Closing statements will begin this morning in the murder trial of Joseph Ables of Lake Placid. The prosecution in the case rested after lunch yesterday after showing forensic details of the gunshot wounds that killed County Deputy William Gentry in May of 2018, and the pellet that allegedly killed the neighbor’s cat and set off the incident that ended in Gentry’s shooting. Ables’ defense attorneys then moved for dismissal of the charges on the grounds that the murder was not premeditated. Judge Angela Cowden denied the motion. Ables then declined to testify on his own behalf, and the defense rested.
So – with the days the kids missed from school over the last couple hurricane closures, how will they make the time up? The Highlands County School Board’s calendar committee says it’ll look at options. Schools have cancelled five instructional days during the last month or so for hurricane caution. Surrounding Districts have come to a range of solutions ranging from Charlotte County’s decision to make up three of their seven missed days on Thanksgiving week, to Martin County’s decision to not make up the four they’ve missed at all.
Probably shouldn’t come as a surprise, but when times get tough, the low-life gets going. Text messages arriving on local cellphones are offering government help for disaster assistance. FEMA wants you to know – they ARE here to help, but they won’t solicit you by text and if they DO contact you, it’ll be about a claim you’ve already made. Want to verify it’s real? Call FEMA at 800-621-3362.
Avon Park’s new City Manager told her City Council last week she needs more assistance in the city’s Human Resources and Information Tech department in the city of charm. Danielle Kelly says a portion of the cost of two new positions will be offset by the savings her position afforded the city when she opted OUT of the Florida Retirement system, which saved the city around $45,000 – plus her contract’s savings of $10,00 under what the city had budgeted for the position. Both positions were authorized by the council – the Tech position unanimously, the HR slot by a split vote.