A former South Florida youth pastor has been charged with DUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide after investigators said he was impaired and driving 104 mph when a January crash killed his 8-year-old daughter.
Joel Isaias Leiniz, 39, surrendered to authorities after the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office completed its investigation into the Jan. 17 single-vehicle crash on South Military Trail near West Palm Beach.
According to investigators, Leiniz was driving a 2017 Audi Q7 with his three daughters after leaving a church concert when he lost control of the SUV and slammed into a concrete utility pole. The impact sparked a fire, and 8-year-old Zoe Leiniz died at St. Mary’s Medical Center about an hour later. Leiniz and his other two daughters, ages 12 and 6, were hospitalized with injuries.
Leiniz told deputies he swerved to avoid another vehicle that entered his lane and did not believe he had been speeding. But investigators said evidence at the scene, witness statements and the vehicle’s event data recorder painted a different picture.
According to the arrest affidavit, the Audi was traveling 104 mph in a posted 40 mph zone about five seconds before the crash. The data showed braking began roughly two seconds before impact.
Hospital blood tests measured Leiniz’s blood-alcohol concentration at 0.083, just above Florida’s legal limit of 0.08. Investigators later used retrograde analysis to estimate his blood-alcohol level was between 0.097 and 0.104 at the time of the crash.
Authorities concluded Leiniz was impaired and driving recklessly with “willful and wanton disregard” for the safety of others.
Defense attorney Anthony Genova disputes both the speed estimate and the blood-alcohol findings, arguing the utility pole would not have remained standing if the SUV had been traveling 104 mph. He also contends the blood sample may have been affected by alcohol used to clean Leiniz’s skin before it was drawn.
A judge set Leiniz’s bond at $150,000. If released, he is prohibited from driving or consuming alcohol or non-prescribed drugs while the case is pending.
