battery on a law enforcement officer - News - The Coastal Star2024-03-28T16:08:10Zhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/battery+on+a+law+enforcement+officerOcean Ridge: $675 payment ends Lucibella felony sagahttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-675-payment-ends-lucibella-felony-saga2019-02-27T19:30:00.000Z2019-02-27T19:30:00.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960855692,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960855692,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" alt="7960855692?profile=original" /></a><em>Former Police Lt. Steven Wohlfiel (l-r), Richard Lucibella and his girlfriend, Barbara Ceuleers, and his attorneys, Heidi Perlet and Marc Shiner, leave the courthouse after Lucibella’s sentencing hearing. <strong>Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star</strong></em></p>
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<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>Related Story: Current and former mayors, neighbors urged <a href="https://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-current-and-former-mayors-neighbors-urged-judicial-le" target="_blank">judicial leniency</a> for Lucibella</strong></p>
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<p><strong>By Steve Plunkett</strong></p>
<p>Onetime Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella walked out of the Palm Beach County Courthouse after his trial with his bank account $675 lighter and with a dark cloud over his head gone.<br /> The felony case against the Ocean Ridge resident, which lingered in the criminal justice system for 27 months, resolved itself Feb. 21 in comparatively short order:<br /> • Prosecutors called five witnesses to testify; defense attorneys also called five.<br /> • The jury, seated Jan. 28, a Monday, spent barely five hours — including lunch the following Friday — in reaching its verdict: not guilty of felony battery on a law enforcement officer or resisting arrest with violence, but guilty of misdemeanor battery.<br /> • In a 10-minute sentencing hearing Feb. 21, Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Daliah Weiss upheld the verdict and ordered Lucibella to pay $675 in court fees and ordered no jail time.<br /> “I am going to adjudicate you guilty of the misdemeanor battery. I’m going to impose standard fines and court costs,” Weiss said as the crowded courtroom erupted in applause.<br /> Contacted days after the sentencing, Lucibella declined to say what he might do next and suggested asking The Palm Beach Post.<br /> “I’ve learned that you guys [at The Coastal Star] have a story line that you stick to and the facts sometimes just get in the way. Until that changes, no comment,” he said.<br /> At the sentencing, defense attorney Marc Shiner told the judge the “sticking point” of the case “has always been [possibly] paying out the money” to arresting Officer Nubia Plesnik, who is suing Lucibella in civil court, alleging he battered her during the Oct. 22, 2016, arrest.<br /> “My client under no way, shape or form is ever going to pay her any money. That’s why we actually had the trial, to be honest with the court,” Shiner told Weiss. <br /> The felony charges stemmed from a confrontation in Lucibella’s beachfront backyard. Police went to his home after getting calls to 911 about “shots fired.” Officers confiscated a .40-caliber handgun and found five spent shell casings on the patio.<br /> An ensuing scuffle left Lucibella, then 63, handcuffed on the ground with fractured ribs and a cut over his eye. Plesnik and Officer Richard Ermeri both complained of aches and pain afterward and went to an urgent care clinic.<br /> Assistant State Attorney Danielle Grundt and Chief Assistant State Attorney Craig Williams called to the witness stand Ocean Ridge resident Sherri Feinstein and David Castello, who was in town visiting his mother, to have them describe the gunfire they heard.<br /> Ermeri, Plesnik and since-retired Sgt. William Hallahan, who also responded that night, told jurors how, in Ermeri’s words, Lucibella was “vulgar, argumentative, aggressive and belligerent” as they investigated. “He was definitely putting up a fight,” Ermeri said.<br /> Ermeri testified that Lucibella poked him in the chest, “a forceful poke — like that,” he said, thumping his police body armor with a finger three or four times.<br /> Shiner and co-defense counsel Heidi Perlet pointed out inconsistencies in the officers’ testimony, such as when Ermeri said the backyard gate was approximately 20 feet from Lucibella’s patio while in a pretrial deposition he said 45 feet.<br /> Witnesses for the defense were Barbara Ceuleers, Lucibella’s longtime girlfriend; Ocean Ridge Mayor Steve Coz, who said Lucibella was not intoxicated about an hour before the altercation; a doctor who treated Ermeri that night; friend and then-Police Lt. Steven Wohlfiel, who was on the patio with Lucibella during the incident; and Lucibella himself.