Big stories out of Polk in 2017

There’s been a lot of stories this year coming from the community, and some more tragic events transpire that have topped the headlines during 2017.

As the year comes to a close, we take a look back at those stories that made an impact on the community and kept people talking — and will continue being covered in the months to come as the new year starts.

Here’s some of the highlights of the year that drew a lot of attention here:

Police investigate reports that Polk girl live-streamed her own death

The story of a Katelyn Davis, a 12-yearold Polk County girl who live-streamed video of her own suicide in December 2016, went viral on the internet. The girl posted the video and people apparently shared not only the video itself, but also portions of her online journal.

Police opened an investigation into the incident and are still looking into claims of abuse which were reportedly made in her journal.

The story also brought the subject of teen suicide into the forefront of many people’s minds and opened that discussion.

Polk County Coroner Tony Brazier said the story of Katelyn Davis stuck in his mind and a rise in suicides in Polk County made him want to take action.

Each case is different, he said but depression is usually a common factor.

“There’s got to be a common catalyst in all suicides, and that common catalyst is generally the psychiatric norm of chronic depression,” Brazier said.