Girlfriend of man killed by Highlands Co. deputies over burning of 9-year-old arrested: HCSO
Photo courtesy: Highlands County Sheriff's Office
SEBRING, Fla. - The girlfriend of a man who was killed in Highlands County after he struck deputies with a metal rod on Tuesday has been arrested for her involvement in the confrontation, according to authorities.
According to the Highlands County Sheriff's Office, Lakenya Lavonn Phillips, 30, was arrested and charged with attempted murder of a law enforcement officer, battery on a law enforcement officer, resisting arrest with violence, and cruelty toward a child.
The sheriff's office reported that Richard Myron Ham, 39, was shot and killed by a deputy on Tuesday after they responded to find him trying to burn his girlfriend's 9-year-old child, whom he believed was possessed by a demon.
Deputies and Highlands County Fire Rescue were called to the intersection of Bay Blossom Drive and U.S. 98 in Sebring at 4:07 p.m. on Tuesday where they initially found several people burning debris, including live ammunition, on the side of the road.
Ham was found armed with two metal rods, and according to HCSO, he refused to follow deputies' orders, forcing them to deploy a taser. He pulled the taser probes from his body and then swung one of the metal rods at a deputy, striking them in the head.
Deputies say Ham armed himself with a metal rod. Image is courtesy of the Highlands County Sheriff's Office.
At 4:22 p.m., one of the deputies fired at Ham. Ham was taken to the hospital where he was later pronounced dead. The injured deputy was hospitalized and later released.
According to the sheriff's office, Phillips began to push deputies as they tried to secure Ham and render aid. She was taken into custody at the scene of the incident.
At Phillips' first appearance on Wednesday, she was ordered to be held without bond. Prosecutors told the judge that the state will be seeking a felony murder charge relating to the death of Ham.
According to HCSO, witnesses described that at one point, Ham and Phillips put the 9-year-old into the fire they had been burning his possessions in and covered him with a blanket that was also on fire.
Deputies say Ham was burning items and even tried to burn a child he thought was possessed by a demon. Image is courtesy of the Highlands County Sheriff's Office.
The child escaped serious injury and is currently in DCF custody. According to the child, he had not bathed or brushed his teeth in at least ten days and had not been fed for at least 24 hours.
He told authorities that both Ham and Phillips were regularly using drugs, and Ham had earlier threatened to kill him with a large knife, claiming that he had used that knife to kill someone.
Phillips and the child were listed as missing and endangered out of Wichita, Kansas, on December 6. It is unclear when or why they came to Highlands County.
The deputies involved in the incident have been placed on paid administrative leave while the shooting is investigated by the 10th Judicial Circuit's Officer Involved Deadly Incident Task Force.