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Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Yahoo
He already was serving one life sentence. At age 78, he got a second one for a 1976 rape.
WEST PALM BEACH — A 78-year-old man currently serving one life sentence received a second one after a jury found him guilty during his retrial in the 1976 rape of a teenage babysitter in Boca Raton. Circuit Judge Caroline Shepherd imposed the new sentence on John MacLean during a hearing on May 12, just days after jurors convicted him on one count of armed sexual battery. In imposing the sentence, Shepherd spoke about the victim, a woman who in October 1976 was 15 years old and tending to children at a neighbor's home when MacLean broke in and raped her twice. "I cannot imagine a more vulnerable, innocent child and what she actually endured," Shepherd said. Immigration crackdown: He played Jesus on Good Friday. Ten days later, he was deported to Guatemala. MacLean, of Pompano Beach, is serving the first life sentence in a separate case from 1977 in which a jury convicted him of sexually assaulting a young mother in Boca Raton while her two children slept nearby. Both cases remained unsolved until 2012, when Boca Raton police said they uncovered DNA that linked MacLean to four sexual assaults. Authorities arrested him at his home. West Palm Beach: Three die of drug overdoses within hours; police fear synthetic opioid involved Police said the DNA also connected MacLean to the 1976 rapes of two sisters, who were 14 and 18 years old. However, because state lawmakers didn't lift the statute of limitations for armed sexual battery until after those attacks, prosecutors could not charge MacLean with those assaults. MacLean had also been charged in 1981 with rapes in Miami and Boca Raton, but the cases were dismissed. In 2018, a jury convicted MacLean in separate trials for armed sexual battery. However, he received a new trial in the 1976 babysitter case in 2020 when the Fourth District of Appeal ruled that the trial court erred by not informing the jury that it could have convicted MacLean on a less serious charge of sexual battery. The appellate court upheld his conviction and life sentence in the 1977 case. Shepherd rejected a request from the defense that MacLean be given a sentence of time served, instead crediting him with 4,586 days, or 12 years and 6 months, spent in jail or prison over the course of the two trials. Julius Whigham II is a criminal justice and public safety reporter for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jwhigham@ and follow him on Twitter at @JuliusWhigham. Help support our work: Subscribe today. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Man serving life sentence gets second one in 1976 Boca Raton rape
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
See photos of new self-driving shuttle roaming downtown West Palm Beach
Driverless technology has come to downtown West Palm Beach with the debut of its new self-driving minibus making its way around CityPlace. Boca Raton-based tech company Guident debuted its autonomous bus to pick up passengers along its one-mile route connecting the West Palm Beach Brightline train station and the parking garage on Sapodilla Avenue and Hibiscus Street. The vehicle is almost driverless. A human operator on an Xbox video game controller occupied one seat on its initial run. The Xbox was plugged into the shuttle to manually steer it if its self-driving software didn't stop the bus when people or things suddenly blocked it. Chris Persaud covers transportation in Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post. Email news tips and ideas to cpersaud@ This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Photos: Self-driving shuttle in downtown West Palm Beach
USA Today
13-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Shane Lowry 'pissed off', cuts media session short to avoid saying 'something stupid'
Shane Lowry 'pissed off', cuts media session short to avoid saying 'something stupid' AUGUSTA, Ga. — Shane Lowry was within three shots of the lead Saturday with three holes to play. But in the last hour, his chances of winning his second major and first Masters took a major hit. Lowry bogeyed his final two holes to finish with a 72, keeping him at 5 under for the tournament and tied for sixth place. He is seven shots behind Rory McIlroy, who separated himself with an eagle on the par-5 15th. McIlroy shot 66. "I felt like I let a really good day go there at the end," said Lowry, who birdied the second and third holes and played the final 16 in 2 over. "So I'm obviously disappointed. But just have to pick myself up and get some rest tonight and get after it tomorrow." While Lowry and McIlroy are best friends and hang out at home (both live in Jupiter, Florida), Lowry was in no mood to talk about, well, much of anything after awhile. Lowry was asked if he found himself looking back at McIlroy. "I'm not going to stand here and talk about Rory for 10 minutes," he said. "I'm trying to win the tournament, as well. I know that's what y'all want me to