The Office of the State Attorney is committed to transparency and responds to all records requests in a timely manner. If you wish to make a request, you can do so by contacting Paul Sessions, custodian of Public Records, at (863) 534-4844 or by clicking the button to submit a request.
Recent Press Releases
Please be advised that Florida has a broad Public Records law and all e-mail correspondence to this office or anyone employed here may be subject to disclosure. Under Florida law, e-mail addresses are public records. If you do not want your e-mail address released in response to a public-records request, do not send electronic mail to this agency. Instead, contact this office by phone or in writing.
Enrollment Opens for Second Annual SAO Citizens Academy
/in SAO10 Blog /by Jamie OwensThe State Attorney’s Office is accepting applications for the second annual Citizens Academy. The seven-week program will run from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. each Tuesday starting November 2nd in the Bartow courthouse. The Academy gives residents in the 10th Circuit an opportunity to learn more about the criminal justice system. Citizens will hear […]
Lakeland Woman Found Guilty of First-Degree Murder of Six-Year-Old Child
/in SAO10 Blog /by Jamie OwensIn what is considered one of the worst cases of child abuse in Polk County in many years, a jury convicted Breonna Wren of first degree murder of her boyfriend’s six-year-old child. Wren severely beat the child back in 2018 while the child was visiting her father. The child suffered more than 37 separate injuries, […]
Man Indicted by Grand Jury for Four Counts of First-Degree Murder
/in SAO10 Blog /by Jamie OwensState Attorney Brian Haas announces the indictment of Bryan James Riley by the Polk County Grand Jury on twenty-two charges, including four counts of first-degree murder, one count of attempted first degree murder, one count of kidnapping, one count of aggravated child abuse, two counts of burglary, seven counts of attempted first-degree murder of a law […]
Man Convicted of Multiple Counts of Trafficking in Heroin
/in SAO10 Blog /by Jon McMillanA Lake Alfred man was convicted by a Polk County Jury of three counts of trafficking in heroin, conspiracy to traffic heroin and several other drug-related charges. The street value of the heroin involved in this case exceeded tens of thousands of dollars. The defendant, Beverly Souels, worked with another man to traffic heroin throughout […]
JURY VERDICT: Russell Lewis Botts Guilty of Attempted Armed Robbery with a Deadly Weapon
/in SAO10 Blog /by Jon McMillanPolk County jury trials resumed this week after being paused for several weeks due to COVID. In a trial on Wednesday, jurors convicted Russell Lewis Botts of Attempted Armed Robbery with a Deadly Weapon. In November of 2019, Botts and an accomplice tried to rob a man who was walking home from work near Griffin […]
Jury Verdict: Man Guilty of First Degree Murder
/in SAO10 Blog /by john chamblissIn the first COVID-19-Era First Degree Murder Trial, jurors convicted James “Jimbo” Pennington for the murder of Devyn Martin in Indian Lake Estates in 2017. During the 6 day trial, jurors heard testimony from Polk County Sheriff’s Deputies and other witnesses to the crime. Assistant State Attorney Jaenea Gorman presented evidence to the jurors […]