Highlands County now has a new local candidate. Longtime resident Donald Ridgeway has announced his intention to run for superintendent of schools. Ridgeway has worked for the school board of Highlands County for better than two decades, as a teacher, athletic director, dean of students and a principal.
Ridgeway earned degrees at South Florida State College, Warner Southern, Florida Atlantic, and Arkansas State University.
He will challenge longtime incumbent Brenda Longshore for the superintendent’s post.
An Avon Park driver was involved in Hardee County crash that claimed the life of a Wauchula woman. Florida Highway Patrol reports incdicate the Wauchulla woman was westbound on State Road 64, when she ran into the back of the Avon Park man’s pickup.
She hit the back of the truck, then spun in front of an oncoming semi tractor-trailer rig, which broadsided the car.
The driver was killed and a female passenger was seriously injured. The incident remains under investigation.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd has announced 228 arrests as a result of an eight-day human trafficking bust operation dubbed operation March Sadness. It included 21 suspected to be illegal aliens.
Judd said it marked a new record number of arrests during an investigation of this kind
Of the latest arrests, 21 were suspected to be illegal aliens, authorities said. Countries of origin include Chile, Cuba, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela.