BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. — Domestic violence is prevalent in Palm Beach County and accounts for 4,500 to 5,000 documented cases each year, according to the chair of the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team.
This news comes as flowers memorialize a Boynton Beach woman who was shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend earlier this week.
“Horrifying, I’m traumatized,” a neighbor, who did not want to be identified, said.
The neighbor recalled the moment she heard gunfire.
“I was home at the time, I was getting ready for work. At approximately 8:54, I glanced at the microwave,” she said, ‘Pop, pop, pop, pop, pop and I immediately dove to the ground.”
Boynton Beach police said Robens Cesar killed his 34-year-old ex-girlfriend at her apartment complex on Meadows Circle in broad daylight.
“I crawled to the window and peeked out through the blind,” she said, “and I saw my neighbor’s lifeless body behind a car.”
Investigators arrived to find the woman, dead with multiple gunshot wounds. According to the arrest report, Cesar told police they recently broke up, he was trying to convince her to get back into a relationship and he could not stand to see her with another man.
According to the report, just 45 minutes before she was shot, she went to the Boynton Beach Police department to report his following and harassing of her.
"If people are following this unfortunate story, is there something to be learned?" WPTV reporter Tory Dunnan asked.
"I think the thing we want to learn from stories like this is that stalking is a risk factor for homicide," Jennifer Rey said. "We know that a large number of people who are murdered by their partner are stalked prior to being murdered by their abusive partner."
Rey is the chief program officer at Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse (AVDA).
“I’m also the co-chair of the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team here in Palm Beach County,” she said.
It’s about learning from cases to reduce future domestic violence.
Boynton Beach
Man shot, killed ex-girlfriend after she refused to get back with him
“We do that for the purposes of creating a timeline to understand the relationship dynamics really from start to finish,” Rey said, “and determine what were the risk factors for domestic violence, homicide in that case.”
She also closely tracks numbers locally.
“It is actively happening here on a regular basis. We have in Palm Beach County, typically somewhere between 4,500 and 5,000 documented cases of domestic violence each year. And anywhere from 6 to 12 homicides related to domestic violence annually.”
To counties just to the north, a Florida Department of Law Enforcement 2020 report is the most recent indicator.
“In 2020, Martin County had 462 domestic violence reported offenses and St. Lucie County had just over 1,600 reported offenses," Rey added.
In 2020, there was one death reported in Martin County related to domestic violence and in St. Lucie County, there were three deaths.
Palm Beach County in 2020 had 10 murders.
The Boynton Beach Police Department issued a statement, saying in part:
“They’re actively investigating events which transpired immediately prior to the shooting.
The victim and the suspect, identified as Robens Cesar, were at the Boynton Beach Police Department prior to the shooting incident. Based on these events an internal affairs investigation has been authorized to ensure all actions taken were in accordance with established policies and procedures.”
Also noting the involved officer has been placed on administrative leaving pending the conclusion on the investigation.
“The only thing I can do is pray and have faith in God and he will direct my path from this point on,” the neighbor said. “It’s unfortunate this happened to her, this could happen to anyone.”
AVDA is hosting its 24th annual Race For Hope event on Saturday, Nov. 11 at John Prince Park in Lake Worth. Registration begins at 6:30 a.m.
To learn more about AVDA and its services for domestic violence victims, click here.
If you are victim of domestic violence, you can also get help by calling the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233.