Update from PBSO: “The victim is an unidentified white or Hispanic female, possibly in her 20’s. An autopsy will be performed today.”
The Palm Beach Sheriff reports that a female dead body was found on the 14000 block of Smith-Sundy Road, about a mile north and a little west of Delray Marketplace.
The location is about a half mile east of US 441, and about a half mile north of the northeast corner of the Four Seasons community (formerly Tivoli Isles). The area is mostly farmland. Smith-Sundy Road, looking southbound at the 14000 block. Image: Google. So far PBSO is not releasing much information. We will update if and when we learn more. They do say there appears to have been “foul play.” inn other words this looks like a homicide investigation.
Joanne Luu mugshot (PBSO) Yesterday on our Facebook page we posted a link to a well-written article in the Sun-Sentinel about the Joanne Luu not guilty verdict. This comes from a fatal accident at 441 and Sandalfoot Blvd. Our Facebook post received a lot of “engagement” from readers, with 15 shares and a total of 68 comments (including on the shared posts). Most of the comments were angry. Accident victims Ferrarella and D’Angelo This was a horrible accident. The families and friends of the victims are understandably upset, and like anyone else who reads about this, we are deeply sympathetic to their suffering. But I’ve been a trial lawyer for 20 years now and have handled many DUI cases. In my continuing quest for unpopularity, I have to say what our readers apparently don’t want to hear: The jury got it right. Over a year ago we explained the Angela Stracar decision, a similar case. Both Stracar and Luu were accused of causing an accident that killed people, of being impaired by drugs, and of driving recklessly. Stracar was convicted at trial after an accident in front of Boca Isles (on Cain Blvd.). Her conviction was reversed on appeal and the charges were dismissed. Here’s some key language from the Sun-Sentinel article:
Sheriff’s … toxicologist … Yeatman testified the blood sample showed traces of a chemical produced by the metabolization of cocaine. But there was no actual cocaine detected in Luu’s blood, and Yeatman said on cross-examination that the chemical alone would not have caused her to be impaired behind the wheel.
The DUI homicide charge she faced applies when someone is impaired by drugs. You would have to have such a drug in your system in order for it to impair you. There was no cocaine in Luu’s blood. This doesn’t mean that Luu is a good person, or that the victims deserved to die. It just means Luu was not driving under the influence of drugs. She is genuinely innocent of the DUI charge. What was found in her system was a metabolite. When you take a drug (legal or illegal), your body processes (or metabolizes) it. The results of that process are metabolites. The most common metabolite of cocaine is benzoylecgonine. You can read about how cocaine is metabolized in a scientific journal. Our best guess is that the drug test showed benzoylecgonine. It only showed “traces” of it according to the article. Usually “trace” in a blood test means an amount that is so low as to be almost undetectable. That means if Luu had used cocaine it would have been long before the accident. The prosecutor argued that Luu’s “behavior is completely abnormal because she’s crashing from cocaine use.” To be polite, that’s a creative theory. The statute requires that someone be impaired by drugs, not by the absence of drugs. You wouldn’t have to take this argument much further to argue that an alcoholic or addict who is clean at the time of an accident is impaired by the cravings from their addiction.
Warren Redlich is the author of Fair DUI: Stay Safe & Sane in a World Gone MADD
Even if she had actual cocaine in her system it would be tough for prosecutors to prove guilt. As the NHTSA puts it:
The presence of cocaine at a given blood concentration cannot usually be associated with a degree of impairment or a specific effect for a given individual without additional information.
The very notion that cocaine impairs driving is itself dubious:
Single low doses of cocaine may improve mental and motor performance in persons who are fatigued or sleep deprived, however, cocaine does not necessarily enhance the performance of otherwise normal individuals. Cocaine may enhance performance of simple tasks but not complex, divided-attention tasks such as driving. Most laboratory studies have been limited by the low single doses of cocaine administered to subjects. At these low doses, most studies showed performance enhancement in attentional abilities but no effect on cognitive abilities. Significant deleterious effects are expected after higher doses, chronic ingestion, and during the crash or withdrawal phase.
