A two vehicle crash Saturday morning, October 29, 2022, in an unincorporated area of Lakeland resulted in the death of one driver, and non-life-threatening injuries to her 8-year-old passenger.
Deputies from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office and crews from Polk County Fire Rescue were dispatched at about 11:40 a.m. to Combee Road North, just north of the intersection with Grimes Road.
Upon arrival, they found 71-year old Judy Pate of Polk City, deceased. Her 8-year-old passenger suffered a broken arm and broken ankle and was transported to a local hospital.
Ms. Pate was the driver of a white 2021 Ford Escape. The second vehicle involved in the crash was a white 2015 Freightliner truck driven by 59-year-old Tyrone Corbett of Lakeland. Mr. Corbett was uninjured.
Based on evidence and statements taken at the scene, it was determined that Ms. Pate was driving northbound on Combee Road behind another vehicle. Mr. Corbett was driving southbound on Combee Road. The vehicle in front of Ms. Pate signaled to turn right into the Ten Rock mobile home park, and Ms. Pate swerved left into the southbound lane where she collided with the Freightliner.
The Freightliner veered to the west, clipped a power pole, and crashed into a fence.
The Escape travelled southwest and stopped on the west side of Combee Road.
A portion of Combee Road North was closed for approximately four hours.
Lake Wales, Florida – The Lake Wales Police Department has confirmed they are working a fatal crash on Hwy 27 near Lowes home improvement. The crash occurred around 3:30am and involved vehicle vs bicycle. The roadway ( Northbound Hwy 27) was shutdown for several hours
Lake Wales Police Department hasn’t released any additional information. We will update when more information available.
On Friday, October 28, 2022, at approximately 1645 hours, Auburndale Police Department officers responded to the area of Old Winter Haven Road and Parrot Road in reference to a white Chevrolet Impala in the ditch with an unresponsive driver who had been shot. The driver/victim, 17-year-old female was transported to the hospital with life threatening injuries.
The preliminary investigation revealed a blue Honda Accord, driven by the 17-year- old male juvenile suspect, was following the victim’s Impala. There were (3) additional passengers (1) adult and (2) juveniles riding in the victim’s vehicle. The victim pulled over on First Street in Auburndale, near the Earl Wright Park. The suspect drove beside the victim’s vehicle, on the driver’s side, and fired multiple shots into the vehicle, striking the victim. No other occupants in the victim’s vehicle were injured. After the victim was shot, she drove south on First Street, crossing over to Third Street, across US Highway 92, across a vacant field, and eventually came to a complete stop when the car went into the ditch.
During the investigation the 17-year-old male juvenile was identified and taken into custody. At this time no names will be released, due to Marsy’s Law and some of the subjects involved being juveniles. The investigation is still active and ongoing.
Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Harry Anderson at (863) 965- 5555 or if you have information and would like to remain anonymous call Heartland Crime Stoppers at 1-800-226-TIPS(8477).
Bartow, Fla. (October 27, 2022) — Projects to install or repair underground utilities will close roads and detour traffic in Mulberry, Lakeland, and Auburndale.
Repairs to a Florida Gas Transmission pipe will close Pebbledale Road just east of Wills Grace Road and the Southeastern Construction steel fabricating plant in unincorporated Mulberry for 16 days starting Friday morning October 28. Traffic will be briefly detoured to Old Highway 37 to bypass closure.
DMG Drive in Lakeland north of the Lakeland Linder International Airport will close for one week beginning Monday, October 31 to correct road settlement caused by a telecom boring failure. DMG Drive is a loop road with intersections on Drane Field Road and Airport Road. Traffic will not be permitted through work zone and will be rerouted to Drane Field Road and Airport Road to avoid closure.
Also on Monday, October 31, North Wabash Avenue in Lakeland will be closed from Crutchfield Road to W. 10th Street for ten days to install a sewer connection for a new subdivision. Traffic will be detoured to Chestnut Road to bypass work zone.
A project to replace a failing drainage pipe will close Oleander Drive at the intersection with Old Dixie Highway (County Road 546) in Auburndale for three days starting Tuesday, November 1. Traffic will be redirected to Highland Avenue and Reledd Road to get around closure.
Motorists are advised to drive carefully, be alert to crews and equipment, and follow detour signs. Lengthy delays are not expected as detour routes are short. For more details, call Bill Skelton with the Polk County Roads & Drainage Division at (863) 535-2200.
