Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Woman, 68, tossed into pool while trying to stop loud party
Teen who turned himself in to police faces battery charge
Nancy James was just trying to break up a loud outdoor party at her North Lauderdale apartment complex when one of the party-goers picked up the 68-year-old woman and tossed her into the pool.
James, treasurer of the Players Place apartments homeowners association, was bruised on her leg and shoulder
but not seriously hurt about 7 p.m. Saturday, according to Broward sheriff’s deputies.
A 16-year-old Margate boy turned himself in to authorities early Monday. He will face a charge of battery on a person 65 years or older and is headed to juvenile detention, said Veda Coleman-Wright, a spokeswoman for the Broward Sheriff ’s Office.
“I messed up and I have to own up to it,” the teen told deputies.
“It’s disturbing,” said Coleman-Wright, who watched a video of the incident posted on social media. “I couldn’t help but think of my own mother watching the video.”
The video shows James walking into the area near the pool with two small dogs on a leash. As some of the estimated 200 young revelers gather around her, a teen in a red shirt grabs James in what appears to be an attempt to pick her up.
He seems to slip, and they both fall to the pool deck.
The teen scrambles to his feet and again picks up James, this time taking a couple of steps to the pool and tossing her in. He follows her into the water.
“James was very frightened and upset,” according to a report filed by a deputy who arrived after many of the party guests had fled. “She was drenched in water from her shoulders down.”
Paramedics with North Lauderdale Fire Rescue examined James at the scene.
Ruined were her cellphone and a home alarm key fob, she told deputies.
James told deputies that she and Mitchelle Lozano, 45, entered the pool area intending to break up the party. Both are part of the “Masters Association,” which looks after the pool, tennis courts and other areas of the complex at 1801 Racquet Court, according to officials. The all-ages community of town homes was built in the 1980s.
Detectives are investigating who sanctioned the party, Coleman-Wright said. James could not be reached for comment. Investigators ask anyone with information to contact Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.