Deese at the Glades County Sheriff’s Office at 863-946-1600 or your local law enforcement agency. The three are considered extremely dangerous and people are being advised not to approach them.

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By BILL ROGERS

SEBRING — The Olive Garden will build a restaurant in Sebring, but fans of the Italian eatery will have to wait until next year to enjoy its food.

Mara Frazier, manager of media relations for the Darden restaurant, confirmed Thursday that it will locate a restaurant on an outparcel at The Shops at Shelby Crossing, located on U.S. 27 next to Lowe’s.

Construction is projected to begin in either late October or November of this year. It is expected to open in either April or May 2008.

Olive Garden has plans to build a 7,400 square-foot building on the site. It will feature a Tuscan-farmhouse design that was inspired by Olive Garden’s Riserva di Fizzano restaurant in Tuscany, Italy.

The restaurant will have a stone exterior. Vaulted ceilings, supported by exposed wood beams, stone and wood accents throughout, and terra cotta tile highlight the interior.

Most new Olive Garden restaurants have been built in the Tuscan-farmhouse design since February 2000.

The Sebring restaurant will employ between 150 and 165 full-and part-time employees, according to Frazier.

There are currently 54 Olive Gardens in Florida and 595 in the United States and Canada.

Work on the 220,000 square-foot shopping center is under way. Stores that are planning to occupy space in the u-shaped center, according to the developer, include: Bed Bath and Beyond, Ross, Michael’s Arts and Crafts, Famous Footwear, Party City, Marshalls, Books-A-Million, Petco and Circuit City.

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By BILL RETTEW JR.

SEBRING — Several Highlands County voters hope to establish a new political party for those not satisfied with either of the major political parties.

Members of the fledgling American Party of Florida are in the process of establishing a local executive committee and look toward 2008 for a chance to possibly run several candidates for local offices, said Tom Macklin, party organizer, former lieutenant gubernatorial candidate with Max Linn on the Reform Party ticket and former Avon Park mayor.

The party’s first event is scheduled for Saturday Jan. 6, from noon to 5 p.m., at 155 W. Center Ave., Sebring, the former home of the Highlands County Republican Party.

The American Party of Florida will revolve around three basic tenets: “term limits; accountability of government; and a firm stance against illegal immigration,” according to a release from Barry Foster, party organizer and radio show host on AM730 WWTK.

On the campaign trail in 2006, Macklin said he had a chance to educate himself on both local and state issues.

The former mayor said one reason for establishing another minor party was a response to Rep. Mark Foley’s conduct, aside from his policy decisions.

“A number of people in the Republican Party were well aware and failed to deal with it,” said Macklin, about Foley’s actions.

Macklin also claimed that several Democrats also knew about Foley’s e-mails to congressional pages, but only made the information public when it was politically convenient and would keep Foley’s name on the ballot.

In addition to the Democratic and Republican parties, The Division of Elections-Florida Department of State listed 22 other other parties, including the Possibility, Prohibition, Libertarian, Socialist and even the Surfer’s parties.

The fledgling party is not yet official. According to Macklin, paperwork to establish the new party was filed in the state capital.

“Everything appears to be in order,” said Macklin. “We hope to have positive news by week’s end.”

With a dozen organizers so far, Macklin admitted that it will be “difficult” to buck the two party system.

“We’re looking forward to attracting local candidates disenfranchised by the Republicans, Democrats, Independents and No Party Affiliates (NPA),” said Macklin.

Foster said that he expected to talk about Christmas and the holidays during broadcasts on his radio talk show, but once the idea of another political party was unleashed, callers wanted to talk of little else than politics.

“People on the talk show are fired up,” said Foster. “And most are new callers to the show.”

Zane Thomas, chair of the Highlands County Democratic executive committee, favored the establishment of new parties and said the new local effort would likely draw members equally from both Republican and Democratic parties.

“For more people to participate in the process is what it’s all about,” said Thomas. “People have become complacent. Grass roots efforts get people off their couches and out of their houses.”

Chuck Oakes, former chair of the Highlands County Republican executive committee, said that he had heard nothing about the new party and could only speak for himself.

He said that minor parties are a “waste of somebody’s time” and asked, “who do you vote for in the primary?”

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By MARK PINSON

SEBRING – With picture postcard weather in the forecast, the 52nd annual Harder Hall Women’s Invitational gets under way today.

The venerable amateur event has attracted a strong field of 144 players, but defending champion Stacy Lewis will not be on hand after injuring her hand while rollerblading last week.

Lewis, who is a junior on the University of Arkansas women’s golf team, won the title last year by a whopping 11 shots after carding rounds of 69-69-75-73-286.

The last two days were played in cold, blustery conditions, but Lewis, who is from Texas, fought through the elements and ran away with the title.

Abigail Schepperle of Hoover, Ala., finished third last year with a 298 and is back to try and win one of the oldest and most prestigious amateur tournaments in the country.