Lakeland, Florida – The Polk County Sheriff’s Office has arrested Angela Latrice Box (DOB: 2/27/89) and charged her with accessory after the fact in a 2nd Degree Murder with a weapon investigation. The incident took place October 17, 2022 in Bartow. The suspected shooter in that case has been arrested (Details Here)
Here is an excerpt of the arrest affidavit. (It should be noted that this is an unedited report of facts by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. These facts are up for question and everyone is entitled to question the validity of facts by law enforcement in a court of law. The Daily Ridge does not rewrite these facts as some meanings or interpretations could be in error and change context. We hope readers appreciate being able to read the information and come to their own understanding and conclusions) :
On Monday, October 17, 2022, Devante Lamar Lawson shot the Victim (REDACTED) while the Victim was inside a vehicle. The Victim was transported to Bartow Regional Medical Center where he was later pronounced deceased. During the investigation, contact was made with Angela Latrice Box, who is the Victim’s ex-girlfriend, owner of the vehicle where the Victim was, and who provided false information during this investigation while knowing that a felonious act had been committed against the Victim with the intent to avoid her and Lawson’s involvement in a homicide investigation.
During the investigation, the following information was learned. On Monday, October 17, 2022, at approximately 1200 hours, Box made contact via text message with Lawson requesting his assistance in an attempt to locate her vehicle in the City of Bartow. Lawson met with Box at Box’s residence, 1417 Lakewood Road, Lakeland Florida. Upon meeting, Box explained to Lawson that the Victim had been very abusive since Friday, October 14, 2022 when, after a physical altercation between the Victim and Box, the Victim took Box’s vehicle against her will. On Sunday, October 16, 2022, the Victim met with Box at her residence causing further arguments and a physical altercation in regards to the Victim returning the vehicle to Box. During this argument, the Victim took Box’s vehicle again and also took Box’s cellular phone. After Box explained the recent events to Lawson, Lawson agreed to assist Box in finding her vehicle. Prior to leaving Box’s residence, Box asked Lawson if he had his firearm on him to which Lawson confirmed he had the firearm on him.
Lawson and Box drove through the City of Bartow looking at locations where the Victim frequents. At approximately 1400 hours, they located Box’s vehicle parked at 525 9th Avenue South, Bartow Florida. Box approached the residence and met with a resident at the above address. Box asked if the Victim was there, to which the resident advised the Victim had left with unknown subjects.
At approximately 1420 hours, the Victim exited the residence and engaged in a verbal and physical altercation with Box. After Box requested several times to the Victim to return the keys, the Victim refused, eventually making his way towards Box’s vehicle. As Box blocked the driver side door, the Victim went around the vehicle and entered it via the front passenger door. Once the Victim was inside the vehicle, Box continued to plea with the Victim not to take the vehicle. The Victim started the vehicle and as he was changing gears, Lawson brandished his firearm from his waistband and told twice to the Victim not to leave. As the Victim started to leave, Lawson discharged his firearm approximately two times.
During a Post Miranda interview with Lawson, he confirmed all of the above facts further stating he legally purchased the firearm and although he did not have a conceal carry weapon permit, he always carries the firearm with him. Furthermore, Box knows that he always has his firearm on him. Lawson indicated that when he discharged the firearm, he thought Box was standing in front of the vehicle.
During a Post-Miranda interview with Box, she initially stated she was alone at 525 9th Avenue South, and did not know who had shot towards the Victim. She maintained her statement for two more occasions, denying Lawson was at the scene or knowing who shot at the Victim. After Box was confronted with Lawson’s statement, Box stated she did ask Lawson to bring his firearm with him, in case the Victim – who is known to carry a firearm – would brandish his firearm. Box then admitted she was standing on the driver side door – near the driver side rear view mirror- as the Victim was leaving in the vehicle, and saw Lawson shoot into the vehicle towards the Victim.
Based on this investigation, I determined that Box violated FSS 777.03 Accessory after the fact in a 2nd Degree Murder with a weapon investigation.
PCSO arrests 15-year-old Tenoroc High School student for bringing a gun on campus
This morning (Wednesday, October 26, 2022) just after 8:00 a.m. the school resource deputy at Tenoroc High School, 4905 Saddle Creek Road in Lakeland, received an anonymous tip that a student allegedly brought a gun to school.
The SRD identified and located the suspect, Santiago Soto-Garcia, DOB 7/19/2007, and found a pistol in his jacket pocket, and a magazine with 12 rounds in it in his pants pocket.
During the investigation, the deputy learned he threatened a student with the firearm as well.
