Driver kills 3 Florida deputies in a ‘gut punch’ to Palm Beach County

Law enforcement officials in Palm Beach County, Florida, were planning a memorial for two members of the sheriff’s office who were killed in a crash last week when they learned Monday that a third, who was in critical condition, had died.

Now, the memorial next month will honor all three deputies, as residents, officials and their colleagues in law enforcement mourn their deaths, days before Thanksgiving.

“It’s just devastating,” John Kazanjian, president of the Palm Beach County Police Benevolent Association, said in an interview Monday. “The PBSO organization as a whole has really taken a big blow. We’re really trying to get through it; we just don’t know how it could have happened.”

On Thursday morning, the deputies — Cpl. Luis Paez, Deputy Ralph Waller and Deputy Ignacio Diaz, who were members of the motorcycle unit — were checking for speeding vehicles on State Road 80, when one of them could not start his motorcycle and thought that the battery had died, according to Sheriff Ric Bradshaw.

The deputies moved the motorcycle off the road and onto a grassy shoulder, and were waiting for another deputy to bring jumper cables, when a woman driving in the center lane came upon a vehicle that was going much slower, Bradshaw said.

The woman veered to the right, “overcompensated,” and drove off the road, striking all three deputies and knocking them into the air, Bradshaw said.

Paramedics arrived, and the three deputies were taken to a hospital. Two of them — Paez and Waller — were pronounced dead Thursday morning. Diaz, who underwent surgery and had been in critical condition, died Monday, the sheriff’s office said.

At a news conference last week, Bradshaw said it did not appear that the driver was impaired, although more testing was being conducted. He said investigators had not determined how fast she was driving, but the speed limit was 55 mph. No charges have been filed against the driver, who was from Pennsylvania.

Waller, who was known as Butch, had served for more than 18 years in the motorcycle unit. He began his law enforcement career with the Royal Palm Beach Police Department before it merged with the sheriff’s office in October 2008.

Paez worked in law enforcement for more than 36 years. He started his career with the sheriff’s office as a corrections deputy in 1988 and was part of the motorcycle unit for more than 20 years. He had been preparing to retire around the new year, Kazanjian said.

Diaz, who was known as Dan, joined the sheriff’s office in 2004 and served in the motorcycle unit for more than 10 years.

“We stand together, honoring their memory and supporting their families, friends and colleagues through this time of immense sorrow,” the sheriff’s office, which has about 1,550 sworn officers, said in a statement Monday. “Let us remember their courage and commitment to duty as we pledge to continue their legacy of service.”

In Royal Palm Beach, residents held a candlelight walk Saturday night to honor Paez and Waller. The speakers took note of their service and sacrifice, showing how much they cared about them, Royal Palm Beach Mayor Jeff Hmara said.

Now, he said, residents are grieving for Diaz, as well.

“Somebody said it’s a gut punch,” Hmara said, “and that’s what it feels like.”

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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