President-elect Trump attends memorial for Palm Beach deputies killed in crash

PALM BEACH COUNTY - A memorial service and processional paid tribute to three Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office deputies who died in a crash last month.

The service took at the iThink Financial Amphitheater at the South Florida Fairgrounds. President-elect Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis, along with thousands of law enforcement personnel, were in attendance.   

Corporal Luis Paez and deputies Butch Waller and Ignacio "Dan" Diaz were working traffic enforcement before being involved in a crash on Nov. 21 in Loxahatchee.

They were struck by a Jeep SUV while stopped on the shoulder of Southern Boulevard, just west of Seminole Pratt Whitney Road, with their motorcycles.

A woman in her 30s from Pennsylvania was driving a gray 2019 Jeep SUV eastbound within the center lane when she is believed to have encountered a slower vehicle in the center lane and "she abruptly veered to the right toward the southern shoulder," Florida Highway Patrol Lt. Indiana Miranda wrote in a news release.

The investigation continues and no charges are pending.

Paez and Waller were pronounced dead at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach. Diaz, who was critically injured, died on Nov. 25.

PBSO posted a video "to honor their memory and legacy during the ceremony."

Paying respects

The service was not open to the public who instead paid their respects to the deputies by lining the 10-mile processional route, including Okeechobee Boulevard and Crestwood Boulevard. Some people waved American flags.

People lined the streets of West Palm Beach saying goodbye to three men most had never met.

Fellow law officers in motorcycles and cruisers escorted the bodies of the men in hearses from the funeral home to the South Florida Fairgrounds. 

"I don't believe this is the end for Butch, Dan or Lou," PBSO deputy Tim McCarthy said. "Their spirits, their energy, their essence they live on. I truly believe when we leave this physicals world we don' disappear, we remain connect to those whose lives we've touched."

Instead of flowers, PBSO has requested donations to the Palm Beach County Police Benevolent Association Fund to support the families of fallen deputies.

"We appreciate your understanding and cooperation as we come together to honor our fallen heroes," PBSO said.

DeSantis ordered that the United States and State of Florida flags in Palm Beach Beach be flown at half-staff from sunrise to sunset on Tuesday. 

Memorial service

The service began at about 11:15 a.m. and ended just after 1 p.m.  

Law enforcement and government officials from all over Florida and the country honored the three and were there to support the families.

The service included music by bagpipes and drums. 

Besides DeSantis and Trump also at the service were Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody. They were in attendance but did not speak at the service.

The three all served on Trump's motorcade detail.   

U.S. Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., spoke.

"I knew them. We met at Veterans Day parades and along motorcade routes We shared the road as we fired up our Harleys on motorcycle runs, and we shared sanctuaries in churches," Mast said. "I cannot pretend that I knew them well, but they were always present, always on watch because it was their calling to protect every person in this community from danger — even those of us that they barely knew. Nothing could be more selfless."

Attendees also learned more about them, about their lives, their passions and dedication to the community they served. 

"My dad was kind, so kind he never used the word hate," Diaz' daughter Alexandria Diaz said. "He would always tell me 'don't say hate, say you dislike something.' He said hate was a nasty word that filled your heart with evil intentions."

It was solemn good bye to three officer hailed as heroes in lfie and death.

"Rest easy Dan, Butch and Lou, you'll always be there with us, every step we take, every mile we ride," McCarthy said.

In:
• South Florida
• Car Crash