A Department of Corrections Sergeant from South Florida Among Four Arrested In Fight

Quatisha Farlow (39 years old DOC Sergeant, Miami, FL) was arrested and charged with Aggravated Assault With a Deadly Weapon after she drove from Miami with other family members and went to the home of her daughter and boyfriend because the family didn’t approve of the relationship.

On 12-20-18 at approximately 7:44 p.m., police responded to the home of 18 year-old Tyrique Laskett and his girlfriend, 18 year-old Ja’raia Farlow (Summit Dr., Winter Haven) after calls were received that a large fight was occurring with baseball bats, guns and knives. Upon arrival, they found Laskett with injuries to his head, face and upper body. The group of suspects had left the scene before authorities arrived, however were located a short distance away in a Publix parking lot and taken into custody without incident.

Excerpts from the affidavits are as follows:

“It was determined that multiple family members of Ja’raia Farlow went to Summit Dr. Winter Haven, Florida at approximately 7:30 p.m. where she was living with her boyfriend, Tyrique Laskett. Among the family members was Quatisha Farlow (mother),Ora Farlow (father), Shanora Farlow (aunt) and Sheirra Spillman (Ora’s girlfriend). It’s known that Ora did not approve of Ja’raia and Tyrique dating and living together which is why the family responded to the residence.

Tyrique stated during a sworn interview that Ora and his girlfriend Sheirra, approached the front door and knocked. Tyrique answered with Ja’raia. Sheirra then struck Tyrique on the left side of his head with a silver baseball bat. Both Sheirra and Ora began grabbing Ja’raia pulling her outside with them against her will. Ora began to physically batter Tyrique all over his body against his will while still pulling at Ja’raia trying to get her into a vehicle.

Shanora got out of the vehicle she arrived in once the physical fight began on the porch and intentionally struck Tyrique on his abdomen against his will along with other members of Ja’raia’s family.

While the fighting was occurring Quatisha (mother) went into her vehicle that had her 12 year old son inside and retrieved a black Glock handgun. She then pointed it at Tyrique against his will along with multiple others putting him in fear.”

The four arrested and booked into the Polk County Jail are:

Quatisha Farlow – one count of Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon F.S.S. 784.021(1)(A) F3

Ora Farlow – one count Battery F.S.S. 784.03(1)(A) M1

Shierra Spillman – two counts of Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon F.S.S. 784.021(1)(A) F3
(Spillman struck Tyrique during the incident and also attempted to strike
Tyrique’s sister with her vehicle as the sister ran to a neighbor’s home)

Shanora Farlow – one count Battery F.S.S. 784.03(1)(A) M1

Lake Maude Park Opens With Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

by James Coulter

Are you ready for some football? The City of Winter Haven certainly is now that it has officially opened a new football stadium as part of the new Lake Maude Park.

The new recreational facility includes a football field that will host games for the home team, the Winter Haven Wolverines. The park also includes two auxiliary fields, two restroom facilities, a concession stand, picnic pavilions, playground, and plenty of parking.

The park officially opened to the public with a grand opening ceremony on Saturday morning, and was dedicated with city officials cutting a ribbon tied fittingly enough to two field post markers.

The $4.4 million project for the park was announced last November. The ground breaking ceremony was hosted earlier this year in January.

James Hogan, the football director for the Wolverines, had attended the ground breaking ceremony earlier that year when the temperature was in the 30s.

He had remarked that it would be a cold day in Winter Haven before the park was ever completed. His words seemed to have since come true, as the temperature that morning during the ceremony was well in the 60s.

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During his speech at the ceremony, he commended the other city officials for moving forward with the project and allowing it to be completed despite several delays and setbacks.

“These people could have easily let this project die on the vine, and we would not be standing here today; but I appreciate everything they have done, and how they kept this dream alive and the community,” he said.

Mayor Pro-Tem Nathanial Birdsong mentioned how the recreational facility had been proposed in the 1990s, but several setbacks prevented the project from moving forward until recently.

With the project finally being realized and the construction being completed, such a victory was well worth coming out to celebrate regardless of the weather, Birdsong said.

“I will admit that I am a Floridian who loves the warm sunshine, and there have been cold days since the groundbreaking; however, it could be the most ugly rainy snowy day in Florida, and I will still be here because this park warms my heart…it is a perfect day,” he said.

