What to Know
An 8-year-old girl was killed in a car crash earlier this year, and her dad is now facing charges related to the tragic incident. He has been accused of driving under the influence and speeding. The devastating crash happened almost exactly one year after the dad lost his wife.
On January 17, 2026, Joel Isaias Leiniz, 38, was driving with his three children in the car when he crashed into a concrete pole. Leiniz told investigators that he moved to avoid another vehicle then lost control of his car. Because he was traveling with his children, he didn’t believe he would have been speeding at the time, CBS 12 reported.
However, through their investigation, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office in Florida found that Leiniz allegedly had been speeding and also had a blood-alcohol concentration that was a bit over the legal limit, and was most likely higher when the accident happened.
The dad, who had worked as a youth pastor, was recently arrested because of the crash.
He has been charged with vehicular homicide and driving under the influence manslaughter, according to police. Leiniz had told investigators that he and has children had attended a church concert on the night of the crash. He said they were on their way to a Mexican restaurant when he swerved to avoid an oncoming car. After he crashed into a pole, the car burst into flames, The New York Post reported.
His 8-year-old daughter, Zoe, later died from her injuries. Everyone else in the car was injured as well. They were hospitalized after the crash.
They were still grieving a recent family tragedy when it happened.
About a year before the crash, Leiniz lost his wife after her battle with cancer. He and his wife had welcomed their three daughters together, meaning the young girls had also just recently lost their mother. During a recent court appearance, the dad said he quit his job this January to “spend more time” with his family, per CBS 12.
His attorney, Anthony Genova, described him as “a grieving newly-widowed father” who has also been dealing with “the devastating family tragedy that happened at the time of the accident.” The attorney emphasized that the crash occurred almost exactly one year after Leiniz lost his wife. According to The New York Post, she died on January 26, 2025.
“You see less than a year before this terrible crash, his young wife died a slow death of cancer and he was the sole caretaker, which depleted his savings,” he said.
As a single dad to his kids, Leiniz has relied on “Social Security survivor benefits for his children” and “the assistance of his live-in parents and sister,” Genova added.
Investigators say they found evidence that Leiniz had been speeding that night.
He was reportedly driving at 104 mph when the speed limit was 40 mph. Additional evidence, such as damage to his car, tires, and the road, also suggests that this was the case.
Additionally, investigators spoke to someone who had been working at a nightclub nearby. That person recalled seeing the car speeding prior to the crash.
While at the hospital after the crash, it was determined that the dad had a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.083. Investigators have noted that at the time the crash actually happened, Leiniz most likely would have had an even higher blood-alcohol concentration.
