Jury sides with man who claimed self-defense in ’19 shooting death

The homeowners association for Valencia Sound near Boynton Beach has refunded nearly $100,000 to recent buyers who were improperly charged a $5,140 “capital contribution fund by the HOA.”

The refunds were the result of a recent settlement of a lawsuit brought by GL Homes, which sued the HOA for charging its buyers the $5,000 when the rules, adopted by the homebuilder, barred such a fee from being levied.Self-defense

The lawsuit, filed Dec. 27, was settled Jan. 30. The settlement terms were not made part of the court record but The Palm Beach Post has learned that GL Homes got what it wanted: a refund of the money to the buyers who bought directly from GL Homes. About 20 people were affected.

Almost all HOAs in the county impose an upfront payment of HOA maintenance fees as a way to pay for capital improvements. But by the time the HOAs get around to imposing the fee, the homebuilder, in most cases, has sold all of its homes.

Anderson Arthur testified that he acted in self-defense in firing the shot that killed 29-year-old Emmanuel Phillipe during a confrontation between the men outside a Boynton Beach-area home in 2019.

The Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office argued that Phillipe’s death was a criminal act and sought to convict Arthur on a second-degree murder charge. On Feb. 22, more than four years after Arthur’s arrest, a jury found him not guilty of the charge.

Defense attorney Franklin Prince said what bolstered Arthur’s case was the inability of state witnesses to counter the self-defense claim.

“The key to the case was he was defending himself, and his testimony was not refuted by any state witnesses as to how he acted and why he felt he needed to pull that trigger,” Prince said.

Arthur, now 27, was one of two men arrested in Phillipe’s death, with PBSO investigators also arresting Jeffrey Terasme, charging him as an accessory after the fact. His case was dismissed in February 2020 after state prosecutors decided not to pursue the charge.

According to court records, Terasme and Phillipe were involved in a dispute outside Phillipe’s home on Terrace Road near the Hypoluxo Scrub Natural Area on the night of July 9, 2019. Phillippe reportedly had issues with Terasme, who was dating his children’s