Youth pastor with 3 kids in the car was doing 104 mph in 40 mph zone before slamming into concrete pole and killing his 8-year-old daughter: Police

A Florida man whose daughter was killed during a car crash while he was speeding was charged in connection with her death.

Joel Leiniz, 38, was driving to a taco restaurant with his three children after leaving a church concert on the night of Jan. 17 when police said he was traveling at "a high rate of speed" while impaired. According to a criminal complaint reviewed by Law&Crime, Leiniz, a former youth pastor, was driving himself and the children down Military Trail in West Palm Beach, Florida, in an Audi Q7 SUV when he told police he "swerved" to avoid colliding with another vehicle before he drove into a concrete pole on the side of the road.

His 8-year-old daughter, Zoe, was one of three children in the back seat of the SUV. She died of her injuries at the hospital.

After the crash, police said one of the three children had not been wearing a seat belt. Leiniz told police at the hospital that he "did not think he was speeding because he had kids in the car." A witness who was working security at a nightclub near the crash location corroborated Leiniz's account that he was trying to avoid hitting another vehicle. Surveillance video also captured Leiniz's SUV swerving to avoid another vehicle.

Further investigation of the SUV's event data recorder determined that Leiniz was driving at 104 mph in a 40 mph zone before the crash that killed his daughter. He appeared to hit the brakes two seconds before the crash.

Police said that blood tests and medical records showed that Leiniz had a blood-alcohol content of 0.097 at the time of the crash, making him impaired.

More from Law&Crime: 'He was drowning too': 15-year-old boy begs drunk father who crashed into creek for help before he dies, while dad gets only minor injuries, cops say

Local NBC affiliate WPTV reported that Leiniz served as a youth pastor and ministry director at New Covenant Church. Leiniz reportedly lost his wife to cancer about a year before the crash, and the family was living off Social Security benefits and donations.

Leiniz was charged with vehicular homicide and DUI manslaughter. He was arrested on Sunday and is being held at the Main Detention Center of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office on $75,000 bond. His next court date is scheduled for Aug. 18.

The post Youth pastor with 3 kids in the car was doing 104 mph in a 40 mph zone before slamming into a concrete pole and killing his 8-year-old daughter: Police first appeared on Law & Crime.