News Update for 10/16/24
Tuesday saw the end of a tedious 3 week long jury selection in the State vs. Joseph Ables. Ables is accused of shooting and ultimately causing the death of Highlands County Sheriff’s Deputy William Gentry Jr. in May of 2018. Ables is facing the charges of first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer and felony cruelty to a cat. The State is seeking the death penalty if Ables is convicted. Opening statements are expected to start today at 8:30 a.m. The trial is slated to last through Nov. 1.
A Central Florida man accused of killing his girlfriend’s child is scheduled to face two trials next year. During yesterday’s status hearing, a judge said Stephan Sterns will first stand trial on dozens of child sex crime charges in February. Next September, he is scheduled to face a jury in connection to the murder of 13-year-old Madeline Soto. Soto was found in Osceola County earlier this year after she was reported missing. Sterns has pleaded guilty to all charges. If convicted of murder, Sterns could face the death penalty.
Estimated insured losses from Hurricane Milton are approaching two billion dollars. The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation announced yesterday the estimate is up to just under one-point-nine billion dollars. Over 150-thousand claims were filed as of yesterday. Over two thousand have been closed with payments made, but over six thousand have been closed without payments.
The Highlands County Board of County Commissioners voted and passed the proposed waiver of landfill tipping fees on Tuesday for storm debris from Hurricane Milton. Landfill Tipping fees will be waived for hurricane debris through November 7th. There will be a county wide sweep by the debris hauler starting Monday, October 21st. Debris should be placed out by the roadway by Monday, and sorted into the appropriate piles. Debris should be separated as follows: vegetative debris, Hazardous waste, construction debris, household garbage, large appliances, and electronics. Once the debris hauler has passed by, any future debris will be the homeowner’s responsibility to remove. Residents are also reminded that normal household trash will not be picked up with the disaster debris and you should follow your normal garbage collection schedule.
Detectives have identified a suspect in the abandonment of a dog during Hurricane Milton. Governor Ron DeSantis announced his arrest during a news conference in Tampa. This could result in up to five years in prison for 23-year-old Giovanny Aldama-Garcia. Florida Highway patrolman Orlando Morales discovered the dog tied to a fence on Interstate 75 in Hillsborough County last Wednesday, in rising water up to its belly. The bull terrier, now named Trooper, is in Tallahassee waiting to be put up for adoption.
The search for a missing boy is over after his body was discovered in Orange County. The FDLE issued a Missing Child Alert for seven-year-old Emerson Felix earlier Tuesday morning after he disappeared Monday evening. He was found in a body of water by his home near Orlando’s Holden Lakes neighborhood. The medical examiner will work to determine the boy’s cause of death as investigators continue to look into the moments leading up to the incident. The sheriff’s office has extended condolences to Felix’s family, classmates and loved ones.
The Small Business Administration is out of money for its disaster loan program after hurricanes Helene and Milton. The agency said Tuesday its pausing new low interest loan offers unless Congress allocates more funding. President Biden and other Democrats have called on House Speaker Mike Johnson to call Congress back into session to get that done, but Johnson says the matter can wait until Congress returns next month after the election. In the meantime, the agency is telling people to continue to apply for assistance so they’ll be positioned once money is available.