The field includes renowned player and tournament chairman Carol Semple-Thompson, Leah Wigger of Louisville, Ky., Sebring High School senior Jessica Williams and Erin Fitzpatrick from Wauchula.

Also in the field are Daniela and Isabella Lendl, daughters of retired tennis star Ivan Lendl.

The course is in excellent condition and with the weather staying nice and warm, Harder Hall professional John Phillips thinks under par will be in contention for the title.

“The course is in great shape and we will have the greens rolling as fast as possible,” Phillips said. “There are some outstanding players in the field and I think it will take 6-under or better to win the championship.”

The Harder Hall Invitational has an impressive list of past winners such as Morgan Pressel, Beth Bauer, Aree Song and Brittany Lincicome.

The four-day, 72-hole, stroke-play tournament begins play today with tee times beginning at 7:30 a.m. on both the No. 1 and No. 10 tees.

The second set of tee times begin at 11:30 a.m.

The Championship Flight will play the tight and challenging Harder Hall layout at 6,600-yards and the Ben Roman Flight will play the course at 5,800 yards.

Spectators are invited to attend and watch some of the best women amateur golfers at no charge.

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By GARY PINNELL

SEBRING — The first pitch at the Highlands County Sports Complex will be thrown in August instead of April, and the project will be over budget, Parks and Recreation Director Vicki Pontius disclosed Wednesday.

The adult softball park at 100 Sheriff’s Tower Road is four months behind schedule, but Pontius said a committee is still formulating budgets, and she could not share how much more the estimated $2.7 million complex will cost taxpayers.

Construction is going well, complex manager Rocky Ellingsworth said, but agronomist Dan Morgan of Lithia, Fla., determined the fields ought to be planted in the spring – the growing season – not the fall.

“The agronomist is working with us to help develop the turf specs,” Pontius said. “The plan is to sprig Tifway 419 Bermuda grass in late March or early April. It will be ready Aug. 1.”

Ground was broken on the complex late in 2005. Originally, they planned to open with the National Invitational Tournament, April 11-13. Ellingsworth was quoted in a 2006 story saying the complex might be finished as early as February or March, 2007.

“If we don’t throw a pitch before April 13, we’re definitely throwing our first pitch that night,” Ellingsworth said then.

On Wednesday, Ellingsworth said he notified the National Softball Association, Nicholasville, KY, that the tournament will be canceled. However, he said, a new tournament has been scheduled in August.

John Lynch, the Florida tournament coordinator, and Hugh Cantrell, president of the National Softball Association, confirmed.

“That tournament is important to us, but we did find another location,” Cantrell said. “I think it will be in Naples. As soon as the field is ready, we’re planning on using it for another NSA tournament.”

Construction Progress
Tifway Bermuda grass, developed in 1960, is greener and slightly coarser than other varieties. The dense turf roots more quickly, spreads more rapidly, and needs less fertilizer than other Bermuda.

“It is also more player friendly, more durable,” said Ellingsworth. “It gets brown less quickly, and requires less maintenance.”

Ellingsworth said he was “biting at the bit” to plant the fields in grass in September, but the agronomist disagreed.

“I was very optimistic we were going to have it in April,” Ellingsworth said. “But you know how it is when your eyes are bigger than your stomach.”

“We didn’t want to play on clay dirt, and then have to fight for the next 10 years to get us to where we want to be,” Ellingsworth said.

Ellingsworth expects the sports complex to be an economic boon to the county.

The softball fields are expected to bring in revenues, but Pontius still expects the complex to cost about $50,000 a year in taxpayer money. The complex will be paid for with a one-penny sales tax.

“In the 10 years I’ve been involved now,” Pontius said, “that has always surfaced as the number one priority. There is no place for adults to play ball.”

In addition to five adult softball fields, there will be two soccer fields, two youth football fields, and enough leftover green space in the former 52-acre orange grove to take future requests, Pontius said.

The two-story, 10-sided concession stand, office and press box will be structurally finished in February.

“The first floor is complete, the structural steel is in place to stabilize the second-floor slab, and in February we will be doing the roof,” Pontius said.

The maintenance building is also going up, and the irrigation system is 80 percent complete, she said.

When finished, the complex will have 1,200 yards of concrete, including the apron around the concession stand and sidewalks around the fields – which are arranged around each other in a five-point star pattern.

Smoking Allowed
By state law, smoking will be allowed at the new Highlands County Sports Complex. Why? Because the Florida Clean Indoor Air Act gives responsibility for both indoor and outdoor smoking to the state; local laws cannot supersede the state.

Suggestions to regulate smoking at the Max Long youth baseball complex have already failed. City of Sebring officials said they were unsure how they could enforce a no-smoking ban.

Even so, Ellingsworth wants to know how Clearwater enforces no smoking.

“They have a lady – they actually call her the Smoke Nazi – and you can’t smoke at Clearwater fields,” Ellingsworth said. He hopes to place a smoking area beyond the bleachers.

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