Indeed another NHTSA study (pdf) showed little if any evidence that illegal drugs such as cocaine and marijuana increase the risk of driving:
[A]nalyses incorporating adjustments for age, gender, ethnicity, and alcohol concentration level did not show a significant increase in levels of crash risk associated with the presence of drugs.
That’s in stark contrast to the findings about alcohol:
Findings from this study indicate that crash risk grows exponentially with increasing BrAC. The study shows that at low levels of alcohol (e.g., 0.03 BrAC) the risk of crashing is increased by 20 per- cent, at moderate alcohol levels (0.05 BrAC) risk increases to double that of sober drivers, and at a higher level (0.10 BrAC) the risk increases to five and a half times.
If you believe this government science, just one or two drinks significantly impairs driving and is far more dangerous for a driver than any amount of cocaine or marijuana. The comments on our Facebook post clearly misunderstand what happened. For example, one commenter wrote: “She had a great attorney. The payoff worked well. I mean he “worked” well. That’s all folks. So sad for the family.” Ms. Luu was represented by the public defender’s office. There was no payoff. While many people have a negative view of public defenders, we have some very good ones in Palm Beach County. They did a great job in this case, and in the Stracar case as well. Another commenter wrote:
It is called the criminal justice system because the criminals are the only ones to receive any justice, the victims sure don’t and it is not called the victim justice system.
This comment has both truth and error in it. The commenter is correct that the system is generally not about victims. We already have civil courts for that where victims can sue the people who hurt them. One of the harder parts about this case is that the Luu vehicle may have had very limited insurance, leaving little money to compensate the families of the victims. In some cases the system does work to get some kind of compensation for victims. There is an entirely different approach to crimes called restorative justice that focuses more on victims, but it’s not widely used and is probably not what the bloodthirsty commenters want. The commenter is completely wrong if he believes that the system is favorable to people accused of crimes. In my experience the deck is stacked against defendants, including innocent ones. With that said it does seem like the prosecutors in South Florida drop a lot of cases involving real crime. Another commenter wrote: “Sloppy police work and lousy prosecutors.” There was no sloppy police work here. The police did what they’re trained to do and they did their jobs well. The only thing the prosecutors did wrong was continue to pursue a case without evidence of guilt. “The fact that two people died meant nothing to this case??” No it did mean something. The case was prosecuted at the very serious level of a DUI homicide rather than as a lesser DUI or reckless driving case. Had there been no death there’s a good chance the case would not have been prosecuted at all. When there is public outrage over an incident like this, some prosecutors will go ahead with a prosecution to satisfy the public’s blood lust. “It’s a sad day when all the evidence is present and a criminal is set free. The judge should be incarcerated.” I’m at a loss to understand why this commenter blames the judge. A jury found Luu not guilty. If anything the judge should have dismissed the case without letting it get to the jury at all. One of our regular readers posted this: This is her picture. I think it’s obvious how she was acquitted and it wasn’t lack of evidence. Another reader suggested that the male jurors didn’t want to convict her. This is nonsense. If you take a look at the comments in total, you’ll see that the overwhelming majority think she’s guilty. The jury pool consists of people with similar attitudes. But when they get into a courtroom and have the law and the facts explained to them, they take their responsibility seriously and in this case they got it right. One last thing deserves mention. The victims were not wearing their seatbelts. Some, including the county medical examiner, assert that they would have died even if they had been wearing them. That’s an irresponsible thing to say. Seatbelts save lives. Dr. Bell may be a competent physician, but he’s not a biomechanical engineer and so he’s not qualified to make such a statement.
In response to an additional comment, which assumed that Luu ran a red light, we don’t know that. “During her closing argument, Arco (the prosecutor) acknowledged it was unclear whether Liborio Ferrarella turned on a green arrow or a red arrow.” Fault in the accident is irrelevant to a DUI homicide charge. If you’re impaired by a drug or alcohol, you’re on the hook in Florida even if it’s the other driver’s fault.
