HIGHLANDS NEWS-SUN Monday, June 24, 2019 VOL. 100 | NO. 175 | $1.00 YOUR HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER SINCE 1919 An Edition Of The Sun HSCO investigating murders after 2 bodies found Bodies found in orange groves roughly 9 miles apart Special to Highlands Park and Sebring around Both of Anyone with information News-Sun 8:45 a.m. The victim was these is asked to call 863-402- identified as 30-year-old investiga- 7250 and speak to a SEBRING — Highlands Jacquill Terrell Williams of tions are in detective. Anonymous County Sheriff’s Office Lake Placid. their early tips can be left through detectives have been con- Investigators were just stages and the Highlands County ducting a pair of related wrapping up their efforts still very Sheriff’s Office smart- homicide investigations at that scene when the active, phone app or with Heart- after the bodies of two second body was dis- WILLIAMS. but the land Crime Stoppers at men were both found on covered in an orange Highlands 1-800-226-TIPS or www. Saturday about nine miles grove just a few miles County heartlandcrimestoppers. apart. from downtown Sebring. Sheriff’s Office believes com. Crime Stoppers tips The first body was discov- That victim had not been that these two homicides can be eligible for a cash HCSO PHOTO ered in an orange grove in positively identified as of are related and were not reward of up to $3,000. a rural area between Avon Sunday evening. random acts of violence. One of the crime scenes investigated by the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office. From problem to solution ATV trail MARC VALERO/STAFF may give The Code of Conduct is being revised for the 2019-20 school year. The revisions include changes in the Parent Guide. access, District drainage to residents revising Code By PHIL ATTINGER STAFF WRITER SEBRING — County Engineer of Conduct Clinton Howerton Jr. may have found a solution for residents’ access and Ripped jeans drainage woes in the northeast of Silver Fox subdivision. It may still cost $60,000 to $100,000, prohibited in new he said, and residents will have to agree on how they plan to pay for it. school Dress Code He proposes turning their problem, an By MARC VALERO unauthorized ATV trail at the north end STAFF WRITER of Mare Path, into a solution: A raised shell road with drainage and access out SEBRING — The Code of Conduct is of their subdivision. in the process of being revised for the This is all assuming that the owner of the land is willing to donate it for right 2019-20 school year with changes to COURTESY PHOTO/GOOGLE MAPS the Student Dress Code and updated of way. The long rectangular lot in Unit immunization requirements. 5 — the Wolf Creek area — of Orange A problem may be the solution in the far northeast corner of Silver Fox subdivision. A At its meeting on Tuesday, The School Blossom Estates is owned by the Gene winding all-terrain vehicle trail between Queen Avenue, at the top of this image, to Mare Board of Highlands County will have a and Arlene Family Trust. Howerton said Path at the lower left, has sent storm runoff to flood and rut Mare Path and Foal Path, a public hearing on the Code of Conduct he’s met with the principal owner. private road that residents’ only way in or out. County officials are working on an arrange- with the board voting on approval to “He was willing (to donate) as long ment to turn the trial into a shell road with proper drainage. advertise the revisions to the code. as he got what he was asking for,” “We’ll have to see. We can’t afford to do more requests. The updated immunization require- Howerton said. “(We) need to solidify much more than we’ve mentioned so When Howerton reported to the ments, in the Parent Guide section of his expectations.” far.” board of County Commission last the Code of Conduct, were prompted Howerton also wants to make sure Howerton said the county won’t likely Tuesday, they thought extending Mare by requirements from the Health residents know what they would get out be able to do anything in the way of Path would be a good solution, provid- Department, according to School Board of the deal, which would be a 400-foot financing the job, either. ed Mare Path residents are prepared to agenda. The immunization requirements non-paved shell road extending Mare A recently-approved arrangement pay for it. are stated for prekindergarten entry, Path to Queen Avenue in Orange with another community of residents Initially, when storm runoff after kindergarten entry, grades one through Blossom Estates. on Oak Manor Avenue resulted in the Hurricane Irma created rivers out of six and grades seven through 12. The road would be built to county county agreeing to do road reconstruc- roads and rutted the