<br /> Ceuleers and Lucibella both painted the officers as the aggressors.<br /> “I was screaming at them to get off him, they were killing him,” Ceuleers testified.<br /> Lucibella said before he was taken to the ground, he persisted in trying to get an alcoholic drink to regain some control over the escalating situation.<br /> “In hindsight I think it was world-class stupid,” he testified.<br /> Lucibella also said Ermeri taunted him after he’d been handcuffed, flexing his neck from side to side like a prizefighter in the ring.<br /> Current and former Ocean Ridge mayors sent Weiss glowing letters of support on Lucibella’s behalf.<br /> “I do not know if you are aware that after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico, Mr. Lucibella personally flew desperately needed supplies to the ravaged citizens of the island at his own cost,” Coz wrote. “Do not punish Mr. Lucibella further for what can only be described as a night of blunders, not crimes.”<br /> Former Mayors Jim Bonfiglio, Geoff Pugh and Ken Kaleel also wrote the judge, urging her to be lenient, as did former Town Clerk Karen Hancsak, close Ocean Ridge neighbors, and bankers and doctors who know Lucibella from his work in the health care industry.<br /> Prosecutor Grundt told Weiss that Lucibella “has never been in trouble before” and that probation would serve no purpose.<br /> Lucibella and Shiner both said they were happy with the jury’s findings Feb. 1. <br /> “I’m pleased with the verdict, very pleased,” Lucibella said. Shiner said Lucibella’s suing the town over his arrest has “been an option since day one.”<br /> The misdemeanor battery could have resulted in up to a year in jail with a $1,000 fine. Each felony charge carried a potential sentence of five years in prison.<br /> Originally Lucibella was also charged with firing a weapon while intoxicated, a misdemeanor. But prosecutors dropped that count on the trial’s first day, undercutting Lucibella’s planned defense that he was never given a blood-alcohol or firearms test.<br /> Not having a felony conviction on his record allows Lucibella to get back his license for a federal firearms dealership and a concealed weapons permit; it also lets him run for public office again, Shiner said.</p></div>Ocean Ridge: Jurors can be told Lucibella’s age, judge ruleshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-jurors-can-be-told-lucibella-s-age-judge-rules2018-10-31T16:39:54.000Z2018-10-31T16:39:54.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p><strong>By Steve Plunkett</strong><br /> <br />Defense attorneys for onetime Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella will be able to tell jurors in his January felony trial that he is 65 years old.<br /> Judge Daliah Weiss on Oct. 12 denied prosecutor Danielle Grundt’s motion to bar any references to Lucibella’s age. “Any such reference would only serve to inflame the jury and suggest [an] improper basis for its verdict,” Grundt unsuccessfully argued.<br /> Weiss granted Grundt’s request to not allow expert witnesses to testify on legal standards for probable cause, but reserved her rulings until the trial on requests to limit expert testimony that critiques the police investigation or focuses on an issue that is “within the realm of a common layperson’s understanding.”<br /> She also reserved rulings on whether the defense can argue the search of Lucibella’s home was unlawful or the arrest was invalid.<br /> Lucibella is charged with battery on an Ocean Ridge police officer and resisting arrest with violence, both felonies, and a misdemeanor count of using a firearm while intoxicated. The charges are punishable by up to 10 years in prison. He has pleaded not guilty.<br /> The trial is scheduled to open Jan. 28.<br /> Meanwhile, the insurance company lawyers representing Lucibella in a related civil lawsuit withdrew from the case Oct. 10, citing “irreconcilable differences.” Nubia Plesnik, one of the arresting officers, is suing Lucibella for battery and negligence during the course of the arrest.<br /> Lucibella, who has a $10 million umbrella liability policy, is chief executive of a multimillion-dollar Medicare shared savings group and publishes a magazine for gun aficionados.<br /> Plesnik’s lawyer filed notice of a “proposal for settlement” of the lawsuit on Aug. 31. Lucibella’s lawyers filed their motion to withdraw two weeks later. <br /> Police went to the backyard of Lucibella’s beachfront home Oct. 22, 2016, after neighbors reported hearing gunshots. He resigned from the Town Commission that December.</p>
