The Highlands County Fairgrounds has been a busy place today as Ag-Venture 2019 gets underway. Hundreds of area third graders will be arriving to learn about local agriculture – on this first of the tree-day event.
Stations will range from beef and dairy to alligator farming, and from citrus and grapes to ornamental plants.
Tonight, adults will be given a chance to see the set-up. That begins at 5:00, A fundraiser steak dinner also will be presented at that time.
Five people were injured and the Sebring Parkway was closed for a time last night when two cars collided. Sebring police say the mishap occurred around 7:00 near the intersection of the Parkway and Commerce Street.
Apparently, a car that was northbound on the Parkway was rear-ended by an SUV. Two men, two women and an three year old all were transported to local medical facilities.
A Polk County man facing a first-degree murder charge has been convicted of a lesser manslaughter charge in a fatal shooting.
A jury in Bartow found 29-year-old Julian Bird guilty of the lesser charge on Friday. He was acquitted of related charges, including robbery with a firearm, conspiracy to commit robbery and tampering with evidence. He faces up to 15 years in prison.
Prosecutors say Bird fatally shot 39-year-old Jimmie Rogers Jr. in November 2016 as he sat in the front seat of his car in the parking lot of his Winter Haven apartment.
Bird has another murder trial scheduled for next year. He’s accused of killing a clerk at a Lake Wales convenience store in October 2016. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty in that case.