Mayor Brad Dantzler mentioned how this project was part of a “renaissance” of other improvements and additions to the city’s Parks and Recreational Services. Other recent additions to the city included a splash pad, walking trail, and tennis complex.

“To see this new complex come along the line with so many other improvements in our cities at the same time is certainly one of the rewards of being a mayor and elected official in this city,” he said.

“With the completion of this park, we now have the best of both worlds: residents can enjoy the calm lakefront of the nature park, but also the excitement of a football game or community event,” he added. “Just imagine taking your family to a football game or event, participating within the activities over here, walk across to the nature park, fish, have a lakeside lunch, and then come over here to enjoy more football and excitement.”

Travis Edwards, Recreation and Culture Director, lauded how the city’s dedication to improving its recreational facilities demonstrated an overall dedication to improving the overall lifestyle of its residents and visitors.

“Many of us will remember from our time as a youth where we were at a recreational facility such as this and parks, and those are those memories that shape us into the adults that we are today,” he said.

“I cannot understate the importance of this facility, the youth who will play in this facility will be the future leaders of our community,” he added. “That is critical to the health and viability of a community: to have opportunities for youth to be able to participate in sports and win and lose with grace.”

During his speech, Edwards read a few words from City Manager Mike Herr, for whom the park was the utmost highest priority.

Being able to provide such a recreational facility proved the city’s dedication to its residents and ensuring that they have the ability to seek quality rest and recreation within the daily lives, he said.

“Investing in neighborhoods and parks is very important to our legacy as a city,” he said. “It is my hope you will relish in making memories in this park and share them with future generations as they have their own experiences here.”

Lake Maude Park is located in Winter Haven along 7th Street NE, and is open daily from sunrise to sunset.

Christmas Boat Parade Lights Up Winter Haven Boat Parade

by James Coulter

One of the best things about Christmas are the holiday lights, and the best thing about Winter Haven are the Chain of Lakes. So what better way to combine the best of both worlds than with a Christmas boat parade?

Nearly 60 boats lit up the night in celebration of the holiday season as they participated in this year’s annual Christmas Boat Parade on Saturday.

The boats congregated in Lake May around sundown before lighting up their holiday lights and decorations and making their way through the surrounding waterways of Lake Shipp, Howard, and Cannon.

As the boats passed the shoreline, spectators could watch either by the shores, on the public boat ramps, or at any of the lakeside resturants, including Old Man Franks, Tanners Lakeside, and Caribbean Bay—the latter of which helped sponsored this year’s event along with Chain Life Winter Haven and Sanda Andrews, Century 21.

This longstanding tradition has allowed the City of Winter Haven to kick off the holiday season by utilizing its community’s greatest assets: its lakes, explained Karen Thompson from Chain Life Winter Haven.

“We are the Chain of Lakes City and our lakes are our greatest asset,” she said. “The event is the perfect way to celebrate the holiday season and our lakes!”

Not only is the annual parade a great way for the community to celebrate Christmas, but also a great economic driver for the lakeside resturants, as the parade draws in a massive turnout for them, Thompson said.

For as long as she has been with Chain Life Winter Haven, which hosts the parade, Thompson keeps seeing the parade grow each and every year. As such, she expects that the City of Winter Haven will need to consider potentially better facilitating it for spectators by closing more streets, she suggested.

For her, seeing the happiness from the people participating and spectating has been more than enough reward for the hard work she and her organization puts into it each year.

“I love seeing all the hard work that goes into decorating the boats,” she said. “I love seeing the smiles on the faces from those on the shore waiving and cheering for the boats as they go by. I love seeing the smiles on the faces of the kids in the boats waving back. It’s all about community.”

Rebecca and Rodney Heitz have been judging the parade floats for the past two years, and judged this year’s parade sitting upon the docks of Old Man Franks. When it comes to finding a winning boat, they look for boats that utilize their lights, decorations, and music the best.

“It’s just the creativity and the use of lights,” Rodney said.

Both of them love coming out to an event that helps support their local community such as this, and seeing the community enjoy the event makes it all the more enjoyable to them. This year, the number of people watching the parade appeared larger than the people participating in it, Rebecca said.

“It is a community-focused event, and we will always participate in things that are focusing on our community,” she said. “All the people here keep coming and asking when it will start, and it creates a moment for them.”