A 37-year-old Duval County school teacher is accused by the Florida Highway Patrol of driving under the influence in a March wrong-way crash on Arlington Expressway that killed a woman.
According to the report, Pierre Jean-Louis was driving west in an eastbound lane on March 15 when he struck head-on a car driven by Angel Star. The 46-year-old woman was taken to Memorial Hospital where she died.
A trooper speaking with Jean-Louis at the hospital could “smell the odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his mouth.” FHP investigators said a blood draw taken the night of the crash showed Jean-Louis had a blood alcohol level of 0.235 -- nearly three times the legal limit to operate a vehicle.
A warrant for his arrest was issued Oct. 20 and Jean-Louis surrendered at the Clay County jail on Nov. 6. He was ordered held on $100,000 bond and appears to have bonded out.
Jean-Louis has worked as an adaptive physical education teacher with Duval County schools since August 2017. This fall, he has worked at Loretto Elementary, Mandarin Oaks Elementary and Greenland Pines Elementary.
Earlier this week, Duval County Public Schools said Jean-Louis had been removed from the classroom for an unspecified arrest so he could not have any contact with students.
According to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office jail database, Jean-Pierre had previous arrests for DUI involving crashes in 2013 and 2017. He pleaded guilty and served six months probation after the first arrest. The second charge, which involved a hit-and-run on the Arlington Expressway service road, he went to trial and was acquitted.
People who knew Starr told News4Jax she was a great person with a big heart.
News4Jax crime and safety expert Ken Jefferson said it is not unusual for an arrest to be made several months later in a case like this.
“When you’re talking about DUI manslaughter, they have to be very, very methodical," Jefferson said. "They have to dot all their I’s and cross all their T’s to make a case because you have to get it right the first time. You can’t go back and try to correct it.”