<p><br /><em>Dan Moffett contributed to this story.</em></p></div>Ocean Ridge: Lucibella felony trial reset for Jan. 28https://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-lucibella-felony-trial-reset-for-jan-282018-10-03T16:01:23.000Z2018-10-03T16:01:23.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p><strong>By Steve Plunkett</strong><br /> <br />Former Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella has rebuffed “multiple offers” to settle felony charges against him without going to trial, his prosecutor said.<br /> “Just so the record’s clear, what was the offer? Was it rejected? I mean, just trying to understand,” Circuit Judge Daliah Weiss asked at a status hearing Sept. 5.<br /> “There were multiple conditions that were bounced around back and forth,” Assistant State Attorney Danielle Grundt replied.<br /> Lucibella will return to Weiss’ courtroom Oct. 12 for her ruling on Grundt’s motion to limit what attorneys and witnesses for Lucibella can tell the jury. His trial was rescheduled to Jan. 28. <br /> Lucibella, 65, is charged with battery on an Ocean Ridge police officer and resisting arrest with violence, both felonies, and a misdemeanor count of using a firearm while intoxicated. The charges are punishable by up to 10 years in prison. He has pleaded not guilty.<br /> Police went to Lucibella’s backyard Oct. 22, 2016, when neighbors reported hearing gunfire. He resigned from the Town Commission seven weeks later.<br /> Lucibella’s first trial date was in April 2017 but was postponed several times. Most recently it was to start Aug. 20, but Grundt’s motion derailed that schedule.<br /> Grundt wants to keep Lucibella and defense lawyer Marc Shiner from referring to Lucibella’s age or suggesting that the case is politically motivated, among other things. <br />Such statements would “inflame the jury,” she argued in her motion.</p></div>Ocean Ridge: Lucibella says August trial will show his innocence and police officer guilthttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-lucibella-says-august-trial-will-show-his-innocence-a2018-08-01T14:57:36.000Z2018-08-01T14:57:36.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p><strong>By Steve Plunkett</strong><br /> <br />As his trial date nears on felony charges stemming from a 2016 shooting incident at his house, onetime Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella proclaimed his innocence and renewed his attacks on how Ocean Ridge police treated him.<br /> “I look forward to a public airing of the facts, including the fact that I was not intoxicated, never fired a weapon and never assaulted either of the two able-bodied officers who broke three of my ribs AFTER slamming me, face-first, into the pavement,” Lucibella said in a written statement to The Coastal Star.<br /> He and his defense attorney, Marc Shiner, went to court July 20 to renew Lucibella’s demand for a speedy trial, which they originally filed in March. The case was docketed for a calendar call Aug. 20.<br /> “OK, so a demand for speedy trial was filed, this case is already set for trial, I believe it’s set within the window,” said Circuit Judge Daliah Weiss, who left the Aug. 20 court date as set.<br /> Lucibella is charged with battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest with violence, both felonies, and firing a weapon while under the influence of alcohol, a misdemeanor. He has pleaded not guilty.<br /> After the hearing, Shiner said he refiled the demand for speedy trial to ensure that Weiss knew the timeline of the case. Judges at a calendar call hear the cases of people who are in jail first, then move to the oldest cases, he explained.<br /> He said the trial might not begin for a week or two after the calendar call. “Nothing’s certain in the courthouse,” Shiner said.<br /> Lucibella was arrested Oct. 22, 2016, after Ocean Ridge police went to his oceanfront home to answer neighbors’ reports of hearing gunfire. They confiscated a .40-caliber handgun and found five spent shell casings on the backyard patio.<br /> He and a police supervisor, Lt. Steven Wohlfiel, were both on the patio and “obviously intoxicated,” the officers said. Both men denied firing the gun. Officers later determined the seized gun was Wohlfiel’s.<br /> Lucibella resigned his vice mayor and town commissioner positions Dec. 7, 2016.<br /> His trial was first scheduled for April 2017 but was postponed to July 2017, then October, then this April and now August after Shiner and Assistant State Attorney Danielle Grundt needed more time to question witnesses and then Shiner hurt his leg. Weiss is the third judge on the case, following routine reassignments of Judges Charles Burton and Meenu Sasser.<br /> “These charges were leveled, and then doubled, in an effort to hide the abuses of power by these officers and their Chief,” Lucibella said in his statement. “I look forward to demonstrating that the Chief of Police involved himself in this investigation after admitting he’d been drinking so heavily that night, his wife had to drive him to the police station.”