"key west"

Published on: January 30, 2025

Child Dies Saturday in Key West Fire that Killed Family, officials say

A 5-year-old boy died from his injuries in a fire at a Key West apartment that killed both his parents and one of his three siblings, officials said.

Sadrac Decimy died Saturday at HCA Kendall, where he and his two other siblings, 13 and 14 years old, were taken following Thursday’s blaze. The other two siblings are in stable condition at HCA Kendall as of Wednesday, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.

The fire happened on Thursday at an apartment building with at least eight units at 1010 Emma Street in Key West’s Bahama Village. Parents Jean Decimy, 41, Evelyn Pierre, 38, and 7-year-old Dave Decimy, were killed in the fire.

Published on: January 27, 2025

Three Dead, Three Others Injured After Key West Building Fire Thursday Night

By Leesfield & Partners

A fire at a Key West apartment building resulted in the deaths of three people, including a child, and the injury of three other children on Thursday.

Parents, Jean Decimy, 41, Evelyn Pierre, 38, and child, 7-year-old Dave Decimy, were killed when a fire broke out around 7 p.m. Thursday at 1010 Emma Street in Bahama Village. A 14-year-old and two other children are among the survivors. Those three children were taken to Kendall Regional Hospital.

The fire was confined to a single unit, according to reporting from the Key West Citizen.

Published on: January 24, 2025

Key West Firefighters Complete Additional Training as Fires Continue to Rage in California. How Leesfield & Partners is Providing Aid.

By Leesfield & Partners

Amid horrific wildfires that have ravaged homes, wreaking havoc on the lives of thousands of Californians, Key West firefighters have completed additional training to improve their emergency response.

Firefighters in Key West recently completed their Florida Urban Search and Rescue Confined Space Technical Rescue training course, a lesson that teaches how to safely and effectively get people out of complicated fire situations. The course focuses on hazard analysis, risk assessment, training levels of personnel and the availability of external resources.

Providing Aid

Published on: January 21, 2025

Charter Boat Captain Charged After July 8 Florida Keys Crash that Injured Eight, police say

By Leesfield & Partners

The charter captain of a boat that crashed into a bridge over the summer, injuring several people including an 11-year-old boy, has been accused of being under the influence during the crash.

Laurence Lewis, 42, was charged this week with three counts of felony boating under the influence, causing serious bodily injury, as well as one felony count of child neglect. Additionally, he faces a misdemeanor count of aggravated boating under the influence accompanied by a minor, misdemeanor reckless boating and possession of drug paraphernalia. Authorities found Lewis at his home in Big Pine Key Tuesday, according to reporting from the Miami Herald. He was granted a $195,000 bond Wednesday morning and was released from jail.

Lewis was allegedly under the influence of drugs and had consumed tequila on July 8, 2024, the day of the crash, according to officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission who investigated the crash.

Published on: January 6, 2025

Service Member Stops Hotel Armed Robbery in Progress. In 48 Years of Personal Injury Practice, Leesfield & Partners Knows Many Others Are Not So Lucky.

By Leesfield & Partners

A U.S. airman stopped a Fort Walton Beach hotel robbery by making a simple call Friday, according to police.

The incident happened just before 10 a.m. Friday at a Residence Inn when the airman was walking through the lobby and noticed a “suspicious interaction” between the clerk and a person at the front desk. Luckily for the clerk, he called police as he left the lobby.

Police announced in a Dec. 30 news release that the man at the front desk had “brandished what appeared to be a concealed weapon in his jacket and demanded money.”

Published on: January 6, 2025

One dead, three others injured in Florida Keys boat crash, officials say.

By Leesfield & Partners

A North Carolina woman was killed, three others were injured and one man faces charges following a boat crash in the Florida Keys Friday.

