1999 — June 4, Speeding car runs light, hits car, Boca Raton, FL– 6

1999 — June 4, Speeding car runs light, hits car with 3 retired couples, Boca Raton, FL– 6

–6  Assoc. Press. “Car crash kills six retirees.” News Herald, Panama City, FL, 6-6-1999, p. 3B.

–6  Orlando Sentinel. “Driver In Fatal Collision Imprisoned As Appeals Fail.” 8-1-2003.

–6  South FL Sun Sentinel. “Recklessness Led To Deadly Crash, Statements Say.” 10-21-1999.

 

Narrative Information

 

June 4: “Boca Raton — Three retired couples on their way to the airport ere killed when their car nearly split in half after colliding with another vehicle as the group pulled out of their adult condominium community. ‘We haven’t charged anyone,’ Florida Highway Patrol Lt. Ron Rossow said Saturday [June 5]. ‘We know one of the cars ran a red light.’ Police say the six set out in a Mercury Marquis to go to the airport to drop off ne of the couples and then continue on to dinner Friday night [June 4]. The driver of the Mercury, 66-year-old Neil Marvin, pulled out of Whisper Walk, a gated community in west Boca Raton. As the car turned left, it was struck by a speeding white Mercedes-Benz that hit the driver’s side. The impact sent both cars airborne. The Mercury spun about 100 feet, crossed the median and slammed into a Toyota.

 

“Marvin and the five passengers in his car died at the scent. The three passengers in the back seat were ejected from the car. It was not known if they were wearing seat belts. Police identified the other victims as Paulette Marvin, 68, Samuel Beja, 68, Elaine Beja, 66, Seymour Insler, 73 and Sue Insler, 67.

 

“Robert Carratelli, 42, the driver of the white Mercedes, sustained minor injuries and was treated and released from Delray Medical Center. None of the three passengers in the Toyota were injured….

 

“Whisper Walk residents have complained for years about speeding traffic at the Intersection at the entrance to the community. A traffic light was installed several years ago, but a petition recently was circulating to get a turn signal installed as well. ‘Every week there’s an accident here,’ resident Renee Cohen said. ‘They ought to close this street.’” (Associated Press. “Car crash kills six retirees.” News Herald, Panama City, FL, 6-6-1999, p. 3B.)

 

Oct 21: “Minutes before police say Robert Carratelli ran a red light at nearly 80 mph, crashing into a car carrying three Boca Raton couples and killing all six people, his speeding alarmed another Boca Raton couple, according to documents released Wednesday.

 

“Vincent and Donna Dimarco were driving down Yamato Road that late spring evening when they noticed a Mercedes Benz rapidly approaching from behind and ‘driving like they were going to kill someone,’ Donna Dimarco told officers investigating the June 4 collision. She estimated the Mercedes’ speed at 70 to 90 mph along the four-lane road, which has a speed limit of 55 mph. Moments later, the Dimarcos happened upon a horrific scene where Neil Marvin, 66, and his wife, Paulette, 67; Sy Insler, 75, and his wife, Sue, 68; and Sam Beja, 69, and his wife, Elayne, 66, lay dead.

 

“Florida Highway Patrol troopers determined that Carratelli ran a red light at Gatehouse Drive while driving at least 76 mph. Carratelli’s Mercedes struck the other car as it was pulling onto Yamato….

 

“Another witness, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Detective Anthony A. Alberti, also reported seeing Carratelli speeding down Yamato Road before the wreck, accelerating and changing lanes to pass a sports car.

 

“The sightings, as related by some of the dozens of witnesses to the crash, are among 150 pages of court documents that detail the state’s case against Carratelli, 42. The Boca Raton-based advertising executive, charged last week with six counts each of manslaughter and vehicular homicide, faces up to 90 years in prison if convicted….” (South Florida Sun Sentinel, Nicole Sterghos Brochu. “Recklessness Led To Deadly Crash, Statements Say.” 10-21-1999.)

 

Aug 1, 2003: “West Palm Beach — Whether he was a reckless driver with deep pockets or a victim of a diabetic blackout, Robert Carratelli is now on his way to prison — four years after causing one of Palm Beach County’s deadliest car crashes. The former advertising executive lost a last-ditch effort Thursday to hold off serving his 15-year prison sentence for the June 1999 crash west of Boca Raton that killed six retirees. Carratelli, 46, had been out on a $150,000 bond as he appealed his vehicular-homicide convictions for running a red light. A pale, dazed-looking Carratelli showed little emotion as Circuit Judge John Hoy ordered Palm Beach County deputy sheriffs to take him into custody….Carratelli’s days of freedom became numbered after the Florida Supreme Court refused last month to consider his appeal.” (Orlando Sentinel (Jon Burstein). “Driver In Fatal Collision Imprisoned As Appeals Fail.” 8-1-2003.)

 

Sources

 

Associated Press. “Car crash kills six retirees.” News Herald, Panama City, FL, 6-6-1999, p. 3B. Accessed 1-11-2019 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/panama-city-news-herald-jun-06-1999-p-13/

 

Orlando Sentinel (Jon Burstein). “Driver In Fatal Collision Imprisoned As Appeals Fail.” 8-1-2003. Accessed 1-11-2019 at: https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-2003-08-01-0308010370-story.html

 

South Florida Sun Sentinel, Nicole Sterghos Brochu. “Recklessness Led To Deadly Crash, Statements Say.” 10-21-1999. Accessed 1-11-2019 at: https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1999-10-21-9910200977-story.html