A nurse has been arrested more than one year after she allegedly killed three Florida police officers during a high-speed chase, which took place after she worked a 12-hour shift.
Corrine Blue was arrested on April 30 and was charged with three counts of vehicular homicide, according to a press release from the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office.
Corporal Luis Paez Jr., Deputy Ignacio “Dan” Diaz and Deputy Ralph “Butch” Waller were stationed on Southern Boulevard on November 21, 2024, when they were hit by a Jeep SUV, according to CBS News. An investigation was launched into the incident and authorities have come to believe that Blue, 31, was driving the car.
“According to an investigation by Florida Highway Patrol, Blue was driving a Jeep Grand Cherokee in an unsafe manner and well above the posted 55 mph speed limit before striking the deputies, who were stopped along State Road 80 with their motorcycles, a half-mile west of Lion Country Safari Road,” the State Attorney’s Office’s release stated.
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Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said that Blue was reportedly heading eastbound in the center lane prior to the incident, per Local 10. She attempted to pass a slower-moving vehicle on the right, which was when she allegedly hit the officers around 9 a.m.
Blue told authorities that she normally worked in the telemetry unit at the Cleveland Clinic in Weston, though she worked a 12-hour overnight shift in the emergency room for the first time before the crash, according to the arrest report viewed by NBC 6. She also said she was unfamiliar with the route she took home at the time of the incident.
“These charges follow a thorough review of the evidence and mark an important step in the pursuit of justice for the families of Corporal Paez, Deputy Diaz, and Deputy Waller,” State Attorney Alexcia Cox said in the news release. “These deputies were serving this community when their lives were tragically taken by a reckless driver.”
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Dave Kerner, Executive Director of Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, also reflected on the arrest in a statement of his own. “Regardless of the ultimate outcome, we remember Corporal Luis Paez, Deputy Sheriff Ralph ‘Butch’ Waller, and Deputy Sheriff Ignacio ‘Dan’ Diaz as heroes of our community,” he said. “We recognize the pain and loss their families, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, and the community at large have experienced.”
It is not currently clear if Blue has entered a plea or retained legal counsel following her arrest.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to Us Weekly’s request for comment regarding an update in the case.
