Parking lots at parks and gyms are being hit more often by thieves, Sheriff Grady Judd says. It’s not enough to hide your stuff in your car because burglars know what to look for, he says, adding: “It’s got to be locked in the trunk and out of sight.”
UPDATE: Lakeland police say their preliminary review of an incident of officers restraining and kicking a homeless man showed the officers “were justified in their response and acted within our Use Of Force policy.”
Photos and video of the officers kicking the man who resisted arrest under an interstate overpass generated a huge response on Facebook.
The Lakeland Police Department released its own description late last night and said the two officers’ use of force is under administrative review. A noon update today said the administrative review continues but that preliminary findings show the use fo force was justified.
Today’s update said: “Both officers used various physical tactics, including strikes to the upper torso, in an attempt to gain control of John Abbott and take him into custody. Abbott was not kicked in the head. As Officer West gave an audible warning that he was deploying his Tazer, Officer Anthony stepped back to ensure he would be clear of the Tazer effects. When the Tazer failed to stop Abbott, Abbott grabbed the device from Officer West. Officer Anthony then kicked Abbott in the upper torso in an effort to make Abbott to release the weapon.”
“When you try to take somebody into custody and they react violently, you need to take appropriate action,” Chief Larry Giddens told The Ledger today.
A police spokesman told The Ledger last night that what looked to some like a running kick to the head was really a kick to the suspect’s arm.
Debate on Facebook continues today on posts by LPD, The Ledger and others.
Deputies are asking the public’s help finding the person driving a white minivan who they say burglarized three homes in south Lakeland and took an urn containing the cremated remains of retired Lakeland Police Officer Buddy Newsome.
Visitors to the new Dog Leg Woods on Cleveland Heights Boulevard said thieves broke into their vehicles and in some cases smashed windows. Police advise people to keep valuables out of plain sight.
ELSEWHERE: Lakeland police arrested a 15-year-old and are seeking another suspect in car burglaries that took place at Autumnwood Village Apartments, 1776 Harden Blvd. about 6 a.m. Sunday, The Ledger reports.
The Polk Sheriff’s Office arrested a 14-year-old who was recently expelled from Lakeland Christian School; he is accused of making threats involving students at George Jenkins High School.
Charlotte Ives was on the phone with dispatchers when a 19-year-old man who had been banging on their door and shouting profanities barged in despite warnings he would be shot | Listen to the 911 call.
Gabriel Jacobs, 19, is hospitalized in critical condition after being shot by 66-year-old Michael Ives after Ives warned him several times not to enter his home off New Jersey Avenue around 3 a.m. Sunday, police said.
ALSO: “The homeowner was well within his rights,” an LPD spokesman tells The Ledger. ”(Jacobs) was combative with the emergency personnel on the way to the hospital. If he lives, he will be charged at least with breaking into an occupied dwelling. We know he’s not leaving the hospital anytime soon.”
The body of Roderick Childs, the 55-year-old owner of Victory Bedding on George Jenkins Boulevard, was discovered Monday in his residence at the Lakeland Manor Apartments on Gilmore Avenue. He had been shot, police said.
Avoid State Road 33 near University Boulevard (Florida Poly University area) and Combee Road. Those intersections are closed following a deputy-involved shooting. No deputies are injured, a suspect is in custody, and no other suspects are being sought, according to the Polk Sheriff’s Office. More info is coming.
