A Pembroke Pines man wanted by police in the sexual assault of his girlfriend drove his BMW across the median of Interstate 75 and into an oncoming SUV on Sunday, resulting in his own death and the deaths of a Weston mother and her two daughters returning from a basketball tournament.
Jeffrey M. Melvin, 30, who lived in the Walnut Creek neighborhood, was westbound on I-75 when his black BMW convertible sped across the grassy median and clipped a boat being towed by a Dodge pickup before crashing head-on into the Weston family's Ford Expedition about 3:15 p.m., according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
The SUV burst into flames. Killed were Christine Lisy, 43, and her two daughters, Monica, 18, and Madeline, 12.
Robert Lisy learned Sunday night that his wife and their two daughters were dead.
''Their potential was thrown out the window because of a reckless driver,'' Robert Lisy said. ''He basically snuffed out the lives of wonderful kids.''
Robert Lisy said his wife and daughters had been in Tampa over the weekend for a basketball tournament in which Madeline was playing. Madeline, a seventh-grader, played forward for the junior varsity team at American Heritage Middle School in Plantation.
''Our family is in ruins,'' said Robert Lisy, who is left alone to raise a 10-year-old son.
A witness, Giselle Freire of Miramar, said the crash happened so quickly that no one in the SUV had a chance to escape.
''It just crossed really quick to the other side,'' she said of the BMW. ''It hit the van. The van was in the air. And when it landed, it just exploded.''
Freire watched as fire engulfed the three in the SUV.
''It was horrible,'' said Freire.
There is no barrier in the median along that stretch of I-75. The crash, just west of Bonaventure Boulevard, sent up a plume of smoke visible for miles.
Pembroke Pines police said the BMW's driver is the same man accused of beating and sexually battering his girlfriend at his Walnut Creek home about 20 minutes before the crash. The woman, who called 911, was treated at a local hospital.
Police said Melvin fled the home in the 7200 block of Northwest 23rd Street before they arrived. They notified other local law enforcement to be on the lookout for the man. They also checked local hospitals because they believed he might have been injured during the assault.
UNDER INVESTIGATION
Highway Patrol Lt. Bill Ferrell said troopers were investigating the cause of the crash, including the possibility that Melvin may have purposely driven into oncoming traffic at a high rate of speed.
On Sunday night, Melvin's father, Mitch Melvin, said he had last seen his son a month ago.
''It's like a nightmare,'' said Mitch Melvin, of Lehigh Acres in Lee County. ''I'm too emotional right now.''
Authorities say Melvin may have been fleeing to the Fort Myers area, where he has family.
Witnesses indicated the three in the SUV may not have seen the BMW heading right for them.
Vance Poole of Tamarac, who was towing a boat with his Dodge pickup, said he saw Melvin's car crossing the median. He swerved to the right and the BMW sideswiped the boat. The Ford SUV was immediately behind the Dodge.
''I've never in my life seen an accident like this,'' said John Tobon, 36, who came upon the wreck just as firefighters were arriving. ''There was no hope for these people.'' The three bodies were pulled from the SUV about three hours after the crash. Near the SUV lay a charred Cleveland Indians souvenir baseball, playing cards, crushed eyeglasses, a pink purse, and a T-Mobile Sidekick cellular device with faint music still playing on it.
The BMW was cut in half. Part of the trunk lay 20 feet from the car. The engine and the transmission sat in the middle of the road.
The crash closed eastbound lanes of I-75 for more than four hours.
FASHION MODEL
Robert Lisy said the BMW's driver ''ripped the heart out of our family.'' He said his 18-year-old daughter Monica was a successful runway fashion model in New York.
She had come to town for one of her regular visits.
Madeline, who wanted to be a doctor, was a standout power forward for American Heritage's junior varsity team. She had been named MVP, Robert Lisy said. Her sister and mother watched her play in the tournament in Tampa.
'TERRIBLE FEELING'
When the three were late arriving back home Sunday, Robert felt something was wrong. ''I had a terrible feeling, and then police came to the door,'' he said.
Christine Lisy, a former teacher, was a homemaker. She and Robert were married for 20 years.
''My wife was the heart and soul of the family,'' he said. ''She loved her family. she always had a smiling face.''
