PLANT CITY TIMES &
Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 5, NO. 14
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Monday night football not just for NFL pros.
SEE PAGE 12. •
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2017
PCPD officers cleared in shooting death of unarmed man Jesus Cervantes was unarmed and first shot from behind, but officers were cleared in his death. DANIEL FIGUEROA IV STAFF WRITER
Jesus Cervantes made a a frantic 911 call asking for police help. They shot him in the back. New details have emerged in the
YOUR TOWN
July 6 shooting death of Cervantes following the completion of an investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement in August. The shooting has sparked outcry in Plant City over police accountability and transparency, as well as whether the shooting was justified. September 6, two months to the day after Cervantes, a 35-year-old father of four, was shot dead by Plant City Police Department officers Gerald Baker and Derek Hartmann, State Attorney Andrew Warren wrote PCPD Chief Ed Duncan a letter stat-
ing the officers’ use of force was justified and no charges would be filed. Cervantes was holding a glass pipe and a black and white striped shirt with red sequins when he was killed. “Based on our review and analysis of the relevant facts and law…the use of deadly force by Officer Derek Hartmann and Officer Gerald Baker was justified pursuant to Florida Statute 776.012,” the letter stated. “We all want to live in safe communities and value a criminal justice system that embodies fairness and accountability,” Warren added in a
statement to the Plant City Times and Observer. “My office is dedicated to reviewing all law enforcement use of force matters thoroughly and transparently, and we will continue to engage in candid dialogue to reduce officerinvolved shootings and promote trust within the community.” The Florida law Warren references says the use of deadly force is justified if someone “reasonably believes that using or threatening to use such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to
himself or herself or another or to prevent the imminent commission of a forcible felony.” According to the FDLE report, around 5 a.m. July 5, Cervantes called 911 saying he was being followed by “a lot of cars for two hours.” He sounded distressed and was breathing heavily. PCPD officers were able to locate and identify Cervantes’ black Nissan Altima and began a pursuit believing the caller was in distress and possibly kidnapped. SEE PCPD PAGE 6
HOMETOWN HERO: MAJ. MICHAEL WAYNE ALLEN
Being all that
you can be
Courtesy of Emily Pierce
Play for a Cure raises over $2,200 Jensen’s Heart of Gold Play for a Cure event raised over $2,200 on Saturday. All of the money raised goes to local children with cancer. Between 400 and 500 people attended the event and the blood mobile on site had 12 blood donations that day. There were approximately 30 vendors, including a make-your-own slime booth and a dunk tank.
Daniel Figueroa IV Courtesy ofJack Holland
2017 Optimist Youth flag football contest The 2017 Optimist Youth flag football Tri-Star Punt Pass & Kick football contest had 52 participants Sept. 30 ranging from six to 15 years old. The annual free event was held at the Otis M. Andrews Sports Complex and no registration was needed. The event was co-sponsored by the Recreation & Parks Department and the Optimist Club.
A table displaying Maj. Michael Wayne Allen’s personal affects including uniforms, photos and awards.
Larger than life, the Plant City football star and Army Ranger served for three decades before he died. DANIEL FIGUEROA IV STAFF WRITER
E
xplosions lit the sky. Brilliant fireworks cast multicolored glows over the dark Frostproof sky, hanging for a moment and leaving brief but powerful impressions in the air, much like the life they were meant to honor. It was a warm Sunday night in late August as members of Pant City High School’s class of 1980 joined friends and family to honor their classmate, Army Maj. Michael Wayne Allen, a man many viewed as the true embodiment of the American hero, a man who was the embodiment of the Army’s “be all that you can be” slogan.
“He gave his entire life away so we could live ours,” Steve Maxwell said, “We can’t give him a 21-gun salute, so we’ll give him a 21-minute salute.” Allen died late June following a seven-month battle with colon cancer that spread throughout his body. Just days before he died, Maxwell, a friend of Allen’s since they met in Ms. Woodward’s third-grade class at Pinecrest Elementary in 1970, visited Allen in his Mississippi home. While there, Maxwell showed Allen a photo that made him cry. Many of his classmates had gathered at the Crooked Bass Grill in Babson Park, a restaurant owned by friends Tim and
Tammy Bracewell. The photo showed them gathered around in prayer for Allen. The show of love and support shocked Allen. “He didn’t even know if people knew he was dead or alive,” Maxwell said. For many, it had been 37 years since they’d seen him, but they all remembered him. “I hadn’t seen him in 30-plus years,” classmate Barbara Huchro said. “But I never forgot him. How could anyone forget Wayne Allen.” During his time at PCHS, Allen was SEE HERO PAGE 3
MAKE Plant City create again The new group of Plant City’s creative minds held its first event at the Corner Store Sept. 26 DANIEL FIGUEROA IV STAFF WRITER
Daniel Figueroa IV
Mara Latorre (left) speaks as Arley Smude (right) moderates the event.
They are painters and sculptors, brewers and chefs, cartoonists, carpenters and tinkerers of all kinds. They are Plant City’s creative community and they are uniting to see art across all mediums thrive in Plant City. They are MAKE Plant City and they have arrived.
The recently formed group held its first meeting Sept. 26 to a packed house of nearly 50 people at Plant City’s Corner Store restaurant. It was standing room only as city planner Mara Latorre addressed the crowd as the group’s first keynote speaker. Latorre spoke about how artists and art enthusiasts can work with City Hall to foster arts in Plant City. “If you want to see Plant City
exploding with art, stick with it,” she said. “They (city commissioners) want to hear from you. Make your voices heard. Follow up and follow through.” With new developments like the ongoing midtown project coming to Plant City and some already established venues, Latorre said there could be options for creating multiple arts and creative festivals in Plant City if its citizens keep momentum going. Sticktoitiveness, she indicated, is the name of the game. There needs to be SEE MAKE PAGE 6