Polk County Sheriffs Office Press Release
Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputies are investigating a deputy-involved vehicle crash that occurred on Saturday, July 15, 2017, just after 9:20a.m. at the intersection of Combee Road and Main Street in un-incorporated Lakeland. 23-year-old Deputy Sheriff Joshua Judah was responding to a disturbance call at the Shell Gas Station located at 125 N. Combee Road when the crash occurred.
Judah passed the Shell Gas station and turned around at the Marathon Gas station located at 107 S. Combee Road and started traveling Eastbound onto E. Main Street. As Judah was traveling eastbound he slowed to check southbound traffic on Combee Road. He started to clear the southbound lane and failed to clear northbound traffic and traveled into the right of way of a 2015 gold Buick ERC occupied by 76-year-old Janet Roby (driver) and 79-year-old John Roby (front passenger) of Lakeland.
Judah had a red light (traveling eastbound on Main Street) and Roby was traveling northbound on Combee Road with a green light. Judah was in emergency mode when he traveled through the red light.
Roby was unable to stop and struck the passenger side of Judah’s patrol car. After Judah and Roby’s cars collided, they struck a 2003 black Ford F150 (that was stopped at the intersection) traveling westbound on Main Street driven by 31-year-old Rodd Kobielnik and 10-year-old passenger Bradley Kobielnik, both from Lakeland. Neither party in the truck was injured.
Joshua Judah, Janet Roby, and John Roby were transported to LRHMC with minor injuries. Judah and Janet were released on Saturday and John Roby was released on Sunday.
Deputy Sheriff Judah was determined to be at fault and was issued a traffic citation for failing to yield right of way.
