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Richard Myron Ham

Age : 39

Gender : Male

Race : Black

Date : 12/19/2023

Location : US-98 and Bay Blossom Dr

City : Sebring

County : Highlands

State : Florida

Agency : Highlands County Sheriff’s Office

Officer(s) :Not Disclosed

Cause of Death : Gunshot

Event : Killed by police during confrontation

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

On 12/19/2023, Highlands County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the intersection of US-98 and Bay Blossom Drive in Sebring after a call about several people burning debris on the roadside. Highlands County Fire-Rescue units arrived first and encountered 39-year-old Richard Myron Ham. Deputies arrived and found Ham holding two metal rods. Deputies deployed a taser, which did not stop him. Ham removed the taser probes, picked up one of the metal bars, and struck a deputy in the head. At approximately 4:22 p.m., a deputy fired his service weapon and shot Ham. Deputies transported Ham to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. The injured deputy was transported separately, treated, and released.
Investigators later stated that Ham and 30-year-old Lakenya Phillips had been burning the belongings of Phillips’ 9-year-old son because they believed he was possessed. Witnesses reported Ham placed the child into the fire and covered him with a burning blanket; the child escaped serious injury. Phillips and the child had previously been reported missing and endangered out of Wichita, Kansas. Authorities located multiple firearms and drugs in the vehicle Ham and Phillips were using. The 10th Judicial Circuit Officer Involved Deadly Incident Task Force is investigating.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/sites/default/files/source-screenshots/FL_Sebring_121923a.png
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=278980675152200