<br /> The State Attorney’s Office declined to comment on Lucibella’s remarks.<br />Chief Hal Hutchins said Lucibella’s statements mostly repeated claims he and Shiner have made all along.<br />“They’re entitled to say whatever they like,” Hutchins said. “We should let the criminal justice system do its job.”<br /> Early on, the chief said he had some wine with dinner that Friday night and had his wife drive to avoid even a suggestion of DUI.<br /> Nubia Plesnik, one of the arresting officers, is privately suing Lucibella over injuries she says were a result of the incident.</p></div>Ocean Ridge: Lucibella trial rescheduled to Augusthttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-lucibella-trial-rescheduled-to-august2018-05-30T18:06:53.000Z2018-05-30T18:06:53.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960798499,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img width="650" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960798499,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" alt="7960798499?profile=original" /></a><em>Former Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella confers with his lawyer Marc Shiner before his trial date was set for the week of Aug. 20. <strong>Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star</strong></em></p>
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<p><strong>By Dan Moffett and Steve Plunkett</strong></p>
<p>It could be close to the second anniversary of the shooting incident in his backyard before former Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella finally gets the day in court he says he’s wanted for so long.<br /> On May 24, Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Meenu Sasser scheduled Lucibella’s felony trial for the week of Aug. 20, adding three months to the delays and postponements that have dogged the case.<br /> Both sides told Sasser that the trial itself is unlikely to move quickly.<br /> Lucibella’s defense attorney, Marc Shiner, said he had a number of witnesses and experts to call, including one from out of state. <br /> Assistant State Attorney Danielle Grundt told the judge the prosecution expects to need extra time to screen jurors. “We expect jury selection to take a little longer than usual because of the media attention on the case,” Grundt said.<br /> Lucibella’s first trial date was set for April 10, 2017, but then was postponed three times before the end of the year after Shiner and Grundt said they needed more time to question dozens of witnesses who may be called to testify. Virtually every official in Ocean Ridge has been included on the potential witness list at one time or another.<br /> In April, Shiner asked Sasser for another delay because of an injury, a torn calf muscle.<br /> Lucibella is facing felony charges of battery on a police officer and resisting an officer with violence — as well as a misdemeanor count of using a firearm while under the influence of alcohol — stemming from the shooting incident at his oceanfront home on Oct. 22, 2016.<br /> Responding to reports of gunshots, police found Lucibella and Ocean Ridge police Lt. Steven Wohlfiel on Lucibella’s patio. Police described the men as “obviously intoxicated” and found a .40-caliber Glock handgun at the scene. Both men denied firing the weapon.<br /> A scuffle broke out between Lucibella and two responding officers, Richard Ermeri and Nubia Plesnik. The town subsequently fired Wohlfiel, and Plesnik sued Lucibella for injuries she said occurred during the altercation. Shiner has accused police of overreacting and using excessive force.<br /> Lucibella, 64, has turned down a plea deal proposal from prosecutors, saying he wanted his “day in court” to clear his name. <br /> Sasser, who this year transferred to the circuit’s criminal division from the civil side, is highly regarded by officers of the court. Last year, for the third year in a row, she received the top number of high marks from the 188 attorneys who participated in the Palm Beach County Bar Association’s evaluation of judges.<br />After the hearing, Lucibella said he could not predict whether the recent spate of school shootings might color jurors’ perceptions of people who own guns.<br />“It’s going to come out that it was a police officer that fired the weapon, not me. Does that help or hurt? Who can know?” he said.<br />“On the other hand, we’ve also seen a huge rise in reported police abuses and overreach,” Lucibella continued. “Will that taint the jury pool? Unknown.”<br />Despite the uncertainty of going to trial, Lucibella said he believes in the justice system.<br />“I’m confident, when a jury hears the facts, I’ll not be the party worrying about the future,” he said.</p></div>Ocean Ridge: Lawyer’s injury stalls Lucibella trial datehttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-lawyer-s-injury-stalls-lucibella-trial-date2018-05-02T16:00:00.000Z2018-05-02T16:00:00.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p><strong>By Emily J. Minor and Steve Plunkett</strong></p>