only way in or out, The Student Dress Code has been drainage standards for unpaved roads, tion and paving, absorbing the cost up Mare Path residents wanted county rewritten in accordance with the latest and would require the county to extend front while setting up a 10-year assess- road crews to rebuild or put in drainage Florida Statutes. the maintained portion of Queen ment, paid by residents. for Foal Path, an easement across The current Dress Code does not Avenue another 560 feet to connect Commissioners Jim Brooks and Ron private property near the south end of address the fashion trend of ripped jeans with the extended Mare Path. “Some are not agreeable with that. Handley consistently opposed that Mare Path. They may want more,” Howerton said. proposal on the principle that allowing CODE | 2A one community to do it would invite TRAIL | 3A Lake June dock closed for repairs By KIM LEATHERMAN contractor were approved awarded. However, the STAFF WRITER at the May Lake Placid contract for the grant Town Council meeting took two years to arrive LAKE PLACID — To with a bid of $4,500. This on Williams’ desk and the chagrin of many avid snag in the construction when it did, the council boaters, the Lake June has caused a delay in the put on the brakes on the beach area boat dock has repairs and will cost more project. been closed since Father’s to complete. The grant contract Day weekend. Boater’s Williams said, ordered the dock to be can still use the ramps “Accordingly, the price solely for the purpose of at H.L. Bishop Park at has been adjusted a boaters and had to be 10 Lake June Clubhouse couple thousand and separated from swimmers Road, almost directly new pontoons have been by a certain amount of across Lake June as the ordered, all still under space. The contract’s lan- crow flies. $7,000. We are attempting guage did not state how As with many renova- to have the dock ready much distance there had tions, repairs that seem KIM LEATHERMAN/STAFF for the fireworks there on to be between the swim fairly straight forward July 4.” area and the dock. There become a far bigger fix. The floating portion of the dock has been removed from the Lake June beach. The town hopes Originally, the were some other restric- That’s what happened the repairs are done by the Fourth of July so the fireworks can be set off from there. Florida Fish and tions as well that raised when Costello Brothers a slight problem. contractors pulled the discovered that is was a Wildlife Conservation the collective eyebrows of Marine Construction According to Town pontoon-style dock out different design than first Commission was going to council members. started the repairs on the Administrator Phil of the water to weld the thought.” replace the dock through floating dock. They found Williams, once the ”pontoon’s leaks, it was The project and a grant the town was DOCK | 2A Classifieds .................... B6-10 Lottery ........................... B2 Viewpoints ......................A10 Good morning To Comics ..................... B11-14 Obituaries ........................ A9 Weather .........................A14 William Godette Local Sports ...................... B1 TV Listings ......................A12 facebook.com/ twitter.com/ Thanks for reading! newssun.com newssun TheNewsSun A2 | HIGHLANDS NEWS-SUN | June 24, 2019 www.highlandsnewssun.com POLICE BLOTTER The following people were Sebring, on charges of larceny and Eddie Ray Locklear, 30, Lake arrested on felony charges and marijuana possession. Placid, charged with drug booked into the Highlands Pedro Ramirez, 39, Lake Placid, possession. County jail on June 14: on charges of resisting an offi cer Dallas Ryan Lynch, 20, Avon Ervin J. Bass, 41, Sebring, on and aggravated battery. Park, on charges of lewd and las- charges of methamphetamine Kendall Marie Townsend, 21, civious behavior towards a victim possession and drug equipment Avon Park, charged with probation 12-16 years of age and contributing possession. violation. to the delinquency of a minor. Shevis Eugene Dennis, 42, Avon The following people were Bobby Bernard Pough, 22, Avon Park, on two charges of resisting an arrested on felony charges and Park, on charges of using two-way offi cer, two charges of fl ee/elude booked into the Highlands communications device to facil- police, two charges of moving County jail on June 18: itate a felony, selling drugs, drug KIM LEATHERMAN/STAFF traffi c violation, two charges of Amy Lynn Edlow, 54, Sebring, equipment possession and two charged with battery. charges of marijuana possession. The bathrooms are evident in the Lake June improvement failure to appear. Malcolm Jonvon Holdman, 21, James Earl Redding, 36, projects. Two pavilions will be next in the Phase I portion.