A 21-foot motorboat carrying four people hit an anchored 34-foot sailboat Friday around 8 p.m. in Florida Bay off mile marker 96 in Key Largo, according to reporting from the Miami Herald. All four people aboard the motorboat were ejected following the crash. Three people were rescued from the water with injuries. The body of 24-year-old Sydney Cole was pulled from the water.

At least one of the three injured, Lillian Cole, 58, of Oakland Park, was airlifted to a Miami-Dade County hospital in critical condition. The boat was being operated by Guy Erdman, 61, also of Oakland Park, the night of the crash, according to the Herald. No charges have been filed against him as of Monday.

Published on: January 6, 2025

Florida father accused of drunk driving in deadly crash that killed 5-year-old faces charges, police say

By Leesfield & Partners

A father who was allegedly driving drunk the day he crashed his car into a tree, killing his daughter, 5, and injuring his son, 3, faces DUI manslaughter charges, police said in a Dec. 31 news release.

The crash happened in Polk County, Florida, on Nov. 7 when a father, who is not being named to protect the identity of his son, was allegedly three times over the legal limit when he was behind the wheel. The man picked up his children from their grandfather’s home, missed a turn and ran a stop sign, according to police. He later crashed into a tree and the car went up in flames. The man’s daughter died in the incident and his 3-year-old son suffered burns to his face.

The man tried getting his son out of the car but fell to the ground. A passerby helped the child. The father was also injured in the crash, according to reporting from the Miami Herald.

Published on: December 26, 2024

New Bill Proposes Stricter Penalties for ‘Boat and Run’ Crashes in Florida. What to Know.

By Leesfield & Partners

Several bills, including one to impose stricter penalties on boaters involved in crashes, have been proposed in the Florida House and Senate ahead of the 2025 start to the legislative session in March; here’s what you should know.

The bill referencing the penalties was proposed by Sen. Ileana Garcia, a Republican in Miami, and would classify fleeing a fatal boat crash as a first-degree felony, meaning this charge could carry a sentence of up to 30 years in prison, if convicted. Additional penalties can include a $10,000 fine. If a person who is found guilty of this crime was also found to have bene under the influence at the time of the crash, then a mandatory, minimum sentence of four years would be applied.

This bill, SB 58, was filed in response to the 2022 Biscayne Bay boat crash that killed one high school student on board and permanently injured another. The student killed in that incident was 17-year-old Luciana Fernandez who was on the boat being operated by George Pino, a local real-estate developer. Pino was first charged with three misdemeanor charges of careless boating, but those charges were changed to vessel homicide after a witness came forward this year with new evidence in the case.

Published on: December 13, 2024

Key West Hotel Joins Marriott Autograph Collection. A Look Back at Previous Leesfield & Partners Hotel Cases.

By Leesfield & Partners

Following a $35 million renovation, La Concha in Key West has recently joined Marriott’s “Autograph Collection,” a signifier of upscale properties within the Marriot International portfolio.

The 160-room hotel, formerly known as Crowne Plaza La Concha, was under construction since at least October of last year and now features a refurbished bar, hotel lobby and restaurant. Included in the renovation were upgrades to the outside of the hotel, rooms, the pool area and meeting spaces.

While the addition of an upscale lodging property is a positive development for Key West’s thriving tourist economy, which welcomes millions of visitors annually, guests should remain cautious.

Published on: December 13, 2024

Here’s How the Federal Aviation Administration Will Pay Homage to a Prominent Leesfield & Partners Client. Who is it?

By Leesfield & Partners

The Federal Aviation Administration Recently announced updated arrival and departure procedures at Florida airports named after Jimmy Buffet, a famed singer-songwriter and previous Leesfield & Partners client who passed away in 2023 at 76.

Pilots arriving at Palm beach International Airport will perform JESTR ONE, the arrival procedure named for Buffet who often compared his work to that of a court jester.

In Key West, where Leesfield & Partners has an office on historic Whitehead Street, pilots leaving from Key West International Airport will go through BUFIT ONE.