<p>The trial of former Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella will be scheduled a fifth time because Lucibella’s defense attorney, Marc Shiner, has a torn calf muscle.<br /> Lucibella, who appeared in court April 25 but stayed seated and silent during a brief hearing before Circuit Judge Meenu Sasser, will come back May 24 to see if a new trial date can be set. It depends, Shiner law partner Heidi Perlet said, on Shiner’s recovery.<br /> <a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960766257,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960766257,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-left" width="99" alt="7960766257?profile=original" /></a>“Naturally, I’m really disappointed,” Lucibella said after the hearing. “All I’ve asked for the past 18 months is my day in court. But my attorney’s well-being has to take precedence for now.”<br /> The jury trial, most recently set to start April 30, stems from charges filed after police came to Lucibella’s Ocean Ridge home around 9:30 p.m. Oct. 22, 2016, to investigate the sound of gunfire.<br /> Three police officers found the vice mayor, who later resigned, and former Ocean Ridge police Lt. Steven Wohlfiel, who later was fired, sitting outside on Lucibella’s back patio.<br /> Officers later said the two men were drinking and that, when they first approached, they saw one of the men with a .40-caliber Glock pistol. Neither man has admitted to firing a gun that night.<br /> The police visit quickly escalated into a contentious confrontation that put Lucibella on the ground in handcuffs. That scuffle, claims Lucibella’s legal team, left the former Ocean Ridge official with broken ribs and an injured eye. But one of the responding officers claims she was the one injured, and she’s suing Lucibella.<br /> Refusing any plea deal from the State Attorney’s Office, Lucibella is going to trial on felony charges of battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting an officer with violence. He also faces one misdemeanor count of using a firearm while under the influence of alcohol.<br /> When he and Perlet went to Sasser on Feb. 20, the soonest the judge could schedule his trial was April 30, almost 10 weeks later.<br /> His first trial date was April 10, 2017. That was postponed to the following July, then October, then this April and now, perhaps, June or July.</p></div>Ocean Ridge: Lucibella trial postponed until end of Aprilhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-lucibella-trial-postponed-until-end-of-april2018-02-28T19:12:30.000Z2018-02-28T19:12:30.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p><strong>By Steve Plunkett</strong></p>
<p>Standing outside the courtroom, former Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella could not hide his disappointment at having to wait 10 more weeks for his felony trial to begin.<br /> He and defense attorney Heidi Perlet appeared for a calendar call Feb. 20 before Circuit Judge Meenu Sasser, who set a “date certain” of April 30 for the proceedings.<br /> “We were going to get bumped anyway,” Perlet told her client, who is accused of felony battery on a law enforcement officer and two other charges.<br /> “I know that. I was just hoping we could do it in March,” Lucibella responded.<br /> The case of a burglary suspect who sought a speedy trial knocked Lucibella’s original date off the judge’s calendar. Rafael Llovera’s trial took the rest of the week, with a jury finding him guilty of a lesser charge, trespassing, along with battery of the occupant and resisting arrest without violence.<br /> Lucibella’s new trial date is a year and three weeks past the original schedule, which called for the proceedings to begin April 10, 2017.<br /> Lucibella, who also faces charges of resisting arrest with violence, another felony, and firing a weapon while under the influence of alcohol, a misdemeanor, waived his right to a speedy trial when the lawyers needed more time to question witnesses.<br /> He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.<br /> Perlet, a law partner of defense attorney Marc Shiner, said the trial will feature testimony from more than 20 witnesses.<br /> Lucibella was arrested Oct. 22, 2016, after Ocean Ridge police went to his oceanfront home to answer neighbors’ reports of hearing gunfire. They confiscated a .40-caliber handgun and found five spent shell casings on the backyard patio.<br /> He and a police supervisor, Lt. Steven Wohlfiel, were both on the patio and “obviously intoxicated,” the officers said. They later determined the seized gun was Wohlfiel’s.<br /> Lucibella resigned his vice mayor and town commissioner positions Dec. 7, 2016.