He was born Charles Crofford Dockery in May 1933, but Lakelanders grew to know and love him as Doc Dockery, a self-made man, the founder of Summit Consulting, a political kingmaker, an advisor to governors and author of two books. More
As Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd’s star rose during the 2000s, so did his political cachet. He has spent time in Washington, D.C., at The White House and at local campaign stops with several presidents. Those meetings stretch back to the early 1980s, when President Jimmy Carter came to Polk County to fish and shook hands with a young aspiring Polk County Sheriff’s captain. More
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd’s career has had its share of controversies that made him a sometimes polarizing figure. One sticking point with some residents has been his adamant opposition to equipping his deputies or their patrol cars with cameras, saying it’s an invasion of privacy, costs too much, and that most people in the general public have a camera on their phone to record law enforcement interactions. More
One of Deputy Grady Judd’s early arrests came the night of the sheriff’s office Christmas party in the mid-1970s, when he saved the Baby Jesus. More
I am pleased to announce that LkldNow has been awarded a $20,000 Sustainable Publishing Solutions grant from the Knight Foundation. We were one of 25 independent newsrooms chosen for the grant in a nationwide competitive process. More
On the sweltering summer evening of July 21, 1972, a tall, skinny, 18-year-old – sporting a mustache because it “made him look older” — walked into the Bartow headquarters of the Polk County Sheriff’s Office on Broadway Avenue and started his first official night shift in the communications office, answering emergency calls for help as one of only about 150 employees of then-Sheriff Monroe Brannen. More
Jennifer Canady and Phillip Walker, Republican candidates for Florida House of Representatives District 50, which includes most of Lakeland, agreed more than they disagreed tonight in a forum at The Well, a midtown business and cultural center. The forum was hosted by the NAACP Lakeland Branch. The race is on the Aug. 23 ballot and all voters in the district (see a map here) can vote regardless of party registration because there is no Democratic candidate in the race. Here is LkldNow’s live video stream from the event:
Several Lakeland residents were at the Orange County Convention Center Thursday as Vice President Kamala Harris gave a candid 30-minute speech to more than 13,000 members of her sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. More
When two vehicles crashed near his workplace on U.S. 92, Publix employee Glenn Chancey helped control the flames and pull a trapped victim from one of the vehicles. His efforts earned him recognition from the Lakeland Fire Department today, News Channel 8 reports. “From what we understand about the call, him being able to get that person out of that vehicle, the vehicle that was on fire, more than likely saved that person’s life,” Fire Chief Doug Riley said. | Photos: LFD Facebook
Matthew Gallagher of Lakeland was an outgoing child who yearned to become an astronaut. So when he died unexpectedly at age 11, his family found Celestis Memorial Spaceflights and made arrangements to send his cremated remains to the moon, a place where they can think of him when they look into the night sky, Fox 13 News reports. More