We’re seeing progress on new stores. We previously reported that Pei Wei is coming to Glades and 441 (the new building in the Home Depot plaza). We weren’t sure before but we are now. The store sign is up and they’re busy on the inside getting it ready. We still think it’s at least a month away but this is real progress. None of the other spaces in the new building are anywhere close to this.
Next up we just learned that a Smoothie King will open in Mission Bay Plaza. This came on us fast. It opens tomorrow morning. The menu is focused on healthy smoothies, with categories including Fitness, Slim, and Wellness, along with some other options. Most of them start at $5 or so with large ones (40 oz) approaching $9. There was some activity inside but we couldn’t get in or get a good picture of the inside. Grand opening with ribbon cutting will be tomorrow around noon.
We’ve also reported on a new organic market, 4th Generation, coming to Boca Lyons Plaza. They seem to be behind schedule and we don’t see much progress inside. –Update: A reader tells us 4th Generation expects to open in August.– However, there is a new place opening next door, Fashion Scoop. A sign on the door indicates they’re hiring experienced retail staff.
The County Commission recently approved two road projects west of US-441. First up, they’re spending $322K to mill and resurface Cain Blvd from Glades to Yamato. Cain runs parallel to 441, north-south between Boca Isles and Boca Greens. Cain Blvd between Glades and Yamato. Map data Google Maps. Next up they will spend $517K milling and resurfacing Glades between Ponderosa and State Road 7 (aka US-441). Glades Road between Ponderosa and 441. Map data Google Maps. From what we can see in the documents, each project should take no more than 30 days. We haven’t heard of a start date yet for either of them. Once these start we anticipate significant traffic impact, though fortunately both sections of roadway are not as heavily traveled as busier roads like 441 and Glades east of 441. Drivers may divert from these creating more traffic on Palmetto Park Road, Yamato, and 441. The documents for each are below. First for Cain: [gview file=”https://westbocanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/cain-glades-yamato.pdf”] And next for Glades: [gview file=”https://westbocanews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/glades-ponderosa-7.pdf”]
Recently we had the opportunity to visit new homes ready for quick move-in. The Oaks is a gated community on the north side of Clint Moore between US-441 and Lyons Road with new homes selling for $1 million and up. It’s a great location in many ways. For shopping and restaurants it’s across from The Reserve with a Publix, Villa Rosano, Fit Foodz Café, It’s All Greek, Tempura House, Ben’s Deli and more. Delray Marketplace is just north on Lyons at Atlantic. For commuting Clint Moore is one of the easiest east-west drives during rush hour and it’s close to two Turnpike exits – Atlantic to the north and Glades to the south.
There are two builders selling homes in The Oaks. In our recent visit we saw models from Richmond American. Click on any picture to see a larger size. The first model we saw was large and loaded with features. The Kingsmill is over 5400 square feet with five bedrooms including guest suite on the ground floor. It starts at just over $1.1 million but the model we saw would be quite a bit more. The kitchen is an example of the high-end features. It has a wraparound counter around a large island that includes a second sink. The gas range is extra wide and there are actually two dishwashers. The gas can also be extended to the dryer in the laundry room and the grill on the deck. Our favorite feature in the kitchen is the walk-in pantry closet that is hidden behind regular cabinet doors. The kitchen looks out on the backyard through something we hadn’t seen before – a sliding glass door that opens at a corner. From inside you see a pleasant lake view. The dining room is nicely done. The master bedroom and bathroom are gorgeous, again with the high-end features you’d expect at this price.
After the Kingsmill we also saw the Westgate model, which is even larger at over 6500 square feet and starts just short of $1.3 million. Unlike the first model this one has been left wide open to let the buyer’s imagination go to work. It is, of course, spacious inside. The island in the kitchen is very large. The Westgate comes with a nice architectural feature – a curved staircase which produces the curvature on the front of the house. The size allows for a feature we have seen before and like, separate his-and-hers master bathrooms off the master bedroom. We also saw another model, the Cheval. This is the master bath. One more feature we saw in the Cheval that goes beyond interior square footage is a large second-floor balcony off the master suite. This model was still under construction when we saw it. If any of our readers would like to see a home in The Oaks, please call Warren at 888-733-5299, or e-mail him at [email protected].