<br /> His trial was postponed first to July 2017, then October, then February and now April.</p></div>Ocean Ridge: Lucibella case delayed a 4th timehttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-lucibella-case-delayed-a-4th-time2018-02-20T18:22:29.000Z2018-02-20T18:22:29.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p> The trial of former Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella, accused of felony battery on a law enforcement officer and other charges, will begin now April 30, Circuit Judge Meenu Sasser ordered Feb. 20.<br /> The case of an accused burglar who sought a speedy trial knocked Lucibella's date off the judge's calendar.<br /><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960766257,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960766257,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-left" width="99" alt="7960766257?profile=original" /></a> Lucibella's new trial date is a year and three weeks past the original schedule, which called for the proceedings to begin April 10, 2017.</p>
<p> Lucibella, who also faces charges of resisting arrest with violence, another felony, and firing a weapon while under the influence of alcohol, a misdemeanor, waived his right to a speedy trial when the lawyers needed more time to question witnesses.<br /> He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.<br /> Lucibella was arrested Oct. 22, 2016, after Ocean Ridge police went to his oceanfront home answering neighbors' reports of hearing gunfire. They confiscated a .40-caliber handgun and found five spent shell casings on the backyard patio.<br /> He and one of the officers’ supervisors, Lt. Steven Wohlfiel, were both on the patio and “obviously intoxicated,” the police said.<br /> Lucibella resigned his vice mayor and town commissioner positions Dec. 7, 2016.<br /> His trial was postponed first to July 2017, then October, then this April.</p></div>Along the Coast: Lucibella eager to proceed with rare felony trial this monthhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/along-the-coast-lucibella-eager-to-proceed-with-rare-felony-trial2018-01-31T19:24:51.000Z2018-01-31T19:24:51.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960766454,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960766454,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="345" alt="7960766454?profile=original" /></a><strong>By Noreen Marcus and Michelle Quigley</strong></p>
<p>Serious crime is uncommon in Palm Beach County’s coastal towns, and cases of resisting arrest with violence are about as rare a sight as white whales. <br /> So the upcoming trial of former Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella on felony counts of resisting arrest with violence and battery on a police officer has drawn considerable attention.<br /> Whatever happened Oct. 22, 2016, on the patio of Lucibella’s beachfront residence on Beachway North is scheduled for debate at a trial set to begin in late February in West Palm Beach Circuit Court. Judge Meenu Sasser has reserved an entire month for the proceedings.<br /><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960766257,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960766257,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-left" width="99" alt="7960766257?profile=original" /></a>Lucibella, a 64-year-old health care executive, pleaded not guilty to all charges. <br />The case’s notoriety and impact on Lucibella, who resigned from office Dec. 7, 2016, once moved Ocean Ridge Mayor Geoff Pugh to say, “Does it make the town look bad? I guess, yes.” Pugh could not be reached for comment for this story.<br /> Lucibella responded to the obvious question — why hasn’t this case been resolved?— in a text message. He wants a trial. “I’ll gladly take my chances with that.” <br /> “I have refused all overtures as to a plea,” Lucibella wrote. “Ocean Ridge’s police leadership has had their turn at bat. They may have succeeded in destroying my reputation to cover up their incompetence, but they’ll never get the chance to do it to another resident.”<br /> Resisting arrest cases represent a tiny subcategory of total felonies over the past three years in Ocean Ridge and four nearby coastal towns, according to data from the clerk and comptroller of Palm Beach County. There was one in South Palm Beach, population 1,400, and there were two in Ocean Ridge, population 1,812. Period. <br /> Why so few? <br /> “Possibly it’s a reflection of the general crime rate in those jurisdictions,” said Mike Edmondson, spokesman for the office of Palm Beach State Attorney Dave Aronberg. <br />Ocean Ridge Police Chief Hal Hutchins had another suggestion. “I would like to believe it’s because we use a lot of de-escalation skills and people skills and perhaps we just don’t have as many people that present themselves in that fashion as other communities do,” he said. <br />In the South Palm Beach case, a 30-year-old man was originally charged with felony and misdemeanor resisting arrest, reckless driving and driving with an invalid license. He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor resisting arrest and the driving violations on Oct. 20, 2016.