Updates were recently shared by the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office regarding the March 8th murder of 21-year-old Elijah Daley at the Ramada Inn in Lake Placid. Five people have now been arrested in connection to the murder. Authorities say the suspects include the alleged shooter, getaway driver, and three individuals who helped orchestrate a robbery that ended in Daley’s death. The man who shot Daley has been identified as 26-year-old Latarius Jamar Johnson. He was located Friday night in Sebring and subsequently arrested. He was charged with first-degree murder and armed robbery. The other four are also charged with first degree murder under the felony murder rule and could face the death penalty.
Construction is moving quickly on the new 1,600-square-foot baseball exhibit at the Avon Park Depot Museum. Crews have finished laying block for the building’s shell, with steel inspections underway and roof trusses expected in two weeks. The exhibit will feature murals and historic artifacts celebrating baseball’s legacy. Dr. Ron Sevigny says around $340,000 of the $488,000 goal has been raised, with continued fundraising focused on the exhibit’s interior. Donations over $50 will be honored on a Recognition Wall. To contribute, visit the Avon Park Depot Museum during open hours, Wednesday through Friday.
Two people are dead after a shooting and a crash in Polk County. It happened yesterday in Lakeland in Secret Cove. Sheriff Grady Judd says a teenager was shot and crashed into a house. A man riding an e-bike was hit by the car, got trapped underneath and died. Judd says deputies found marijuana and cash in the car. He believes the teen was shot by another teen while trying to sell the drugs. No arrest has been announced.
A new federal bill could help Florida’s struggling citrus industry. The "Defending Domestic Orange Juice Production Act" would lower the required sugar level in pasteurized orange juice. It would drop from ten-point-five percent to ten percent. If passed, supporters say the bill would allow Florida growers to use more local fruit and rely less on imported juice.
A Highlands County ambulance provider has been granted a temporary extension after its certification quietly expired in March. AdventHealth Wesley Chapel, operating under Pasco-Pinellas, Hillsborough Health System Inc., let its county-issued Certificate of Public Convenience lapse on March 21. The company continued services, and the lapse wasn’t discovered until April 3. County officials say the provider has since applied for renewal, and a 60-day provisional extension was granted to avoid any disruption in emergency care. Officials are now working on measures to prevent similar oversights in the future.
A Sebring man has been charged after allegedly throwing a rock through a window of an occupied home. According to the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office, 20-year-old Lazarius McCant—also known by the street name “ManMan”—was identified on home surveillance footage. The rock shattered a rear window and damaged a birdcage inside. The homeowner told deputies McCant had ongoing issues with her son. A deputy confirmed McCant’s identity from the footage and charged him with throwing a deadly missile into an occupied dwelling. The investigation is ongoing.
Florida has approved a controversial test allowing a radioactive byproduct of fertilizer—phosphogypsum—to be used in road construction in Polk County. Mosaic Fertilizer will conduct the pilot on private roads, with EPA approval, despite long-standing concerns about the material’s radiation risks. If successful, this could pave the way for statewide use. Environmental groups warn it could endanger groundwater and public health. Phosphogypsum contains radium-226, which decays into cancer-linked radon gas. Mosaic insists it’s safe and cost-effective, but critics say this test could set a dangerous precedent. The EPA is now facing legal challenges over the decision.
More than a hundred Florida State troopers have been sworn in as deputy U.S. marshals this week. That gives them the power to serve warrants and take illegal immigrants suspected of crimes off the streets. Governor DeSantis says the state wants to work even more closely with federal immigration enforcement. DeSantis says the state wants to help remove illegal immigrants, by using state facilities as detention centers and by using military judges to handle immigration cases. The governor’s immigration czar says the feds plan to use the recent Operation Tidal Wave targeting those with deportation orders, as a model for other states.