Latest news with #Polk
Miami Herald
2 days ago
- Miami Herald
3 Broward detention deputies face aggravated battery charge in 2022 inmate booking
Three Broward Sheriff's deputies are facing charges of aggravated battery causing great bodily harm stemming from an alleged rough encounter with a woman they were booking into the jail in 2022, court records show. Deputy Denia Walker, 37; Deputy Cleopatra Johnnie, 47; and Sgt. Zakiyyah Polk, 44, were booked into the Broward Main Jail on Thursday, jail and court records show. The charge they each face is a second-degree felony. On Oct. 4, 2022, Walker, Johnnie and Polk were processing a 38-year-old woman at the Main Jail and took her to a search cell to change into the jail uniform, according to arrest warrants obtained by the South Florida Sun Sentinel through a public records request on Thursday evening. The deputies told the woman to remove all of her clothes, including her bra, the warrants said, but then began arguing about taking off the bra. Polk shoved the woman backward, and then all three deputies allegedly 'punched and kicked' her multiple times, according to the warrants. Walker sprayed the woman with pepper spray, and Polk shocked her with her Taser, the warrants say. Read more at
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Three Broward detention deputies face aggravated battery charge in 2022 inmate booking
Three Broward Sheriff's deputies are facing charges of aggravated battery causing great bodily harm stemming from an alleged rough encounter with a woman they were booking into the jail in 2022, court records show. Deputy Denia Walker, 37; Deputy Cleopatra Johnnie, 47; and Sgt. Zakiyyah Polk, 44, were booked into the Broward Main Jail on Thursday, jail and court records show. The charge they each face is a second-degree felony. On Oct. 4, 2022, Walker, Johnnie and Polk were processing a 38-year-old woman at the Main Jail and took her to a search cell to change into the jail uniform, according to arrest warrants obtained by the South Florida Sun Sentinel through a public records request on Thursday evening. The woman was being booked into the jail on a misdemeanor driving under the influence charge, Broward County court records show. The case was dropped in May 2023. The deputies told the woman to remove all of her clothes, including her bra, the warrants said, but then began arguing about taking off the bra. Polk shoved the woman backward, and then all three deputies allegedly 'punched and kicked' her multiple times, according to the warrants. Walker sprayed the woman with pepper spray, and Polk shocked her with her Taser, the warrants say. Cameras in the Main Jail recorded the incident, and the video was reviewed by the Broward State Attorney's Office investigator who authored the arrest warrants on Tuesday. The video showed that the woman was 'clearly dragged behind the yellow demarcation line, which identifies the 'blind spot' where an individual is able to change without being observed on the video,' the warrants say. BSO nursing staff treated the woman immediately afterward. She had significant bruising underneath her right eye and a bruised and swollen face, according to the warrants. At a hospital after she was released, the woman learned she had a skin infection where she had been shocked with the Taser. The warrants did not provide additional information. Some sections of the warrants obtained by the Sun Sentinel are redacted. Spokespersons for the Sheriff's Office did not respond to an email Thursday afternoon seeking information on the incident that led to the charges and the deputies' current employment status. Polk's attorney Eric Schwartzreich told the Sun Sentinel on Thursday afternoon that he has not yet seen video of the incident. Polk has worked for the Sheriff's Office for 17 years. 'Working as a detention deputy in jail is fraught with danger. There are heightened sensitivities involved,' Schwartzreich said. 'I've gotten to know my client very well. There's more to this story than what the charges say.' Michael Gottlieb, Johnnie's attorney, said, 'Situations happen when people are booked in jail.' 'Inmates are not always acting rationally, and they do not always respond to verbal and physical commands,' Gottlieb said. 