Sober-home homicide in Lake Park has Maryland man facing first-degree murder charge
LAKE PARK — A Maryland man living in Lake Park is in the Palm Beach County Jail after his extradition on a first-degree murder charge Wednesday.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said Joshua McElhenney, 44, shot and killed a 33-year-old man on Sunday evening and then fled to Miami-Dade County, where law enforcement apprehended him at a hotel.
The sheriff's report describes the residence on the 800 block of Jasmine Drive as a sober home where McElhenney had been living prior to his arrest. Other people in the home told investigators that the man who died had accused McElhenney of erratic behavior the night before.
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During a court hearing Thursday at the Palm Beach County Jail, Circuit Judge Donald Hafele ordered McElhenney to be held without bail and assigned him a public defender. As a matter of policy, the Palm Beach County Public Defender's Office does not comment on active cases.
PBSO investigators did not disclose the name of the man who died, saying his family invoked its right to privacy under a 2018 state constitutional amendment modeled after California's Marsy's Law. It allows either crime victims or their relatives to withhold the victim's name from public reports.
According to an arrest report, deputies responded to the home shortly before 7:30 p.m. Sunday after residents reported the shooting. One witness described hearing a gunshot and then seeing McElhenney exit the bedroom where the shooting victim was found.
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"I had to take care of business," McElhenney reportedly said before he left the home and fled in a white minivan.
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Witnesses said that at that day's morning meeting, the 33-year-old had accused McElhenney of erratic behavior the night before and suggested that he be tested for drugs.
The other residents agreed and McElhenney was required to take the test. He tested positive for THC, the active ingredient for marijuana, the report said.
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The residents voted to let McElhenney stay in the home without penalty. One resident told investigators there appeared to be no animosity after the meeting, describing everyone as getting along.
The witness confirmed that McElhenney and the 33-year-old man were the only two people in bedroom when the shooting occurred.
Court records show that McElhenney has an address in the Baltimore suburb of Lutherville-Timonium, and witnesses said he left the scene driving a Dodge Caravan that had Maryland license plates.
Julius Whigham II is a criminal justice and public safety reporter for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jwhigham@pbpost.com and follow him on Twitter at @JuliusWhigham. Help support our work: Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Lake Park homicide: Sober home resident extradited to face murder charge