talk about, but I've just had a s*** finish, I've got a chance to win the Masters tomorrow, and I'm going to go hit some balls." After answering three more questions, including talking about the "unbelievable atmosphere" and the "roars" he heard for McIlroy, who was in the group behind him, Lowry cut the interview short. "I think we need time," he said speaking to the media so soon after a tough finish. "I think I need a half an hour now to sit there and gather my thoughts. I can't be coming to talk to you guys straightaway. It shouldn't be happening. I don't agree with it." Lowry referenced the controversy over Collin Morikawa refusing to talk after losing the lead late at the Arnold Palmer Invitational last month, and 30-minute cool down period afforded tennis players after a match. "I feel like we should have the same thing," he said. "That's how I feel. I'm probably going to say something stupid. I probably already have said something stupid because I'm pissed off right now. I'm just going to leave, okay?" Tom D'Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@
USA Today
10-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Jack Nicklaus on hitting commemorative shot at Masters: 'Just don't kill anybody'
Jack Nicklaus on hitting commemorative shot at Masters: 'Just don't kill anybody' Show Caption Hide Caption Lucas Glover on the fun and tradition of the Par 3 Contest Lucas Glover says the Par 3 Contest is all about family, fun, and unforgettable moments that his kids look forward to every year. The Masters Player expressed gratitude for the opportunity to start the Masters at Augusta National, referring to it as "holy ground." AUGUSTA, Ga. — Jack Nicklaus had three objectives Thursday morning when he stepped to the first tee at Augusta National as one of three honorary starters for the Masters: "Make sure I don't trip." "Make sure I get the tee in the ground without falling down." "Just don't kill anybody." Check. Check. And check. Nicklaus, 85, Gary Player, 89, and Tom Watson, 75, have combined to win 11 Masters. Thursday morning, they took their customary spot at the first tee with each hitting one shot before turning the course over to the 95 golfers chasing the season's first major championship. Nicklaus, the six-time Masters winner from North Palm Beach; Player, the Jupiter Island resident with three Green Jackets; and Watson, who's won two Masters, walked to the tee box soon after the sun rose on a cool morning. "Being on the tee with two such wonderful ambassadors for golf, you walk out there, and the enthusiasm walking through that first tee experience is something that you … I think the word that come that comes to my mind, I'm standing here for the 67th time, and I think the word is gratitude, just being here," Player said. "It's an honor to be at this … as the Scottish people say, the holy ground." Hundreds arrived in the dark and had camped out at the tee box, lined up five to 10 rows deep along the rope and many more looking on from the banks around the hole. And all agreed with Watson, whose primary thought was to "get it airborne." More: Masters leaderboard live updates 2025: Today's tee times, where to watch first round "That is the largest fairway, the widest fairway," Watson said. "So if you miss that fairway, you haven't hit a very good shot. I watched both Gary and Jack, they put it down the left side there so he had a good angle into the green." Said Nicklaus: "Oh, absolutely." Tom D'Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Families of WPB police officers who died of COVID-19 win $90,000 settlements from city
The families of two West Palm Beach police officers who died of COVID-19 are receiving payouts from the city. The City Commission this month approved $90,000 settlements with the families of Officer Anthony Testa and Officer Robert Williams, both of whom died from complications of the viral disease in 2021. Williams, 47, was a 20-year veteran of the department when his death was announced in August 2021. Testa, 36, was a four-year veteran who died a month later, in September 2021. Neither officer had been vaccinated against the disease, the police department said. In both cases, the officers' families filed workers' compensation claims, arguing that each officer 'was injured in the course and scope of his employment,' city records show. A police department spokesperson and an attorney for the families did not respond to messages seeking comment. MEDICAL NEWS: What these Palm Beach County officials would do differently on COVID-19 Testa and Williams are the only known West Palm Beach police officers whose deaths were linked to COVID-19. At least five Palm Beach County sheriff's deputies also died from the disease: Jose Diaz-Ayala, Maurice Ford, Angela Chavers, Jacinto Navarro and Carlos Hernandez. Both settlements were approved by commissioners without discussion at their March 3 meeting. Andrew Marra is a reporter at The Palm Beach Post. Reach him at amarra@ This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: West Palm Beach settles with families of officers who died of COVID-19
