Broward Sheriff ’s Office stays tight-lipped about deputy’s death in crash

DEERFIELD BEACH – More than two weeks after a deputy was killed in a two-car crash, the Broward Sheriff’s Office still hasn’t publicly answered basic questions about the collision.

Deputy Benjamin Nimtz and the other driver, Darran Johnson, crashed at the intersection of Southwest 10th Street and Military Trail about 3 a.m. July 21, a Sunday. Nimtz was on his way to a domestic disturbance call.

Despite repeated requests, the Sheriff’s Office has declined to say which driver had a red light or what the domestic situation involved.

Asked for copies of reports regarding both incidents, sheriff’s spokeswoman Veda Coleman Wright said by email Tuesday that the reports are not “ready to be released.” The supervisor in traffic homicide investigations could not say when those documents will be ready, she said.

“The investigation is ongoing,” Coleman-Wright said. “Detectives are still taking statements.”

Nimtz was traveling in a patrol SUV with lights and siren on when his car and Johnson’s Toyota Tundra pickup collided, the Sheriff ’s Office said.

A second deputy, whose name hasn’t been released, was following Nimtz in a separate car. That deputy witnessed the crash and called for help.

Nimtz died at Broward Health North in Deerfield Beach. Johnson, 32, of Pembroke Pines, survived with injuries that were not life threatening, the Sheriff ’s Office said.

The day after the collision, the Sheriff’s Office said its preliminary findings indicated Johnson’s speed contributed to the crash and detectives were awaiting the results of Johnson’s toxicology tests.

Johnson hasn’t been charged in the crash and couldn’t be reached for comment at that time.

The intersection where the crash happened has a 24-hour, full-color traffic signal, according to Broward County Traffic Engineering. It does not blink red during late-night hours or at any other time.

The Broward County Medical Examiner’s Office said Wednesday that records regarding the investigation into Nimtz’s death are part of an active criminal investigation and are not yet publicly available.

During his time at the Sheriff’s Office, Nimtz lived in West Palm Beach with his wife, Emelie, and their two young children. He joined the Sheriff ’s Office in March 2018. He was interviewing with a police department in Indiana, where he planned to join his family who had already moved north.

COURTESY Deputy Sheriff Benjamin Nimtz was killed in a traffic crash July 21 while on his way to a domestic violence call.