Teen Busted For Throwing Woman In Swimming Pool

MAY 10--A Florida teenager is facing a battery charge after he threw a 68-year-old woman into a swimming pool after she complained about the noise level at a raucous party Saturday evening at a North Lauderdale housing complex.

As detailed in a Broward County Sheriff’s Office report, victim Nancy James, a board member of the Players Place Homeowners Association, sought to “stop an unauthorized pool party.”

As seen in the above video, after James arrived poolside, she was grabbed from behind by Leon Balfour, 16, who lifted her in the air before tumbling to the concrete pool deck. Balfour, cops allege, then “dragged the elderly victim several feet and threw her into the pool.”

James, seen at right, was “frightened and upset and sustained injuries to her leg and shoulder as a result of the incident,” according to the sheriff’s report. James, who suffered large bruises on her shoulder and leg, was treated Sunday at a local hospital.

Investigators quickly identified Balfour as the culprit and he reportedly confessed to the crime in the presence of his mother and his lawyer. “I messed up and I have to own up to it,” the report quotes Balfour as saying. Balfour’s mother, Shekita Johnson, provided cops with the red Champion shirt her son was wearing when he attacked James.

During a court appearance yesterday, a judge placed Balfour (pictured at left) on home detention, though the teen is allowed to attend school, church, and basketball practice for his travel team. (3 pages)