He was arrested and charged with:
Possession of a firearm on school campus (F3) Carrying a concealed firearm (F3) Aggravated assault with a deadly weapon (F3) Disruption of a school function (M2) Possession of a firearm by someone under 18 (M1) Possession of a firearm with an altered serial number (M1)
The following is an excerpt from the affidavit, and it is self-explanatory – I do not yet have a mugshot for the suspect, but there is a photo of the gun in the link below.
PROBABLE CAUSE NARRATIVE EXCERPT:
On 10/26/2022, while assigned as the School Resource Deputy at Tenoroc High School, a student who wished to remain anonymous contacted me. The reportee advised that they overheard that a student, later identified as the defendant, was in possession of a firearm on campus.
I was able to determine the identity of the defendant, Santiago Soto-Garcia, and determine his location as room 2-116. Several school administrators (Principal Jason Looney, Assistant Principal Travian Smith, and Dean Irving Strickland) and I immediately responded to the classroom. I entered room 2-116 through an exterior courtyard door and observed the defendant sitting in the far northeast corner of the classroom wearing the above-described jacket. He was removed from the classroom and secured. I located a large hard object in the defendant’s jacket and the defendant stated that he had “it” in his right front interior jacket pocket.
Upon unzipping and opening the defendant’s jacket, I located a black and tan semi-automatic pistol with an attached laser. The pistol was marked with insignia for Patmos P80. The handgun was unloaded and the chamber was empty. A Glock 9mm magazine was located in the defendants front left pants pocket. The magazine contained twelve (12) 9mm rounds. A search of the firearm yielded negative results for any serial number or personalized identifying markers.
At this time, I was advised that the defendant had threatened a student in the bathroom. Contact was made with the victim in the administrative offices. The victim advised he walked into the bathroom and saw multiple subjects in the stall. The victim observed the defendant at which time the defendant said “f**k ni**a” to the victim two times. The victim then walked away to the hand dryers before the defendant followed him and stated that he would shoot him. The victim added that while making this statement the defendant reached into the inner pocket of his jacket on the right side and pulled up what the victim identified as a gun.
With more than 18 years of experience as a superintendent under his belt, Dr. Wayne Rodolfich hopes to tackle the challenges of heading Lake Wales Charter Schools as its new superintendent. He holds five college degrees and two master degrees. He has served three years as a principal, six years as a teacher and coach, and is a fellow of the National Career Coalition.
Dr. Rodolfich is also a family man with a wife and five children, one adult child in college and four children under age 11. As such, he knows what a school system needs to succeed both as an educator and as a parent. He hopes to raise the bar for LWCS, having already established its new literacy program, Read 20, and he plans to establish and exceed other important educational goals.
We recently sat down with Dr. Rodolfich and asked him about his qualifications and plans for LWCS. Here is what he had to say:
Q: What qualifies you to take on the challenge of supervising Lake Wales Charter Schools?
A: I have experience in moving districts forward. In my former district, we just received an A rating, all 16 of the schools there were As and Bs, and we improved our graduation rate to 90 percent. And with [many] career pathways available to students, the system was named a district of innovation for the state of Mississippi. Everything we did there was built off a plan, and our LWCS team is working on a strategic plan now.
Q: What is your overall goal for LWCS?
A: Our goal is to provide the best possible educational opportunity for the children in our region, and for students and teachers to “Choose Lake Wales” because they know we provide a high-quality education for our students with a wide array of offerings that allow students to find their passion.
Q: What is the biggest challenge facing LWCS?
A: Our biggest challenge is having enough bus drivers to handle our transportation needs. It is an ongoing issue not limited to LWCS but other systems are dealing with that challenge, too. Our second challenge is completing Bok North Academy here in Lake Wales, getting that process finished is very important. It should be ready by January/February, and it will help place children in permanent classrooms. Finally, we are working on building a team concept. There are good things that are going on in the System, and I think there are some things we can enhance through teamwork, which I am looking forward to.
Q: What are your short-term goals for LWCS?
A: We have already focused on literacy. We have a Read 20 concept, where we ask parents to read to their children for 20 minutes a day. We have over 30 business partners who have placed books in their places of business for children to read while they are there. We have additional literacy tutors who will be working at our schools. Those are our short-term goals. From a long-term standpoint, we have to make sure we have adequate space for all of our students to have the best educational experience while they are on our campuses, while also creating the most diverse menu of courses for students.
Q: What are your long-term goals?
A: We would like to upgrade a lot of our facilities so we can provide the best learning environment possible for our students. We also want to diversify learning opportunities within the system so we can meet the needs of every student and their individual interests, and we want to work on teachers’ continuing education, making sure all teachers have the correct endorsements and providing them with quality professional development opportunities.