'The fact that someone is physically hurt is not proof that a crime was committed.' Walker's attorney Jeremy Kroll said his client has worked as a detention deputy for a decade and 'we look forward to vigorously defending her in court.' All three deputies were later transferred to the Paul Rein Detention Facility and had been released as of Thursday evening. A judge signed orders that they be released from custody on $7,500 bonds. There have been multiple reviews internally by BSO and by the State Attorney's Office in recent years related to actions of deputies within the Broward County jails. In 2023, Broward jail deputy Ke'Shondra Davis was accused of a misdemeanor battery charge stemming from a 2022 incident where she was relocating inmates and one made a comment to her, according to a statement from the Sheriff's Office at the time. The statement did not specify the nature of the comment. Davis then 'confronted the inmate and struck him with her hand multiple times,' the statement said. Court records in the case were not accessible Thursday evening. Also in 2023, Anderson Jean, a detention deputy, was arrested after an investigation found that he had allegedly worked with an inmate and the inmate's wife to smuggle drugs and other contraband into the jail for the inmate to then sell. He pleaded guilty in June 2024 and was sentenced to two years of community control, followed by three years of probation, court records show. In 2021, inmate Kevin Desir died days after a violent struggle inside of his cell with six deputies as he was suffering an apparent mental breakdown. A medical examiner who performed Desir's autopsy ruled his cause and manner of death were undetermined. The Sheriff's Office in its own internal investigation and the State Attorney's Office in 2022 cleared all deputies who were involved. Desir's family filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in 2023. This is a developing story, so check back for updates. Click here to have breaking news alerts sent directly to your inbox.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Industry Leaders Launch Footwear Innovation Foundation
Footwear industry executives and CEOs see necessity in becoming more proactive than reactive. Veterans in the sector have formed a research think tank, Footwear Innovation Foundation (FIF), to focus on how to best shape and transform the future of footwear in the face of ongoing challenges. More from WWD Modern Retail, Unified: How Skypad and Famous Footwear Aim to Set a New Standard for Brand Collaboration Tech-driven Beauty: How Perfect Corp. Is Shaping the Future of Personalized Care With AI The Only Nike Memorial Day Shoe Deals Worth Shopping Before They Sell Out FIF, launched Monday, is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that has its home base in Reston, Va. It operates separately from the Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA). Andy Polk, FDRA'a senior vice president, will manage FIF's day-to-day operations. The FDRA will continue to work on projects such as its supply chain tracing tool launched last October, since that's driven by current regulations, according to Polk. 'The FIF really works in white spaces looking to solve beyond current work efforts, seeing where we can fill gaps where there is no little or no data and knowledge, as well as how we establish talent pathways from outside the industry inward,' Polk said in an email to FN. The FDRA will continue to focus on issues facing the footwear industry today, such as customs, tariffs, sourcing, supply chain, regulatory matters, to name a few. The FIF is a platform dedicated to shaping the future, Polk said, adding, 'We initially tried to build that within FDRA, but its mission and tax status limited our ability to pursue real R&D (research and development) and long-range innovation work.' FDRA is a 501(c)(6) organization. Donations to fund the FIF's research work are 100 percent tax free. 'The FIF board meets at least twice a year to guide our direction, evaluate new ideas, and ensure our projects serve the industry as a whole,' he said. 'Much of our day-to-day job is meeting with academics, labs, experts and industry leaders to talk about the future, provide key innovation insights to support people's operations, and running dynamic forward thinking projects to push us forward.' Polk said that while FIF is autonomous, it remains connected with the FDRA, which funded start-up costs and legal fees until shoe companies began their donations. 'We rely on FDRA for market intelligence and strategic insights to make sure we have a good pulse on where things are headed. We also use FDRA's reach to help build a broader community around innovation,' he said. Without providing specifics, Polk said one project underway is an exploration of new technologies to help expand domestic manufacturing. 'We tapped into FDRA's membership to reach out to get key insights into what technology was being used to compare with what new technologies we are seeing in other industries that we could adapt and deploy. That is how 1 + 1 becomes 3,' he said, adding that many academics and groups don't understand footwear and spend years working to provide solutions where they have major knowledge gaps. 'We don't have that problem. We have all the internal knowledge we need to make sure when we go out to find new ideas, people and technologies [that] we know how [to] best feed back into our [footwear] companies,' Polk explained. So, why is now the right timing for a research think tank? 