<br /> In Ocean Ridge there have been Lucibella’s case and that of Christian Stewart of West Palm Beach. On May 20, 2017, an Ocean Ridge policeman saw Stewart jogging on A1A. Because Stewart fit the description of a suspect the officer was seeking, he tried to stop Stewart. <br /> The situation escalated when Stewart “took a fighting stance,” Officer Richard Ermeri wrote in his arrest report. Ermeri “believed that he was going to strike me at any moment.” Stewart turned out to be the wrong man and no one was hurt.<br /> Stewart was charged with both felony and misdemeanor (nonviolent) resisting arrest. Eventually the charges were dropped and Stewart paid $50 to cover prosecution costs.<br /> Ermeri was the same officer who had, seven months earlier, responded to calls from Lucibella’s neighbors that they heard gunfire coming from the direction of his house. Ermeri, Officer Nubia Plesnik and Sgt. William Hallahan found Lucibella and Lt. Steven Wohlfiel on the patio with five spent shell casings. <br /> Both men were “obviously intoxicated,” the police reported. They confiscated a .40-caliber Glock handgun and a smaller pistol from Lucibella, a weapons enthusiast who publishes a gun magazine. <br /> Accounts differ about what happened after that. The officers said Lucibella verbally and physically resisted arrest and had to be taken down to the ground to be subdued. Lucibella’s attorney Marc Shiner said police overreacted and used excessive force, which is a legal defense to the charge of battery on a law enforcement officer.<br /> Lucibella, who reportedly was wearing glasses, suffered an injury to his eye that required medical attention. <br /> According to Plesnik’s pending civil suit against him, her shoulder was hurt when she helped subdue him. Ermeri also said he was hurt in the scuffle.<br /> Their boss, Chief Hutchins, said in an interview last month that he could not say how badly the officers were injured — “I’m not a doctor.” He said they have been back on duty for some time and that, contrary to demands by Shiner, there has been no Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigation of their actions in the Lucibella incident.<br />An Internal Affairs investigation determined that the Glock was Wohlfiel’s personal property. His lawyer Ralph King of the Palm Beach County Police Benevolent Association has complained that the report produced no credible evidence Wohlfiel fired the gun. King did not respond to an email seeking comment for this story.<br /> Wohlfiel was fired, on Hutchins’ recommendation, on Jan. 4, 2017. He has filed a court action to force the Town Commission to reconsider his firing, Hutchins said. In the interview, Hutchins supported Lucibella’s right to a trial.<br /> “Would I have liked to see this case disposed of without a lot of cost to taxpayers and use of resources? Yeah, I think so, that’s the administrator in me. But in reality that’s not how our system is set up,” he said.<br /> “All the evidence will be weighed out in court before either a judge or a judge and a jury,” Hutchins said, “and that’s the best thing that could happen.”</p></div>Ocean Ridge: Lucibella trial postponed a third timehttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-lucibella-trial-postponed-a-third-time2017-11-01T19:15:59.000Z2017-11-01T19:15:59.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p><strong>By Steve Plunkett</strong><br /><br /> Former Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella’s trial will start no sooner than February.<br /> His defense attorney, Marc Shiner, and Assistant State Attorney Danielle Grundt both agreed last month to the postponement — the trial’s third delay. Circuit Judge Charles Burton rescheduled the case for Feb. 19.<br /><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960728875,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960728875,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-left" width="97" alt="7960728875?profile=original" /></a> Shiner also complained that Police Officer Nubia Plesnik’s lawyer, Richard Slinkman, was making it impossible for him to conduct a crucial deposition.<br /> Plesnik, one of the arresting officers, has filed a civil lawsuit against Lucibella claiming he intentionally pushed and injured her. That means Slinkman “is not a party” to the criminal case and can only make objections if a question infringes on attorney-client privilege, Shiner’s partner Heidi Perlet argued.<br /> “Slinkman repeatedly objected on numerous other grounds,” Perlet wrote. “He interrupted the proceedings to the point that it was not possible to proceed with the deposition.”