Thank you Michele Quigley and Julius Whigham II at the Palm Beach Post

A Thank You to Michelle Quigley (Palm Beach Post news researcher/data interactive editor) and Julius Whigham II (Palm Beach Post news reporter).

Understanding the municipal boundaries of the City of Lake Worth is not easy. There are people who have lived in Lake Worth for many years and have no clue where the municipal boundaries of the City are in relation to the county. Confusing matters are the vast areas of Palm Beach County that have a "Lake Worth" mailing address. These areas are referred to correctly as "suburban Lake Worth".

It was a bank robbery on November 24, 2014 that spurred me to write this, a reference for the media on what is Lake Worth and what is not Lake Worth. This particular crime occurred near the Florida Turnpike and every news outlet reported this crime as happening in "Lake Worth". Of course, this crime location was in "suburban Lake Worth".

Last year Michelle Quigley and Julius Whigham II posted an Interactive Map of homicides in Palm Beach County. You could filter your search by city; Lake Worth showed 50 homicides from 2009 to 2014. The data Michelle Quigley and Mr. Whigham II used was correct if you go by mailing address. If you filter out the homicides that occurred in suburban Palm Beach County, however, the number of homicides in the City of Lake Worth from 2009 to 2014 was 30: not 50.

Last night only by accident I stumbled on the Interactive Map of homicides in Palm Beach County and clicked "Lake Worth". Here is what I saw:

Image of corrected Interactive Map in Palm Beach Post, location of homicides 2009 to 2015.

The above image is a screen grab of the corrected Interactive Map of homicides in Palm Beach County. The Map now accurately reflects the actual number on homicides in the City of Lake Worth from 2009 to 2014. 

Thirty homicides is unacceptable and note this: many of these homicides occurred before PBSO took over for the disbanded Lake Worth Police Department. 

The City of Lake Worth has less than 3% of the total residents in Palm Beach County. We are a small city in a very big county; a small fish in a big pond, if you will. Lake Worth is not asking for special treatment from the news media; only fairness and accuracy. 

The image and reputation of the City of Lake Worth has suffered greatly over the years and much work is being done to fix that. A tremendous amount of effort by people like Mayor Pam Triolo, City Manager Michael Bornstein, the NAPC, and many others has gone into changing long-held false beliefs about our little City. 

Thank you Michelle Quigley and Julius Whigham II.