'In our industry, we spend so much time putting out fires that we rarely get the chance to ask the bigger questions about the future,' Andy Gilbert, former president of Genesco Brands Group and now FIF chairman, said in a statement. 'While tariffs are rightly the full focus of today's discussions, they won't be the last challenge we all face. We need to stop playing defense and start going on offense to prepare for the additional complex issues ahead.' For Gilbert, the FIF is the go-to place where the footwear industry can seek guidance in planning for the future. 'It's quickly becoming a hub for innovation, with companies and global partners already coming together to help push our industry forward,' he said. While the FIF has been working behind the scenes to set up the organization, it has also help fund some projects, such as one on shoe waste with Fashion for Good, according to Polk. Other projects in progress include helping companies comply with U.S. and European Union sustainability regulations, the development of an emissions study to provide updated, real carbon data benchmarks for footwear, and a program aimed at identifying new talent and ideas outside of the footwear industry to transform existing products and business models. Companies that are helping set up and/or financially supporting the foundation include Rack Room Shoes, Steve Madden, Shoe Show Inc., Deckers Brands, Skechers, Caleres, Target, BBC International, Michael Kors, Oka Brands, RG Barry, PLC Detroit, FDRA, Jones & Vining, Insite Performance Insoles, and Souls4Soles, among dozens of others, FIF said. In addition to Polk and Gilbert, FIF board members include Brooke Beshai, vice president, sustainability and compliance, Deckers Brands; Andee Burton, direct, product and sourcing sustainability, Caleres; D'Wayne Edwards, president of PLC Detroit; Sara Irvani, board director at Oka Brands, Matt Priest, president and CEO of FDRA, and Jung Yoon, senior vice president, production and sourcing, Michael Kors. The FIF website also lists a 14-member innovation advisory council to provide guidance on which projects to support and launch. 'If we want to change the future of footwear, we must change who gets to shape it. FIF will help bring new voices, entrepreneurs and thinkers to the table—not just from our industry, but beyond. It is the next step the industry is taking to a better future,' FIF board member Edwards said. 'Our industry is facing a convergence of challenges—supply chains, sustainability goals, and compliance demands are all intersecting in unprecedented ways. That includes the need for new models and process innovation to expand domestic footwear manufacturing,' Irvani, an FIF board member, said. 'The Footwear Innovation Foundation is stepping up to ask the tough questions, bring in fresh perspectives, and help us innovate through—not just around—what's ahead. I'm energized by what we're building as a true hub for progress and collaboration across the industry.' Best of WWD Mikey Madison's Elegant Red Carpet Shoe Style [PHOTOS] Julia Fox's Sleekest and Boldest Shoe Looks Over the Years [Photos] Crocs Collaborations From Celebrities & Big Brands You Should Know Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
USA Today
24-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
3-star Toledo defensive tackle names Michigan State football in top five schools list
3-star Toledo defensive tackle names Michigan State football in top five schools list Michigan State football is in the mix for a local product, who just cut his top schools list down to five schools. Jermaine Polk has included the Spartans in his cut down list. Polk, a native of Toledo (OH), attends St. Francis De Pales High School and is a 6-foot-4, 265 pound defensive tackle. He currently ranks as an 88 rated 3-star by 247Sports. Alongside Michigan State, the schools that made the cut for the defensive line prospect are Boston College, Iowa, Iowa State and Wisconsin. He currently has official visits scheduled to the other four schools in the top five, but does not have one scheduled to East Lansing yet. Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Cory Linsner on X @Cory_Linsner
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Yahoo
Suspect wanted in MS triple shooting on Mother's Day arrested
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The last suspect wanted for a triple shooting in Mississippi on Mother's Day was taken into custody, according to the Coldwater Police Department. Bryan Polk, along with two other suspects, was arrested in connection with a shooting in Coldwater, Miss., that left three people injured on Sunday. Polk was initially labeled 'armed and dangerous.' The other two suspects were not identified by police. 3 shot in Coldwater, MS; 2 in custody, 1 wanted No additional information regarding the shooting or the conditions of the victims has been released. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