<br />But the judge denied their request that he prohibit Slinkman from attending the deposition or order him to follow court rules on objections.<br /> Slinkman called Shiner’s depiction of his behavior “absurd and totally inaccurate.”<br /> “There was absolutely nothing wrong with the objections made,” Slinkman said. “It was simply another attempt for Lucibella and his attorneys to try to bully Officer Plesnik.”<br /> Lucibella, 64, is charged with battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest with violence — both felonies — and a misdemeanor count of using a firearm while under the influence of alcohol. He has pleaded not guilty.<br /> Plesnik, fellow Officer Richard Ermeri and Sgt. William Hallahan went to Lucibella’s home Oct. 22, 2016, after neighbors heard gunfire. They confiscated a .40-caliber handgun and found five spent shell casings on the backyard patio.<br /> They later determined the confiscated handgun belonged to Lt. Steven Wohlfiel, their supervisor, who was with Lucibella during the incident. Both men were “obviously intoxicated,” Ermeri said in his arrest report.<br /> Lucibella’s criminal trial was originally set to begin in April, then pushed back to June and then October to give Grundt and Shiner time to question all the witnesses.<br /> Shiner scheduled depositions of Hallahan and Lt. Richard Jones, who conducted the internal affairs investigation of the incident, for Nov. 7 and for Plesnik on Dec. 6. <br /> He also filed a list of 46 people he may ask to testify at the trial, including an expert witness on the use of force and another expert on police procedures.</p></div>Ocean Ridge: Lucibella lawyer hints at plans to sue townhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-lucibella-lawyer-hints-at-plans-to-sue-town2017-10-04T16:49:52.000Z2017-10-04T16:49:52.000ZThe Coastal Starhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/TheCoastalStar<div><p><strong>By Steve Plunkett</strong><br /><br /> Former Ocean Ridge Vice Mayor Richard Lucibella will sue the town and at least one of the officers who arrested him in an October 2016 shooting incident at his home, one of his lawyers told a Palm Beach County circuit judge.<br /> Lucibella believes, “among other claims,” that Officer Nubia Plesnik “used unnecessary force, that he was wrongfully arrested, that he was injured, and that as a result of his wrongful arrest he was divested of his business interests and forced to resign from his government position,” lawyer Laurie Adams says in a document filed in the civil case Plesnik brought against him.<br /> But Lucibella said the statement was primarily a counterclaim to Plesnik’s lawsuit.<br /> “To date, I have not consulted with any attorney regarding taking action against the town,” he said.<br /> Lucibella, who is set to go on trial this month on felony charges of resisting arrest with violence and battery on a law enforcement officer, asked that Plesnik’s lawsuit be postponed until the criminal trial is over.<br /> Lucibella has pleaded not guilty to both felony charges and a third, misdemeanor charge of using a firearm while under the influence of alcohol. Judge Charles Burton has blocked off four weeks for the criminal trial, which is scheduled to begin Oct. 23.<br /> Plesnik, fellow Officer Richard Ermeri and Sgt. William Hallahan went to Lucibella’s home last Oct. 22 after neighbors reported hearing gunshots. They confiscated a .40-caliber handgun and found five spent shell casings on the backyard patio.<br /> Lt. Steven Wohlfiel, their supervisor, was with Lucibella, and both men were “obviously intoxicated,” the officers said. Police later determined the confiscated handgun belonged to Wohlfiel.<br /> Plesnik’s lawsuit against Lucibella claims he intentionally pushed and injured her. Her lawyer said she can perform all her duties as a police officer but continues to feel pain in her shoulder.<br /> Lucibella has a $10 million insurance policy for personal liability protection. He resigned as vice mayor and town commissioner in December.<br /> The lawsuit put Lucibella in a legal Catch-22 situation, defense lawyer Adams said. If it were to proceed, Lucibella would want to use his Fifth Amendment privilege to not jeopardize the criminal case.<br /> But under court rules, he must file his counterclaims against Plesnik when he first responds to her lawsuit, and making a counterclaim would allow her lawyers to compel him to answer questions.<br /> “Essentially, the defendant is placed in the position of choosing between two constitutional rights,” Adams wrote.<br /> Circuit Judge Cymonie Rowe had not ruled on the postponement request prior to <em>The Coastal Star</em>’s deadline. <br /> Lucibella’s criminal defense attorney, Marc Shiner, has previously said that his client was wrongfully arrested.</p></div>