Q: What potential does Lake Wales have to excel in education?
A: We have limitless potential because we have great teachers and great children here. I think they are very focused, and they are committed to this community. We will be one of the communities in Polk County that really start to see some population growth. The challenge of that will be to have adequate space for people who want to attend schools here in LWCS.
Q: What is the key to the school system’s success?
A: I just think it is very important that parents are engaged in their children’s schools, and that parents help to support us by reading an additional 20 minutes for their children every day and always communicate with the schools about what they can do better. As I stated, we are in a strategic planning process, and we want plenty of parent feedback and community feedback on what people would like to see in their schools. This is a plan being written for the future of their schools.
You Won’t Believe What These First Responders Did to be Recognized at the Awards Luncheon
by James Coulter
From an officer who nearly took his life tracking down a murder suspect to firefighters who rescued baby kittens out of the sewer, several first responders were honored for their service at the First Responders Awards Luncheon, hosted by the Northeast Polk County Chamber of Commerce.
The luncheon was hosted at the Tom Fellows Community Center in Davenport on Thursday. The meal was catered by the Catering Company, and the event sponsors were the Low Payment Kings and AdventHealth.
Six awards were conferred to six first responders including law enforcement officers, firefighters, and paramedics for their acts of bravery and heroism on the job. The six recipients were as follows:
Officer Gedrick Vargas – Haines City Police Department
On Feb. 18, Officer Vargas responded to a call of a reported robbery near Paterson Road along Highway 27. The elderly victim had sustained several stab wounds, and the suspect had fled in the victim’s Toyota Matrix and heading northbound on Highway 27.
Officer Vargas pursued the suspect after they had refused to stop for a traffic stop. Knowing that the suspect could potentially cause harm to others, Officer Vargas passed the suspect’s vehicle, placed his control car in front of it, and applied the brakes until the suspect’s car stopped.
“It was only the efforts of Officer Vargas, as well as the men and women of law enforcement, that this murder suspect was stopped and arrested within a short time of the crime,” Chief Greg Goreck of the Haines City Police Department said. “It was because of the courage such as what he displayed in this incident that makes us proud of our agents every day.”
Lt. Cody Lefsetad and Firefighter Zack Caballero
A local toddler had decided to bathe five newborn kittens in the toilet and flush it afterward. Lt. Lefsetad and Firefighter Caballero were called to the scene. Using their technical know-how, they were able to fish three kittens out of the toilet and rescue the other two trapped in the sewer system.
“From a fire department standpoint, one thing that helps you through your career is aptitude, being a jack of all trades,” Captain Jeremiah Gilley of the Davenport Fire Department said. “Because of how they handled the call and their technical know-how, they made a good memory for the toddler rather than a bad one.”
Justin Sanchez-Estrada and Paramedic Daisy Smith – Polk County Fire Rescue
Both paramedics brought in a 56-year-old man suffering from a stroke. Because of planning and their fast response, they were able to provide him with lifesaving care in less than 20 minutes, a record for their department, Katrina Rinconeno with AdventHealth said. Both serve as a testament to how PCFR provides excellent care and service through meticulous planning for such scenarios.
Captain Larry “Catfish” Davis
Naming one accomplishment from this law enforcement officer and his two-decades-long career. He currently serves as a commander for his district in Davenport. While he certainly has taken on more administrative duties, he remains a “boots on the ground” man of action, Major Bart Davis of the Polk County Sheriff’s Department.
“He sees the need for a strong capable reliable and dedicated leader in our community,” he said. “Not one specific instance that makes him a hero, it is a culmination of experience that makes him one.”
Cast of The Outsider rehearsing At Lake Wales Little Theater – Photo Courtesy of Lake Wales Little Theater
The Outsider by Paul Slade Smith, Directed by Chevon Baccus & Mike Baccus
Show dates: November 4-20
Ned Newley doesn’t even want to be governor. He’s terrified of public speaking; his poll numbers are impressively bad. To his ever-supportive Chief of Staff, Ned seems destined to fail. But political consultant Arthur Vance sees things differently: Ned might be the worst candidate to ever run for office. Unless the public is looking for … the worst candidate to ever run for office. A timely and hilarious comedy that skewers politics and celebrates democracy, join the Lake Wales Little Theater for The Outsider.
Cast of The Outsider rehearsing At Lake Wales Little Theater – Photo Courtesy of Lake Wales Little Theater
The Outsider is produced by Special Arrangement with Playscripts, Inc. (www.playscripts.com)
